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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.

Johnny Mandel - Suicide Is Painless Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsEm7, A7, D, Bm, Em, Bm7, B7, G7, F#m
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

Em7ThroughearlymorningA7fogIsee,DvisionsoftheBmthingstobe
TheEmpainsthatarewithA7heldforme,
IDrealizeandBm7IcanseeB7
ThatEm7suicideisA7painless,
itDbringsonmanyBm7changes
AndG7IcanF#mtakeorEmleaveitA7ifIBmpleaseBm
IEm7trytofindaA7waytomakeDallourlittleBmjoysrelate
EmWithoutthateverA7presenthate.
ButDnowIknowthatBm7it’stoolate,
andB7thatEm7suicideisA7painlessitDbringsonmanyBm7changes
AndG7IcanF#mtakeorEmleaveitA7ifIBmpleaseBm
TheEm7gameoflifeisA7hardtoplay,DI’mgonnaloseitBm7anyway
EmThelosingcardI’llA7somedaylay,soDthisisallIhavetoBm7sayB7
ThatEm7suicideisA7painless,itDbringsonmanyBm7changes
AndG7IcanF#mtakeorEmleaveitA7ifIBmpleaseBm
Em7TheonlywaytowinisA7cheat
AndDlayitdownBm7beforeI’mbeat
AndEmtoanotherA7givemyseat
ForDthat’stheonlypainlessBm7featB7
ThatEm7suicideisA7painless,itDbringsonmanyBm7changes
AndG7IcanF#mtakeorEmleaveitA7ifIBmpleaseBm
TheEm7swordoftimewillA7pierceourskins
ItDdoesn’thurtwhenBm7itbegins
ButEmasitworksitsA7wayonin
TheDpaingrowsBm7strongerwatchit B7grin,
ThatEm7suicideisA7painless,itDbringsonmanyBm7changes
AndG7IcanF#mtakeorEmleaveitA7ifIBmpleaseBm
AEm7bravemanonceA7requestedme
ToDanswerquestionsBm7thatarekey
IsEmittobeorA7nottobe?
AndDIreplied“Oh,Bm7whyaskme?”B7
ThatEm7suicideisA7painless,itDbringsonmanyBm7changes
AndG7IcanF#mtakeorEmleaveitA7ifIBmpleaseBm
AndyoucanF#mdotheEmsamething,A7ifyouBmpleaseBm
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.
ArtistJohnny Mandel
AlbumM*A*S*H (Original Soundtrack Recording)
GenresPop
Year1970
KeyEm
DifficultyAdvanced

How to play Suicide Is Painless on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Johnny Mandel - Suicide Is Painless on guitar requires 9 chords and 15 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.

Suicide Is Painless uses these transitions most often: A7 → D (18), D → Bm7 (16), and Em → A7 (13). 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 Em7 - A7 chord transition.

1. Em7 → A7 chord transition

Guitar Em7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-0-0-0Guitar Em7 chord diagram
Guitar A7 chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-0-2-0Guitar A7 chord diagram

Switching from Em7 to A7:

  1. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 2.
  2. Place index finger on D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 12 times.

Em7 to A7

2. A7 → D chord transition

Guitar A7 chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-0-2-0Guitar A7 chord diagram
Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram

Switching from A7 to D:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 18 times.

A7 to D

3. D → Bm chord transition

Guitar D chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-2Guitar D chord diagram
Guitar Bm chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-4-4-3-2 Barre at fret 2.Guitar Bm chord diagram

Here's how to move from D to Bm:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

D to Bm

4. Bm → Em chord transition

Guitar Bm chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-4-4-3-2 Barre at fret 2.Guitar Bm chord diagram
Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram

Here's how to move from Bm to Em:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

Bm to Em

5. Em → A7 chord transition

Switching from Em to A7:

  1. While playing Em, lift your ring finger from D string fret 2.
  2. Lift your middle finger from A string fret 2 and place it on B string fret 2.
  3. Place index finger on D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 13 times.

6. D → Bm7 chord transition

Switching from D to Bm7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 16 times.

7. Bm7 → B7 chord transition

To move from Bm7 to B7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

8. B7 → Em7 chord transition

To move from B7 to Em7:

  1. While playing B7, first lift your index finger, ring finger, and pinky.
  2. Keep middle finger on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

9. Bm7 → G7 chord transition

Here's how to move from Bm7 to G7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

10. G7 → F#m chord transition

To move from G7 to F#m:

  1. While playing G7, lift your middle finger from E string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from E string fret 1 to A string fret 4.
  4. Place pinky on D string fret 4.

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

11. F#m → Em chord transition

Switching from F#m to Em:

  1. While playing F#m, first lift your index finger and pinky.
  2. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 4 and place it on D string fret 2.
  3. Place middle finger on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 7 times.

12. A7 → Bm chord transition

Switching from A7 to Bm:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 7 times.

13. Bm → Em7 chord transition

To move from Bm to Em7:

  1. While playing Bm, first lift your index finger, ring finger, and pinky.
  2. Lift your middle finger from B string fret 3 and place it on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

14. Bm7 → Em chord transition

To move from Bm7 to Em:

  1. While playing Bm7, lift your index finger from E string fret 2.
  2. Lift your middle finger from B string fret 3 and place it on A string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger on D string from fret 4 to fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 4 times.

15. Bm → F#m chord transition

Here's how to move from Bm to F#m:

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

This transition appears in the verse.

Suicide Is Painless chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Suicide Is Painless.

  • Suicide Is Painless includes 111 chord transitions, 15 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.03% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Suicide Is Painless contains 1 of the top 25 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Suicide Is Painless connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After A7, the most likely next chords across Chordier are D (41%), D7 (18%), and Dm (13%).
    • A7 → D: 41%
    • A7 → Bm: 1%
    After D, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (29%), A (17%), and Em (17%).
    • D → Bm: 5%
    • D → Bm7: 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.