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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.

ABBA - Elaine Chords

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

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

  • Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram
  • Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-1-3-3-3-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram
  • Guitar F chord diagram Fingering: 1-3-3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar F chord diagram
  • 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
  • Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram

[intro]
[C] [Bb] [F] [C] [C] [Bb] [F] [C]

[Opening]
You [C]hate, you scream, you swear,
And still you never [Am]reach him
You [C]curse, you try to scare,
But you can never [Am]teach him

[chorus]
It’s a dead end [Em]street
They [F]tie your hands and [G]tie your [C]feet
[Am]And the street is [Em]narrow
A [F]nowhere lane, a nowhere [C]train for

[verse 2]
[C]Elaine, Elaine, Elaine, Elaine, Elaine, Elaine
You know they’re gonna [Am]get you
You [C]try to break away
But they will never [Am]let you

[chorus]
It’s a dead end [Em]street
They [F]tie your hands and [G]tie your [C]feet
[Am]And the street is [Em]narrow, a [F]nowhere lane,
A nowhere train for
[C]Elaine, Elaine, Elaine

[chorus]
[Am]You’re [C]like a [Em]goldfish [C]in a [Am]bowl
[C]Elaine, Elaine, Elaine
[Am]They [C]have your [Em]mind,
They’ll [C]take your [Am]soul

[verse 3]
You [C]come, you stay, you go,
It really doesn’t [Am]matter
You’ve [C]done it all before,
By now they’ll know the [Am]pattern

[chorus]
It’s a dead end [Em]street,
They [F]tie your hands and [G]tie your [C]feet
[Am]And the street is [Em]narrow, a [F]nowhere lane,
A nowhere train for
[C]Elaine, Elaine, Elaine

[chorus]
[Am]You’re [C]like a [Em]goldfish [C]in a [Am]bowl
[C]Elaine, Elaine, Elaine
[Am]They [C]have your [Em]mind,
They’ll [C]take your [Am]soul

[interlude]
[C]

[Closing]
[C]You come, you stay, you go,
It [F]really doesn’t [C]matter
[C]You’ve done it all before,
And [F]now they’ll know the [Am]pattern
It’s a dead end [Em]street,
They [F]tie your hands and [G]tie your [C]feet
[Am]And the street is [Em]narrow
A [F]nowhere lane, a nowhere train for
[C]Elaine, Elaine, Elaine

[chorus]
[Am]You’re [C]like a [Em]goldfish [C]in a [Am]bowl
[C]Elaine, Elaine, Elaine
[Am]They [C]have your [Em]mind,
They’ll [C]take your [Am]soul
[C]Elaine, Elaine, Elaine [Bb] [F] [C]

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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.
ArtistABBA
AlbumSuper Trouper
GenresPop
Year1980
KeyC

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

ABBA - Elaine on guitar requires 6 chords and 10 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.

Elaine uses these transitions most often: C → Am (22), Am → C (15), and Am → Em (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 C - Bb chord transition.

1. C → Bb chord transition

Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram
Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-1-3-3-3-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram

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.
C to Bb

2. Bb → F chord transition

Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-1-3-3-3-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram
Guitar F chord diagram Fingering: 1-3-3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar F chord diagram

To move from Bb to F;

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

3. F → C chord transition

Guitar F chord diagram Fingering: 1-3-3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar F chord diagram
Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram

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.
F to C

4. C → Am chord transition

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

To move from C to Am;

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

5. Am → Em chord transition

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.

6. Em → F chord transition

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.

7. F → G chord transition

To move 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.

8. 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.

9. C → Em chord transition

To move from C to Em;

  1. While playing C, 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 A string fret 3 to D string fret 2.

10. F → Am chord transition

To move from F to Am;

  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. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.

Elaine chord transition analysis

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

  • Elaine includes 90 chord transitions, 10 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Elaine contains 5 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Elaine connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After C, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (35%), F (16%), and D (11%).
    • C → F: 16%
    • C → Am: 10%
    After Am, the most likely next chords across Chordier are F (26%), G (21%), and C (16%).
    • Am → C: 16%
    • Am → Em: 10%
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.