Cocaine Guitar Chords

Cocaine is one of Eric Clapton's most iconic blues-rock tracks, originally written by J.J. Cale and made famous on Clapton's 1977 Slowhand album. The song is built around a tight, driving riff using E, D, C and B chords in E Major — a deceptively simple harmonic framework that puts all the emphasis on feel, tone and timing. The distinctive intro riff pattern (E E D E, E D repeated) is a rite of passage for intermediate blues guitarists.

Chords Used

E D C B

How to Play Cocaine on Guitar

The defining character of Cocaine comes from how you play the riff rather than which chords you play. The staccato attack on the E chord followed by the quick D–E movement needs to feel punchy and percussive. Muting the strings slightly with your fretting hand between chord strikes gives the riff its tight, almost funky quality. The guitar solo section is a long improvisation — if you want to tackle it, it uses the E Minor Pentatonic scale, which is an excellent reason to book a blues guitar lesson in Mumbai with JBX Music.

Intro

E E D E,  E D   × 2 TIMES

Verse

E/E/D/E/E/D  × 4 TIMES

Chorus

E   /   D   /   C   /   B
E/E/D/E/E/D  × 4 TIMES

Chorus (repeat)

E  /  D  /  C  /  B
E/E/D/E/E/D  × 4 TIMES

Final Chorus

E/D/C/B

Solo

GUITAR LONG SOLO

Outro Chorus

E/D/C/B

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Cocaine by Eric Clapton hard to play on guitar?

The chord progression in Cocaine is rated intermediate — the four chords (E, D, C, B) are not difficult shapes, but the riff requires precise timing and the right muted, staccato attack to sound authentic. The extended guitar solo is where the real challenge lies.