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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.

Ella Fitzgerald - It Don’t Mean A Thing If It Ain’t Got That Swing Ukulele Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on the ukulele and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsAm, G, F, F7, E7, E, Am7, D7, G7, C, Gm7, C7, Fmaj7
Strumming↓-↓-↓-↓↑

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

AmWhatgoodisGmelody,FwhatgoodisF7music
AmIfitain’tGpossessin’FsomethingF7sweet?E7
AmItain’ttheGmelody,Fitain’ttheF7music
There’sAmsomethingelse
thatGmakestheFtune F7complete.E7
ItAmdon’tmeanaEthing,
ifitAm7ain’tgotthatAmswing
D7Doowatdoowat,G7doowatdoowat,
Cdoowatdoowat.F7E7
ItAmdon’tmeanaEthing,
allyouAm7gottodoisAmsing
D7Doowatdoowat,G7doowatdoowat,
Cdoowatdoowat,doowatdoowat.
Gm7ItmakesnoC7diff’rence
ifthatFmaj7rhythm’ssweetorhot,
Am7JustgivethatD7rhythm
G7ev’rythingyouF7got.E7
ItAmdon’tmeanaEthing,
FifitAm7ain’tgotthatAmswing
D7Doowatdoowat,G7doowatdoowat,
Cdoowatdoowat,Cdoowatdoowat,
D7Doowatdoowat,Fdoowatdoowat,
Cdoowaaaa.
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.
ArtistElla Fitzgerald
AlbumElla and Duke at the Cote D'Azur
GenresJazz
Year1967
KeyAm
DifficultyAdvanced

How to play It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing on Ukulele (Step-by-step)

Ella Fitzgerald - It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing on ukulele requires 13 chords and 23 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.

It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing uses these transitions most often: E7 → Am (6), F7 → E7 (6), and Am → G (4). 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 Am - G chord transition.

1. 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

Switching 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 4 times.

Am to G

2. G → F chord transition

Ukulele G chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-3-2Ukulele G chord diagram
Ukulele F chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-1-0Ukulele F chord diagram

To move 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.

G to F

3. F → F7 chord transition

Ukulele F chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-1-0Ukulele F chord diagram
Ukulele F7 chord diagram Fingering: 2-3-1-3Ukulele F7 chord diagram

Here's how to move from F to F7:

  1. Keep index finger on E string fret 1.
  2. Keep middle finger on G string fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on C string fret 3.
  4. Place pinky on A string fret 3.

This transition appears in the section, played 4 times.

F to F7

4. F7 → E7 chord transition

Ukulele F7 chord diagram Fingering: 2-3-1-3Ukulele F7 chord diagram
Ukulele E7 chord diagram Fingering: 1-2-0-2Ukulele E7 chord diagram

Here's how to move from F7 to E7:

  1. While playing F7, lift your pinky from A string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on G string fret 1.
  3. Slide your middle finger from G string fret 2 to C string fret 2.
  4. Lift your ring finger from C string fret 3 and place it on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the section, played 6 times.

F7 to E7

5. E7 → Am chord transition

To move from E7 to Am:

  1. While playing E7, first lift your index finger and ring finger.
  2. Lift your middle finger from C string fret 2 and place it on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the section, played 6 times.

6. Am → E chord transition

Here's how to move from Am to E:

  1. Lift your middle finger from G string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  2. Place index finger on G string fret 4.

This transition appears in the section, played 3 times.

7. E → Am7 chord transition

To move from E to Am7:

  1. While playing E, first lift your index finger and middle finger.

This transition appears in the section, played 2 times.

8. Am7 → Am chord transition

Here's how to move from Am7 to Am:

  1. Place middle finger on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the section, played 3 times.

9. Am → D7 chord transition

Here's how to move from Am to D7:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 3 times.

10. D7 → G7 chord transition

Here's how to move from D7 to G7:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 4 times.

11. G7 → C chord transition

To move from G7 to C:

  1. While playing G7, first lift your index finger and middle finger.
  2. Slide your ring finger on A string from fret 2 to fret 3.

This transition appears in the section, played 3 times.

12. C → F7 chord transition

Here's how to move from C to F7:

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

This transition appears in the section.

13. C → Gm7 chord transition

Switching from C to Gm7:

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

This transition appears in the section.

14. Gm7 → C7 chord transition

To move from Gm7 to C7:

  1. While playing Gm7, lift your middle finger from C string fret 2.
  2. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 1.

This transition appears in the section.

15. C7 → Fmaj7 chord transition

To move from C7 to Fmaj7:

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

This transition appears in the section.

16. Fmaj7 → Am7 chord transition

Switching from Fmaj7 to Am7:

  1. While playing Fmaj7, first lift your index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and pinky.

This transition appears in the section.

17. Am7 → D7 chord transition

Here's how to move from Am7 to D7:

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

This transition appears in the section.

18. G7 → F7 chord transition

Switching from G7 to F7:

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

This transition appears in the section.

19. E → F chord transition

Switching from E to F:

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

This transition appears in the section.

20. F → Am7 chord transition

Switching from F to Am7:

  1. While playing F, first lift your index finger and middle finger.

This transition appears in the section.

21. C → D7 chord transition

To move from C to D7:

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

This transition appears in the section.

22. D7 → F chord transition

To move from D7 to F:

  1. While playing D7, lift your ring finger from A string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from G string fret 2 and place it on E string fret 1.
  3. Place middle finger on G string fret 2.

This transition appears in the section.

23. F → C chord transition

Here's how 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.

It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing.

  • It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing includes 54 chord transitions, 23 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.01% of all chord transitions in Ukulelearn.
  • It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing contains 3 of the top 10 transitions across Ukulelearn.
  • These transition patterns show how It Don't Mean A Thing If It Ain't Got That Swing connects to the rest of Ukulelearn. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After Am, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are F (26%), G (21%), and C (16%).
    • Am → G: 21%
    • Am → D7: 2%
    After F, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are C (40%), G (21%), and Am (11%).
    • F → C: 40%
    • F → F7: 1%
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.