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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.

Neil Diamond - Sweet Caroline Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsG, F, Em, Dm, C, C7, G7
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

GFEmDm
CWhereitbegan,FIcan’tbegintoknowing
CButthenIknowit’sgrowingGstrong
CWasintheSpringFandSpringbecametheSummer
CWho’dhavebelievedyou’dcome Galong?
CHandsCtouchingC7handsC
G7ReachingoutG7touchingFmeFtouchingGyou
GGFG
CSweet FCaroline.GoodtimesneverseemedsoGgood
GGFG
CI’vebeen FinclinedtobelievetheyneverGwould
FbutEmnowDmI
CLookatthenightFanditdon’tseemsolonely
CWefillitupwithonlyGtwo
CAndwhenIhurtFhurtingrunsoffmyshoulders
CHowcanIhurtwhenholdingGyou?
CWarmCtouchingC7warmC
G7ReachingoutG7touchingFmeFtouchingGyou
GGFG
CSweet FCaroline.GoodtimesneverseemedsoGgood
GGFG
CI’vebeen FinclinedtobelievetheyneverGwould
FohEmnoDmno
CSweet FCaroline.GoodtimesneverseemedsoGgood
GGFG
CI’vebeen FinclinedtobelievetheyneverGwould
FohEmnoDmnoCno.
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.
ArtistNeil Diamond
AlbumBrother Love's Travelling Salvation Show
GenresPop
Year1969
KeyG
DifficultyAdvanced

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

Neil Diamond - Sweet Caroline on guitar requires 7 chords and 9 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 Caroline uses these transitions most often: F → G (13), C → F (10), and G → 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 G - F chord transition.

1. G → F chord transition

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

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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 9 times.

G to F

2. F → Em chord transition

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

Here's how 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 4 times.

F to Em

3. Em → Dm chord transition

Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram
Guitar Dm chord diagram Fingering: x-x-0-2-3-1Guitar Dm chord diagram

To move from Em to Dm:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 4 times.

Em to Dm

4. Dm → C chord transition

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

Switching from Dm to C:

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

Dm to C

5. C → F chord transition

Here's how to move 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 10 times.

6. C → G chord transition

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 4 times.

7. C → C7 chord transition

To move from C to C7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

8. C → G7 chord transition

Switching 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

9. G7 → F chord transition

Switching 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 2 times.

Sweet Caroline chord transition analysis

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

  • Sweet Caroline includes 69 chord transitions, 9 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Sweet Caroline contains 3 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Sweet Caroline connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After G, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (25%), D (24%), and Am (13%).
    • G → C: 25%
    • G → F: 9%
    After F, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (40%), G (21%), and Am (11%).
    • F → C: 40%
    • F → G: 21%
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.