somewhere over the rainbow chords

Important Information

Key- G Major
Temp- 78 BPM
Tuning- EADGBE  
Capo- No                                                                                   
Difficulty- Intermediate

Original Strumming Pattern

somewhere over the rainbow guitar chords strumming pattern
Note- On the first down strum play only base notes and play 5th down strum muted 

Alternate Strumming Pattern

somewhere over the rainbow guitar chords strumming pattern 2

Intro 1

G/D    D     Em     C/E
G/D    D     Em     C/E
C            C

Intro 2

G     Bm    C     G
Oooo, oooo, oooo, oooo…

C     B7    Em    C/E
Oooo, oooo, oooo, oooo…

Verse 1

[G] Somewhere [Bm] over the [C] rainbow, [G] way up high

[C] And the dreams [G] that you [D] dream of [Em] once in a lullaby [C] [Em] Ohhhh.

Verse 2

[G] Somewhere over the [Bm] rainbow bluebirds [C] fly

[G] And the dreams that you [C] dream of,

[G] dreams really [D] do come [Em] true. [C] Ohhhh…

Bridge

[G] Someday I’ll wish upon a star,

[Bm] wake up where the clouds[Em]

are [C] far behind me.

[G] Where troubles melts like lemon drops,

[Bm] high above the chimney tops,

[Em] that’s where you’ll find me, [C] oh.

Verse 3

[G] Somewhere [Bm] over the [C] rainbow,

[G] bluebirds fly

[C] and the [G] dreams that you [D] dare to,

[Em] oh, [C] why, [G] oh why [C] can’t I? [D] I-I-I, [G] oh

Bridge

[G] Someday I’ll wish upon a star,

[Bm] wake up where the clouds are

[Em] far behind me-[C]e-e.

[G] Where troubles melt like lemon drops,

[Bm] high above the chimney tops

[Em] that’s where you’ll find me, [C] oh

Verse 4

 [G] Somewhere over the [Bm] rainbow, 

[C] way up high
[C] and the dreams that you [G] dare to,

[D] why, oh [Em] why can’t [C] I? [G]

Outro

G     Bm    C     G
Oooo, oooo, oooo, oooo…

C     B7    Em    C
Oooo, oooo, oooo, oooo…

somewhere over the rainbow Guitar Chords Analysis

Above are the somewhere over the rainbow chords, the lovely song written by Harold Arlen and E.Y. Harburg and produced by the world-famous producers Israel Kamakawiwo’ole and Jon de Mello. Now we are going to learn this song in-depth. So let’s get started.

Note- Before discussing the strumming pattern you need to know the time signature of this song. Let me tell you this song is in the 4/4 time signature.

Strumming Pattern

The original strumming pattern of the song is D DU XUDU (Down-Down-Up- Mute-Up-Down-Up). On the first down strum, they only play a base note an=d muted the 5th strum which is the down strum and others are regular down up. But for many beginner guitar or ukulele players playing it is hard because of the 1st bass note strum and 5th muted strum. so they can use a simple 4/4 D DU UDU (Down-Down-Up-Up-Down-Up) strumming pattern on the place of the original strumming pattern.

Chords

The first line starts with a G chord, similar to the chord used in ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger song. The G chord is made up of three notes: G (the root note), B (the third), and D (the fifth). In this song, you can play a standard G chord with your left hand and use your right hand to strum the notes on a guitar or play the melody on a piano. The second chord is B minor (Bm), which is made up of B (the root note), D (the minor third), and F# (the fifth). This chord adds a bit of tension to the song, as it’s a minor chord, and it creates a sense of longing or yearning. The third chord in this line is C, which is a major chord made up of C (the root note), E (the third), and G (the fifth). Finally, the line ends with another G chord.

C G D Em C and the dreams that you dream of once in a lullaby. Ohhhh.

The next line starts with a C chord, followed by a G chord. The third chord is D, which is a major chord made up of D (the root note), F# (the third), and A (the fifth). The fourth chord in this line is Em, which is a minor chord made up of E (the root note), G (the minor third), and B (the fifth). Finally, the line ends with another C chord.

So, the chords for the first verse of this song in the key of G Major are: G, Bm, C, G, C, G, D, Em, C. Remember to strum the chords or play the melody with your right hand while using your left hand to form the chords on a guitar or play the chords on a piano.

G: This is the tonic chord of the key of G Major, which means it is the chord that the key is named after. In this section, it serves as the first chord of the bridge.

Bm: This is the ii chord in the key of G Major. It is a minor chord, and it creates a sense of tension and anticipation that is often resolved when it moves to the V chord (in this case, the chord C). In this section, the Bm chord serves as the second chord of the bridge and provides contrast to the G chord that comes before it.

Em: This is the iii chord in the key of G Major. It is also a minor chord and adds a sense of sweetness and melancholy to the song. In this section, it serves as a passing chord between Bm and C.

C: This is the V chord in the key of G Major. It is a major chord and provides a sense of resolution and stability to the progression. In this section, it serves as the final chord of the bridge and leads back into the chorus.

So the overall chord progression for the bridge section is G – Bm – Em – C – G – Bm – Em – C. This progression creates a sense of movement and tension that is ultimately resolved in the last part of song.

2nd Chord progression

The “Outro” section of the song you provided consists of two sets of chords. Here’s a detailed explanation of each chord:

G – This is the G Major chord. It is made up of the notes G, B, and D.

Bm – This is the B minor chord. It is made up of the notes B, D, and F#.

C – This is the C Major chord. It is made up of the notes C, E, and G.

B7 – This is the B dominant 7 chord. It is made up of the notes B, D#, F#, and A.

Em – This is the E minor chord. It is made up of the notes E, G, and B.

D7 – This is the D dominant 7 chord. It is made up of the notes D, F#, A, and C.

In the first set of chords, the progression is G – Bm – C – G. This is a common progression used in many songs, and it gives a sense of resolution and completion when played. The G Major chord is the tonic chord (the “home” chord), the B minor chord provides a bit of tension, and the C Major chord acts as a resolution back to the G Major chord. This progression is repeated twice, and the last chord is held to create a sense of finality.

In the second set of chords, the progression is C – B7 – Em – C. This progression creates a bit of a different mood than the first set of chords. The C Major chord is the “home” chord, the B dominant 7 chord provides some tension and a sense of anticipation, and the E minor chord provides a bit of a release before resolving back to the C Major chord. This progression is also repeated twice, and the last chord is held to create a sense of finality.

The “oooo” vocalizations in between the chords are typically used to create a smooth transition between the different chords and sections of the song. Overall, this “Outro” section provides a nice conclusion to the song and leaves the listener with a sense of resolution.

3rd Chord Progression

I hope this article will help you to understand the somewhere over the rainbow chords. If you want to learn more songs then you should read our below mentioned articles. 

Last Note- Please give us suggestions so we can understand your needs and help you by solving them. 

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