101 Best Blues Songs to Learn on Guitar
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21. Boogie Chillen | John Lee Hooker
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Discover this iconic blues jam by John Lee Hooker. This one uses a capo and is in an open A tuning. Check out a longer post about it here.
22. Boogie Woogie | Tommy Dorsey
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Here’s a fun old-school blues in the key of E. The original riff was played on the piano in the key of F, but here is a great way to play it in the key E on guitar.
23. Boom Boom | John Lee Hooker
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
John Lee Hooker originally recorded this tune in 1961, and music critics called it "the greatest pop song he ever wrote".
24. Born Under A Bad Sign | Albert King
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
The majority of this song is an 8-bar blues chord progression in the key of C#. It features biting leads and big string bends from the legend Albert King!
25. Bright Lights, Big City
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Here’s a classic Jimmy Reed-style rhythm in the key of A. This groove is great to use as a blues comping pattern in other songs as well.
26. Call Me The Breeze | J.J. Cale
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Here’s a low-down funky blues in the key of F#. For this one, I play it in E and use a capo on the 2nd fret.
27. Call Me The Breeze | Lynyrd Skynyrd
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
This version takes the J.J. Cale recording up a couple of notches. This blues is in the key of A and uses a double-timing blues progression. Check out a longer lesson on this one here.
28. Catfish Blues | Muddy Waters
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
This is a guitar style I call the one-chord blues and it was used by many musicians like Jimi Hendrix, John Lee Hooker, and Hubert Sumlin/Howlin’ Wolf.
29. Chitlins Con Carne | Stevie Ray Vaughan
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Originally written by Kenny Burrell this Stevie Ray Vaughan version is a funky boogaloo groove in the key of C.
30. Coffee Blues | Mississippi John Hurt
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Ready to learn some alternating thumb-style folk fingerpicking? Give this blues a try in the key of A.
Coffee Blues | Mississippi John Hurt | Part 2
31. Cold Shot | Stevie Ray Vaughan
Cold Shot | Stevie Ray Vaughan
Level: 🎸🎸🎸Advanced
This blues is in the key of Am and uses a classic Stevie-style shuffle in the rhythm. The groove in the guitar part is very similar to Pride & Joy.
32. Crossroads | Cream
Level: 🎸🎸🎸Advanced
Originally written by Robert Johnson, this live version may be the holy grail of live blues guitar solos.
33. Damn Right, I've Got The Blues | Buddy Guy
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Here’s a classic Chicago-style blues in the key of A by none other than the legend Buddy Guy.
34. Double Trouble | Otis Rush
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Here’s a blues groove in the key of Dm. This part combines a bass line together with a standard minor blues progression.
35. Feels Like Rain | Buddy Guy
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Buddy Guy demonstrates in this song how the guitar can provide accompaniment like a piano. Here he is using a rhythm style similar to Jimi Hendrix and Curtis Mayfield.
36. Four Until Late | Cream
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
Another Robert Johnson classic performed by Cream. Eric Clapton is a huge Robert Johnson fan.
37. Further On Up The Road | Eric Clapton
Level: 🎸🎸🎸Advanced
This Texas-style shuffle is in the key of G and was first recorded in 1957 by Bobby "Blue" Bland. In this lesson, we’ll look at the classic version Eric Clapton played at the Last Waltz concert with the band.
38. Get It On | T. Rex
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
This one isn’t a traditional blues, however, the guitar part is based on a classic blues shuffle rhythm pattern in the key of E.
39. Going Down | Freddie King
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
This blues standard was recorded by a number of legendary blues musicians. In this lesson, we’ll look at the Freddie King version and use a driving guitar part in the key of D.
40. Good Morning Little School Girl | Muddy Waters
Level: 🎸🎸Intermediate
This song was originally written by Sonny Boy Williamson, in this lesson we’ll look at Muddy Waters's cover from the Folk Singer album.
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