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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.

R.E.M. - The One I Love Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsEm, D, Em7, G, Am, C
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

EmDEmEm7
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneIEmloveEm7
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneI’veEmleftbehindEm7
GAsimpleDproptoAmoccupymyCtime
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneIEmloveEm7
EmFireDEmEm7
EmFireDEmEm7
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneIEmlove
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneI’veEmleftbehindEm7
GAsimpleDproptoAmoccupymyCtime
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneIEmloveEm7
EmFireD(she’sEmcomingEm7downonherown,now)
EmFireD(she’sEmcomingEm7downonherown,now)
GDGCEmDEm
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneIEmloveEm7
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneCI’veEmleftEm7behind
GAsimpleDproptoAmoccupymyCtime
EmThisonegoesoutDtotheoneIEmloveEm7
EmFireD(she’sEmcomingEm7downonherown,now)
EmFireD(she’sEmcomingEm7downonherown,now)
EmFireD(she’sEmcomingEm7downonherown,now)
EmFireD(she’sEmcomingEm7downonherown,now)
EmDEm7Em
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.
ArtistR.E.M.
AlbumDocument
GenresRock
Year1987
KeyEm
DifficultyEasy

How to play The One I Love on Guitar (Step-by-step)

R.E.M. - The One I Love on guitar requires 6 chords and 10 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.

The One I Love uses these transitions most often: Em → D (20), D → Em (18), and Em → Em7 (18). 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 Em - D chord transition.

1. Em → D chord transition

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

To move from Em to D:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 20 times.

Em to D

2. Em → Em7 chord transition

Guitar Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-0-0-0Guitar Em chord diagram
Guitar Em7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-0-0-0Guitar Em7 chord diagram

To move from Em to Em7:

  1. While playing Em, lift your ring finger from D string fret 2.
  2. Keep middle finger on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 18 times.

Em to Em7

3. Em7 → G chord transition

Guitar Em7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-0-0-0Guitar Em7 chord diagram
Guitar G chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-0-0-0-3Guitar G chord diagram

Here's how to move from Em7 to G:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 4 times.

Em7 to G

4. 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

Here's how to move 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 4 times.

G to D

5. D → Am chord transition

Here's how to move from D to Am:

  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 G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

6. Am → C chord transition

Switching from Am to C:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

7. C → Em chord transition

Here's how 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.

This transition appears in the verse, played 5 times.

8. G → C chord transition

Switching from G to C:

  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 3 and place it on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse.

9. D → C chord transition

Switching 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.

10. D → Em7 chord transition

Here's how to move from D to Em7:

  1. While playing D, first lift your index finger and ring finger.
  2. Lift your middle finger from E string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the outro.

The One I Love chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in The One I Love.

  • The One I Love includes 94 chord transitions, 10 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • The One I Love contains 5 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how The One I Love connects to the rest of Chordier. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After Em, the most likely next chords across Chordier are C (26%), G (18%), and D (18%).
    • Em → D: 18%
    • Em → Em7: 0%
    After D, the most likely next chords across Chordier are G (29%), A (17%), and Em (17%).
    • D → G: 29%
    • D → Em: 17%
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.