Motown, Rhythm & Blues Guitar Songs

Bring the smooth sound of soul and rhythm to your acoustic guitar with this collection of Motown, R&B, and pop-inspired favorites.

Featuring legendary performers like Stevie Wonder, Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, and Bill Withers, these lessons highlight the songs that defined decades of heartfelt grooves and timeless melodies.

From the raw emotion of the blues to the polished harmony of Motown, each tutorial includes easy chords, rhythm patterns, and play-along demos to help you capture that soulful style on your guitar.

Adele  -  Love Song, Set Fire To The Rain, Someone Like You, That's It Honey I Quit
Al Green - Lets Stay Together
Alabama Shakes - Hold On
Albert Lee - Two Step Two
Aloe Blacc - Wake Me Up
Amos Wilburn - One Scotch One Soda One Beer
Ben Harper - Steal My Kisses
Ben E King - Seven Letters, Spanish Harlem, Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow
Benny Mardones - Into The Night
Bertie Higgins - Casablanca, Key Largo
Big Bill Broozy - Key To The Highway
|Bill Withers - Ain't No Sunshine , Just The Two Of Us , Lean On Me , Lovely Day , Use Me
Billy Fury - Halfway To Paradise
Billy Ocean - Suddenly
Billy Vera - At The Moment
Blind Blake - Bad Feeling Blues - Chump Man Blues - Diddy Wah Diddy - Early Morning Blues - Hard Pushin Papa - Georgia Bound - Police Dog Blues
Blind Boy Fuller - Untrue Blues
Bob Marley - Could You Be Loved - Is This Love - No Woman No Cry - Three Little Birds - True To Myself (Ziggy)
Bobby Bland - Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City
Bobby Charles - Goin Fishin
Bobby Womack - Across 110th Street

Motown and R&B gave music its heartbeat — smooth grooves, catchy hooks, and powerful voices that sound just as good on acoustic guitar today.

Buddy & Ella Johnson - Lover Bird
Boz Scaggs - Lido Shuffle, Look What You've Done To Me, Lowdown, We're All Along
Cab Calloway - Minnie The Moocher
Clarence Henry - I Don't Know Why I Love You But I Do
Culture Club - Karma Chameleon

Damon Fowler - Old Fools Bar Stools And Me
Daniel Boone - Beautiful Sunday
Daniel Powter - Bad Day
Dobie Gray - Drift Away
Donald Kinsley - Big Boss Man
Donny Osmond - Where Did All The Good Times Go
Ed Sheeran - Perfect, The A Team, Thinking Out Loud
Edsilia Rombley - Midnight Train To Georgia
Erasure - A Little Respect

From laid-back blues to upbeat soul, these next artists helped define what “feel-good music” truly means. Each song brings its own rhythm and story.

Eric Clapton - Before You Accuse Me - Bell Bottom Blues - Easy Now - Further On Up The Road - How Deep Is The Ocean - I Can't Stand It - I Shot The Sheriff - I've Got A Rock N Roll Heart - Kindhearted Woman Blues - Lay Down Sally - Layla - Let It Rain - Malted Milk - My Fathers Eyes - Promises - Rambling On My Mind - Rockin Chair - Running On Faith - San Francisco Bay Blues - They're Red Hot - Thorn Tree In The Garden (D&T Dominos) - Watch Out For Lucy
Freddie Scott - Hey Girl  

Gary Portnoy - Cheers Theme
George McCrea - Rock Your Baby
George Michael / WHAM - Faith, I Want Your Sex, Last Christmas, Wake Me Up Before You Go Go
Grayson Hugh - Talk It Over
Grisman & Garcia - The Thrill Is Gone
Hamilton Joe Frank & Reynolds - Don't Pull Your Love
Harry Styles - Sign Of The Times
Hot Chocolate - It Started With A Kiss, You Sexy Thing
Howlin Wolf - Evil (Is Goin On), Who's Been Talkin

Inner Circle - Sweat
James Brown - I Feel Good, It's A Mans Mans Mans World, Try Me
Janis Joplin - Trouble In Mind
Jigsaw - Sky High
Jimmy Cliff - The Harder They Come
Jimmy Reed - Bright Lights Big City, Take Out Some Insurance
Jimmy Ruffin - What Becomes Of The Broken Hearted
Jimmy Soul - If You Wanna Be Happy
JJ Cale - After Midnight, Call Me The Breeze, If I Had A Rocket - It's Easy - Trouble In The City

The blend of Motown, blues, and pop created melodies that never fade. These easy guitar lessons make it simple to capture that timeless style.

