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14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?The 100 most repeated chord transitions extracted from thousands of songs. Even the first 10 will transform your guitar practice routine.

Electric Light Orchestra - 21st Century Man Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsC, G, Am, Em, C7, F, Dm, Bb, Bb7, G7, Fm
Strumming↓-↓↑-↑↓↑

Before you play, tune your guitar and use the tools below to set up your view and flow.

CApennyinyourGpocketGAm
AmSuitcaseinyourEmhandC7F
FTheywon’tgetyouCveryfar
Nowyou’reaDm21stcenturyFmanGG
CFlyacrosstheGcityGAm
AmRiseabovetheEmlandC7F
FYoucando‘mostCanything
Nowyou’reaDm21stcenturyBbmanBbBb7
GThoughyouG7rideontheCwheelsofFtomorrowDmAm
GYoustillG7wandertheCfieldsofyourFsorrow
WhatwillitFmbring?
COnedayyou’reaGheroGAm
AmNextdayyou’reaEmclownC7F
FThere’snothingthatisCinbetween
Nowyou’reaDm21stcenturyFmanGG
CYoushouldbesoGhappyGAm
AmYoushouldbesoEmgladC7F
FSowhyareyousoClonely
YouDm21stcenturyBbmanBbBb7
GYousteppedG7outofadream
CBelievingeveryFthingwasgoneDmAm
GReturnwithG7whatyou’velearned
They’llCkissthegroundyouwalkFuponFm
Dm21stcenturyFmanGG
CThingsain’thowyouthoughttheyGwere,GAm
AmNothinghaveyouEmplannedC7F
FSopickupyourpennyandyourCsuitcase,
You’renotaDm21stcenturyBbmanBbBb7
GThoughyouG7rideontheCwheelsof FtomorrowDmtomorrow
GYoustillG7wandertheCfieldsFofyoursorrowTomorrowFm
F21stcenturyCman DmMaaaaan
F21stcenturyCman DmMaaaaan
F21stcenturyCman DmMaaaaan
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookDiscover the most-used three-chord combinations in songs and build real command on guitar.
14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?Master guitar today with the most repeated high-impact chord transitions.
ArtistElectric Light Orchestra
AlbumTime
GenresPop
Year1981
KeyC
DifficultyAdvanced

How to play 21st Century Man on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Electric Light Orchestra - 21st Century Man on guitar requires 11 chords and 20 core chord transitions. You can find the full step-by-step guide below. Before you start, tune your instrument. The song uses the ↓-↓↑-↑↓↑ pattern; practice it muted first, or simplify to downstrokes while you learn the changes.

21st Century Man uses these transitions most often: C → Dm (8), F → C (8), and C → F (6). These transitions may feel a little challenging at first, but with steady practice you can play this song quickly.When you are ready, begin with C - G chord transition.

1. C → G chord transition

Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram

Switching from C to G:

  1. Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  3. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

C to G

2. G → Am chord transition

Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar Am chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-1-0Guitar Am chord diagram

Here's how to move from G to Am:

  1. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to D string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from E string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

G to Am

3. Am → Em chord transition

Guitar Am chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-1-0Guitar Am chord diagram
Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram

To move from Am to Em:

  1. While playing Am, lift your index finger from B string fret 1.
  2. Lift your middle finger from D string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from G string fret 2 to D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

Am to Em

4. Em → C7 chord transition

Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram
Guitar C7 chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-3-1-0Guitar C7 chord diagram

Switching from Em to C7:

  1. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on D string fret 2.
  2. Slide your ring finger from D string fret 2 to A string fret 3.
  3. Place index finger on B string fret 1.
  4. Place pinky on G string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

Em to C7

5. C7 → F chord transition

To move from C7 to F:

  1. Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to G string fret 2.
  3. Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.
  4. Lift your pinky from G string fret 3 and place it on D string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

6. F → C chord transition

To move from F to C:

  1. While playing F, lift your pinky from D string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on B string fret 1.
  3. Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
  4. Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 8 times.

7. C → Dm chord transition

Switching from C to Dm:

  1. Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to G string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on B string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 8 times.

8. Dm → F chord transition

Switching from Dm to F:

  1. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
  2. Keep middle finger on G string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from B string fret 3 to A string fret 3.
  4. Place pinky on D string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

9. F → G chord transition

Switching from F to G:

  1. While playing F, lift your pinky from D string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  4. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

10. Dm → Bb chord transition

To move from Dm to Bb:

  1. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to D string fret 3.
  3. Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 3.
  4. Place pinky on B string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

11. Bb → Bb7 chord transition

Switching from Bb to Bb7:

  1. While playing Bb, lift your middle finger from D string fret 3.
  2. Keep index finger on A string fret 1.
  3. Lift your ring finger from G string fret 3 and place it on D string fret 3.
  4. Keep pinky on B string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

12. Bb7 → G chord transition

Switching from Bb7 to G:

  1. While playing Bb7, lift your pinky from B string fret 3.
  2. Slide your index finger on A string from fret 1 to fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from D string fret 3 to E string fret 3.
  4. Place middle finger on E string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

13. G → G7 chord transition

Here's how to move from G to G7:

  1. Keep index finger on A string fret 2.
  2. Keep middle finger on E string fret 3.
  3. Slide your ring finger on E string from fret 3 to fret 1.

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

14. G7 → C chord transition

Switching from G7 to C:

  1. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to D string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from E string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

15. Dm → Am chord transition

Switching from Dm to Am:

  1. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on B string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

16. F → Fm chord transition

To move from F to Fm:

  1. While playing F, lift your middle finger from G string fret 2.
  2. Keep index finger on E string fret 1.
  3. Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.
  4. Keep pinky on D string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

17. Fm → C chord transition

To move from Fm to C:

  1. While playing Fm, lift your pinky from D string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on B string fret 1.
  3. Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.
  4. Place middle finger on D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse.

18. Fm → Dm chord transition

To move from Fm to Dm:

  1. While playing Fm, lift your pinky from D string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
  3. Slide your ring finger from A string fret 3 to B string fret 3.
  4. Place middle finger on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse.

19. Dm → Em chord transition

Here's how to move from Dm to Em:

  1. While playing Dm, lift your index finger from E string fret 1.
  2. Lift your middle finger from G string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from B string fret 3 to D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

20. Em → F chord transition

Here's how to move from Em to F:

  1. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on G string fret 2.
  2. Slide your ring finger from D string fret 2 to A string fret 3.
  3. Place index finger on E string fret 1.
  4. Place pinky on D string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

21st Century Man chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in 21st Century Man.

  • 21st Century Man includes 97 chord transitions, 20 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.03% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • 21st Century Man contains 4 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how 21st Century Man connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After G, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (25%), D (24%), and Am (13%).
    • G → C: 25%
    • G → Am: 13%
    After F, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (40%), G (21%), and Am (11%).
    • F → C: 40%
    • F → G: 21%
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookThe 200 most popular three-chord chains from real songs. See which songs use each chain and expand your repertoire with patterns that actually matter.