Chuck Berry - Johnny B. Goode - Chords - Guitar Lesson

Johnny B Goode - Single

2025 3:11

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About Johnny B. Goode - Chords

Few guitar parts are as immediately recognizable as the opening double-stop lick that launches "Johnny B. Goode." Played in Bb major at 120 BPM in E Standard tuning, the song sits in a key that puts the main action on the first and second strings up around the sixth position, so comfort with shifting between positions is essential. The chord work itself follows a 12-bar blues structure, and while the changes are straightforward, getting them to feel loose and driving rather than stiff takes real attention to your right-hand rhythm. Chuck Berry's signature move here is the double-stop bend, where two strings are pushed up together, and that is the technique most players stumble over first. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop that opening lick slowed down until the bends land cleanly and in tune. The song sits right at the crossroads of Classic Rock and its blues roots, making it genuinely useful vocabulary for a huge range of styles.

• The signature intro lick uses sixth-position double-stop bends on the first and second strings, a foundational technique in blues-rock lead playing.
• The song follows a 12-bar blues progression in Bb major, so knowing your movable chord shapes in that key is essential before tackling it.
• At 120 BPM in E Standard tuning, the rhythm part demands a relaxed but consistent right-hand feel to keep the groove from sounding stiff.