Log In My Account Join Upgrade Premium VIP Beta Tester Free Trial
Menu Search Join VIP Beta Tester Premium
 

Home ❯ Songs ❯

Where Rainbows Never Die

by The Steeldrivers • Lesson #112 • Dec 10, 2017

Video lesson

Licensed Song Sheet 3 pages

Follow along with my print-friendly guide for this song! It’s available for purchase at Musicnotes.com, the web’s leading provider of licensed sheet music.

On the fence? Here's a guide I made showing the purchase & print process, including answers to common questions about my song sheets.

Buy at Musicnotes.com

Save 50% on this song sheet by applying the October 2025 code at Musicnotes checkout: 9JNF67S3WZ (click to copy). Thanks for being a Premium supporter!

Song Notes Premium includes a 50% discount code you can use when buying any of my licensed song sheets. For the current month's code, upgrade to premium or log in.

Editor’s notes

In this lesson, I’ll teach you how to play the intro riff “Where Rainbows Never Die” by the Steeldrivers. This is a fun riff, repeating over the D-A-Bm-G chords, which is heard through most of the song. I’ll break down how to approach this riff from a practicing standpoint – and show tabs breaking down the musical phrases to tackle one by one.

Video timestamps:

  • 0:00 Playthrough & lesson overview
  • 2:27 Where I start the actual lesson

Capo 2nd fret

If you want to play along with the SteelDrivers version, add a capo to the 2nd fret.

Main riff

Here’s the main riff you hear, which is repeated in the intro and verse.

See song sheet for the full tab.

Alternate ending to the riff

And, here’s the version of the riff with the special ending, heard on the 3rd playthrough of the intro. For the 4th playthrough, they go back to the “main” riff shown above.

See song sheet for the full tab.

How to practice the riff when learning it

Here’s what I practiced over and over while first learning the riff. The focus here is learning (1) the chords, and (2) the bass note transitions. Don’t worry about the timing (yet) and don’t worry about the precise melodic bass notes (yet). Once you get this down, then you can worry about those.

e –|–––––2–––  –––––––––––  –––––––(2)–  ––––––––3––––––
B –|–––––3–––  ––––––––2––  ––––––––3––  ––––––––3––––––
G –|–––––2–––  ––––––––2––  ––––––––4––  ––––––––0––––––
D –|––0––––––  ––––––––2––  ––––––––4––  ––––––––0––––––
A –|–––––––––  –––––0–––––  ––0––2–––––  ––––––––x––––––
E –|–––––––––  ––3––––––––  –––––––––––  ––2––3–––––––––
      D             A            Bm           G

Chords needed for the song

Here’s the normal way you play the chords used in this song. When strumming the verse, try to only emphasize the bottom 2-3 strings of each chord (as this song as a very bassy sound to its progression).

e –––2––––0––––3––––2––––  –––2––––(2)––––0–––  
B –––3––––2––––3––––3––––  –––3–––––3–––––0–––  
G –––2––––2––––0––––4––––  –––4–––––2–––––0–––  
D –––0––––2––––0––––4––––  –––4–––––0–––––2–––  
A ––––––––0––––2––––2––––  –––0–––––0–––––2–––  
E –––––––––––––3–––––––––  –––––––––2–––––0–––  
     D    A    G    Bm       Bm/A  D/F#   Em

But for the intro, I recommend the following voicings / finger positions:

e ––––––––    x--- don't play this string
B –––2––––    <--- left hand index finger (barred)
G –––2––––    <--- left hand index finger (barred)
D –––2––––    <--- left hand index finger (barred)
A –––0––––
E ––––––––
     A    

e –––3––––    <--- left hand pinky finger
B –––3––––    <--- left hand ring finger
G –––0––––
D –––0––––
A –––x––––    x--- don't play this string (mute it)
E –––3––––    <--- left hand middle finger
     G

Strumming patterns

Here’s three ways you could strum this song, depending on your preference / taste / ability.

Continuous down-up strumming:

D     A         Bm    G   
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +
d u d u d u d u d u d u d u d u

Continuous down strums:

D     A         Bm    G   
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +
d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d d

Conventional strumming pattern:

D     A         Bm    G   
1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 +
d   d u   u d u d   d u   u d u

Unlock My Secret Stash!

Gain instant access to my library of 292 print-friendly cheat sheets! Also includes my extended video lessons, jam tracks, courses, and more.

Join Song Notes Premium

Have questions? Watch video tour »

Browse Related Lessons

Click any tag below to view other lessons I've made in that category:

Enjoy My Lessons? Show Your Support!

Most of the lessons on my website are 100% free. If you have the means, please show your support with a tip jar contribution. I put many hours into every lesson — but it only takes you a minute to make a donation. You have my thanks!

