Title says it all really. In this article, I’ll be listing 24 easy guitar solos. These are guitar solos that can be learned by any guitarist. Naturally, some of these guitar solos will be more of a challenge than others, but they’re all achievable and in reach even if you’re a beginner. These solos are still ideal even if you’re not a beginner. Learning new things is never a bad thing.
This is a long list, so I won’t make the introduction any longer than it needs to be, and I won’t pad the piece with any irrelevant information. There are just a couple of small things that I’d like to point out before we dive in.
Firstly, allow me to outline what I mean by easy. In this context, I consider “easy” to be a piece of lead guitar that can be played by anyone. That doesn’t mean that you won’t run into any hurdles with the material below. Easy means that the solos aren’t out of anyone’s reach. It doesn’t mean that you won’t have to put in effort in order to learn them. Please don’t see the title of this article and get discouraged if you can’t play some of them. I never said, “solos that don’t require work and practice”.
One extra note on the subject of the easy definition. I’m not going to do the thing where I say “this is easy for anyone” when it actually isn’t. I know what guitarists can be like at times… No, I’ve tried quite hard to keep this list to actual easy guitar solos.
Secondly, if you’re going to learn any of these guitar solos, don’t just learn the solo. Learn the whole song.
With that out of the way, let’s get to the list. This list is in no particular order.
Easy Guitar Solos #1 Can’t Stop – Red Hot Chili Peppers
Can’t Stop by Red Hot Chilli Peppers is a track known for its main vocal hook and guitar riff, not for its guitar solo which boasts a simple rhythm and big bends. This raw sounding solo follows a rather peaceful passage in the track so despite the simplicity, it packs quite a punch. The guitar solo is truly only “solo” for a short time. The lead is soon joined by the vocals. It really is an ideal guitar solo for the beginner guitarist because very little can go wrong.
Easy Guitar Solos #2 Smells Like Teen Spirit – Nirvana
The Smells Like Teen Spirit guitar solo is very rough around the edges which will be ideal for many. It’s a solo that does the same thing as a few others on this list. It creates an instrumental version of the melody. If you’re familiar with the rhythm and feel of the track, this solo will be a cake walk. It may be simple in composition, but it doesn’t lack punch or attitude.
Nirvana Smells Like Teen Spirit TAB and guitar lesson
Easy Guitar Solos #3 Boulevard of Broken Dreams – Greenday
I remember when everyone was using the octave approach in their songs. As long as you can play those little two finger octave chords, this one won’t pose any problems for you at all. I actually quite like this approach to instrumental passages. Very effective when done right, and Greenday got it very right here. The pace and the overall groove of the track are also helpful in making this an easy guitar solo. There’s no danger of a guitarist getting lost in this one.
Easy Guitar Solos #4 Seven Nation Army – White Stripes
Seven Nation Army by the White Stripes is one of those songs that is often linked to the beginner guitarist world. This is because of the fact that it’s relatively easy to play and that includes the guitar solo which is but a stone throw away to the feel and rhythm of the main riff that’s performed throughout. This is a solo that sounds pretty epic, but you don’t have to go out of your way to learn it. If you’ve mastered the rest of the track, mastering the solo won’t require much more effort.
Easy Guitar Solos #5 Rock n Roll Star – Oasis
Next, we have a good old loud rock n roll feel good track from the acclaimed Oasis album Definitely Maybe. Rock n Roll Star is one of my favourite Oasis tracks thanks to its big hook and fun to perform guitar parts and it’s big and powerful impactful sound. One could almost expect the solo to go further than it did but it’s a controlled lead guitar performance that sticks to simple phrasing and rhythm and it remains tightly within the groove of the track making it easy for any guitarist who wants to learn it. The solo is just right for the track, and just right for a beginner guitarist.
Easy Guitar Solos #6 Heartbreak Hotel – Elvis Presley
Heartbreak Hotel features a dynamically impressive Elvis at his absolute best. It also features an easy guitar solo that’s just perfect for this list. It’s loud and punchy and very much in the rock n roll style. It sounds awesome but it shares the instrumental section with the keys making it rather short. Looking to branch out into rock n roll lead guitar? The solo from Heartbreak Hotel maybe the perfect place to start. It gives you a cool sample without making you commit up front.
Easy Guitar Solos #7 Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton
Here, we have a lovely track by Eric Clapton with a soft and gentle feel and elegant melody. Lead guitar is utilised throughout the track, most notably with the soft main guitar riff. The main guitar riff is an easy one and it also lays the foundations for the short but very sweet lead guitar section at the end of the track which takes that riff and branches out slightly into more emotive and passionate licks. I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “play with feel”. Well, if you want to experience that, this may be the track for you.
