How To: Riptide Chords

Hello fellow musicians!

Riptide by Vance Joy has become a very popular and well-liked song lately, and was also one of the first songs I mastered on my new guitar.  The chords are very easy, and perfect for a beginning guitarist, so here you go!


The starting chord is A minor(Am). First, put your pointer finger on the B string on the first fret.

Next, put your middle finger on the D string on the second fret.

Finally, put your ring finger on the G string, also on the second fret.

There's your Am chord! Now onto the second chord of the song, G major(G).

First, you place your pointer finger on the A string on the second fret.

Then, place your middle finger on the biggest E string of the third fret.

Finally, put your ring finger(or pinky finger if it's too big of a stretch) on the smallest E string of the third fret.

There's half of the chords! The next chord is C major(C).

First, place your pointer finger on the B string of the first fret and your middle finger on the D string of the second fret.  I grouped these two steps together because C can be a bit of a stretch, so placing your fingers one by one can be difficult.

Finally, your ring finger goes on the A string of the third fret.

There's the C chord! The final chord of the song is a difficult one: F major(F).

First, place your pointer finger, similar to C and Am chords, on the B string of the first fret.

Then, put your middle finger on the G string of the second fret.

Then, place your ring finger on the A string of the third fret. Stretch!!

Finally, your pinky finger goes right under your ring finger on the D string of the second fret.

There you have it! Those are all the chords to Riptide.  You can listen to the song to get the strum pattern down, and until then, practice practice practice!  If you continuously switch chords and memorize the placements, you will master this song in no time!

My Everlasting Passion

Hello! I am Abigail Salisbury, a music enthusiast.  Since I was very young, creating, listening to, and playing music has been a main passion of mine.  If you attended one of my family gatherings, you'd definitely get a makeshift program containing the plan for the "halftime act" of the party.  This would typically entail myself singing and dancing.  I enjoyed the spotlight, and my family watched as my love for the stage and showing my talent to the world, grew.  I tried out for school musicals, and took many dancing and singing lessons.  I began to teach myself guitar, and mastered my skills on the piano. I fell in love with the rush of emotions I felt when listening to a new song by a band I love, and the adrenaline before a performance. Music has become a second language for me, as well as an escape. Every time I am in a difficult situation, the place where I find tranquility is music. My memories are a string of random song lyrics, and together they harmonize to make me as a whole.

I hope writing this blog shows people of all ages that it is okay to have dreams.  I am a big dreamer, and growing up I was always told to chase those plans and dreams, to find where my passions are. I believe that dreams are what make us who we are, and help us strive to be better people.  Without me dreaming of becoming a big star one day, I would have never experienced the exhilaration of playing a lead role or performing for 500 people.  Dreaming is a necessary part of life, and you should not be stressed for having big plans, or many different plans, for your future. So get out there, and live life like you can do anything you put your mind to, because you can.