The Rolling Stones - Sympathy For The Devil

How to play The Rolling Stones - Sympathy For The Devil by ABKCO on guitar

This is a great song to learn because it has a strong, driving feel and a memorable groove that stays engaging even at a beginner level. You get to focus on steady timing and clean changes while keeping the music moving.

The chart uses both open shapes and barre shapes, so your fretting hand has a mix of easier grips and a few tougher ones. The opening progression, Cm - A# - G - A#, is the change to watch closely, since moving between the barre shapes and the open G can feel a little awkward at first.

Start by looping that opening progression slowly until the shapes feel automatic. Then add the rest of the song in small sections, keeping your strumming even, and only bring it up to full tempo once the chord changes are smooth.

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.