Learning to play a Ukulele is tough, just like many stringed instruments, is extremely difficult. You have to worry about changing between chords, finger placement and hand placement, tuning, strumming, all while staying in time. There is no need to make learning harder than it needs to be.
Why go out and try to play a bunch of songs that have complex chord progressions and strumming patterns? This is not needed when we have a nice list of eight two chord ukulele songs that can get you started quickly and with minimal frustration!
The best news is that several of these songs are extremely famous, or have been covered by legendary artists. You will quickly learn to play tunes that your friends will know and love, and that you can take to get together and sing along to entertain friends and family!
Why Start with Two Chords Ukulele Songs for Beginners
It is a huge advantage to start with simple songs while you learn to play Ukulele. Learning Uke for beginners can be frustrating, so it’s great to actually play right off the bat.
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Now, some of these chords are a bit more difficult than your normal basic chords many teachers will start with.
Many of these songs include 7th chords, which are variations of your major chords.
For instance, Clementine, and several other songs, include a D7 chord, which is the 7th for the D major chord. The 7th chord of D actually requires you to hold down one less fret than the major, so in this case it’s slightly easier to play.
D Major Chord
D7 Chord
Most of the 7th chords won’t be taught right away by many Ukulele teachers or in online lessons, but they are easy enough that they can be played from the start.
If you don’t want to learn the 7th chords at first that is fine, it will slightly change the sound but many people won’t hear the difference. Or, to spice up the tune a little try playing the major chord during the chorus and the 7th the rest of the time!
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Two Chord Ukulele Songs
We tried to make this list as easy as possible to play. In fact, all eight songs are played using only a two of a combination of four of the more basic chords. Along with the D and the D7 chords you learned earlier, you’ll find these songs use the G, C, and F chords to play!
Want more easy song options? Check out our list of 30 Easy Ukulele Songs!
1. Clementine G, D7
In this video the teacher uses the C major and G7 chords to play this tune. We’ve seen it played either way but slightly prefer the G and D7 mix. Another interesting piece to this song is that it’s in 3/4 time, making it a fun variation from the 4/4 time that so many songs are written in.
2. Down in the Valley C, G7
Down in the Valley is another C major and G7 song, and it also just happens to be another in waltz (3/4) time. This teacher does a great job with a slow, detailed explanation.
3. Skip to my Lou C, G
Very simple and short explanation of how to play “Skip to my Lou”, this can be a fun song to start with because everyone knows it!
4. Lord of The Dance C, G
We struggled to find a simple version of this song on instruction, but this video is fairly close. He plays the introduction in a C major, G major arrangement that is perfect to carry through the song.
5. Streets Of Laredo C, F
One of our personal favorites (especially Johnny Cash’s cover) The Streets of Laredo is a great beginner song. To keep it simple when the video switches to a B flat chord stay with the F for a bar. Also, keep the strumming simple to start and work up to the finger=picking arrangement you see here!
6. A Horse with No Name by America D, Em
This is a song that you can simplify for beginners and make it much tougher as you advance. The video shows a very odd D 6/9 chord (which you’ll never use again), sub that out for a standard D chord to start. Another tip is to start with a basic down strum and work into the rhythm he plays. Lastly, add the mute for a great sound with only two chords!
7. Achy Breaky Heart F, C7
This goofy song by Billy Ray Cyrus translates to Ukulele quite nicely. A fun one for around the campfire,
8. Banana Boat Song F, C7
Who doesn’t know this song? “Day-Oooooo. Daylight come and me wanna go home”. This is a great way to wrap up our list… a simple, fun, and popular song that really shines on the Ukulele.
The Final Note
Hope you enjoyed the list and you’re already playing a few of the songs! If you want to see a great list of beginner tabs for the Ukulele check out the list at UkuleleTabs, and we love the program they’ve got at ArtistWorks for learning the Ukulele!
