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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.

Bing Crosby - Those Were The Days My Friend Ukulele Chords

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

Before you play, tune your ukulele 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 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.
ArtistBing Crosby
AlbumSingle
GenresPop
Year1968
KeyEm
DifficultyAdvanced

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

Bing Crosby - Those Were The Days My Friend on ukulele 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

Ukulele Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-4-3-2Ukulele Em chord diagram
Ukulele Em7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-2Ukulele Em7 chord diagram

Here's how to move from Em to Em7:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 4 times.

Em to Em7

2. Em7 → E chord transition

Ukulele Em7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-0-2Ukulele Em7 chord diagram
Ukulele E chord diagram Fingering: 4-4-4-2 Barre at fret 4.Ukulele E chord diagram

Switching from Em7 to E:

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

This transition appears in the section.

Em7 to E

3. E → E7 chord transition

Ukulele E chord diagram Fingering: 4-4-4-2 Barre at fret 4.Ukulele E chord diagram
Ukulele E7 chord diagram Fingering: 1-2-0-2Ukulele E7 chord diagram

To move from E to E7:

  1. Slide your index finger on G string from fret 4 to fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger from A string fret 2 to C string fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on A string fret 2.

This transition appears in the section.

E to E7

4. E7 → Am chord transition

Ukulele E7 chord diagram Fingering: 1-2-0-2Ukulele E7 chord diagram
Ukulele Am chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-0-0Ukulele Am chord diagram

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 8 times.

E7 to Am

5. Am → Em chord transition

To move from Am to Em:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 13 times.

6. Em → F#7 chord transition

Switching from Em to F#7:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 4 times.

7. F#7 → B7 chord transition

Here's how to move from F#7 to B7:

  1. While playing F#7, first lift your ring finger and pinky.
  2. Lift your index finger from E string fret 2 and place it on G string fret 2.
  3. Slide your middle finger from G string fret 3 to C string fret 3.

This transition appears in the section, played 4 times.

8. B7 → Em chord transition

Switching from B7 to Em:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 16 times.

9. Am → D chord transition

Switching from Am to D:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 6 times.

10. D → D7 chord transition

Switching from D to D7:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 6 times.

11. D7 → G chord transition

Switching from D7 to G:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 6 times.

12. G → Am chord transition

Switching from G to Am:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 9 times.

13. Em → E7 chord transition

Switching from Em to E7:

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

This transition appears in the chorus, played 4 times.

14. Am → B7 chord transition

To move from Am to B7:

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

This transition appears in the section, played 3 times.

16. Em → G chord transition

Here's how to move from Em to G:

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

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 Ukulelearn.
  • Those Were The Days My Friend contains 1 of the top 10 transitions across Ukulelearn.
  • These transition patterns show how Those Were The Days My Friend connects to the rest of Ukulelearn. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After Em, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are C (27%), G (18%), and D (18%).
    • Em → G: 18%
    • Em → Am: 12%
    After Am, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn 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 extracted from real songs. See which songs use each chain, learn the finger transitions, and expand your repertoire with patterns that actually matter.