Chords + Lyrics | 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover
Intro
||: drums :|| x6
| Em/G D6 | Cmaj7 B7b9 B7 | Em B7/D# | F#dimadd4 Em/B |
| Em D6 | Cmaj7 B7b9 | Em Am7 | Em |
Verse 1
| Em/G D6 | Cmaj7 B7b9 B7 |
The problem is all inside your head, she said to me.
| Em B7/D# | F#dimadd4 Em/B |
The answer is easy if you take it logically.
| Em D6 | Cmaj7 B7b9 B7 |
I’d like to help you in your struggle to be free.
| Em Am7 | Em |
There must be fifty ways to leave your lover.
Verse 2
She said, “It’s really not my habit to intrude.
Furthermore, I hope my meaning won’t be lost or misconstrued.
But I’ll repeat myself, at the risk of being crude.
| Em Am7 | Em | Em Am7 | Em |
There must be fifty ways to leave your lover. Fifty ways to leave your lover.
Chorus 1
| G5 G7 G6 | Bb6 G7/Bb G6/Bb |
You just slip out the back, Jack. Make a new plan, Stan.
| Csus2 G7/C G6/C | G5 G7 G6 |
You don’t need to be coy, Roy, just get yourself free.
| G5 G7 G6 | Bb6 G7/Bb G6/Bb |
Hop on the bus, Gus. You don’t need to discuss much.
| Csus2 G7/C G6/C | G5 G7 G6 |
Just drop off the key, Lee, and get yourself free.
Chorus 2
Ooh, slip out the back, Jack. Make a new plan, Stan.
You don’t need to be coy, Roy, just listen to me.
Hop on the bus, Gus, you don’t need to discuss much.
| Csus2 G7/C G6/C | G | G |
Just drop off the key, Lee, and get yourself free.
Verse 3 (as verse 1)
She said, it grieves me so to see you in such pain.
I wish there was something I could do to make you smile again.
I said, I appreciate that, and would you please explain,
about the fifty ways?
Verse 4 (as verse 2)
She said, why don’t we both just sleep on it tonight?
And I believe in the morning, you’ll begin to see the light.
And then she kissed me and I realized she probably was right.
There must be fifty ways to leave your lover.
Fifty ways to leave your lover.
Chorus 3 (as chorus 1)
You just slip out the back, Jack. Make a new plan, Stan.
You don’t need to be coy, Roy, just get yourself free.
Hop on the bus, Gus, you don’t need to discuss much.
Just drop off the key, Lee, and get yourself free.
Chorus 4 (as chorus 1)
Slip out the back, Jack. Make a new plan, Stan.
You don’t need to be coy, Roy, just listen to me.
Hop on the bus, Gus, you don’t need to discuss much.
Just drop off the key, Lee, and get yourself free.
Outro
||: drums :|| to fade
50 Ways to Leave Your Lover Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover. I’ve used stem separation to extract the guitar while keeping the drums, bass, keys, horns, and vocals intact.
After studying the chords and TAB, use my backing tracks to prepare for playing this tune with a band.
Should you want to play along with the original recording instead, you need to tune your guitar down to 438Hz. In the backing tracks, I’ve done this job for you by tuning it to 440Hz.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
Many online tutorials claim to show the chords for 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover. However, after spending several hours with this tune, I discovered that many were not entirely accurate.
The main issue lies in the second line of the verse. The chords are actually:
| Em B7/D# | F#dimadd4 Em/B |
Most teachers, however, claim it’s this:
| Em D#dim7 | F#dim7 B7b9 B7 |
What they miss is the open B string, meaning there are no dim7 chords. You need tablature (TAB) to see this more clearly, find it further down this guitar lesson.
What Paul Simon has done is adjust his fingering until he’s happy, rather than rigidly adhering to theoretical expectations.
Teachers who claim standard dim7 chords are present have assumed this because it seems theoretically logical—it’s common to use dim7 chords in this context.
Almost every time I’ve gotten chords wrong, it’s been due to assuming a theoretically “sensible” solution rather than carefully listening with an open mind.
50 Ways To Leave Your Lover‘s chords served as a great reminder to always listen more attentively. I highlight this because we all make this mistake.
Anyway, because the chords are quite complex, you need TAB to fully grasp all the intervals and extensions. Therefore, I’ll leave the verse chords to the TAB (scroll down to find it).
