How to play any three chord song in any key

There are heaps of traditional 3 chord tunes that have been transcribed and posted on the net. You can find these tunes easily enough with Google and then transpose them using these 3 easy steps.

Step 1 Figure out the key

Usually the first chord will give you the key but not always. Check the table below for a list of the most common three chord combinations, the I chord will tell you the key.

I	IV	V
C	F	G
D	G	A
E	A	B
F	Bb	C
G	C	D
A	D	E

For example your 3 chord song has E, A and B, it's in the key of E, A is the IV chord and B is the V

Step 2 Rewrite your chord chart

Now rewrite your chord chart using the Roman numerals rather than the chord letters and you can play your song in any key.

For example

D                   /                /                            /             
Some bright / morning / when this life is / over,
G  / G          / D      /
I' - / ll fly a -  / way. /

Can be written as

I                   /                /                            /           
Some bright / morning / when this life is / over,
IV  / IV          / I      /
I' - / ll fly a -  / way. /

Step 3 Play the thing

The I chord is in the open position, the IV chord is on the 5th fret and the V chord is on the 7th fret.

Want to know more?

Free with every subscription to The Starter Pack is a whole extra course entitled '3 strings, 3 chords' that teaches you all about three chord songs. You'll cover all the theory but more importantly you'll learn how to play them by ear.

Happy pickin'