Chords + Lyrics | 9 To 5
Intro
||: F# | F# (D# E F) :||
Verse 1
| F# |
Tumble outta bed and I stumble to the kitchen,
| B | F# | C# |
pour myself a cup of ambition and yawning, stretching, trying to come to life.
| F# |
Jump in the shower and the blood starts pumping,
| B | F# C# | F# N.C |
out on the street, the traffic starts jumping with folks like me on the job from 9 to 5.
Chorus 1
| B | B | F# | F# |
Working 9 to 5, what a way to make a living, barely getting by, it’s all taking and no giving.
| B | B | G#m | C# |
They just, use your mind and they never give you credit, it’s enough to drive you crazy if you let it.
| B | B | F# | F# |
9 to 5, for service and devotion, you would think that I would deserve a fair promotion.
| B | B | G#m | C# |
Want to, move ahead but the boss won’t seem to let me, I swear sometimes that man is out to get me.
Instrumental (like intro)
| F# | F# (D# E F) |
Mmmmmm.
Verse 2
They let you dream just to watch them shatter,
you’re just a step on the boss man’s ladder but you got dreams he’ll never take away.
In the same boat with a lot of your friends,
waiting for the day your ship will come in and the tide’s gonna turn and it’s all gonna roll your way.
Chorus 2
Working 9 to 5, what a way to make a living, barely getting by, it’s all taking and no giving.
They just, use your mind and you never get the credit, it’s enough to drive you crazy if you let it.
9 to 5, yeah, they got you where they want you, there’s a better life and you think about it, don’t you.
It’s a rich man’s game, no matter what they call it and you spend your life putting money in his wallet.
Chorus 3
9 to 5, oh what a way to make a living, barely getting by, it’s all taking and no giving.
They just, use your mind and they never give you credit, it’s enough to drive you crazy if you let it.
9 to 5, yeah, they got you where they want you, there’s a better life and you think about it, don’t you.
It’s a rich man’s game, no matter what they call it and you spend your life putting money in his wallet.
9 To 5 Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning 9 To 5. 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.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
Being in the awkward key of F#, we are dealing with the I, IV, and V chords for the verse, like this:
| F# (I) | B (IV) | F# (I) | C# |(V)
| F# | B | F# C# | F# N.C |
It’s so clever how that small modification in line two sets up the chorus – so minimalistic, yet so perfect.
Chorus
Having the chorus start on IV really makes it feel like it takes off:
||: B (IV) | B | F# (I) | F# |
| B (IV) | B | G#m (II) | C# (V) :||
Using similar chords but in a different order clearly separates the two sections.
Intro + Instrumental
Apart from these two sections, there’s only the intro and instrumental section, which remain on F# (I) with a chromatic ascending bass line (D#–E–F). This is where you hear Dolly on nails (more on this below)!
To get TAB for what to actually play, including some tasty country kicks, check the TAB further down this guitar lesson.
Returning from the TAB, armed with licks and a brand new cowboy hat, use this chord chart and the backing tracks as you make your final preparations to prepare to play this party classic with your band.
9 To 5 Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
You can download my chord chart as a static PDF or in the iReal Pro format.
If there’s a female singer on the gig, the key will likely stay the same. However, with a male singer—or if you’re experimenting with a different version or style—you might need to change it. In this case, iReal Pro makes transposing quick and easy.
Notice how I describe the short instrumental section as a separate re-intro with chords and lyrics, but in the chord chart, I place it after the first chorus using a 1. bracket.
I did this intentionally to highlight that music theory and chord chart writing are descriptive rather than exact sciences—there’s more than one way to approach them.
With the iReal Pro format, the real advantage is that you can adjust the layout to what makes the most sense to you.
9 To 5 | TAB
I usually transcribe the exact licks note for note and then perhaps develop them. Alternatively, I’ll transcribe BV’s, horns or keyboard parts, adapt them to work on guitar – not so with 9 To 5!
Instead of going down this transcription route, I’ve gone for the concept of taking a bunch of classic country ideas, then adapting that to all chords.
This way, you will end up improvising your part, which is what the session guys actually do. In the case of 9 To 5, it’s Jeff “Skunk” Baxter who delivered the goods.
But before we dive nto that, let’s start form the top as we begin with the piano’s build-up lick from the intro, and see why it doesn’t translate directly to guitar.
The issue is that the bass line should sit lower than the initial root note — but as we move from D#, that isn’t possible on guitar in this position.
The guitar part also uses a different rhythm, so we move it up an octave, like this:
Verse
The verse adapts this pattern across the changes — very straightforward.
In verse two, there’s a single lick. Notice the impact of one well-placed idea versus crowding the part with fills.
To play this comfortably, shift lower down the neck for a more relaxed pumping rhythm. You don’t need to stay there for the entire section, but if you do, it looks like this:
Chorus
Now for the fun part — country technique. Learn these examples, apply the ideas to every chord, and then start blending them freely. Before long, you’ll be improvising convincingly in this style.
In idea 1, we’re almost playing funk guitar. Make sure you snap the chord off wherever you see a staccato dot.
As you’ll notice, the rhythm stays the same throughout.
Here’s another idea — a banjo-roll lick. We move minor → major on the B chord, but sus2 → major on the F# — the fingering shape dictates the movement.
How many positions can you find for this banjo-roll concept across the fretboard?
Finally, here’s a sus4 idea combined with a classic dom7 → 6 move.
Dolly Parton’s Signature Song
9 to 5 is a song by country superstar Dolly Parton, written for the film of the same name, starring Jane Fonda and Dolly herself.
After its instant success—topping the charts and drawing audiences to the film—Dolly’s fame grew even bigger. Remarkably, she had already been releasing albums for 13 years before 9 to 5 in 1980.
Perhaps most famously, Dolly is credited not just as the singer but also for playing her nails! By rubbing them together, she imitated the typewriter sound that sets up the intro—an idea that inspired the song in the first place.
Country music bands tend to stick to their genre, with party bands rarely venturing into this style. However, 9 to 5 is an exception—everyone knows this tune, and so should you!
9 To 5 Chords: Continue Learning
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