Joe Bonamassa - Around The Bend, Get Back My Tomorrow, Mountain Time
Joe Cocker - You Are So Beautiful, You Can Leave Your Hat On
Joe Jackson - Steppin Out
John Haitt - All The Lilacs In Ohio - Back Of My Mind - Feels Like Rain - Have A Little Faith In Me - Memphis In The Meantime - Real Fine Love - Tennessee Plates
John Legend - All Of Me, You Deserve It All
John Mayer - Dear Marie - Gravity - In The Blood - Queen Of California - Something Like Olivia - Who Says - Your Body Is A Wonderland

John Moreland - Blacklist, Salisaw Blue, You Don't Care Enough For Me To Cry
Johnny Nash - I Can See Clearly Now
Johnny Taylor - Last Two Dollars
Jon English - Words Are Not Enough
Joshua Kadison - Jessie
Keb Mo - America The Beautiful - Grandma's Hands - Hand It Over - Life Is Beautiful - Love Blues
Kenny Nolan - Loves Grown Deep
Kool & The Gang - Celebration, Cherish The Love, Fresh

Lionel Ritchie - Deep River Woman - Easy - Hello - Long Long Way To Go - Stuck On You
Long John Baldry - Let The Heartaches Begin
Looking Glass - Brandy
Lou Rawls - Fine Brown Frame
Luther Vandross - Dance With My Father
Maria Muldaur - Midnight At The Oasis
Matt Dennen - Wild Child
Maxine Nightingale - Lead Me On
Michael Jackson - Billie Jean - Black Or White - Blood On The Dance Floor - I'll Be There - The Way You Make Me Feel - We Are The World - Who's Loving You
Michael Kiwanuka - Cold Little Heart
Michael Neasmith - Rio
Mishka - Above The Bones
Mose Alison - You Mind Is On Vacation

As the decades rolled on, new voices kept soul and R&B alive — proof that great songs will always find a way to groove.

• Muddy Waters - Got My Mojo Workin
  Neil Diamond - And Pay The Grass No Mind - Beautiful Noise - Cherry Cherry - Cracklin Rosie - Forever In Blue Jeans - Girl You'll Be A Woman Soon - Hello Again - I Am I Said - If You Know What I Mean - Kentucky Woman - Longfellow Serenade - Solitary Man - Song Sung Blue - Shilo - Sweet Caroline - The Story Of My Life
  

OMC - How Bizzar
O-Town - Love Should Be A Crime
Passenger - Let Her Go
Prince - Delirious, How Come You Dont Call Me Anymore, Kiss, Little Red Corvette
Ray Charles - Cry - Crying Time - I Got A Woman - Rainy Night In Georgia - Seven Spanish Angels - What I'd Say - You Don't Know Me
Ray Parker Jr - A Woman Needs Love
Richie Havens - Here Comes The Sun
Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up

Ricky Martin - Livin La Vida Loca, She Bangs, She's All I Ever Need
Robert Crea - Right Next Door
Robert Johnson - Kindhearted Woman Blues, Me And The Devil Blues, Walkin Blues
Sam Cooke - A Change Is Gonna Come - Bring It On Home - Chain Gang - I'll Come Running Back To You - Twisting The Night Away - Wonderful World - You Send Me
Sam Myers - I Got The Blues
Sandy Coast - The Eyes Of Jenny
Shirley & Lee - Let The Good Times Roll
Sleepy LeBeef - Bright Lights Big City
Smokey Robinson - Being With You - Cruisin - Going To A Go Go - I Second That Emotion - Tears Of A Clown
Soloman Burke - Cry To Me
Stephen Bishop - On And On
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Cold Shot, Life By The Drop, Pride And Joy, The House Is A Rockin
Stevie Wonder - A Place In The Sun - Believe - I Just Called To Say I Love You - Part Time Lover - Signed Sealed Delivered - Superstition - Yesterme Yesteryou Yesterday
Tab Benoit - Jambalaya
Taco - Puttin On The Ritz
Terrence Trent Darby - Sign Your Name
The Blues Brothers - Gimmie Some Lovin, Hey Bartender, She Caught The Katy, Sweet Home Chicago
The Box Tops - Soul Deep
The Cornelius Bros & Sister Rose - Too Late To Turn Back Now
The Defranco Family - Heartbeat It's A Lovebeat
The Drifters - Save The Last Dance For Me
|The Fifth Dimension - One Less Bell To Answer
The Four Aces - Heart Of My Heart
The Four Tops - Bernadette, Goin Loco Down In Acapulco, It's The Same Old Song
The Free Movement - I Found Someone Of My Own
The Ink Spots - I Don't Want To Set The , We'll Meet Again
The Jonas Brothers - What A Mans Gotta Do
The Manhattens - Let's Just Kiss And Say Goodbye
The O'Jays - Back Stabbers
The Powder Blues Band -  Doin It Right
The Spinners - It's A Shame
The Temptations - Get Read, I Wish It Would Rain, Lady Soul, My Girl

Whether it’s a classic hit or a modern revival, these rhythm-driven guitar songs remind us that emotion and melody are the heart of music.

• Todd Snider - Double Wide Blues, Fortunate Son, In Between Jobs
  Tom Waits - Fumblin With The Blues
  Tommy Tucker - Hi Heel Sneaker, You Learn Something New Everyday
  Tuba Skinny - I Get The Blues
  Uncle Kracker - Follow Me, Letter To My Daughter
  Wang Chung - Dancehall Days
  Whitey Morgan - Bad News
  Zappacosta - Passion

With more than a hundred artists across Motown, blues, and pop-soul, this page celebrates the enduring influence of rhythm and melody in popular music.

Each easy guitar lesson keeps the groove alive, whether it’s the smooth R&B of Al Green, the electric soul of Stevie Ray Vaughan, or the acoustic warmth of Ben E. King and Ray Charles. Explore, learn, and let these timeless songs remind you why the language of soul never goes out of style.