Guitar tablature is a universal and well-known concept in the world of (you guessed it) guitar playing. It is a way for us musicians to play close to any song without really knowing how to read sheet music (don’t undermine sheet music though; you will benefit from learning both musical and guitar tablature, but it isn’t required).
Now I assume if you’re reading this, you already know how to read guitar tabs. So we’ll just get to the good stuff! I will be listing three different tabs that are pretty standard for most beginner guitarists, and they will all be very simple, so don’t worry about getting a hard one.
Come as You Are (Nirvana)
Making use of only the top two strings, this tab by Nirvana is very simple and easy to learn. The band was actually renowned greatly for writing amazing songs with simple riffs and tablature. The small amount of different frets needed further adds to its simplicity, solidifying it as an accessible tab to start out with.
Happy Birthday
Happy Birthday is the most played song in history, and finding someone who doesn’t know it would be a task even Indiana Jones wouldn’t be up for. The tab makes use of a few different frets, but they’re all set on the high e string, which knocks the difficulty down a lot. While it may take some time to move your hand up and down your guitar quick enough, you’ll soon be playing this little tune for your mom’s or dad’s birthday. Trust me, they’ll love it.
Smoke on the Water (Deep Purple)
Now this is a little more complicated than the previous two. Smoke on the Water, is not only one of the most popular riffs for a guitarist to play, but it also has fairly simple frets to hit. Its only trick is that you must play both the D and G strings at the same time. It’s not as hard as it sounds, because the notes on both strings are exactly the same. The only difference you need to worry about is playing with two fingers instead of one. It’s easiest to have your first finger on the D string, and your second on the G string.
Here´s a cool guitar lesson on a famous intro from Iron Maiden:
WASTED YEARS GUITAR INTRO
Once you begin practicing these tabs, it’s always good to start out slow. The right tempo will come as your fingers remember where they need to be. So get cracking, and play your hearts out, folks!
I also want to recommend you a great guitar course for learning tons of entire songs! Check this out:
GUITAR SONG COLLECTION
Making use of only the top two strings, this tab by Nirvana is very simple and easy to learn. The band was actually renowned greatly for writing amazing songs with simple riffs and tablature. The small amount of different frets needed further adds to its simplicity, solidifying it as an accessible tab to start out with.
Happy Birthday
Happy Birthday is the most played song in history, and finding someone who doesn’t know it would be a task even Indiana Jones wouldn’t be up for. The tab makes use of a few different frets, but they’re all set on the high e string, which knocks the difficulty down a lot. While it may take some time to move your hand up and down your guitar quick enough, you’ll soon be playing this little tune for your mom’s or dad’s birthday. Trust me, they’ll love it.
Smoke on the Water (Deep Purple)
Now this is a little more complicated than the previous two. Smoke on the Water, is not only one of the most popular riffs for a guitarist to play, but it also has fairly simple frets to hit. Its only trick is that you must play both the D and G strings at the same time. It’s not as hard as it sounds, because the notes on both strings are exactly the same. The only difference you need to worry about is playing with two fingers instead of one. It’s easiest to have your first finger on the D string, and your second on the G string.
Here´s a cool guitar lesson on a famous intro from Iron Maiden:
WASTED YEARS GUITAR INTRO
Once you begin practicing these tabs, it’s always good to start out slow. The right tempo will come as your fingers remember where they need to be. So get cracking, and play your hearts out, folks!
I also want to recommend you a great guitar course for learning tons of entire songs! Check this out:
GUITAR SONG COLLECTION 
