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Bob Dylan - Like A Rolling Stone Chords

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ChordsC, F, Dm, Em, G
Strumming↓-↓↑-↑↓↑

Before you play, tune your guitar and use the tools below to set up your view and flow. Using the Transpose tool, switch to D,A keys to play this song with easier chords.

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

[Opening]
[C]Once upon a time you [Dm]dressed so fine
You [Em]threw the bums a dime [F]in your [G]prime, didn’t you?
[C]People’d call, say, [Dm]”Beware doll,
You’re [Em]bound to fall”
You thought [F]they were all [G]kidding you

[verse 2]
[F]You used to [G]laugh about
[F]Everybody that was [G]hanging out
[F]Now you [Em]don’t [Dm]talk so [C]loud
[F]Now you [Em]don’t [Dm]seem so [C]proud
[Dm]About having to be [F]scrounging for your next [G]meal.

[verse 3]
How does it [C]feel [F] [G]
How does it [C]feel [F] [G]
To be without a [C]home [F] [G]
Like a complete [C]unknown [F] [G]
Like a rolling stone [C] [F] [G]

[interlude]
[C] [F] [G]

[verse 4]
Aww, [C]You’ve gone to the [Dm]finest school all [Em]right, Miss Lonely
But you [F]know you only used to get [G]juiced in it
[C]Nobody has ever taught you [Dm]how to live on the [Em]street
And now you’re [F]gonna have to get [G]used to it

[verse 5]
[F]You said you’d [G]never compromise
[F]With the mystery tramp, but now [G]you realize
[F]He’s not [Em]selling [Dm]any [C]alibis
[F]As you stare into the [Em]vacuum [Dm]of his [C]eyes
And [Dm]say do you want [F]to make a [G]deal?

[chorus]
How does it [C]feel [F] [G]
How does it [C]feel [F] [G]
To be on your [C]own [F] [G]
With no direction [C]home [F] [G]
A complete [C]unknown [F] [G]
Like a rolling [C]stone [F] [G]

[interlude]
[C] [F] [G]

[verse 6]
Aww, You[C]never turned a[Dm]round to see the frowns
[Em]On the jugglers and the [F]clowns
When they all did [G]tricks for you
You [C]never understood that it [Dm]ain’t no good
You [Em]shouldn’t let other [F]people get your [G]kicks for you

[verse 7]
[F]You used to ride on the
Chrome horse with your [G]diplomat
[F]Who carried on his shoulder a [G]Siamese cat

[verse 8]
[F]Ain’t it hard[Em]when you dis[Dm]cover [C]that
[F]He really [Em]wasn’t [Dm]where it’s [C]at
[Dm]After he took from you [F]everything he could [G]steal.

[verse 9]
How does it [C]feel [F] [G]
How does it [C]feel [F] [G]
To have you on your [C]own [F] [G]
With no direction [C]home [F] [G]
Like a complete [C]unknown [F] [G]
Like a rolling [C]stone [F] [G]

[interlude]
[C] [F] [G]

[verse 10]
[C]Aww, Princess on the [Dm]steeple and all the [Em]pretty people
They’re all [F]drinking, thinking that they [G]got it made
[C]Exchanging all [Dm]precious [Em]gifts
But you’d better [F]take your
Diamond [G]ring, you’d better pawn it babe

[Closing]
[F]You used to [G]be so amused
[F]At Napoleon in [G]rags and the language that he used
[F]Go to him now, he [Em]calls you, you [Dm]can’t [C]refuse
[F]When you got [Em]nothing, you [Dm]got nothing to [C]lose
[Dm]You’re invisible now, you got [F]no secrets to [G]conceal.

[chorus]
How does it [C]feel [F] [G]
How does it [C]feel [F] [G]
To be on your [C]own [F] [G]
With no direction [C]home [F] [G]
Like a complete [C]unknown [F] [G]
Like a rolling [C]stone [F] [G]

[outro]
[C] [F] [G]

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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.
ArtistBob Dylan
AlbumHighway 61 Revisited
GenresRock, Classic Rock
Year1965
KeyC

How to play Like A Rolling Stone on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Bob Dylan - Like A Rolling Stone on guitar requires 5 chords and 7 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.

Like A Rolling Stone uses these transitions most often: F → G (47), C → F (35), and G → C (34). 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 - F chord transition.

1. C → F chord transition

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

To move from C to F;

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

2. C → Dm chord transition

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

To move from C to Dm;

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

3. Dm → Em chord transition

Guitar Dm chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-1Guitar Dm chord diagram
Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram

To move from Dm to Em;

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

4. Em → F chord transition

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

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.
Em to F

5. 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.

6. 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.

7. Dm → F chord transition

To move from Dm to F;

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

Like A Rolling Stone chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Like A Rolling Stone.

  • Like A Rolling Stone includes 188 chord transitions, 7 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.05% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Like A Rolling Stone contains 3 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Like A Rolling Stone connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After F, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (40%), G (21%), and Am (11%).
    • F → C: 40%
    • F → G: 21%
    After C, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (35%), F (16%), and D (11%).
    • C → F: 16%
    • C → Dm: 5%
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.