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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.

Dolly Parton - I Will Always Love You Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsD, A, F#m, E7
Strumming↓↑-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

DDADDA
F#mDE7
IfAIDshouldAstay
IwouldF#monly,beE7in,yourDwayE7
SoI’llAgo,DbutIAknow
I’llF#mthinkofyou,eachE7step,oftheDwayE7
AndAIF#mIwillDalways,loveAyou
F#mIwillDalways,loveAyouDA
BitterAsweetDmemories
That’sallF#mIamE7taking,withDmeE7
AGoodbye,Dpleasedon’tAcry
WeF#mbothknow,thatI’mE7not,whatyouDneedE7
AndAIF#mIwillDalways,loveAyou
F#mIwillDalways,loveAyouDA
F#mDE7
IhopeAlife,DtreatsyouAkind
AndIF#mhope,youhaveE7all,thatyoueverDdreamedofE7
AndIwishyouAjoy,andDhappiness
ButF#maboveallofE7this,IwishyouDloveE7
AndAIF#mIwillDalways,loveAyou
F#mIwillDalways,loveAyou
DIwillE7alwaysloveDyouE7A
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.
ArtistDolly Parton
AlbumJolene
GenresCountry
Year1974
KeyA
DifficultyEasy

How to play I Will Always Love You on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Dolly Parton - I Will Always Love You on guitar requires 4 chords and 6 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.

I Will Always Love You uses these transitions most often: D → E7 (16), E7 → A (15), and A → F#m (14). 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 - A chord transition.

1. D → A chord transition

Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram
Guitar A chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-2-0Guitar A chord diagram

Switching from D to A:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 10 times.

D to A

2. A → F#m chord transition

Guitar A chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-2-0Guitar A chord diagram
Guitar F#m | G♭m chord diagram Fingering: 2-4-4-2-2-2 Barre at fret 2.Guitar F#m | G♭m chord diagram

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

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 14 times.

A to F#m

3. F#m → D chord transition

Guitar F#m | G♭m chord diagram Fingering: 2-4-4-2-2-2 Barre at fret 2.Guitar F#m | G♭m chord diagram
Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram

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

  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 G string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from A string fret 4 to B string fret 3.
  4. Place middle finger on E string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 8 times.

F#m to D

4. D → E7 chord transition

Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram
Guitar E7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-1-0-0Guitar E7 chord diagram

Here's how to move from D to E7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 16 times.

D to E7

5. E7 → A chord transition

Here's how to move from E7 to A:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 15 times.

6. F#m → E7 chord transition

Switching from F#m to E7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

I Will Always Love You chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in I Will Always Love You.

  • I Will Always Love You includes 86 chord transitions, 6 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • I Will Always Love You contains 1 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how I Will Always Love You 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 → A: 17%
    • D → E7: 1%
    After A, the most likely next chords across Chordier are D (29%), G (13%), and E (12%).
    • A → D: 29%
    • A → F#m: 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.