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Ruth Etting - Button Up Your Overcoat Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsG, A7, D7, G7, C, Em
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 A7 chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-0-2-0Guitar A7 chord diagram
  • Guitar D7 chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-1-2Guitar D7 chord diagram
  • Guitar G7 chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-1Guitar G7 chord diagram
  • Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram
  • Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram

[Opening]
[G]Button up your overcoat, [A7]when the wind is free
[D7]Take good care of yourself, you be[G]long to me.[D7]
[G]Eat an apple every day, [A7]get to bed by three,
[D7]Take good care of yourself, you be[G]long to me

[verse 2]
[G7]Be careful [C]crossing streets oooh oooh
[G]Don’t eat meat, oooh oooh.
[Em]Cut out sweets, [A7]oooh oooh.
[D7]* You’ll get a pain and ruin your tum tum
[G]Keep away from bootleg hootch, [A7]when you’re on a spree.
[D7]Take good care of yourself, you be[G]long to me [D7]

[interlude]
[G] [A7] [D7] [G] [D7] [G] [A7] [D7] [G]

[verse 3]
[G7]Don’t sit on [C]hornet’s tails, ooh ooh
[G]Or on nails, ooh ooh
[Em]Or third rails, [A7]ooh ooh
[D7]You’ll get a pain and ruin your tum tum

[verse 4]
[G] [A7] [D7] [G]
[G]Button up your overcoat, [A7]when the wind is free,
[D7]Take good care of yourself, you be[G]long to me.[D7]
[G]Wear your flannel underwear, [A7]when you climb a tree [D7]
Take good care of yourself, you be[G]long to me.

[Closing]
Beware of [C]frozen ponds, ooh ooh
[G]Stocks and bonds, ooh ooh
[Em]Peroxide blondes, [A7]ooh ooh
[D7]You’ll get a pain and ruin your bankroll
[G]Keep the spoon out of your cup [A7]when you’re drinking tea
Oh, [D7]take good care of yourself you be[C]long to [G]me

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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.
ArtistRuth Etting
AlbumSingle
GenresPop
Year1928
KeyG

How to play Button Up Your Overcoat on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Ruth Etting - Button Up Your Overcoat on guitar requires 6 chords and 9 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.

Button Up Your Overcoat uses these transitions most often: D7 → G (15), A7 → D7 (12), and G → A7 (9). 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 - A7 chord transition.

1. G → A7 chord transition

Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar A7 chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-0-2-0Guitar A7 chord diagram

To move from G to A7;

  1. While playing G, lift your ring finger from E string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on D string fret 2.
  3. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to B string fret 2.
G to A7

2. A7 → D7 chord transition

Guitar A7 chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-0-2-0Guitar A7 chord diagram
Guitar D7 chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-1-2Guitar D7 chord diagram

To move from A7 to D7;

  1. Lift your index finger from D string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from B string fret 2 to G string fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on E string fret 2.
A7 to D7

3. D7 → G chord transition

Guitar D7 chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-1-2Guitar D7 chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram

To move from D7 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 G string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  3. Slide your ring finger on E string from fret 2 to fret 3.
D7 to G

4. G → G7 chord transition

Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar G7 chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-1Guitar G7 chord diagram

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.
G to G7

5. G7 → C chord transition

To move 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.

6. C → G chord transition

To move 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.

7. G → Em chord transition

To move from G to Em;

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

8. Em → A7 chord transition

To move from Em to A7;

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

9. D7 → C chord transition

To move from D7 to C;

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

Button Up Your Overcoat chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Button Up Your Overcoat.

  • Button Up Your Overcoat includes 56 chord transitions, 9 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.01% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Button Up Your Overcoat contains 1 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Button Up Your Overcoat 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 → Em: 9%
    After D7, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (51%), G7 (18%), and C (6%).
    • D7 → G: 51%
    • D7 → C: 6%
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.