Chorus
The chorus chords aren’t much simpler. This is a simplified version of 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover‘s chorus chords. Focus on the Roman numerals and play along with the backing tracks.
||: G (I) | Bb6 (bIIIx) |
| C (IV) | G (I) :||
To make these chords sound more authentic, it’s best to use TAB again. Once this is absorbed, we can describe the movements as chords with extensions, like this:
||: G5 G7 G6 | Bb6 G7/Bb G6/Bb |
| Csus2 G7/C G6/C | G5 G7 G6 :||
This isn’t a simple song; expect to spend many hours mastering it. Once you have 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover‘s chords ingrained, this chord chart will be all you need.
50 Ways To Leave Your Lover Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
Even iReal Pro agrees with the other online teachers, as F#dimadd4 isn’t a chord it recognises! I had to input it as text to work around this limitation.
The spacing for the chorus isn’t ideal either; it looks a little odd.
Should you wish to download this chart, here’s a PDF: 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover chord chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro. Here’s a link to that file: 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover iReal Pro.
Using this and the iReal Pro app, you can change the key, but that sounds like a nightmare! You could, however, alter the layout of this arrangement. If you come up with a better solution, please let me know!
50 Ways To Leave Your Lover | TAB
If you disregard all the fancy extensions and think in Roman numerals, the verse chords for 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover are just this:
VI – V – IV – IIIx, followed by the more complex VI – #Vdim7 – IIdim – VI/5.
The next line is the same as the first, and we finish with VI – II – VI.
With extensions, it’s a different story. Let’s break it down, using TAB. Here are the first two bars, which also repeat in line 3:
- The first chord, an Em/G, could also be described as a G6.
- D6 is achieved by swapping the root on string 2 for the 6th.
- Cmaj7 maintains that open B string.
- B7b9 is a natural extension as this is Phrygian Dominant.
- B7 is still chord IIIx, we’ve resolved the b9 to the root.
Here’s line 2, which has the “crazy” II chord in it:
We probably need that common Em chord to handle what’s coming up. This makes the last Em/G feel more appropriate as the name, rather than G6.
B7/D# is chord IIIx, with its 3rd in the bass. Most people mistakenly call this a D#dim7, but there’s an open B string.
F#dimadd4 has appeared because you could have just moved the D#dim7 up a m3rd to get a different inversion, F#dim7. The open B string is what gives it the crazy name. Paul has clearly experimented here.
Em/B is often called a Baug in tutorials, but there’s nothing on string 4, so it’s more accurately an Em/B.
Line 3 is the same as line 1. Here’s the last part of the verse, which is super simple—just VI – II – VI.
Play along with the backing tracks using this TAB, as well as the chords and lyrics.
The chorus chords are essentially just I – bIIIx – IV, but since there are several guitars playing licks, and you’re most likely going to be the only guitarist in the band, I’ve made a part for you. Again, let’s use TAB to explain it!
As you can see, it’s the same thing four times—just change the initial root note.
Once you can play what I’ve written here, start varying the licks, aiming to include the intervals of G7 – G6, which corresponds to the G Mixolydian scale. You could also blend this with the G minor blues scale.
If you have a bass player, let them handle the Bb – C movement. The guitars are essentially playing G chords throughout, with blues- and country-esque licks – practise along with the backing tracks!
Every drummer’s favourite Paul Simon tune and the golden era of music
Every drummer’s favourite tune (even ahead of Rosanna!), 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover, boasts not only an awesome drum groove by Steve Gadd but also some fantastic chords!
Released in 1975 on Paul Simon’s fourth solo album, Still Crazy After All These Years, it instantly became a classic, alongside the title track.
The 1970s were an incredible era for Simon, who, before 50 Ways, had released Tenderness as a single from the album There Goes Rhymin’ Simon (1973).
It’s easy to think of Paul Simon as the 1960s Simon & Garfunkel and the 1980s with Graceland and You Can Call Me Al, which are also brilliant, but to me, his 1970s catalogue is truly exceptional.
If you have a vinyl player, find the albums mentioned and prepare to be truly impressed.
For some reason, 1968–1975 was a golden era for music, whether it be The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Neil Young, Stevie Wonder, or the man responsible for 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover, Mr Paul Simon. Those seven years will probably never be surpassed.
50 Ways To Leave Your Lover Chords: Continue Learning
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