Under the Bridge

How to play Under the Bridge by Red Hot Chili Peppers on guitar

Under the Bridge is a great song to learn because it has a memorable, laid-back feel that still carries a lot of emotion. At about 85 BPM, you get time to hear each change and focus on making the progression sound smooth and connected.

You will move between open shapes and barre shapes, so the main challenge is keeping your fretting hand relaxed while the song stays steady. The opening F# - E - B - C#m is the change to watch closely, since it asks you to shift cleanly from the harder shapes into a more settled groove.

Start by learning each chord shape on its own, then loop the opening progression slowly until the moves feel automatic. After that, practice the full song at a comfortable tempo and only speed up once the changes stay even and clear.

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.