The G Chord... hacked!

Following my Beginner Guitar Course?

That's the last essential open chords you need to learn!

And the good news doesn’t stop here. :) Even if you're a random student (nice to meet you, by the way!) that just wants to nail the G Chord, you'll love this guitar lesson.

 

🍀 The G Chord is one of the toughest ones for many beginner guitar players, but it won't be for you!

 

I've found you an incredible trick that makes just so much sense it should be the rule. We'll learn how to play the G Chord using only two fingers, and that's awesome because:

 

💡 It's easier to play, and it sounds better, cleaner, and brighter.

 

We'll also learn the traditional three-finger G Chord, and you'll be able to choose which grip you want to use. But here's a heads-up: the traditional G Chord gave me a ton of problems back when I was a beginner.

 

I just couldn’t deal with it. 

 

I even went out of my way to find songs that didn’t use that chord. :) It was a little too stretchy for me, and I couldn’t get my fingers to bend the way they wanted me to. It was just a mess.

So now, I'll encourage you to learn the G chord that I wish they had taught me when I first learned how to play guitar. Then, stick to the end of this guitar lesson, and you'll know the traditional version as well! 

We have a few things to check out, so let's get started. 

 

The G Chord: 2-Finger Grip

For this simplified version of the G chord, you just need Finger 2 on the thickest string on Fret 3 - and let it lay slightly flat, so it mutes String 5. Finger 3 goes down on Fret 3 on the thinnest string.

 

That's it! Boom! 🪄

 

You’ve got two fingers down and one muted string. The muted string will happen pretty naturally, so you almost don’t even need to worry about it. 

And the rest of the strings are open! Take a look at the diagram:

The G Chord: 3-Finger Grip

The full version of the G chord uses one extra finger. Your index finger goes to the Fret 2 on String 5 - the one we've muted in the 2-finger version. 

That means you have to be sure you're not muting the 5th string with your 2nd finger! I’ve always found that the addition of the 1st finger makes the chord harder to play, but you should give it a try and decide for yourself. Take a look at the diagram: 

Chord changes are harder with this grip too! With the two-finger version, chord changes are a breeze! :)

 

How to Practice the G Chord

I’m sure you already know! :) It's time for your Chord Perfect Practice Exercise. You can start with the 2-finger version, but you practice a bit with the full version to register it in your mental chord bank.

 

Now… have you heard about Time Signatures?