How to read chord charts

Before we get to the list of praise and worship chords, here is a brief lesson on how to read guitar charts.

As seen in the diagram below, the top line of a chord chart represents the Nut of the guitar. The other lines across the page are the frets. A chord chart typically shows four frets. The lines running up and down represent the strings. The line on the far left is the 6th string, or the one closest to the ceiling, and the line to the far right is the first string, or the one closest to the floor. It’s called the ‘top’ string because the pitch is higher.

Since the chord charts only shows four frets, when you need to hold the strings on higher frets, a little number will appear beside the chord charts showing what fret to start on. If you miss the correct fret, it’s a different chord. Watch for the fret numbers.

Here are a few chords from Since the chord charts only shows four frets, when you need to hold the strings on higher frets, a little number will appear beside the chord charts showing what fret to start on. If you miss the correct fret, it’s a different chord. Watch for the fret numbers.

Here are a few chords from 200+ Guitar Chord Charts with Pictures & Much More There are a few other symbols to note. When there is an ‘X’ above the Nut on any string, don’t play that string. It doesn’t fit in the praise and worship chords. In some chord charts you may also see ‘O’. That means to play that string open.

Notice the X above the 6th string of B9 and Bº7. That means the 6th string does not belong in the chord. Just strum, or pick the first 5 strings. Also notice the 2nd fret next to the first fret of the Bsus4 chords. That 2 means that it's the second fret. You can see in the picture above that the first finger covers the 2nd fret. This is a bar chord.

Different Basses

It’s not uncommon to see a praise and worship chords with a slash and another letter after the slash. For example ‘A/B’. The letter before the slash is the chord and the letter after the slash is the bass note. Sometimes it’s a part of the chord, but not always. ‘A/B’ is an ‘A’ chord with the note ‘B’ as the bass. ‘B’ is not normally part of an ‘A’ chord and you would need to add another finger.

In the chord ‘E/B’ the chord chart looks exactly the same as a regular ‘E’ chord. The note ‘B’ is already in an ‘E’ chord. But instead of starting the chord with the 6th string, or ‘E’ bass, you would need to start on the 5th string. It’s easier to hear the difference when you’re finger picking and playing individual strings.
For a fuller explanation with hundreds of pictures, you may find the Chord eBook very helpful.

Praise And Worship Chords Resources

In this section you'll find links to both books to purchase and free sources of praise and worship chords. What's the difference? When you purchase a book, the artists get paid. I personally rarely use free sites and own probably all the major collections of recent worship songbooks printed.

For the free sites, there are two types. One type of free site features the familiar songs that you would see in major songbooks. The difference is that they are usually submitted by regular folks and may have mistakes. They also just have the chords, not the written melody like songbooks.

The second type of free praise and worship chords site is of original music. My friends Russ and Fred both have sites like this. It's a place where artists can submit both their mp3 files and sheet music to be used in worship settings. They are both listed below and are great sites to know.

Where to buy songs with praise and worship chords

Vineyard Music You can find their music in most stores but what I really like about their site is that you can choose what language you want to have displayed. There are also some interesting articles and, of course, you can purchase directly from them too.

Marnatha Music I really like their song collection books. For example, their Green Book has over 250 songs and it's only around $20. They also offer split track rehearsal CD's, three part harmony versions, rhythm versions and more. This is a particularly good source for praise and worship chords if you are involved with worship at your church.

Integrity Music Integrity continues to be another one of the main sources for great worship music. This site is also worth checking into. They, like the Vineyard, have program where you can receive CD's every 6 weeks or so.

Song Discovery For about $60 a year you can subscribe to their service. They mail out a CD with around 13 songs with the accompanying praise and worship chords songbook. The CD's are mailed out bimonthly, This is a great resource for worship leaders to have a constant flow of new songs.

Free Praise And Worship Chords from Individuals

Free Praise And Worship Russ has worked very hard putting this site together. He has gathered song writers from all over the world to submit their music. Much is just as inspired and beautiful as the popular songs that have been picked up by major publishers. The songs have both praise and worship chords and mp3 files.There's a lot here...check it out.

Highest Praise Praise and Worship Music, Christian Music Downloads, MP3, MIDI, Lead sheets with praise and worship chords, Lyrics, Worship Teachings, and Professional Songwriter Services - Christian Music Production, Recording, and Publishing - Your Home for Fresh, Powerful, and Anointed Praise and Worship Music! (Fred is also a friend and you'll find his endorsement on the sleeve of volume three.)

Christian Music X.com The focus is on Independent Christian Artist who have a love for the Lord and a gift from God to worship him in song. If you are looking for fresh new music to listen to this is a site for you.

Share Song ShareSong.org is a place on the Internet where Christian songwriters can publish their worship music (mp3s, midi, sheet music, praise and worship chords, OHTs & lyric sheets) and have churches, worship pastors and home groups around the world use it freely for God's glory!

Songs of Praise Songs of Praise is a unique source of original songs and plays for your church.

Media Tunes All the songs listed here are available for you to use in your music ministry. Included are the praise and worship chords and several free resources you can use to help you learn these songs.

Free Praise And Worship Chords of Popular Worship Songs

Your Christian Home This is an excellent resource for praise and worship chords. Over 1000 songs are in the worship library. Access is free, but you are cautioned that the worship library is for private study, scholarship, or research. They say if your intentions are otherwise, do not proceed into this library. Integrity recently made them pull all their songs out..

Just Worship A lovely collections of praise and worship chords. There are quite a few Vineyard songs here as well as several articles on worship. A lovely collections of praise and worship chords. There are quite a few Vineyard songs here as well as several articles on worship.

Good Search Engines

Google.com This is the search engine I use most. It tends to have the most relevant results.

A9 This is Amazon's new search engine. I still lean more on Google, but it's pretty good for researching items. You'll see images in addition to the URL's.

Yahoo.com One of the big players in search engines. I use a personal Homepage for checking the weather, etc.

MSN.com They probably have the nicest looking Homepage.It's similar to Yahoo but I think organized a bit better.