Chords + Lyrics | September
Intro
||: Dmaj7 C#m7 Bm7 | C#m7 F#m9 F#m7 :|| x3
| Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A N.C |
Verse 1
| Dmaj7 C#m7 Bm7 | C#m7 F#m9 F#m7 |
Do you remember, the 21st night of September?
| Dmaj7 C#m7 Bm7 | C#m7 F#m9 F#m7 |
Love was changin’ the minds of pretenders.
| Dmaj7 C#m7 Bm7 | C#7 F#m9 F#m7 | G/A | Gmaj7/A N.C |
While chasin’ the clouds away.
Verse 2
Our hearts were ringin’ in the key that our souls were singin’
As we danced in the night, remember.
| Dmaj7 C#m7 Bm7 | C#7 F#m9 F#m7 | Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A |
How the stars stole the night away, oh, yeah. Hey, hey, hey.
Chorus 1
| Bm9 E6 | C#m7 F#m9 F#m7 |
Ba-dee-ya, say do you remember?
| Bm9 E6 | C#m7 F#m9 F#m7 |
Ba-dee-ya, dancin’ in September.
| Bm9 E6 | C#m7 F#m9 F#m7 | Gadd9/A | Gadd9/A |
Ba-dee-ya, never was a cloudy day.
Chorus tag 1
| Dmaj7 C#m7 Bm7 | C#m7 F#m7 |
Ba-du-da, ba-du-da, ba-du-da, ba-du.
| Dmaj7 C#m7 Bm7 | C#m7 F#m7 |
Ba-du-da, ba-du, ba-du-da, ba-du.
| Dmaj7 C#m7 Bm7 | C#m7 F#m7 | Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A |
Ba-du-da, ba-du, ba-du-da. Hey.
Verse 3 (as verse 2)
My thoughts are with you holdin’ hands with your heart to see you.
Only blue talk and love, remember.
How we knew love was here to stay.
Verse 4 (as verse 2)
Now December, found the love that we shared in September.
Only blue talk and love, remember.
The true love we share today. Hey, hey, hey.
Chorus 2
Ba-dee-ya, say do you remember?
Ba-dee-ya, dancin’ in September.
Ba-dee-ya, never was a cloudy day.
Chorus 3
There was a ba-dee-ya (dee-ya, dee-ya), say, do you remember?
Ba-dee-ya (dee-ya, dee-ya), dancin’ in September.
Ba-dee-ya (dee-ya, dee-ya), golden dreams were shiny days.
Verse 5 (as verse 2)
The bell was ringin’, oh, oh.
Our souls were singin’.
Do you remember, never a cloudy day? Yow.
Chorus 4
There was a ba-dee-ya (dee-ya, dee-ya), say, do you remember?
Ba-dee-ya (dee-ya, dee-ya), dancin’ in September.
Ba-dee-ya (dee-ya, dee-ya), never was a cloudy day.
Chorus 5
And we’ll say ba-dee-ya (dee-ya, dee-ya), say, do you remember?
Ba-dee-ya (dee-ya, dee-ya), dancin’ in September.
Ba-dee-ya (dee ya, dee-ya), golden dreams were shiny days.
Chorus tag 2
| Bm9 E6 | C#m7 F#m7 |
Ba-dee-ya, dee-ya, dee-ya
| Bm9 E6 | C#m7 F#m7 |
Ba-dee-ya, dee-ya, dee-ya
| Bm9 E6 | C#m7 F#m7 | Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A |
Ba-dee-ya, dee-ya, dee-ya, dee-ya!
Chorus tag 3 (as chorus tag 2)
Ba-dee-ya, dee-ya, dee-ya
Ba-dee-ya, dee-ya, dee-ya
Ba-dee-ya, dee-ya, dee-ya, dee-ya!
September Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning September. I’ve used stem separation to extract the guitar while keeping the drums, bass, keys, horns, strings, 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 sharp to 446Hz. In the backing tracks, I’ve done this job for you by tuning it to 440Hz.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
There are a surprising number of tiny details in September’s chords that I only discovered once I sat down and took the progression seriously. It turns out I’ve been playing this wrong for years!
Intro
The intro, which is similar to the verse but not exactly the same, starts like this:
||: Dmaj7 (IV) C#m7 (III) Bm7 (II) | C#m7 F#m9 (VI) F#m7 :||
In the key of A, we are moving IV–III–II–III–VI. No harmonic rules are broken here. Play this progression three times before moving on to these chords:
| Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A N.C |
Normally, I prefer calling a G/A an A11, but since this chord is a Gmaj7/A, it feels more logical to describe it that way. Later on, we use a Gadd9/A instead.
Here, harmonic rules are broken, and it’s as if we’re no longer in the key of A but in the key of D instead, where the A11 variation functions as the V chord. As with many tunes in this genre, we’re straddling two keys at once.
This is a case of modal interchange, moving from A Ionian to A Mixolydian.
Verse
For the verse, we first play the same progression as the intro twice. The third time, instead of continuing with the regular pattern, we play a C#7 (IIIx), like this:
| Dmaj7 (IV) C#m7 (III) Bm7 (II) |
| C#7 (IIIx) F#m9 (VI) F#m7 |
| Gmaj7/A | Gmaj7/A N.C. |
I can tell you this for sure: I’ve never heard a band get that C#7 right! In the key of A, this is the IIIx.
For TAB showing how to play all these chords, keep scrolling!
Chorus
Now, let’s check out the chorus:
| Bm9 (II) E6 (V) | C#m7 (III) F#m9 (VI) F#m7 |
If we’re in the key of A, this progression is II–V–III–VI.
What’s incredibly cool is that Bm9 and Dmaj7 are almost the same chord, as are C#m7 and E6.
Another small detail is the F#m9, which appears just before the F#m7.
Play along with the backing tracks, also following the chords and lyrics above, and you’ll soon realise how details like the C#7 and F#m9 really do make a difference.
After 20 years of playing September, I’ll definitely get the chords right from now on — it’s about time!
Here’s a chord chart.
September Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
Download my chart, give it to your band mates and impress them with the C#7:
September | TAB
Good news! In the seemingly chaotic arrangement that is September, there’s actually more consistency than it first appears. Let’s start with the two intro parts.
Intro
Guitar 1 plays what will later return for the chorus, so if you’re the only guitarist, you may want to leave this part out for the intro. If you do choose to play it, make sure that compressor pedal is on!
Guitar 2 looks unnecessarily complicated if you try to recreate it exactly as written. If you’re the only guitarist in the band, this is the part you want.
Ignore the odd D-string notes and just let them happen while you focus on nailing the rhythm consistently.
Verse
There are two guitar parts in the verse. I feel you should learn them both, even though you’ll likely end up playing neither exactly as written.
Here’s Guitar 1.
And here’s Guitar 2:
Below is a combination part I put together, blending the first two parts (you did learn those first, right?):
Chorus
The chorus is almost identical to the intro, so pay close attention to the small details that have changed.
Once you can play all this TAB, return to the backing tracks and put everything together with the chord chart.
September Chords: Continue Learning
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