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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 Mellencamp - Small Town Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsG, D, C, Am
Strumming↓-↓↑-↑↓↑

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

GIwasDborninaCsmalltown
GandIDliveinaCsmalltown
GprobablyDdieinaCsmalltown
oh,aAmsmall Dcommunity
GallmyDfriendsaresoGsmalltown
GmyparentsDliveintheCsamesmalltown
GmyDjobissoCsmalltown
providesAmlittle Dopportunity
GeducatedDinaCsmalltown
GtaughttofearDJesusinaCsmalltown
Gusedto GdaydreaminCthatsmalltown
anotherAmbornromantic,that’sDme
I’veGseenitDallin Casmalltown
GhadmyselfaDballinaCsmalltown
GmarriedanDLAdarling,broughtherCtothissmalltown
aAmsmalltown,justlikeDme
CIcannotGforgetfromCwhereitisIGcomefrom
CIcannotforgettheGpeoplewhoDloveme
IcanCbe Gmyself,yeah,CinasmallGtown
andCpeopleletmeGbejustwhatIDwannabe
Oh,my,my,Amyeah
DAmDAmDG
Ggotnothing DagainsttheCbigtown
GstillhayseedDenoughtosayC“lookwho’sinthebigtown”
GmyDbedisinaCsmalltown
that’sAmgoodenoughforDme
GIwasDborninaCsmalltown
GandIcanDbreatheinaCsmalltown
GgonnaDdieinaCsmalltown
andthat’sAmprobablywherethey’llburyDme
GDC
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 Mellencamp
AlbumScarecrow
GenresRock
Year1985
KeyG
DifficultyEasy

How to play Small Town on Guitar (Step-by-step)

John Mellencamp - Small Town on guitar requires 4 chords and 5 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.

Small Town uses these transitions most often: G → D (20), D → C (19), and C → G (17). 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 G - D chord transition.

1. G → D chord transition

Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram
Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram

Switching from G to D:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 20 times.

G to D

2. D → C chord transition

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

To move from D to C:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 19 times.

D to C

3. C → G chord transition

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

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 17 times.

C to G

4. C → Am chord transition

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

To move from C to Am:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

C to Am

5. Am → D chord transition

Switching from Am to D:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 9 times.

Small Town chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Small Town.

  • Small Town includes 86 chord transitions, 5 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Small Town contains 3 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Small Town connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After D, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (29%), A (17%), and Em (17%).
    • D → G: 29%
    • D → C: 14%
    After G, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (25%), D (24%), and Am (13%).
    • G → C: 25%
    • G → D: 24%
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.