Easy Guitar Solos #8 Dance the Night Away – The Mavericks
Another quality track here. This time it’s the track Dance the Night Away by The Mavericks. This is a big song with big sounds but not one that’s particularly focused on the guitar. Things change during the short guitar solo section though as the guitar is featured at the forefront with a simple yet very effective solo. The job of this guitar solo is to simply bridge us to the next section so nothing crazy happens. This is a nice beginner friendly guitar solo which utilises just a handful of notes to great effect.
Easy Guitar Solos #9 Folsom Prison – Johnny Cash
Folsom Prison is one of Johnny Cash’s greatest songs. It sounds very…. Johnny Cash (that’s a good thing). It’s not a long track sadly and the guitar solo follows that same trend. If you want to learn the Folsom Prison guitar solo, you’ll only need to learn four bars of true lead and, the second two are a repeat of the first two. There are just two bright little licks that you need to get under your fingers, but those licks achieve a lot in that short space of time.
Johnny Cash Folsom Prison TAB and Guitar Lesson
Easy Guitar Solos #10 Angels – Robbie Williams
I’m from the same town as Robbie. The only difference between myself and him is that he got out and became successful. Anyway, Angels has a lovely emotive little lead part toward the end of the track. It’s a big sounding solo and the guitar tone is epic. The phrasing uses the repetitive approach, and this is a relatively long guitar solo, but one where there isn’t a great deal of notes to learn. An ideal one for those just branching out into the world of lead guitar because you’re playing lead for a while, but there isn’t much to remember.
Easy Guitar Solos #11 About a Girl – Nirvana
About a Girl by Nirvana is next on the list of songs with easy guitar solos. This one features a guitar solo section that’s largely made up of distorted chords so that part is easy enough. What comes before is a solo proper but fear not, it’s very easy. This solo uses the repetition approach just like the previous entry. If you can learn one lick, you can play the solo and that one lick is nice and easy to follow. It’s locked nicely into the groove of the track and the rhythm is nice and simple which is just what the track needed.
Easy Guitar Solos #12 Everything I Do – Bryan Adams
I know that isn’t the title, but I don’t care, grow up. You know what song I’m talking about. Many of the tracks in this list feature guitar solos that aren’t a big moment in the recording. This isn’t an example of one of those. The guitar solo in this classic is huge. I remember playing this live and it was electrifying despite the audience being small. Huge and electrifying are big words, but don’t be scared. This is still an easy guitar solo. It’s nice and sparse so you won’t get lost. If you want to practice lead guitar timing, this is one for you and it’s another one that will help you to grasp the concept of playing with emotion. Make each note count.
Easy Guitar Solos #13 Come as You Are – Nirvana
How does a guitar tone sound grunge? I’m not sure, but the tone on the guitar for the guitar solo in Come as You Are just does. This is another solo that goes on for a decent amount of time but it’s another one that uses repetition, so there isn’t much to learn. This solo is pretty much all one lick so all you will need to do is get a grasp of the simple rhythm which follows a similar path to the main melody of the track.
Easy Guitar Solos #14 Come Together – The Beatles
I absolutely love the lead guitar from Come Together. So much so that I wrote a lesson on it just a week or two after launching Eat Sleep Guitar Repeat. This one will push you slightly more than some others on the list, but the phrasing allows the player to rest their brain. It requires precise bends, but what better way to practice them? Give it a try. I wouldn’t have included this in the list if I didn’t think you could handle it.
The Beatles Come Together TAB and Guitar Lesson
#15 High and Dry – Radiohead
High and Dry by Radiohead is a track that I know mostly for its chorus hook which I’m sure will be stuck in my head all weekend. The guitar solo in High and Dry is as basic as they come. There’s nothing in there that will trip you up and like many on the list, its ideal for those who’re just branching out into the world of lead guitar. This guitar solo matches the mood and the emotion of the track very well.
#16 Fix You – Coldplay
This makes two articles in a row where Coldplay have been discussed. It was only a few days ago where I was trying to establish whether or not they ripped off Joe Satriani’s If I Could Fly. Funny thing is, I never once in that article said I disliked Coldplay’s music. In fact, they have some awesome tracks. Fix You is one of them. As far as the guitar solo goes, repetition is an understatement as is simple rhythm. This one is right up there with the easiest on the list but at the end of the day, it sounds good and it works.
