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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.

John Prine - Sam Stone Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsC, F, Bb, G7, G, Gm, Dm
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

CF
FSamStonecamehome,tohisBbwifeandfamily,
afterCservingintheconflict Foverseas.
AndtheFtimethatheserved,hadBbshatteredallhisnerves,
andCleftalittleshrapnelinhisFknee.BbF
Butthe Bbmorphineeasedthepain,
andtheBbgrassgrewroundhisbrain,
andG7gavehimalltheconfidenceheClacked;
withaG7PurpleHeartandaGmonkeyonhisCback.
There’saFholeindaddy’sarmwherealltheGmmoneygoes,
andBbJesusChristdiedfornothin’I Csuppose.
LittleFpitchershavebigears,
don’tDmstoptocounttheyears,
sweetG7songsneverlasttooGlongonbroken Cradios.
CMmmCCC
SamFStone’swelcomehome,didn’tBblasttoolong,
heCwenttoworkwhenhe’dspenthislastFdime
AndFSammytooktostealing,whenheBbgotthatemptyfeeling,
foraChundreddollarhabitwithout Fovertime.
AndtheBbgoldrolledthroughhisveins,
likeaBbthousandrailroadtrains,
andG7easedhismindinthehoursthatheCchose;
whiletheGkidsranaroundG7wearin’otherpeoples’Cclothes
There’saFholeindaddy’sarmwherealltheGmmoneygoes,
andBbJesusChristdiedfornothin’I Csuppose.
LittleFpitchershavebigears,
don’tDmstoptocounttheyears,
sweetG7songsneverlasttooGlongonbroken Cradios.CMmmCCC
SamFStonewasalone,whenheBbpoppedhislastballoon,
CclimbingwallswhilesittinginaFchair
Well,heFplayedhislastrequest,
whiletheBbroomsmelledjustlikedeath,
withanCoverdosehoveringintheFair
ButBblifehadlostitsfun,andtherewasBbnothingtobedone,
butG7tradehishousethatheboughtontheG,I.CBill;
foraGflagdrapedcasketonaG7localheroes’Chill
There’saFholeindaddy’sarmwherealltheGmmoneygoes,
andBbJesusChristdiedfornothin’I Csuppose.
LittleFpitchershavebigears,
don’tDmstoptocounttheyears,
sweetG7songsneverlasttooGlongonbroken Cradios.
CMmmCCC
CMmm.CF
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.
ArtistJohn Prine
AlbumJohn Prine
GenresFolk
Year1971
KeyF
DifficultyAdvanced

How to play Sam Stone on Guitar (Step-by-step)

John Prine - Sam Stone on guitar requires 7 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.

Sam Stone uses these transitions most often: C → F (16), F → Bb (10), and Bb → C (9). 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

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 16 times.

C to F

2. F → Bb chord transition

Guitar F chord diagram Fingering: 1-3-3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar F chord diagram
Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-1-3-3-3-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram

Here's how to move from F to Bb:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 10 times.

F to Bb

3. Bb → C chord transition

Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-1-3-3-3-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram
Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram

Here's how to move from Bb to C:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 9 times.

Bb to C

4. Bb → G7 chord transition

Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-1-3-3-3-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar A# | B♭ chord diagram
Guitar G7 chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-1Guitar G7 chord diagram

Here's how to move from Bb to G7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

Bb to G7

5. 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 5 times.

6. 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 4 times.

7. G → C chord transition

Here's how 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 4 times.

8. F → Gm chord transition

To move from F to Gm:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 3 times.

9. Gm → Bb chord transition

Here's how to move from Gm to Bb:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 3 times.

10. F → Dm chord transition

To move from F to Dm:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 3 times.

11. Dm → G7 chord transition

To move from Dm to G7:

  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 1.

This transition appears in the chorus, played 3 times.

Sam Stone chord transition analysis

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

  • Sam Stone includes 69 chord transitions, 11 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Sam Stone contains 2 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Sam Stone 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 → G: 35%
    • C → F: 16%
    After F, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (40%), G (21%), and Am (11%).
    • F → Dm: 5%
    • F → Bb: 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.