30 Best Songs for Intermediate Guitarists: Master Your Skills Now!

1. November Rain (Guns N' Roses)

Guitar Solo: November Rain boasts a legendary, extended guitar solo by Slash, providing ample opportunity for intermediate players to practice their legato, vibrato, and bending techniques. The solo’s melodic phrasing and dynamic range offer a rewarding challenge.

Tempo and Rhythm: The song’s dynamic shifts in tempo and rhythm, from slower, more melancholic sections to powerful crescendos, help develop a guitarist's sense of timing and phrasing.

Chords and Progressions: While featuring some complex chord changes, the underlying structure is accessible enough for intermediate players to grasp, allowing for focused practice on specific challenging sections.

2. Sweet Child O' Mine (Appetite For Destruction)

Sweet Child O' Mine - Guns N' Roses

Iconic Riff: The instantly recognizable opening riff is a fantastic challenge for intermediate players, incorporating a memorable melody with subtle rhythmic nuances.

Dynamic Range: The song progresses through a variety of sections, from the quiet verse to the powerful chorus, offering opportunities to practice dynamic control and expression.

Solo Structure: Slash's legendary solo provides an excellent target for learning phrasing, vibrato, and bending techniques, pushing intermediate players to develop their skills.

3. Californication - Californication (Deluxe Edition)

Guitar Chords: "Californication" features a memorable, moderately challenging chord progression that incorporates both major and minor chords, perfect for practicing transitions and building finger strength.

Rhythmic Complexity: The song's rhythm is infectious and dynamic, shifting between verses and choruses, providing a great exercise in developing timing and groove.

Solo Section: John Frusciante's iconic solo offers a rewarding challenge for intermediate players, incorporating various techniques such as legato, vibrato, and bending, while remaining relatively accessible to develop your own interpretation.

4. Hotel California (Eagles)

Hotel California - Guitar Work: The iconic guitar riff and solos, featuring both clean and distorted tones, offer a great challenge for intermediate players, incorporating various techniques like fingerpicking and bends.

Hotel California - Rhythmic Complexity: The song's structure moves between various time signatures and rhythmic patterns, demanding careful attention to detail and improving your overall timing and feel.

Hotel California - Learning Resources: Abundant online resources, including tabs and instructional videos, make learning this classic relatively accessible, guiding you through the nuances of the piece.

5. Sultans Of Swing (Dire Straits - 1978)

Characteristic Guitar Riff: Sultans of Swing features a memorable and iconic guitar riff that's challenging enough to be rewarding for intermediate players, incorporating various techniques that will help you build your skills.

Syncopated Rhythm: The song's rhythm is complex and subtly syncopated, pushing you to improve your timing and feel for the groove, making it a great track for practicing rhythm guitar.

Dynamic Range: From quiet, introspective verses to powerful, driving choruses, the song offers opportunities to work on dynamics and control, enhancing your expressive playing.

6. Highway to Hell (1979)

Riff Mastery: "Highway to Hell" features a legendary, instantly recognizable main riff perfect for practicing power chords and developing your picking technique. The rhythmic drive is fundamental for intermediate players to master.

Tempo and Feel: The song's driving tempo and strong backbeat provide excellent practice for developing timing and groove. Working on this track will improve your coordination and rhythm.

Blues-Rock Influence: AC/DC's blues-rock foundation makes this a great song to explore different phrasing and bending techniques, crucial for developing your overall guitar vocabulary.

7. Everlong

Song Title: Everlong

Artist: Foo Fighters

Notable Features:

Chords and Progressions: Everlong features moderately challenging but rewarding chord progressions, perfect for building finger strength and dexterity. The song incorporates a mix of open chords and barre chords, providing a solid workout for intermediate players.

Tempo and Rhythm: Its driving rhythm and moderately fast tempo offer a satisfying challenge without being overwhelmingly difficult. This makes it ideal for working on timing and precision.

Picking and strumming techniques: The song provides opportunities to practice various picking and strumming patterns, from simple downstrokes to more intricate combinations. Experiment with different techniques to find your preferred sound and improve your overall fluency.

8. Under the Bridge (1991)

Song Title:Under the Bridge

Artist: Red Hot Chili Peppers

Notable Feature: The song features a relatively straightforward fingerpicking pattern in the intro and verses, making it accessible for intermediate players to learn and master.

Notable Feature: The bassline is iconic and provides a solid rhythmic foundation, excellent practice for developing your groove and timing.

Notable Feature: While the main riff is manageable, incorporating the melodic vocal line into your practice will challenge your coordination and improve your overall musicality.

9. Comfortably Numb - The Wall (Remastered)

Guitar Solo: Comfortably Numb features one of David Gilmour's most iconic and challenging guitar solos, perfect for intermediate players looking to improve their phrasing and vibrato techniques.

Rhythmic Complexity: The song's structure incorporates shifting time signatures and rhythmic variations, providing a rewarding experience for players who enjoy a more intricate approach.

Emotional Depth: Mastering the nuances of this solo will not only enhance your technical skills but also allow you to explore and express the song's powerful emotional landscape.

10. Paranoid

Guitar Riffs: Paranoid features a legendary, instantly recognizable main riff that's challenging yet rewarding for intermediate players to master, incorporating palm-muting and bending techniques.

Tempo and Rhythm: The driving, relentless rhythm section provides a solid foundation for developing your timing and groove, crucial skills for any guitarist.

Structure and Dynamics: The song's relatively straightforward structure makes it an excellent choice for learning how to build tension and release in your playing, a vital element in musical expression.