Updated song tutorial here!

Learn "House of The Rising Sun" by The Animals. It's one of the most classic songs to play on guitar!

In this lesson, we'll learn how to play House of The Rising Sun on the acoustic guitar. This is one of those acoustic songs that all guitar players should know how to play! In this tutorial, we'll explore The Animal's cover - the one you're probably familiar with. :)

We'll learn the chords and two ways of playing the rhythm: an easy fingerstyle version and a way that sounds more like the original recording. This is a 6x8 song, so I hope you're familiar with its vibe—make sure you've listened to it a lot. It'll make it much easier to play!

If you're following my Beginner Guitar Course, this song is great practice for Grade 2+ students. We'll need an F Chord - but it's an open version. 😅 Let's get stuck in and check out what's on today's menu.

House of The Rising Sun - Guitar Chords

You can play House of The Rising Sun using open chords only. You'll need the Am, C, D, E, and F Chords - but don't worry if you cannot play barre chords yet! We'll use an open F Chord variation, and the best news is that this is how we usually play this song.

If you want chords, tabs, and lyrics to follow along with my song tutorials, check out JustinGuitarTabs. :)

House of The Rising Sun - Strumming Pattern

The easiest way of playing this 6x8 song is by only playing down strums on beats 1 and 4. That means you'll strum twice per bar. If you can keep a steady rhythm while changing the chords, you'll be able to sing along with it and have loads of fun!

Many guitar players like to strum this song with short down strums on all beats, accentuating beats 1 and 4. You should explore that as long as you keep your hands moving consistently! The big advantage here is that you'll be able to go further and add some up strums as well - it'll sound fuller and faster.

Try playing along with the original recording, too; that's a great way of getting the song's vibe right. Muting the strings and concentrating on the rhythm until it is consistent is also a good idea, especially if you struggle with strumming patterns. ;)

House of The Rising Sun - Finger Style

When I first learned how to play House of The Rising Sun, it was in fingerstyle. So I thought I'd teach you that, too. It's an easy and great pattern if you're getting into fingerstyle.

Your thumb will play the bass notes, and the other will pick the thinnest strings. To play it right, you should be aware of the bass notes of each chord. If you're not, check out their chord boxes. ;)

Are you feeling adventurous? You can go a bit further and try to do some pick picking. :) The tricky here is the angle of the pick, so you don't get stuck between the strings. It might require some extra practice, but it's worth it. That sounds fancy!

👉 Want chords, tabs, and lyrics to follow along with my song tutorials? Check out JustinGuitarTabs!