Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain

by Willie Nelson • Lesson #433 • May 14, 2022

Today I’ll teach you how to play Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain, as played by Willie Nelson on his 1975 album Red Headed Stranger. I’ll start off teaching the simplest way to play this song using the E, A, and B7 chords (0:25). Then, I’ll walk through step-by-step the various ways you can spice things up to capture Willie’s guitar playing vibe: alternating bass notes (6:01), walk-ups & walk-downs (10:56), and adding Willie-esque flourish (15:46).

Part 2 – Play-Along Covers

Here’s two play-along covers showing me playing the song from start to finish. One is with lyrics/chords & my singing (0:00). The other is me playing slowly, using a simplified strum, with the verse & chorus tabs shown on screen (2:31).

Part 3 – Learning the Solo

Here’s a deep-dive tutorial teaching my version of the solo, which is slightly simplified compared to Willie’s version — but still captures the same vibe and is quite fun to play.

Part 4 – Jam Track for Practicing the Solo

Lastly, here’s a 5-6 minute practice track I made for you to use when practicing the solo. This loops over the 8 measure sequence the solo (and verse) uses, which repeats over and over, using guitar & drums to keep a steady beat.

Audio Backing Tracks

I also made two different 5-minute backing track to use while practicing this song. They provide a drum beat using the slight “swing” feel that is hinted at in Willie’s recording. There are two tracks, one at 100bpm and the other at 108bpm — both of which you can use while practicing the chords / progression / solo / etc. Nelson’s album version has a tempo of 120bpm.

Licensed 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.com

Additional Lessons To Help With This Song

Here’s instructional lessons I’ve made teaching concepts that are useful in this song.

Walking Up & Down Between E A & B7

★ Instructional PDF

Walking Up & Down in Each Major Key

★ Instructional PDF

Other Willie Nelson Lessons

"Pancho and Lefty" by Willie Nelson and Merle Haggard

$ Song Sheet Available

"On the Road Again" by Willie Nelson

$ Song Sheet Available

"Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys" by Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson

$ Song Sheet Available

"Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground" by Willie Nelson

$ Song Sheet Available

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

Featured Courses

Strumming & Rhythm

While your left hand is busy learning chords, your right hand has its own job: creating a sense of rhythm with strumming! This can be tricky at first, but there's so much fun-to-be-had once you get over the hump. Here's a guide to get you started.

17 lessons

View

Fingerstyle & Travis Picking

Dive into the basics of fingerstyle guitar, with plenty of examples of riffs, exercises, and songs that put this technique to use. This includes a healthy serving of Travis Picking lessons, which feature an alternating bass note played with your right thumb.

31 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

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

Learning Lead Guitar

A collection of videos teaching you licks, riffs, solos, and other lead guitar techniques! Includes info on scales, CAGED shapes, and other helpful lead guitar concepts.

24 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

Practical Music Theory

A general overview of must-know theory concepts. The goal here is practical, easy-to-understand explanations — all of which provide clarity to your everyday guitar playing.

12 lessons

View

Using a Capo

Capos are incredibly helpful if you want to play along with your favorite artist, change a song's key, adjust things to your vocal range, and so on. In this series of videos I explain all this & more!

8 lessons

View

Walk Ups & Walk Downs

A very common trope in rock, country, and folk music involves walking bass lines that "connect" one chord to another. I've used this in many of my song lessons, and I'm happy to share this list of related lessons if you'd like to brush up on this technique.

10 lessons

View

CAGED Essentials

Learn about the repeating pattern of shapes on the fretboard, named after the five open chord shapes (C-A-G-E-D). Each shape can be used to play a chord, arpeggio, pentatonic or diatonic scale in every key... which makes them worth knowing!

6 lessons

View

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

April 11, 2025

"Stuck In The Middle With You" by Stealers Wheel

Let's dive into this 1972 classic, with a deep-dive on the tricky (but fun) strumming pattern! I'll guide you through it, step-by-step.
April 3, 2025

"Pacing the Cage" by Bruce Cockburn

Let's dive into this poignant gem from Bruce Cockburn, which features an amazingly fun-to-play (but tricky to master) fingerstyle arrangement.
March 28, 2025

West Texas Campfire Fingerstyle Fun

I've updated one of my favorite fingerstyle lessons — which shows how you can add melodic flair to basic chords with easy-going fingerpicking! Brand new PDF and 3 bonus videos added as well.
March 21, 2025

Leaving Your Comfort Zone to Speed Up Learning

Tips on pushing your boundaries without overwhelming yourself, all in the name of learning more quickly & expanding your guitar skillset.
March 12, 2025

"All The Best" by John Prine

Let's learn how to play John Prine's 1991 classic! Tons of fun with his Travis-picking fingerstyle, where he makes magic with just three chords.
March 6, 2025

Acoustic Fun with AC/DC's "Back in Black"

Let's dive into the hard-hitting classic from AC/DC — played on an acoustic guitar! By rounding a few corners, I'll show you how to have fun with this 1980 classic.
Feb 24, 2025

Major, Minor, and Pentatonic Scales in Every Key!

I'm thrilled to finally share 40+ new pages of PDF cheat sheets looking at all the must-know scales! Many of you have asked about this in the last couple years... it's finally here!
Feb 12, 2025

"Handle with Care" by Traveling Wilburys

Let's dive into this 1988 classic from the late-1980s supergroup featuring George Harrison, Tom Petty, Bob Dylan, and Roy Orbison. So fun to play!

Browse All Recent Lessons →

← back to homepage

Blue Eyes Crying in the Rain

Part 2 – Play-Along Covers

Part 3 – Learning the Solo

Part 4 – Jam Track for Practicing the Solo

Audio Backing Tracks

Licensed Song Sheet 4 pages

Additional Lessons To Help With This Song

Other Willie Nelson Lessons

Unlock My Secret Stash!

Browse Related Lessons

Enjoy My Lessons? Show Your Support!

Looking for More Song Lessons?

Featured Courses

Strumming & Rhythm

Fingerstyle & Travis Picking

Blues Starter Kit

Reading Music for Guitarists

Learning Lead Guitar

Beginner Chord Guide

Practical Music Theory

Using a Capo

Walk Ups & Walk Downs

CAGED Essentials

Fun & Helpful Tools I've Made

Fret Monster

Capo Captain

Key Master

Blank Tabs

Subscribe to my YouTube channel

Recent Lessons