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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.

Dee Dee Bridgewater - Slow Boat to China Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsBb, G7, Eb, E, D7, C7, Cm7, F7, Ebm
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

BbI’dlovetoG7getyou
OnaEbslowboattoEChina,
BbAllto D7myself Ebalone.G7
EbGetyoutoEkeepyouinmyBbarms G7evermore,
C7Leaveallyourlovers
Cm7WeepingonthefarawayF7shore.
BbOutontheG7briny
WiththeEbmoonbigandEshiny,
BbMeltingyourD7heartofEbstone.G7
EbI’dlovetoEbmgetyou
OnaBbslowboattoG7China,
C7Allto F7myself Bbalone.
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.
ArtistDee Dee Bridgewater
AlbumDear Ella
GenresJazz
Year1997
KeyBb
DifficultyAdvanced

How to play Slow Boat to China on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Dee Dee Bridgewater - Slow Boat to China on guitar requires 9 chords and 13 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.

Slow Boat to China uses these transitions most often: Bb → G7 (4), G7 → Eb (4), and E → Bb (3). 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 Bb - G7 chord transition.

1. 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

Switching 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 4 times.

Bb to G7

2. G7 → Eb chord transition

Guitar G7 chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-1Guitar G7 chord diagram
Guitar D# | E♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-x-1-3-4-3Guitar D# | E♭ chord diagram

Switching from G7 to Eb:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 4 times.

G7 to Eb

3. Eb → E chord transition

Guitar D# | E♭ chord diagram Fingering: x-x-1-3-4-3Guitar D# | E♭ chord diagram
Guitar E chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-1-0-0Guitar E chord diagram

Here's how to move from Eb to E:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

Eb to E

4. E → Bb chord transition

Guitar E chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-1-0-0Guitar E 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 E to Bb:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

E to Bb

5. Bb → D7 chord transition

Switching from Bb to D7:

  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 from D string fret 3 to G string fret 2.
  4. Lift your ring finger from G string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

6. D7 → Eb chord transition

Switching from D7 to Eb:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

7. G7 → C7 chord transition

Switching 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 verse, played 2 times.

8. C7 → Cm7 chord transition

Here's how to move from C7 to Cm7:

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

This transition appears in the verse.

9. Cm7 → F7 chord transition

Here's how to move from Cm7 to F7:

  1. While playing Cm7, lift your pinky from B string fret 4.
  2. Lift your index finger from D string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
  3. Slide your middle finger from A string fret 3 to G string 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.

10. F7 → Bb chord transition

To move from F7 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. Place pinky on B string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

11. Eb → Ebm chord transition

Switching from Eb to Ebm:

  1. Lift your index finger from D string fret 1 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 G string fret 3 and place it on D string fret 4.
  4. Keep pinky on B string fret 4.

This transition appears in the verse.

12. Ebm → Bb chord transition

Switching from Ebm to Bb:

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

This transition appears in the verse.

13. C7 → F7 chord transition

To move from C7 to F7:

  1. While playing C7, lift your pinky from G string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from B string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
  3. Slide your middle finger from D string fret 2 to G string fret 2.
  4. Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse.

Slow Boat to China chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Slow Boat to China.

  • Slow Boat to China includes 29 chord transitions, 13 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.01% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Slow Boat to China connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After Bb, the most likely next chords across Chordier are F (34%), C (20%), and Dm (9%).
    • Bb → G7: 1%
    • Bb → D7: 1%
    After G7, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (69%), C7 (5%), and F (5%).
    • G7 → C7: 5%
    • G7 → Eb: 0%
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.