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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.

James Taylor - Sweet Baby James Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsF, C, G, G7, Em, Am7, Dm, Dm7
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

  • Guitar F chord diagram Fingering: 1-3-3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar F chord diagram
  • 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
  • Guitar G7 chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-1Guitar G7 chord diagram
  • Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram
  • Guitar Am7 chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-0-1-0Guitar Am7 chord diagram
  • Guitar Dm chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-1Guitar Dm chord diagram
  • Guitar Dm7 chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar Dm7 chord diagram

[Opening]
[F] [C] [G]
There is a [C]young cow[G7]boy he [F]lives on the [Em]range
His [Am7]horse and his [F]cattle are [C]his only com[Em]panions
He [Am7]works in the [F]saddle and he [C]sleeps in the [Em]canyons
[F]Waiting for [Am7]Summer, [C]his [G7]pastures to [Dm]change [F] [G7]
And [F]as the moon rises he [G7]sits by his [C]fire

[verse 2]
Thinkin’ [Am7]about [F]women and [C]glasses of [G]beer
And [F]closing his eyes as the [G7]doggies re[C]tire
He sings [Am7]out a [F]song which is [C]soft but it’s [Em]clear
As [Am7]if may[Dm7]be someone could [G7]hear

[verse 3]
[C]Good night you [F]moonlight [G]la[C]dies,
[Am7]Rock a bye [F]sweet baby [C]James
[Am7]Deep greens and [F]blues are the [C]colors I choose
[Dm7]Won’t you let me [Am7]go down in [G7]my dreams
And [F]rock a bye [G]sweet baby James [C]

[verse 4]
Now the first of De[G7]cember was covered [F]with [Em]snow
And [Am7]so was the [F]turnpike from [C]Stockbridge to [Em]Boston
Though the Berk[Am7]shires seemed [F]dreamlike on a[C]ccount of that [Em]frosting
With [F]ten miles [Am7]behind me [C]and [G7]ten thousand [Dm]more to go [F] [G7]
There’s a [F]song that they sing when they [G]take to the [C]highway

[verse 5]
A [Am7]song that they [F]sing when they [C]take to the [G]sea
A [F]song that they sing of their [G]home in the [C]sky
Maybe [Am7]you can be[F]lieve it [C]if it helps you to sleep
But [Dm]singing works just fine for [G]me

[Closing]
[C]Goodnight you [F]moonlight [G]la[C]dies,
[Am7]Rockabye [F]sweet baby [C]James
[Am7]Deep greens and [F]blues are the [C]colours I choose
[Dm7]Won’t you let me [Am7]go down in [G7]my dreams
And [F]rockabye [G]sweet baby James [C]

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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.
ArtistJames Taylor
AlbumSweet Baby James
GenresFolk, Folk Rock, Rock
Year1970
KeyC

How to play Sweet Baby James on Guitar (Step-by-step)

James Taylor - Sweet Baby James on guitar requires 8 chords and 18 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.

Sweet Baby James uses these transitions most often: F → C (13), Am7 → F (12), and C → Am7 (8). 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 F - C chord transition.

1. F → C chord transition

Guitar F chord diagram Fingering: 1-3-3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar F chord diagram
Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram

To move from F to C;

  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. Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.
F to C

2. 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.
C to G

3. C → G7 chord transition

Guitar C chord diagram Fingering: x-3-2-0-1-0Guitar C chord diagram
Guitar G7 chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-1Guitar G7 chord diagram

To move from C to G7;

  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 1.
C to G7

4. G7 → F chord transition

Guitar G7 chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-1Guitar G7 chord diagram
Guitar F chord diagram Fingering: 1-3-3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Guitar F chord diagram

To move from G7 to F;

  1. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to G 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 D string fret 3.
G7 to F

5. F → Em chord transition

To move from F to Em;

  1. While playing F, first lift your index finger and pinky.
  2. Lift your middle finger from G 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.

6. Em → Am7 chord transition

To move from Em to Am7;

  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 D string fret 2.
  3. Place index finger on B string fret 1.

7. Am7 → F chord transition

To move from Am7 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. Place ring finger on A string fret 3.
  4. Place pinky on D string fret 3.

8. C → Em chord transition

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.

9. Am7 → C chord transition

To move from Am7 to C;

  1. Keep index finger on B string fret 1.
  2. Keep middle finger on D string fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on A string fret 3.

10. G7 → Dm chord transition

To move from G7 to Dm;

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

11. Dm → F chord transition

To move from Dm to F;

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

12. G → F chord transition

To move from G to F;

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

13. Am7 → Dm7 chord transition

To move from Am7 to Dm7;

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

14. Dm7 → G7 chord transition

To move from Dm7 to G7;

  1. Lift your index finger from B 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. Place ring finger on E string fret 1.

15. C → Dm7 chord transition

To move from C to Dm7;

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

16. Am7 → G7 chord transition

To move from Am7 to G7;

  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. Place ring finger on E string fret 1.

17. C → Dm chord transition

To move from C to Dm;

  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. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on B string fret 3.

18. Dm → G chord transition

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.

Sweet Baby James chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Sweet Baby James.

  • Sweet Baby James includes 103 chord transitions, 18 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.03% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Sweet Baby James contains 4 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Sweet Baby James connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After F, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (40%), G (21%), and Am (11%).
    • F → C: 40%
    • F → G: 21%
    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.