Intermediate guitar riffs are a big step in the right direction for guitar players. Here’s a couple of songs that will help you level up your playing.
So, you’ve been playing for a while now. You’re jamming out with power chords to some rock and roll staples. However, do you feel like things are easier than they used to be?
Well, if that’s the case, then you’re in the same position as a lot of guitarists. In the beginning, everything feels difficult and you really have to work towards your progress. Now you find yourself in a honeymoon period, where everything slots into place and you’re making progress faster than ever before.
Looks like you’re ready for some intermediate guitar riffs. Here, we’ll be looking at some riffs and songs that turn up the heat regarding complexity. Whether that’s by playing faster or adding additional techniques to your repertoire. Let’s check them out…
I Bet That You Look Good On The Dancefloor – Arctic Monkeys
As well as being famous for its Steel industry, Sheffield is also pretty good at pumping out fantastic musical talent; The Human League, Def Leppard, Saxon, and of course The Arctic Monkeys.
Hitting the airwaves almost 20 years ago back in 2006, this indie rock hit has become part of the furniture in British pop culture. With striking power chords and a tasty pentatonic riff to accompany, this riff gets any festival crowd pumped up.
We’ve looked at guitar scales in depth before, so this shouldn’t be anything revolutionary. The main riff runs up and down the F#m pentatonic scale and chucks in a couple of bends for good measure. Following this intermediate guitar riff, we’ve got the verse which repeats these power chords: C# / B / A / F#.
Alex Turner has played a variety of guitars during his time with The Arctic Monkeys. From Jaguars to twelve-strings, he likes a good axe. In 2006, he favoured a humble Fender Stratocaster which you can get with *Thomann.
Moreover, Turner used an Orange AD30 across the entire debut album.
Oh, Pretty Woman – Roy Orbison
From the mid-2000s to the mid-1960s, this era-defining song is a great intermediate guitar riff to jam along to.
Overall, this riff isn’t too hard to get down. We’ll want to use our first, middle and ring fingers in order across the first couple of frets on the guitar. What tends to trip people up is the open strings that go alongside the fretted notes.
Looking at the rhythm, this guitar riff is very swung, which we can count as 1+ 2+ 3+ 4+. Furthermore, the real challenge starts when we get to the verses, choruses and bridge. A series of barre chords plague this tune. For now, let’s stick to the riff.
Rich, warm guitar sound with a little bit of bite? Naturally, it had to come from a *Gibson 335. With a pair of humbuckers and a hollow body, you’ve got one of the most diverse guitars out there.
Are You Gonna Go My Way – Lenny Kravitz
Our third intermediate guitar riff is a popular beginner drum track, however it poses more of a challenge for us guitar players. However, it’s not as bad as it first appears…
Looking at the TAB, all we see is an abundance of bends and potentially tricky rhythms. However, when we look again, we can see that it’s just an open version of the Em pentatonic scale! Therefore, we can get an idea of the shapes before we start to play it.
Additionally, after the first four bars, a second guitar joins us and plays the octave. Below, you’ll find both riffs. Which one do you prefer? I’m an octave kind of guy myself…
Kravitz favoured a cream-coloured *Gibson Flying V during the early 1990s. It’s not exactly cheap, but it gets you closer to his sound. Furthermore, why not get your hands on an *octave pedal? It’ll save you jumping down the neck for the 2nd part of the riff.
The Trooper – Iron Maiden
Jumping to the 1980s now, this British Metal track packs a punch. Whether it’s the intensity of the speed, the unmistakable close harmonies or the thundering bass line. It’s killer.
Why has this made the cut as an intermediate guitar riff? Well, this is played at 160bpm and features plenty of triplet 16th notes. Therefore, it’s quick! Extraordinarily quick.
However, not all is lost. There are some nice patterns throughout the opening riff of this track, as well as the pre-verse riff which returns throughout the track. Once you get up to speed, you’ll be absolutely fine.
In the music video, we can see Adrian Smith wielding an Ibanez Destroyer. However, for live use, he favours *Goldtop Les Paul. Wise choice sir, fair enough!
Brown Eyed Girl – Van Morrison
To conclude our look at intermediate guitar riffs, we’re back in the 1960s. A classic jukebox favourite, let’s see why this riff poses such a challenge.
Whenever you hear this Van Morrison track on the radio, you instantly pick up on the euphonous guitar intro and major guitar chords. What’s so bad about that? Well, the song is at 149bpm which is rather lively, you could say.
Furthermore, we’ve got some guitar harmonies just like in The Trooper. Unlike our Iron Maiden track, one guitar plays both parts simultaneously. It’s perfectly achievable, but it’s fiddly at first. But if you want to strum along and miss the intermediate guitar riff, you’ll need G / C / G / D.
There we have it! Five intermediate guitar riffs that could help you on your way to guitar greatness. Don’t worry if they’re a bit tricky at first, work through them slowly. Eventually, you’ll be rocking out in no time.
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