#17 Can’t Buy Me Love – The Beatles
If I remember correctly, I believe that the guitar solo from Can’t Buy Me Love by The Beatles was the first guitar solo that I learned from start to finish. I’d already learned the rhythm guitar section which uses a bunch of open chords. I’d do the good old DDU UDU strumming pattern and play the chords behind the solo but one day I decided that the solo sounded cool and that I wanted to play it. I asked my guitar teacher to TAB it for me and to my amazement, I was able to play it (relatively well) that same day. I was much less than a year into guitar playing at that point. If I can do it, so can anyone else.
The Beatles Can’t Buy Me Love TAB and Guitar Lesson
#18 Something – The Beatles
Two Beatles songs in a row? Who the hell wrote this? They should be fired. Yeah, I see you. Yes, two Beatles songs in a row but can anyone really argue with the inclusion of these two entries? Something has an easy guitar solo, fact. Something also has a guitar solo that one could legitimately argue is one of the best guitar solos of all time, fact. This one is truly stunning in my opinion. A beautiful piece of lead guitar that I think every guitarist should try at some point.
#19 Don’t Stop Me – Queen
Brain May has to be right up there as the guitarist with the best lead guitar tone. I can’t tell you how much I love the sound of his solos and the one from Don’t Stop Me is a great example of why. I’m also a huge fan of how he creates his guitar solos. That’s a topic for another day but that approach can result in guitar solos that are easy to play. Again, the solo from this track is an example of that. The track is more fast paced than others on the list, but the phrasing and rhythm of the solo is controlled and easy to digest.
#20 We Will Rock You – Queen
Okay, I’m trolling at this point but yes, two Queen entries in a row. This one is different to the last though as it’s more of a typical rock guitar solo section but it’s short and fairly easy to learn. The great thing is, if you learn the We Will Rock You guitar solo, you can play the whole track because that end solo is the only guitar in the entire track. Want to learn it? You can do so by clicking the link below. There’s nothing better in life than hitting that first big distorted chord.
Queen We Will Rock You TAB and Guitar Lesson
#21 Billie Jean – Michael Jackson
I love playing Billie Jean. I adore hitting those sharp stabbing chords in the rhythm. Very fun indeed. Another thing that’s incredibly fun to play is the Billie Jean guitar solo. It has a real funky groove to it that takes over your body while you’re performing it. It also happens to be a very easy guitar solo too. It’s basically one single guitar lick throughout aside from a very tiny variation. Definitely one of the easiest on the entire list.
#22 American Idiot – Greenday
American Idiot is one of those songs that the newer guitar players learn early on in their journey, usually to help them grasp the good old power chord approach. I’d hope that those players would also be confident enough to take on the guitar solo too because it would certainly be within their reach. The American Idiot guitar solo is one of those that instrumentalises the main melody and it works brilliantly. There’s such a great groove established in the track that anything else would probably not work anywhere nearly as well. The familiarity of the melody means that getting to grips with how this solo is supposed to sound is easy.
#23 Hard Day’s Night – The Beatles
Just two to go now. Here we have a real crowd pleaser and a track that many consider the best from The Beatles and it’s also a track with a nice easy guitar solo that’s almost as iconic as “that” chord. The guitar solo from Hard Day’s Night is short and sweet and there’s only a couple of licks to learn. One of them is easy personified and the other injects a bit of speed but in a more than manageable way.
#24 Killer Queen – Queen
We end on another entry from Queen and another Brian May solo. This one happens to be one of his greatest of all time and great news, this is also a rather easy guitar solo. This is a very Brain May guitar solo and it sounds bloody epic. You’ll feel great when you smash this one out of the park, I can promise you that.
This bright and uplifting piece of lead guitar is a great way to conclude this list but I’ll at some point create an easy guitar solos part two. Before you go, there is just one more thing that I’d like to quickly address.
Is a guitar solo that’s considered “easy” less good than a guitar solo that’s considered advanced or highly technical?
This is probably a subject that deserves its own dedicated article so I shall keep my answer to this question short and sweet for now and address it in depth later. The short answer to the question posed in the above heading is no. An easy guitar solo isn’t any “less good” or worse than a more technical one. It wouldn’t be considered better either. How technically impressive a guitar solo is doesn’t have an impact on how good a guitar solo is. What matters is how good the guitar solo sounds. Yes, there are some guitar solos on this list that fall into the “okay” category, but there are some absolute belting solos in there too and also some quite iconic ones. When writing your own guitar solos, don’t worry about whether or not they’re flashy enough to impress the guitar snobs. Worry about if they sound good.
Hello. My name is Ryan J Mellor and I play the guitar. I’m also the creator of Eat Sleep Guitar Repeat. I’ve ben a guitarist for many years and my guitar playing has been described as “above average”. My guitar and music knowledge is somewhat impressive but most importantly, I have a passion for creating great guitar and music related content.