Classic Rock
Guitar Lessons

For most beginners, I recommend starting with either "Highway to Hell" by AC/DC or "Iron Man" by Black Sabbath. Both songs use simple power chord shapes, slow-to-moderate tempos, and iconic riffs that you'll recognize immediately — which makes staying motivated so much easier. "Sweet Home Alabama" is another excellent starting point if you prefer something with a bit more groove. The goal at the beginning is to get a song under your fingers that sounds great even at your current level, and these three deliver that fast.

The iconic fingerpicked intro can be learned in a few focused practice sessions — maybe a week or two if you're practicing daily. The full song, including the chord progression and the building intensity toward the end, typically takes a few months to play comfortably all the way through. The key is not rushing the intro. Once your right hand has the fingerpicking pattern memorized and flowing naturally, the rest of the song opens up. My lesson breaks it into stages so you can get wins early and keep building from there.

It depends on the song, but honestly — start with whatever guitar you have. Songs like "Wish You Were Here," "Hotel California," and "Nothing Else Matters" were written for acoustic and sound fantastic that way. Songs like "Back in Black," "Thunderstruck," and "Crazy Train" were designed for electric and benefit from the right tone and distortion. That said, every single song on this page can be played on either guitar. Electric makes the heavy riffs feel more authentic; acoustic is quieter and more forgiving for learning. Use what you have and upgrade when it makes sense.

The core techniques that come up again and again in classic rock are: power chords (essential for AC/DC, Sabbath, Metallica), palm muting (critical for getting the right heavy tone), basic fingerpicking patterns (Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Eagles), pentatonic scale runs for simple lead playing, and hammer-ons and pull-offs (which show up everywhere from Thunderstruck to classic blues-rock). You don't need to master all of these before starting — each lesson on this page introduces the techniques relevant to that specific song, so you build skills naturally as you learn songs you love.

Absolutely. A lot of intermediate players have gaps in the fundamentals — rhythm feel, proper muting technique, tone shaping — that these songs are perfect for addressing. Songs like "Thunderstruck," "Nothing Else Matters," and "Hotel California" have layers that even experienced players find genuinely challenging when they go deep on them. My lessons are structured to give beginners a clear path forward while offering enough detail that intermediate players pick up nuances they may have been glossing over for years.

Classic rock spans a huge range of tones, but a few principles apply broadly. For AC/DC-style crunch, aim for moderate gain, scooped mids, and let the amp breathe — it's not as high-gain as people think. For Metallica and heavier sounds, you want tight, high-gain distortion with pronounced mids. For Zeppelin and bluesy tones, a semi-clean amp with the guitar's volume knob doing the work sounds incredible. For Pink Floyd, keep the gain low and focus on delay and reverb for that spacious atmosphere. Start simple: a good clean tone and a decent overdrive pedal will get you 80% of the way there for most classic rock songs.