Jim Croce - Lover’s Cross Chords
Before you play, tune your guitar and use the tools below to set up your view and flow.
Guitar C chord diagram
Guitar Am chord diagram
Guitar Dm chord diagram
Guitar G7 chord diagram
Guitar F chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar C7 chord diagram
Guitar Em chord diagram
Guitar Dm7 chord diagram
[Opening]
[C] [Am] [Dm] [G7] [C]
Guess that [Am]it was [Dm]bound to [G7]happen
[C]Was just a [Am]matter of [Dm]time [G7]
But now [C]I’ve come [Am]to my de[Dm]cision [G7]
And it’s [C]one of the painful kind [Am]
‘Cuz now [F]it seems that you [G]wanted a [Am]martyr
Just a [F]regular [C]guy wouldn’t [Dm]do [G7]
‘Cuz, baby, [C]I can’t [Am]hang u[Dm]pon no lover’s [G7]cross
for [C]you [G7]
[Closing]
Yes, I [C]really [Am]got to [Dm]hand it [G7]to you
[C]‘Cuz girl, [Am]you really [Dm]tried [G7]
But for [C]every [Am]time that [Dm]we spent [G7]laughing
There were [C]two times that I [Am]cried
And you were [F]tryin’ to [G]make me your [Am]martyr
And that’s the [F]one thing I [C]just couldn’t [Dm]do [G7]
‘Cuz baby, [C]I can’t [Am]hang [Dm]upon no lover’s [G7]cross for [C]you [C7]
[chorus]
‘Cuz [F]tables are [G]meant for [Am]turn[Em]in’
And [F]people are [C]bound to [Dm]change [G7]
And [F]bridges are [G]meant for [Am]burn[Em]in’
When the [F]people and [C]memories they [Dm]join aren’t the [G7]same [Dm7] [G7]
[chorus]
Still, I [C]hope that [Am]you can [Dm]find a[G7]nother
Who can [C]take what [Am]I could [Dm]not [G7]
[C]He’ll have to [Am]be a [Dm]super [G7]guy
Or [C]maybe a super god [Am]
‘Cuz I [F]never was [G]much of a [Am]martyr before
And I [F]ain’t bout to [C]start nothin’ [Dm]new [G7]
And baby, [C]I can’t [Am]hang u[Dm]pon no lover’s [G7]cross
for [C]you [C7]
[chorus]
‘Cuz [F]tables are [G]meant for [Am]turn[Em]in’
And [F]people are [C]bound to [Dm]change [G7]
And [F]bridges are [G]meant for [Am]burn[Em]in’
When the [F]people and [C]memories they [Dm]join aren’t the [G7]same [Dm7] [G7]
[chorus]
Still, I [C]hope that [Am]you can [Dm]find a[G7]nother
Who can [C]take what [Am]I could [Dm]not [G7]
[C]He’ll have to [Am]be a [Dm]super [G7]guy
Or [C]maybe a super god [Am]
‘Cuz I [F]never was [G]much of a [Am]martyr before
And I [F]ain’t bout to [C]start nothin’ [Dm]new [G7]
And baby, [C]I can’t [Am]hang u[Dm]pon no lover’s [G7]cross
for [C]you
[outro]
[Em] [Am] [G] [F] [G7] [F] [G7] [C]
How to play Lover's Cross on Guitar (Step-by-step)
Jim Croce - Lover's Cross on guitar requires 9 chords and 16 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.
Lover's Cross uses these transitions most often: Dm → G7 (25), G7 → C (25), and C → Am (21). 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 - Am chord transition.
1. 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.
2. 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.
3. 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.
4. 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.
5. Am → F chord transition
To move from Am to F;
- 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 A string fret 3.
- Place pinky on D string fret 3.
6. F → G chord transition
To move from F to G;
- While playing F, lift your pinky from D string fret 3.
- 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 A string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 3.
7. G → Am chord transition
To move from G 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 3 and place it on G string fret 2.
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. C → Dm chord transition
To move from C 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 A string fret 3 and place it on B string fret 3.
10. C → C7 chord transition
To move from C to C7;
- Keep index finger on B string fret 1.
- Keep middle finger on D string fret 2.
- Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.
- Place pinky on G string fret 3.
11. C7 → F chord transition
To move from C7 to F;
- 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.
- Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.
- Lift your pinky from G string fret 3 and place it on D string fret 3.
12. Am → Em chord transition
To move from Am to Em;
- While playing Am, lift your index finger from B string fret 1.
- Lift your middle finger from D string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
- Slide your ring finger from G string fret 2 to D string fret 2.
13. Em → F chord transition
To move from Em to F;
- Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on G string fret 2.
- Slide your ring finger from D string fret 2 to A string fret 3.
- Place index finger on E string fret 1.
- Place pinky on D string fret 3.
14. G7 → F chord transition
To move from G7 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 1 and place it on A string fret 3.
- Place pinky on D string fret 3.
15. G7 → Dm7 chord transition
To move from G7 to Dm7;
- While playing G7, lift your ring finger from E string fret 1.
- 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 G string fret 2.
16. C → Em chord transition
To move from C to Em;
- While playing C, lift your index finger from B string fret 1.
- Lift your middle finger from D string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
- Slide your ring finger from A string fret 3 to D string fret 2.
Lover's Cross chord transition analysis
A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Lover's Cross.
- Lover's Cross includes 154 chord transitions, 16 of them unique.
- These transitions represent 0.04% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
- Lover's Cross contains 5 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
- These transition patterns show how Lover's Cross 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 → Am: 10%
- C → Em: 8%
After Am, the most likely next chords across Chordier are F (26%), G (21%), and C (16%).- Am → F: 26%
- Am → G: 21%