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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.

Bing Crosby - Those Were The Days My Friend Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on guitar and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsEm, Em7, E, E7, Am, F#7, B7, D, D7, G
Strumming↓-↓↑-↑↓↑

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

EmOnceuponatimetherewasaEm7tavernE
E7WhereweusedtoraiseaglassorAmtwo
AmRememberhowwelaughedawaytheEmhours
AndF#7dreamedofallthegreatthingswewouldB7*do
ThoseweretheEmdaysmyfriendwethoughtthey’dAmneverend
We’dsingandDdance D7foreverandaGday
We’dlivetheAmlifewechoosewe’dfightandEmneverlose
ForwewereB7youngandsuretohaveourEmway
B7LalalaEmlalalaE7lalalaAmlalalaLalalaB7la,lalalalaEmla
EmThenthebusyyearswentrushingEm7byus
WeE7lostourstarrynotionsontheAmway
AmIfbychanceI’dseeyouintheEmtavern
We’dF#7smileatoneanotherandwe’dB7*say
ThoseweretheEmdaysmyfriendwethoughtthey’dAmneverend
We’dsingandDdance D7foreverandaGday
We’dlivetheAmlifewechoosewe’dfightandEmneverlose
ThosewereB7thedays,ohyesthoseweretheEmdays
B7LalalaEmlalalaE7lalalaAmlalalaLalalaB7la,lalalaEmla
EmJusttonightIstoodbeforetheEm7tavern
E7NothingseemedthewayitusedtoAmbe
AmIntheglassIsawastrange Emreflection
F#7WasthatlonelywomanreallyB7*me
ThoseweretheEmdaysmyfriendwethoughtthey’dAmneverend
We’dsingandDdance D7foreverandaGday
We’dlivetheAmlifewechoosewe’dfightandEmneverlose
ThosewereB7thedays,ohyesthoseweretheEmdays
B7LalalaEmLalalaE7lalalaAmlalalaLalalaDla,laD7lalalalaGla
LalalaAmlalala,lalalaEmlalalaLalalaB7la,lalalalalaEmla
LalalalalaGla,lalalalalaAmlalalalalaEmla
EmThroughthedoortherecamefamiliarEm7laughter
IE7sawyourfaceandheardyoucallmyAmname
AmOhmyfriendwe’reolderbutnoEmwiser
ForF#7inourheartsthedreamsarestilltheB7*same
ThoseweretheEmdaysmyfriendwethoughtthey’dAmneverend
We’dsingandDdance D7foreverandaGday
We’dlivetheAmlifewechoosewe’dfightandEmneverlose
ThosewereB7thedays,ohyesthoseweretheEmdaysLalalaEmLalalaE7lalalaAmlalalaLalalaDla,laD7lalalaGla
LalalaAmlalala,lalalaEmlalalaLalalaB7la,lalalalalaEmla
LalalalalaGla,lalalalalaAmlalalalalaEmla
LalalalalaGla,lalalalalaAmlalalalalaEmla
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.
ArtistBing Crosby
AlbumSingle
GenresPop
Year1968
KeyEm
DifficultyAdvanced

How to play Those Were The Days My Friend on Guitar (Step-by-step)

Bing Crosby - Those Were The Days My Friend on guitar requires 10 chords and 16 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.

Those Were The Days My Friend uses these transitions most often: B7 → Em (16), Am → Em (13), and Em → B7 (10). 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 - Em7 chord transition.

1. 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

Here's how 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 4 times.

Em to Em7

2. Em7 → E chord transition

Guitar Em7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-0-0-0Guitar Em7 chord diagram
Guitar E chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-1-0-0Guitar E chord diagram

Switching from Em7 to E:

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

This transition appears in the verse.

Em7 to E

3. E → E7 chord transition

Guitar E chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-2-1-0-0Guitar E chord diagram
Guitar E7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-1-0-0Guitar E7 chord diagram

Switching from E to E7:

  1. While playing E, lift your ring finger from D string fret 2.
  2. Keep index finger on G string fret 1.
  3. Keep middle finger on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse.

E to E7

4. E7 → Am chord transition

Guitar E7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-1-0-0Guitar E7 chord diagram
Guitar Am chord diagram Fingering: x-0-2-2-1-0Guitar Am chord diagram

To move from E7 to Am:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 8 times.

E7 to Am

5. Am → Em chord transition

To move from Am to Em:

  1. While playing Am, 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 G string fret 2 to D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 13 times.

6. Em → F#7 chord transition

Switching from Em to F#7:

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

This transition appears in the verse, played 4 times.

7. F#7 → B7 chord transition

Switching from F#7 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 G string fret 3 to A string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from A 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 4 times.

8. B7 → Em chord transition

Switching from B7 to Em:

  1. While playing B7, first lift your index finger and pinky.
  2. Keep middle finger on A string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from G string fret 2 and place it on D string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 16 times.

9. Am → D chord transition

Here's how to move 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 6 times.

10. D → D7 chord transition

Here's how to move from D to D7:

  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 G string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from B string fret 3 and place it on E string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

11. D7 → G chord transition

Here's how to move from D7 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 G string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  3. Slide your ring finger on E string from fret 2 to fret 3.

This transition appears in the verse, played 6 times.

12. G → Am chord transition

Here's how to move from G to Am:

  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 G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the verse, played 9 times.

13. Em → E7 chord transition

Switching from Em to E7:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 4 times.

14. Am → B7 chord transition

To move from Am to B7:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 2 times.

15. Em7 → E7 chord transition

Here's how to move from Em7 to E7:

  1. Keep middle finger on A string fret 2.
  2. Place index finger on G string fret 1.

This transition appears in the verse, played 3 times.

16. Em → G chord transition

To move from Em to G:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 3 times.

Those Were The Days My Friend chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Those Were The Days My Friend.

  • Those Were The Days My Friend includes 104 chord transitions, 16 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.03% of all chord transitions in Chordier.
  • Those Were The Days My Friend contains 1 of the top 10 transitions across Chordier.
  • These transition patterns show how Those Were The Days My Friend 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 → G: 18%
    • Em → Am: 12%
    After Am, the most likely next chords across Chordier are F (26%), G (21%), and C (16%).
    • Am → Em: 10%
    • Am → D: 7%
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.