Top 10 Easy Beginner Riffs for Electric Guitar

Counting down the top 10 easy electric guitar songs for beginners, with short tutorials for each riff. Full longer tutorials are available free in my 10 Day Electric Guitar course.

Number 10: "Seven Nation Army" - main riff uses 7-7-10-7-5-3-2 on the low E string. The chorus adds a variation: 7-7-10-7-5-3-5-3-2. Originally uses an octave pedal for the bass sound, but we're playing it straight.

Number 9: "Brain Stew" by Green Day - massively influential simple riff using power chords. Index finger at fret 5, ring finger at fret 7, optional pinky on string 4. Move down through frets 5-3-2-1, then back to the E5 power chord.

Number 8: "Heard It Through the Grapevine" (Creedence version) - pattern is 0-0-3-2 repeated. Important technique: thumb resting over the top to anchor your hand, essential for standing up playing and later lead guitar work.

Number 7: "Wild Thing" by The Troggs - three basic open chords (A-D-E) in a classic riff pattern, perfect for learning open chord changes.

Number 6: "My Generation" by The Who - starts at third fret, playing 3-3-3-3-1-1. The fret numbers line up with finger numbers: finger 3 plays fret 3, finger 1 plays fret 1, making it easy to remember.

Number 5: "Misty Mountain Hop" by Led Zeppelin - starts at fret 5 with ring finger, then index at fret 3, then open string. Great for building finger coordination.

Number 4: "Satisfaction" by The Rolling Stones - iconic riff in tab: 2-2-4-5, then 5-4 with a slide. Uses that signature fuzz pedal tone.

Number 3: "20th Century Boy" by T. Rex - alternates between open string and fret 3 in a specific rhythm: 0-0-3-0-3-0-3-0. The key is learning the rhythm - sing it, tap it out, tap along to the song to learn it faster.

Number 2: "TNT" by AC/DC - simplified single-string version using frets 0-3-5. Pattern is 0-3-5-3-5-3-0(mute)-3-5-3-5-3 (quick). The tricky part is the rhythm, particularly that quick 3-5-3 sequence. Great for finger dexterity using index at fret 3 and ring finger at fret 5.

Number 1: "Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple - the most common first riff for electric guitarists who stick with it. Start with open low E string, palm mute by laying your palm over all six strings to silence unwanted strings. Pattern is 0-3-5, then 0-3-6-5. Uses the dotted frets (3rd and 5th) plus the 6th fret between the dots. Palm mute before each note for that signature chunky sound.

Amp settings demonstrated on Boss Katana brown sound with EQ neutral, gain at 5/10. Humbuckers give heavier overdrive; single coils sound cleaner so turn up the gain if needed.