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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.

Dire Straits - Sailing To Philadelphia Chords

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

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

AmCAmG
IamCJeremiahDixon,AmIamaGeordieboy,
aglassofwinewithyou,sir,andtheCladiesI’ll Fenjoy.
AllGDurhamand CNorthumberlandisGmeasuredupbyCmyownFhand,
itGwasmyCfatefromFbirthtomakemymark AmupontheGearth.
HecallsmeCharlieAmMason,astargazeramI,
itseemsthatIwasborntoCcharttheeveningFsky.
They’dGcutmeoutforCbakingFbread,butGIhadotherCdreams Finstead,
thisGbaker’sboyfromtheFwestcountrywouldjointheRoyalAmSociety.
WeareCsailingGtoAmPhiladelphia,[
C]world EmawayfromtheDmcoalyGTyne,
EmsailingtoGPhiladelphia
FtodrawtheGline,theFMasonGDixonCLine.
AmCAmG
Nowyou’reaAmgoodsurveyor,Dixon,butIswearyou’llmakememad,
theFWestwillkillusboth,youCgullibleGeordieFlad.
GYoutalkof Cliberty,howcan GAmericabeFfree?
AGGeordieandaCbaker’sFboyintheforestsoftheAmIraquois.
NowAmholdyourheadup,Mason,seeAmericaliesthere,
themorningtidehasraised,theCcapesof FDelaware
GComeupandCfeeltheFsun,GanewmorningCis Fbegun,
GanotherdaywillCmakeitFclear,AmwhyyourstarsshouldguideusGhere.
WeareCsailingGtoAmPhiladelphia,
Cworld EmawayfromtheDmcoalyGTyne,
Emsailingto AmPhiladelphiaFtoAmdrawtheGline,
TheFMasonGDixonCLine.
TheFMasonGDixonCLine.
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.
ArtistDire Straits
AlbumSailing To Philadelphia
GenresRock
Year2000
KeyAm
DifficultyIntermediate

How to play Sailing To Philadelphia on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Dire Straits - Sailing To Philadelphia 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.

Sailing To Philadelphia uses these transitions most often: G → C (17), C → F (16), and F → G (16). 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 - C chord transition.

1. Am → C chord transition

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

Switching from Am to C:

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

This transition appears in the intro, played 5 times.

Am to C

2. Am → G chord transition

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

Here's how to move from Am 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 G string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 3.

This transition appears in the intro, played 7 times.

Am to G

3. G → C chord transition

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

Switching 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 17 times.

G to C

4. 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 16 times.

C to F

5. F → G chord transition

Switching 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 16 times.

6. F → Am chord transition

Switching 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

7. C → Em chord transition

Here's how 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.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 2 times.

8. Em → Dm chord transition

To move from Em to Dm:

  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 B string fret 3.
  3. Place index finger on E string fret 1.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 2 times.

9. Dm → G chord transition

Here's how to move from Dm to G:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 2 times.

10. G → Em chord transition

To move from G to Em:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 2 times.

11. Em → Am chord transition

To move from Em to Am:

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

This transition appears in the chorus.

Sailing To Philadelphia chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Sailing To Philadelphia.

  • Sailing To Philadelphia includes 99 chord transitions, 11 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.03% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Sailing To Philadelphia contains 6 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Sailing To Philadelphia connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After G, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (25%), D (24%), and Am (13%).
    • G → C: 25%
    • G → Am: 13%
    After C, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (35%), F (16%), and D (11%).
    • C → G: 35%
    • C → F: 16%
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.