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The Beatles - Blackbird Chords

ChordsG, Am, C, C#, D, D#, Em, Cm, A, F, Dm, Bb
Strumming↓-↓↑-↑↓↑

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

  • 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
  • Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram
  • Guitar C# | D♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-4-3-1-2-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar C# | D♭ chord diagram
  • Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram
  • Guitar D# | E♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-x-1-3-4-3Guitar D# | E♭ chord diagram
  • Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram
  • Guitar Cm chord diagram Fingering: x-3-1-0-1-3Guitar Cm chord diagram
  • Guitar A chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-2-0Guitar A chord diagram
  • Guitar F chord diagram Fingering: 1-3-3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar F chord diagram
  • Guitar Dm chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-1Guitar Dm chord diagram
  • Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-1-3-3-3-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram


[G] [Am] [G] [G]
[G]Blackbird [Am]singing in the [G]dead of [G]night
[C]Take these [C#]broken [D]wings and [D#]learn to [Em]fly [Em]
[D]All [C#]your [C]li[Cm]fe, [G]you were only [A]waiting for this [D]moment to ar[G]ise


[C] [G] [A] [D] [G]


Blackbird sin[G]ging in th[Am]e dead of night[G] [G]
[C]Take these [C#]sunken [D]eyes and [D#]learn to [Em]see [Em]
[D]All [C#]your [C]li[Cm]fe, [G]you were only [A]waiting for this [D]moment to be [G]free


[F][C]Black [Dm]bird [C] fly[Bb] [C]
[F][C]Black [Dm]bird [Bb]fly [A]
Into the [D]light of a dark [G]black night


[G] [Am] [G] [G] [C] [C#] [D] [D#] [Em] [Em]
[D] [C#] [C] [Cm] [G] [A] [D] [G]
[F][C]Black [Dm]bird [C] fly[Bb] [C]
[F][C]Black [Dm]bird [C] [Bb]fly [A]
Into the [D]light of a dark [G]black night


[G] [Am] [G] [G] [G] [G] [G] [Am] [G] [C] [G] [A] [D]
[G]Blackbird [Am]singing in the [G]dead of [G]night
[C]Take these [C#]broken [D]wings and [D#]learn to [Em]fly [Em]
[D]All [C#]your [C]li[Cm]fe, [G]you were only [A]waiting for this [D]moment to [G]arise


[C]You were [G]only [A]waiting for this [D]moment to [G]arise
[C]You were [G]only [A]waiting for this [D]moment to [G]arise

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AlbumThe Beatles
Year1968
KeyG

How to play Blackbird on Guitar (Step-by-step)

The Beatles - Blackbird on guitar requires 12 chords and 18 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.

Blackbird uses these transitions most often: A → D (10), D → G (10), and G → A (8). 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 G - Am chord transition.

1. G → Am chord transition

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.
G to Am

2. G → C chord transition

To move from G 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 3 and place it on A string fret 3.
G to C

3. C → C# chord transition

To move from C to C#;

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

4. C# → D chord transition

To move from C# to D;

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

5. D → D# chord transition

To move from D to D#;

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

6. D# → Em chord transition

To move from D# to Em;

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

7. Em → D chord transition

To move from Em to D;

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

8. C → Cm chord transition

To move from C to Cm;

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

9. Cm → G chord transition

To move from Cm to G;

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

10. G → A chord transition

To move from G to A;

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

11. A → D chord transition

To move from A to D;

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

12. D → G chord transition

To move from D to G;

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

13. G → F chord transition

To move from G to F;

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

14. 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.

15. C → Dm chord transition

To move 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.

16. C → Bb chord transition

To move from C to Bb;

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

17. 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.

18. Bb → A chord transition

To move from Bb to A;

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

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Blackbird.

  • Blackbird includes 113 chord transitions, 18 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.03% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Blackbird contains 7 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Blackbird 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 C, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (35%), F (16%), and D (11%).
    • C → G: 35%
    • C → F: 16%