Riptide Guitar Tutorial (4 Chord Song on Guitar) Vance Joy

Artist: Vance Joy
Genres: Pop
Decades: 2010's

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Riptide Chords:

Strumming Pattern:

1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +

Time Signature

102 bpm

Difficulty: Intermediate

Riptide Guitar Tutorial – Vance Joy

Welcome to my “Riptide” Guitar Tutorial + Lesson. This 4 chord song on guitar is great for beginners. It’s mostly a 3 chord song but the bridge contains the easy way to play the F chord. Aside from that, it’s very simple!

This Riptide Guitar Tutorial starts with the chords for the Verse and Chorus (Am, G and C, repeating over and over.. quite simple, really!). And then we show you how to differentiate between each of the sections by changing the strumming pattern ever-so-slightly.

Afterwards, we show you the F barre chord, and a simpler way to play it if you’re not so keen on the barre. That allows us to play the bridge.

Finally, we go over the simple lead guitar part that is played 4x right before the bridge so you can put it all together

I hope you enjoy the lesson and good luck!

James

🎸 Learn to Play “Riptide” – Chords, Strumming & Practice Guide

Want to confidently strum your way through Riptide by Vance Joy?

Looking for the chords and a simple breakdown so you can actually play the song, not just collect sheet music?

You’re in the right place!

This page doesn’t give you the lyrics or a chord sheet like you’d find on other sites—but it does give you something better:
A step-by-step plan to help you actually learn the song from start to finish, the way I teach my students.

✅ What You’ll Learn Here

The chords used in the song
Two different strumming patterns
A breakdown of the chord progression
A section-by-section guide to practicing it (verse, chorus, bridge)

🔁 CHORD PROGRESSION OVERVIEW

The song mostly loops this 3-chord progression:

That’s:

| Am      | G       | C       | C       |
  / / / /   / / / /   / / / /   / / / /

You’ll use this over both the verse and chorus.

🌉 BRIDGE BREAKDOWN

Here’s where things shift a bit. We introduce a new chord (F), and each chord lasts for two bars instead of one.

The bridge follows a 6–5–1–4 chord progression:

| Am      | Am      | G       | G       |
  / / / /   / / / /   / / / /   / / / /   

| C       | C       | F       | F       |
  / / / /   / / / /   / / / /   / / / /

This is a common emotional-sounding sequence, and by doubling the chord duration here, we make the section feel more spacious and reflective.

At the very end of the bridge, we strum F once and let it ring (just like we do with C earlier in the verse).

Repeat that until it feels easy.
Once you’re smooth, try adding the strumming pattern instead of all downstrokes.

In the video, I show you how to count, when to switch, and how to feel the groove with your body—not just your brain.

🚀 Next Steps

By following the video and using the practice structure above, you’ll soon be strumming through the entire song with confidence.

If you want to take your guitar skills to the next level, master chords & strumming and more, consider checking out my All-Access Pass!

⚠️ Disclaimer

This tutorial is for educational purposes and personal practice only.
All rights to the original composition belong to their respective copyright holders.
This page does not include or distribute lyrics or official sheet music.

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