How to Play "Dead Flowers" — Rolling Stones Guitar Lesson
Dead Flowers is one of the Rolling Stones' great country-rock numbers — loose, open and built on three chords, but with a guitar solo from Mick Taylor that's a perfect study in melodic, blues-inflected lead playing. In this detailed lesson, Simon Morel covers the full song: the Keith Richards rhythm style, the strumming pattern that makes it groove, and a note-for-note walkthrough of the complete guitar solo.
Watch the Free Lesson
9 minutes 36 seconds — no sign-up required.
What This Lesson Covers
The lesson opens with the three core chords — D, A and G — and the specific strumming dynamics that give the song its country-rock feel. Simon then works through the verse and bridge, explaining how the strumming pattern applies across the song's structure.
The second half of the lesson is dedicated to the guitar solo. This is where it gets genuinely interesting: Simon explains a key piece of lead guitar theory — how to use the first-position minor pentatonic scale to play major-key country-rock leads, which is the exact approach Mick Taylor uses. He then breaks the solo into two halves, covering pre-bends, pull-offs, semi-quaver runs, double stops and the classic melodic phrases that make this solo worth learning in full.
Chords and Skills You'll Need
Rhythm part: D, A and G open chords. Suitable for players who have been playing a few months.
Guitar solo: Intermediate to advanced. You'll need some comfort with single-note playing and ideally some experience with bends and pull-offs. The phrase-by-phrase breakdown makes it more approachable than it looks, but give yourself time with each section.
Get the Chart and Tab
The full tab and chart for Dead Flowers is available on Simon's Patreon, alongside a selection of great Stones hits in Simon's Rolling Stones lesson collection.
Learn Rolling Stones Songs in Private Lessons
If you want to really get inside how Keith Richards and Mick Taylor approached guitar — the open tunings, the rhythmic feel, the scale choices — there's a lot to unpack. A private lesson lets Simon tailor the content to exactly where you are.
$125/hr · All levels · Adults · Petersham studio or online