Make the phrase manageable
Start with a short excerpt instead of learning every part at once. Read the rhythm, find the first note, and use a slow tempo to connect the string changes.
Guitar song riff practice
Start with a riff you recognize.
Find recognizable song riff excerpts in one practice library. Choose a title and artist, follow the notes on TAB and the fretboard, and work on a manageable phrase at your own pace.
Free preview. Interactive controls and playback require StrumForge Pro. Available on web, iPhone, iPad, and Android.
- Animated TAB & fretboard
- 40–200 BPM playback
- Beginner to advanced
Start playing
Recognizable riffs. A manageable first phrase.
Start with one of these excerpts. Difficulty refers to the selected practice excerpt, not every part of the original song.
| Song riff · Artist | Difficulty | Excerpt | Practice |
|---|---|---|---|
| SG-01 · Seven Nation Army · The White Stripes | Beginner | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-02 · (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction · The Rolling Stones | Beginner | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-03 · Sunshine of Your Love · Cream | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-04 · Iron Man · Black Sabbath | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-05 · You Really Got Me · The Kinks | Beginner | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-06 · Sweet Child O’ Mine · Guns N’ Roses | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-08 · Layla · Derek and the Dominos | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-09 · Smoke on the Water · Deep Purple | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
Explore the song excerpt directory
| Song riff · Artist | Difficulty | Excerpt | Practice |
|---|---|---|---|
| SG-01 · Seven Nation Army · The White Stripes | Beginner | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-02 · (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction · The Rolling Stones | Beginner | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-03 · Sunshine of Your Love · Cream | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-04 · Iron Man · Black Sabbath | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-05 · You Really Got Me · The Kinks | Beginner | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-06 · Sweet Child O’ Mine · Guns N’ Roses | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-07 · Johnny B. Goode · Chuck Berry | Intermediate | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-08 · Layla · Derek and the Dominos | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-09 · Smoke on the Water · Deep Purple | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-10 · Sweet Home Alabama · Lynyrd Skynyrd | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-11 · Still Loving You · Scorpions | Advanced | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-12 · You Shook Me All Night Long · AC/DC | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-13 · All Right Now · Free | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-14 · Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love · Van Halen | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-15 · Every Breath You Take · The Police | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-16 · Crazy Train · Ozzy Osbourne | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-17 · Hold the Line · Toto | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-18 · Take On Me · a-ha | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-19 · Beat It · Michael Jackson | Beginner | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-20 · Day Tripper · The Beatles | Beginner | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-21 · Smells Like Teen Spirit · Nirvana | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-22 · Jump · Van Halen | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-23 · Eye of the Tiger · Survivor | Intermediate | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-24 · Stairway to Heaven · Led Zeppelin | Intermediate | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-25 · La Bamba · Ritchie Valens | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-26 · Paranoid · Black Sabbath | Intermediate | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-27 · Breaking the Law · Judas Priest | Beginner | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-28 · Hells Bells · AC/DC | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-29 · Carry On Wayward Son · Kansas | Beginner | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-30 · Master of Puppets · Metallica | Advanced | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-31 · Fly Away · Lenny Kravitz | Advanced | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-32 · Seek & Destroy · Metallica | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-33 · Cemetery Gates · Pantera | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-34 · Billie Jean · Michael Jackson | Beginner | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-35 · A Whiter Shade of Pale · Procol Harum | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-36 · Whole Lotta Love · Led Zeppelin | Advanced | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-37 · Zombie · The Cranberries | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-38 · Black Night · Deep Purple | Beginner | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-39 · Cocaine · Eric Clapton | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-40 · Rock You Like a Hurricane · Scorpions | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-41 · Highway to Hell · AC/DC | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-42 · Just Like Heaven · The Cure | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-43 · Smooth · Santana | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-44 · Tears in Heaven · Eric Clapton | Advanced | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-45 · The Final Countdown · Europe | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-46 · Wind of Change · Scorpions | Advanced | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-47 · Dream On · Aerosmith | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-48 · Another Brick in the Wall, Part 2 · Pink Floyd | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-49 · Aqualung · Jethro Tull | Beginner | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-50 · Fear of the Dark · Iron Maiden | Advanced | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-51 · Pretty Fly (for a White Guy) · The Offspring | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-52 · Kayleigh · Marillion | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-53 · Pride (In the Name of Love) · U2 | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-54 · Samba Pa Ti · Santana | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-55 · Fortunate Son · Creedence Clearwater Revival | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-56 · Poison · Alice Cooper | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-57 · More Than Words · Extreme | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-58 · Are You Gonna Go My Way · Lenny Kravitz | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-59 · Barracuda · Heart | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-60 · Oh, Pretty Woman · Roy Orbison | Beginner | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-61 · Symphony of Destruction · Megadeth | Intermediate | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-62 · I’m Alright · Neil Zaza | Advanced | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-63 · Tom Sawyer · Rush | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-64 · One · Metallica | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-65 · Dust in the Wind · Kansas | Advanced | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-66 · Sharp Dressed Man · ZZ Top | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-67 · Afraid to Shoot Strangers · Iron Maiden | Advanced | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-68 · Immigrant Song · Led Zeppelin | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-69 · By the Way · Red Hot Chili Peppers | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-70 · Back in Black · AC/DC | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-71 · Walk This Way · Aerosmith | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-72 · Should I Stay or Should I Go · The Clash | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-73 · Exo-Politics · Muse | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-74 · Bulletproof Heart · My Chemical Romance | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-75 · Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na) · My Chemical Romance | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-76 · Baba O’Riley · The Who | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-77 · Pinball Wizard · The Who | Intermediate | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-78 · Fell in Love with a Girl · The White Stripes | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-79 · Boulevard of Broken Dreams · Green Day | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-80 · American Idiot · Green Day | Intermediate | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-81 · Another One Bites the Dust · Queen | Advanced | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-82 · Living After Midnight · Judas Priest | Intermediate | 4 bars | Open riff |
| SG-83 · Hallowed Be Thy Name · Iron Maiden | Intermediate | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-84 · 2 Minutes to Midnight · Iron Maiden | Intermediate | 1 bar | Open riff |
| SG-85 · Livin’ on a Prayer · Bon Jovi | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-86 · More Than a Feeling · Boston | Intermediate | 2 bars | Open riff |
| SG-87 · Fire · The Jimi Hendrix Experience | Beginner | 3 bars | Open riff |
| SG-88 · The Chain · Fleetwood Mac | Beginner | 4 bars | Open riff |
Listen. Follow. Play.
Give one phrase your full attention.
Connect your ear and your hands
Listen to the phrase, then follow the highlighted TAB event and its fretboard location. Use note names when you want to identify pitches, or intervals to see their relationship to the root.
Build a personal practice list
Star the excerpts you want to revisit. Favorites only helps you return to a small set instead of choosing a new song every session.
Listen and locate
Choose an excerpt and listen to one pass. Find the starting string and fret on the diagram. Notice where the notes stop as well as where they begin.
Slow it down and connect it
Set a comfortable BPM with Pro. Play one whole excerpt, then repeat it with Loop. Keep the same fingering while you work on consistent timing.
Check it without the guide
Pause playback and try the excerpt on your own. Listen for the same rhythm and articulation. Star the riff and keep a note of a tempo you can repeat comfortably.
Short excerpts for focused practice
The Song riffs category contains selected practice excerpts, not complete song transcriptions, original recordings, or full backing tracks. An arrangement may use a different register or practice key. Check the displayed Key menu: fixed-key and open-string excerpts keep their authored key; movable excerpts offer supported transpositions.
A few things to know
Are these full songs or short riff excerpts?
They are short practice excerpts. The library is designed for focused repetition and technique work, rather than complete song arrangements or full-song accompaniment.
Which song riffs are beginner friendly?
The current catalog labels the Seven Nation Army, Satisfaction, and You Really Got Me excerpts Beginner. Filter Difficulty to Beginner in the app to see the available starting points.
Does playback use the original artist recording?
No. Playback uses StrumForge’s guitar sounds to play the excerpt. The original artist recording is not included.
Can I change the tempo without changing the notes?
Yes. With Pro, changing BPM changes the exercise playback speed. It does not turn the excerpt into a different exercise or add extra bars.
Make time for one good phrase
Pick a riff. Find your pace.
Choose an exercise you want to come back to. Listen closely, repeat it with care, and make your next session a little more focused.
Open Seven Nation Army →
Free preview. Interactive controls and playback require Pro.