Donate

Looking for More Song Lessons?

Recently Added
Most Popular
Beginner-Friendly
Browse by Artist
Browse by Song Title
Browse by Song Year
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
1990s
2000s
2010s
2020s

Featured Courses

Guitar for Beginners

A guide to getting started with guitar! Everything you need to know to begin your journey. Choosing a guitar, other gear you'll need, fretting notes & chords, learning your first songs, and more.

14 lessons

View

Beginner Chord Guide

A guide to the must-know chords you'll need when getting started with guitar! The quickest way to learn major chords, minor chords, the chords in each key, and more.

22 lessons

View

Reading Music for Guitarists

Learn to read tabs, chord charts, fretboard diagrams, strumming patterns, and more! This course explains how to understand all of these must-know notation styles.

6 lessons

View

Blues Starter Kit

A guide to must-know elements of beginner blues guitar! I'll walk you through the essential topics, showing you fun things to play along the way.

18 lessons

View
Strumming & Rhythm
Learning Lead Guitar
Fingerstyle & Travis Picking
Practical Music Theory
Major Keys
Minor Keys
Double Stops
Diagonal Pentatonics
Walk Ups & Walk Downs
Using a Capo
CAGED Shapes
Practice Tips
Barre Chords

Fun & Helpful Tools I've Made

Fret Monster

Interactive fretboard map! See the patterns behind every scale in any key.

View

Capo Captain

An easy way to calculate key & chord combinations, for any capo location!

View

Key Master

See and hear the notes, chords, scales used in each of the most common keys.

View

Blank Tabs

Free PDF templates to download, print, and write out your own guitar tabs!

View

Coming soon is Jambox – which shows all the video jam tracks I've made. It's note quite ready for the spotlight, but check it out if you like!

Subscribe to my YouTube channel

Be sure to never miss a lesson by subscribing on YouTube. I put out 2-3 new videos every week. These include full song lessons, as well as covers, practice tips, behind-the-scenes updates. Thanks!

Recent Lessons

  • October 24, 2025

    "Dust in the Wind" Intro Fingerstyle, Step-by-Step

    I break down the 16 measure introduction to this all-time classic from Kansas, walking you through things step-by-step. Whether you want something simple or advanced, I've got you covered.

  • Oct 18, 2025

    "America" by Simon & Garfunkel

    Learn to play this 1968 hit from S&G's Bookends album. Pure key of C goodness, with some of the most fun & beautiful walkdowns you'll find on acoustic guitar.

  • Oct 8, 2025

    Rhythm Deep-Dive: "Wild World" by Cat Stevens

    I answer an audience question about tempo, counting, and beats per minute (BPM) — with a spceific look at this classic from Cat Stevens. Is it played at 75bpm or 150bpm? I explain how both can work, depending on how you strum.

  • Sept 30, 2025

    Smooth Chord Changes while Strumming

    In this lesson I share the #1 must-know tip for making seamless chord transitions without interrupting your strumming. The secret is starting your chord transition early, even if you strum "empty" (unfretted) strings. I'll show you how!

  • Sept 18, 2025

    "Rise" by Eddie Vedder

    Learn a guitar arrangement of Eddie Vedder's beautiful mandolin song from the Into the Wild soundtrack. Includes a bunch of tips for adding melodic strumming, as to capture Vedder's mandolin vibe.

  • Sept 10, 2025

    Diagonal Pentatonics, Explained!

    A deep-dive into one of the most helpful techniques when learning to unlock the fretboard for lead guitar fun! Includes a 15-page PDF handbook, along with ten new play-along practice tracks.

  • August 29, 2025

    "Margaritaville" by Jimmy Buffett

    After dozens and dozens of requests over the last few years, the time has come! Learn to play Jimmy Buffett's 1977 classic Margaritaville. Intro riff and melodic strumming fills included!

  • Aug 22, 2025

    First Steps with Double Stops — 16 Page Handbook Included!

    Take your first step with double stops — specifically harmonized 3rds, 6ths, and 10ths. These are useful in fingerstyle, lead guitar, improvsation, and more! Don't miss my Double Stop Handbook, which has over 15 pages of tabs, diagrams, and easy-to-digest theory.

  • Aug 3, 2025

    Fingerstyle Fun feat. Ozzy Osbourne's "Mama I'm Coming Home"

    Learn a bite-sized fingerstyle groove, inspired by the opening intro & verse of Ozzy Osbourne's 1991 hit "Mama I'm Coming Home."

  • July 31, 2025

    [Updated] "Lola" Instrumental Intro, with Melody

    I've updated my practice notes teaching an extended intro to Lola by The Kinks. "Part 2" video teaching the lead guitar fill riff also added.

Browse All Recent Lessons →

← back to homepage