Popular Chord Progressions on the 3 & 4-String Cigar Box Guitar

Here are five popular chord progressions you will recognize.  Wait, do you know what a chord progression is?

A chord progression is just a bunch of chords that get repeated and form the harmony of many popular songs.  They are often part of the intro, verse, or chorus and repeat a certain amount of times in each section.  For example, Learning to Fly by Tom Petty uses a four-chord progression throughout the entire song.  Here it is on the 3 then 4-string tuned GDG and GDGB:

3-String CBG

4-String CBG

Here’s another well-known chord progression from part of the intro, see if you can guess what song this is:

3-String CBG

4-String CBG

Did you recognize it?  Here’s a hint: “Just a small-town girl” … Yes! Don’t Stop Believing.

Ok, so here are five chord progressions that I’ve transcribed to the 3 and 4-String Cigar Box Guitar tuned GDG and GDGBB.  The chord progressions were taken from the top 100 songs of all time on the Billboard charts.  I’ve included four examples of strumming patterns you can apply to the chord progressions below:

3-String Chord Progression for Cigar Box Guitar

4-String Chord Progression for Cigar Box Guitar

Submit your answers to the chord progressions in the comment section below and let me know if you have any suggestions for more free cigar box guitar lessons.

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