You Are My Sunshine
by Johnny Cash • Lesson #410 • Jan 12, 2022
Video lesson
Print-Friendly Song Sheet 4 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.comEditor’s notes
Hey friends! Here’s my new video lesson teaching you how to play the traditional classic You Are My Sunshine. I’m basing this on the 2003 version by Johnny Cash, which is played using only 3 chords (A, D, and E) – making it great for absolute beginners. In the second half of the lesson, I’ll show how you can dial up the difficulty a bit if you want to add more complex strumming (e.g. alternating bass notes). I’ll also show two different ways to play the melody riff, tabs included.
Video timestamps:
- 0:00 Preview & Lesson Summary
- 1:49 Chord Shapes
- 3:31 Chord Progression
- 5:27 Strumming: Basics
- 7:05 Strumming: Adding Bass Notes
- 12:12 Melody Riff w/ Tabs
- 22:03 Full Playthrough
My melody note exercise for this song
I also the practice log video (above), where I show you the live process of working out the melody notes for this song. Here’s a link to my detailed notes for that lesson, which includes a link to the practice worksheet (which is available to my supporters on Patreon).
Enjoy my lessons? Buy me a beer!
If this and my other lessons have proven helpful to you, please consider making a one-time donation to my tip jar. Contributions of any amount help make this project possible (including the many, many hours I put into it).
Fun & Helpful Tools I've Made
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
-
March 22, 2024
Lead Guitar & the F1 Theme Song
-
March 15, 2023
Pink Floyd's "Breathe" - with Simpler Chords Included
-
March 6, 2024
Q&A: 8 Tips to Avoid Muting Strings
-
March 1, 2024
Blues Shuffle Riffs - Using Just 2 Strings!
-
February 16, 2024
Soulful Lead Guitar with "America the Beautiful"
-
February 8, 2024
Country Honk by The Rolling Stones
-
January 31, 2024
Beginner Blues - New Course Sneak Peek!
-
January 23, 2024
Strumming with Accented Notes
-
January 13, 2024
Lead Guitar Finger Placement – ft. La Sitiera (The Mavericks)
-
January 9, 2024
Hybrid Fingerstyle - First Steps!