Roberta Flack - Killing Me Softly Chords
Before you play, tune your guitar and use the tools below to set up your view and flow.
Guitar Am chord diagram
Guitar Dm chord diagram
Guitar G7 chord diagram
Guitar C chord diagram
Guitar D chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar F chord diagram
Guitar A chord diagram
Guitar E7 chord diagram
[chorus]
[Am]Strumming my pain with his [Dm]fingers
[G7]Singing my life with his [C]words
[Am]Killing me softly with [D]his song
Killing me [G]softly with [F]his song
Telling my [C]whole life with [F]his words
Killing me [A]softly with his [A]song
[Opening]
[Dm]I heard he [G7]sang a good song
[C]I heard he [F]had a style
[Dm]And so I [G7]came to see him
And [Am]listen for a while
[Dm]And there he [G7]was this young boy
[C]A stranger [E7]to my eyes
[chorus]
[Am]Strumming my pain with his [Dm]fingers
[G7]Singing my life with his [C]words
[Am]Killing me softly with [D]his song
Killing me [G]softly with [F]his song
Telling my [C]whole life with [F]his words
Killing me [A]softly with his [A]song
[verse 2]
[Dm]I felt all [G7]flushed with fever
[C]Embarrassed [F]by the crowd
[Dm]I felt he [G7]found my letters
And [Am]read each one out loud
[Dm]I prayed that [G7]he would finish
[C]But he just [E7]kept right on
[chorus]
[Am]Strumming my pain with his [Dm]fingers
[G7]Singing my life with his [C]words
[Am]Killing me softly with [D]his song
Killing me [G]softly with [F]his song
Telling my [C]whole life with [F]his words
Killing me [A]softly with his [A]song
[Closing]
[Dm]He sang as [G7]if he knew me
[C]In all my [F]dark despair
[Dm]And then he [G7]looked right through me
As [Am]if I wasn’t there
[Dm]And he just [G7]kept on singing
[C]Singing [E7]clear and strong
[chorus]
[Am]Strumming my pain with his [Dm]fingers
[G7]Singing my life with his [C]words
[Am]Killing me softly with [D]his song
Killing me [G]softly with [F]his song
Telling my [C]whole life with [F]his words
Killing me [A]softly with his [A]song
How to play Killing Me Softly on Guitar (Step-by-step)
Roberta Flack - Killing Me Softly on guitar requires 9 chords and 14 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.
Killing Me Softly uses these transitions most often: Dm → G7 (13), G7 → C (10), and Am → Dm (7). 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 Am - Dm chord transition.
1. Am → Dm chord transition
To move from Am to Dm;
- Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
- Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to G string fret 2.
- Lift your ring finger from G string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 3.
2. Dm → G7 chord transition
To move from Dm to G7;
- Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 2.
- Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
- Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 1.
3. G7 → C chord transition
To move from G7 to C;
- Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 1.
- Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to D string fret 2.
- Lift your ring finger from E string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 3.
4. C → Am chord transition
To move from C to Am;
- Keep index finger on B string fret 1.
- Keep middle finger on D string fret 2.
- Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.
5. Am → D chord transition
To move from Am to D;
- Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on G string fret 2.
- Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to E string fret 2.
- Lift your ring finger from G string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 3.
6. D → G chord transition
To move from D to G;
- Lift your index finger from G string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
- Slide your middle finger from E string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
- Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 3.
7. G → F chord transition
To move from G to F;
- Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 1.
- Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to G string fret 2.
- Lift your ring finger from E string fret 3 and place it on A string fret 3.
- Place pinky on D string fret 3.
8. F → C chord transition
To move from F to C;
- While playing F, lift your pinky from D string fret 3.
- Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on B string fret 1.
- Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
- Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.
9. F → A chord transition
To move from F to A;
- While playing F, lift your pinky from D string fret 3.
- Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on D string fret 2.
- Keep middle finger on G string fret 2.
- Slide your ring finger from A string fret 3 to B string fret 2.
10. A → Dm chord transition
To move from A to Dm;
- Lift your index finger from D string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 1.
- Keep middle finger on G string fret 2.
- Slide your ring finger on B string from fret 2 to fret 3.
11. F → Dm chord transition
To move from F to Dm;
- While playing F, lift your pinky from D string fret 3.
- Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
- Keep middle finger on G string fret 2.
- Slide your ring finger from A string fret 3 to B string fret 3.
12. G7 → Am chord transition
To move from G7 to Am;
- Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 1.
- Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to D string fret 2.
- Lift your ring finger from E string fret 1 and place it on G string fret 2.
13. C → E7 chord transition
To move from C to E7;
- While playing C, lift your ring finger from A string fret 3.
- Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on G string fret 1.
- Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to A string fret 2.
14. E7 → Am chord transition
To move from E7 to Am;
- Lift your index finger from G string fret 1 and place it on B string fret 1.
- Slide your middle finger from A string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
- Place ring finger on G string fret 2.
Killing Me Softly chord transition analysis
A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Killing Me Softly.
- Killing Me Softly includes 76 chord transitions, 14 of them unique.
- These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
- Killing Me Softly contains 3 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
- These transition patterns show how Killing Me Softly 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 Dm, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (18%), G (16%), and Am (14%).- Dm → G7: 6%