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Donovan - Mellow Yellow Chords

ChordsC, F, G, F#, G7, C7
Strumming↓-↓↓↑

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

CI’mjustmadaboutFSaffron,CSaffron’smadaboutGmeF#F
I’mjustmadaboutSaffron,G7She’sjustmadaboutme
TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowFG7
CI’mjustmadaboutFFourteen,CFourteen’smadaboutGmeF#F
I’mjustmadaboutFourteen,G7She’sjustmadaboutme
TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowFG7
CBornhighforeverFtofly,CWindvelocityG7nilF#F
FWannahighforevertoG7fly,GIfyouwantyourcupo’erG7fill
TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowFG7
CElectricalbanana,IsFgonnaCbeasuddenG7crazeF#F
FElectricalbanana,IsG7boundtoGbetheverynextG7phase
TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowFG7
CI’mjustmadaboutFSaffron,CSaffron’smadaboutG7meF#F
FI’mjustmadaboutG7Saffron,GShe‟djustmadaboutme
TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowF
G7TheycallmemellowC7yellowFG7
ArtistDonovan
AlbumMellow Yellow
GenresFolk
Year1967
KeyC
DifficultyAdvanced

How to play Mellow Yellow on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Donovan - Mellow Yellow on guitar requires 6 chords and 11 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.

Mellow Yellow uses these transitions most often: F → G7 (20), C7 → F (15), and G7 → C7 (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 C - F chord transition.

1. C → F chord transition

Switching 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

C to F

2. C → G chord transition

Here's how to move from C to G:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

C to G

3. G → F# chord transition

Switching from G to F#:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

G to F#

4. F# → F chord transition

To move from F# to F:

  1. Slide your index finger on E string from fret 2 to fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger on G string from fret 3 to fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger on A string from fret 4 to fret 3.
  4. Slide your pinky on D string from fret 4 to fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

F# to F

5. F → G7 chord transition

To move from F to G7:

  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 1.

This transition appears in the verse, played 20 times.

6. G7 → C7 chord transition

Here's how to move from G7 to C7:

  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 1 and place it on A string fret 3.
  4. Place pinky on G string fret 3.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 14 times.

7. C7 → F chord transition

Here's how to move from C7 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. Lift your pinky from G string fret 3 and place it on D string fret 3.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 15 times.

8. G7 → C chord transition

To move from G7 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 1 and place it on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 4 times.

9. G7 → F# chord transition

To move from G7 to F#:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

10. G7 → G chord transition

Switching from G7 to G:

  1. Keep index finger on A string fret 2.
  2. Keep middle finger on E string fret 3.
  3. Slide your ring finger on E string from fret 1 to fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

11. G → C7 chord transition

To move from G to C7:

  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.
  4. Place pinky on G string fret 3.

This transition appears in the chorus.

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

  • Mellow Yellow includes 84 chord transitions, 11 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Mellow Yellow contains 2 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Mellow Yellow 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 → G7: 3%
    After G7, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (69%), C7 (5%), and F (5%).
    • G7 → C: 69%
    • G7 → C7: 5%