Forever Young

How to play Forever Young by Alphaville on guitar

This is a great beginner song to learn because it stays friendly, steady, and musical from the first chord. In C major, it has a bright, hopeful feel that lets you focus on clean changes and a smooth pulse without getting overwhelmed.

You only need open shapes here, so your fretting hand can stay relaxed and close to the neck. The main change to watch is the move through C, Am, G, and F, since that shift can feel a little slower at first. Keep each chord ringing clearly before you switch.

Start by looping C - Am - G - F very slowly until the shapes feel automatic. Then practice the changes in pairs, especially G to F and F back to C, before putting the full progression together at tempo. Once that feels easy, play along with the track and keep your strums even.

Use the play-along above to follow each chord change in time with the music, or learn the shapes first with the chord diagrams below.