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14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?We analyzed 14,015 chord transitions and ranked the 100 most repeated ones. Even the first 10 will transform your practice routine. The top transition appears in 23% of all songs.

Jack Johnson - Breakdown Ukulele Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on the ukulele and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsC, Em, Am, G, F
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

CEmAmGCEmAmG
CIhopethisoldEmtrainbreaksdown,
AmSoIcouldtakeaGwalkaround
CAnd,seewhatthereEmistosee
AmAndtimeisjustaGmelody
WithalltheCpeopleinthestreet
WalkasEmfastastheirfeetcantakethem
AmIjustrollthroughGtown
AndthoughmyCwindow’sgotaview,well
TheEmframeI’mlookingthrough
SeemstoAmhavenoconcernforGnow,sofornow
CIneedthisAmoldtraintoGbreakdown,
CohpleasejustAmletmepleaseGbreakdown
CEmAmGCEmAmG
CThisengineEmscreamsoutloud.
AmcentipedegonnaGcrawlwestbound
CSoIdon’tevenEmmakeasound
AmIt’sgonnastingmewhenIGleavethistown
AlltheCpeopleinthestreet,thatI’llEmnevergettomeet
IftheseAmtracksdon’tbend Gsome-how
AndCIgotnotime,thatEmIgottogetto
AmWhereIdon’tneedtoGbe,soI
CIneedthisAmoldtraintoGbreakdown,
CohpleasejustAmletmepleaseGbreakdown
CIneedthisAmoldtraintoGbreakdown,
CohpleasejustAmletmepleaseGbreakdown
CIGwannaFbreakonCdownGbutIcantFstopCnow
GLetmeFbreakonCdownGFC
ButyouCcan’tstopnothing,ifyouEmgotnocontrol
OftheAmthoughtsinyourmindthatyouGkeptin,youknow
YouCdon’tknownothing,butyouEmdon’tneedtoknow
TheAmwisdomsinthetreesnottheGglasswindows
YouCcan’tstopwishingifyouEmdon’tletgo
ButAmthingsthatyoufindandyouGlose,andyouknow
YouCkeeponrolling.puttheEmmomentonhold
TheAmframestoobright,soputtheGblindsdownlow
CIneedthisAmoldtraintoGbreakdown,
COhpleasejustAmletmepleaseGbreakdown
CIneedthisAmoldtraintoGbreakdown,
COhpleasejustAmletmepleaseGbreakdown
CIEmwannaAmbreakGondown
CButEmIAmcantGstopnow
CEmAmGCEmAmGC
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookDiscover the most-used three-chord combinations in songs and build real command on the ukulele.
14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?Master ukulele today with the 100 most repeated chord transitions from 14,015 analyzed.
ArtistJack Johnson
AlbumIn Between Dreams
GenresFolk, Folk Rock, Rock
Year2005
KeyC
DifficultyEasy

How to play Breakdown on Ukulele (Step-by-step)

Jack Johnson - Breakdown on ukulele requires 5 chords and 7 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.

Breakdown uses these transitions most often: Am → G (30), G → C (30), and C → Em (20). 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 C - Em chord transition.

1. C → Em chord transition

Ukulele C chord diagram Fingering: 0-0-0-3Ukulele C chord diagram
Ukulele Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-4-3-2Ukulele Em chord diagram

To move from C to Em:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 20 times.

C to Em

2. Em → Am chord transition

Ukulele Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-4-3-2Ukulele Em chord diagram
Ukulele Am chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-0-0Ukulele Am chord diagram

Switching from Em to Am:

  1. While playing Em, first lift your index finger and ring finger.
  2. Lift your middle finger from E string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the section, played 20 times.

Em to Am

3. Am → G chord transition

Ukulele Am chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-0-0Ukulele Am chord diagram
Ukulele G chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-3-2Ukulele G chord diagram

To move from Am to G:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 30 times.

Am to G

4. G → C chord transition

Ukulele G chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-3-2Ukulele G chord diagram
Ukulele C chord diagram Fingering: 0-0-0-3Ukulele C chord diagram

Switching from G to C:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 30 times.

G to C

5. C → Am chord transition

Here's how to move from C to Am:

  1. While playing C, lift your ring finger from A string fret 3.
  2. Place middle finger on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the section, played 10 times.

6. G → F chord transition

Switching from G to F:

  1. While playing G, lift your ring finger from E string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from C string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 1.
  3. Slide your middle finger from A string fret 2 to G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the section, played 4 times.

7. F → C chord transition

To move from F to C:

  1. While playing F, first lift your index finger and middle finger.
  2. Place ring finger on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the section, played 4 times.

Breakdown chord transition analysis

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

  • Breakdown includes 122 chord transitions, 7 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.03% of all chord transitions in Ukulelearn.
  • Breakdown contains 5 of the top 10 transitions across Ukulelearn.
  • These transition patterns show how Breakdown connects to the rest of Ukulelearn. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After C, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are G (35%), F (16%), and D (11%).
    • C → G: 35%
    • C → Am: 10%
    After G, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are C (25%), D (24%), and Am (13%).
    • G → C: 25%
    • G → F: 9%
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookThe 200 most popular three-chord chains extracted from real songs. See which songs use each chain, learn the finger transitions, and expand your repertoire with patterns that actually matter.