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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.

John McCutcheon - Christmas in the Trenches Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsD, Bm, G, Em, A7, F#m
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

MyDnameisFrancisBmTolliver.
IGcomefrom EmLiverpool.
TwoA7yearsagothewarwaswaiting
GformeafterDschool.
ToBelgiumandtoBmFlanders,
toGGermany,toEmhere,
IA7foughtforKingandcountryIloveDdear.
TwasA7Christmasinthetrenches
wheretheGfrostsobitterDhung.
TheBmfrozenfieldsofF#mFrancewerestill,
noGChristmassongwasA7sung.
OurDfamiliesbackinBmEngland
wereGtoastingusthatEmday,
TheirA7braveandgloriousladssofar Daway.
IwasDlyin’withmyBmmessmate
ontheGcoldandrockyEmground
When A7acrossthelinesofbattle
cameaGmostpeculiarDsound.
SaysI“NowlistenBmupmeboys”,
eachGsoldierstrainedtoEmhear
AsA7oneyoungGermanvoicesangoutsoDclear.
“He’sA7singin’bloodywellyouknow”,
myGpartnersaystoDme.
SoonBmonebyoneeachF#mGermanvoice
Gjoinedinin A7harmony.
TheDcannonsrestedBmsilent.
TheGgascloudrollednoEmmore
AsA7ChristmasbroughtusrespitefromtheDwar.
AsDsoonastheywereBmfinished
aGreverentpausewasEmspent.
“GodA7RestYeMerryGentlemen”
struckGupsomeladsfromDKent.
ThenexttheysangwasBm‘StilleNacht”
“TisG‘SilentNight'”saysEmI
AndA7intwotonguesonesongfilledupthatDsky.
“There’sA7someonecommin’towardsus”
theGfrontlinesentryDcried.
AllBmsightswerefixedonF#monelonefigure
GtrudgingfromtheirA7side.
HisDtruceflag,likeaBmChristmasstar,
shoneGonthatplainsoEmbright
AsheA7bravelystrode,unarmed,intotheDnight.
SoonDonebyoneonBmeitherside
walkedGinto Emnomansland
WithA7neithergunnorbayonet
weGmettherehandtoDhand.
WesharedsomesecretBmbrandy
andGwishedeachotherEmwell
AndinaA7flarelitsoccergamewegave’emDhell.
WeA7tradedchocolates,cigarettes
andGphotographsfromDhome
TheseBmsonsandfathersF#mfaraway
fromGfamiliesoftheirA7own.
YoungDSandersplayedhisBmsqueezebox
TheyGhada Emviolin
ThisA7curiousandunlikelybandofDmen.
DGDA7D
SoonDdaylightstole Bmuponus
andGFrancewasFranceonceEmmore.
WithA7sadfarewellsweeachbegan
toGsettlebacktoDwar.
ButthequestionhauntedBmeveryheart
thatGbeatthatwonderousEmnight
“WhoseA7familyhaveIfixedwithinmyDsights?”
TwasA7Christmasinthetrenches
wheretheGfrostsobitterDhung.
TheBmfrozenfieldsofF#mFrancewerewarmed
asGsongsofpeacewereA7sung.
FortheDwallsthey’dkept Bmbetweenus
to GexacttheworkofEmwar
HadbeenA7crumbledandweregoneforeverDmore.
MyDnameisFrancisBmTolliver.
InGLiverpoolIEmdwell.
EachA7ChristmascomesinceWorldWarOneI’ve
GlearneditslessonsDwell.
ThattheoneswhocalltheBmshotswon’tbe
GamongthedeadandEmlame
AndonA7eachendoftheriflewe’retheDsame.
DGDA7D
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.
ArtistJohn McCutcheon
AlbumWinter Solstice
GenresChristmas
Year1984
KeyD
DifficultyIntermediate

How to play Christmas in the Trenches on Guitar (Step-by-step)

John McCutcheon - Christmas in the Trenches 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.

Christmas in the Trenches uses these transitions most often: D → Bm (22), A7 → D (18), and Bm → G (17). 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 D - Bm chord transition.

1. D → Bm chord transition

Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram
Guitar Bm chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-4-4-3-2 Barre at fret 2.Guitar Bm chord diagram

Switching from D to Bm:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 22 times.

D to Bm

2. Bm → G chord transition

Guitar Bm chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-4-4-3-2 Barre at fret 2.Guitar Bm chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram

Switching from Bm to G:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 17 times.

Bm to G

3. G → Em chord transition

Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram

Switching 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 17 times.

G to Em

4. Em → A7 chord transition

Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram
Guitar A7 chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-0-2-0Guitar A7 chord diagram

Switching 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 17 times.

Em to A7

5. A7 → G chord transition

To move from A7 to G:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 11 times.

6. G → D chord transition

Here's how to move from G to D:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 13 times.

7. A7 → D chord transition

To move from A7 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 B string fret 2 to E string fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on B string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 18 times.

8. Bm → F#m chord transition

Here's how to move from Bm to F#m:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

9. F#m → G chord transition

To move from F#m to G:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

Christmas in the Trenches chord transition analysis

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

  • Christmas in the Trenches includes 139 chord transitions, 9 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.04% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Christmas in the Trenches contains 1 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Christmas in the Trenches connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After D, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (29%), A (17%), and Em (17%).
    • D → G: 29%
    • D → Bm: 5%
    After G, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (25%), D (24%), and Am (13%).
    • G → D: 24%
    • G → Em: 9%
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.