Chords + Lyrics | Give Me The Night
Intro
||: Fm7 Bbm7 | Cm7 Dbmaj7 :|| x4
Verse 1
||: Fm7 Bbm7 | Cm7 Dbmaj7 :||
Whenever dark has fallen.
You know the spirit of the party starts to come alive.
Until the day is dawning.
You can throw out all the blues and hit the city lights.
Chorus 1
| Bbm7 | Eb11 |
‘Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ everywhere.
| Fm7 Bbm7 | Cm7 Dbmaj7 |
So give me the night (alright, tonight).
| Fm7 Bbm7 | Cm7 Dbmaj7 |
Give me the night (every night).
Verse 2
You need the evening action.
A place to dine, a glass of wine, a little late romance.
It’s a chain reaction.
You’ll see the people of the world coming out to dance.
Chorus 2
‘Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ everywhere.
So give me the night (every night).
Give me the night (alright, tonight).
Bridge 1
||: Abm7 Gb | Ebm7 Db :||
So come on out tonight and we’ll lead the others.
On a ride through paradise.
And if you feel all right, then we can be lovers.
| Abm7 Gb | Emaj7 | Db7 |
‘Cause I see that starlight look in your eyes.
| Emaj7 | Eb11 |
And don’t you know we can fly?
Tag 1
||: Fm7 Bbm7 | Cm7 Dbmaj7 :||
Just give me the night (alright, tonight).
Give me the night (yeah, yeah, yeah).
Solo
||: Fm7 Bbm7 | Cm7 Dbmaj7 :|| x4
Chorus 3
‘Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ everywhere.
So give me the night (every night).
Give me the night (alright, tonight).
Bridge 2
So come on out tonight and we’ll lead the others.
On a ride through paradise.
And if you feel all right, then we can be lovers.
‘Cause I see that starlight look in your eyes.
And don’t you know we can fly?
Verse 3
And if we stay together.
We’ll feel the rhythm of the evening taking us up high.
Never mind the weather.
We’ll be dancing in the street until the morning light.
Chorus 4 (breakdown)
| Bbm7 | Eb11 |
‘Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ everywhere.
||: Fm7 Bbm7 | Cm7 Dbmaj7 :|| breakdown
So give me the night (all right, tonight).
||: Give me the night (all right, tonight) :|| x3
Tag 2
||: Give me the night (all right, tonight) :|| x3
So give me the night (all right, tonight).
Chorus 5
‘Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ everywhere.
So give me the night (all right, tonight).
||: Give me the night (all right, tonight) :|| x3
Chorus 6
‘Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ everywhere.
So give me the night (we can reach the stars tonight) (all right, tonight).
||: (We can reach the stars tonight) (all right, tonight) :|| x3
Chorus 7
‘Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ everywhere.
So give me the night (We can reach the stars tonight, all right, tonight).
||: Give me the night (all right, tonight) :|| x3
Chorus 8
‘Cause there’s music in the air and lots of lovin’ everywhere.
So give me the night (We can reach the stars tonight, all right, tonight).
||: Give me the night (all right, tonight) :|| x3
Give Me the Night Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning Give Me The Night. I’ve used stem-seperation 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?
Here’s the good news — Give Me the Night isn’t nearly as complicated as it first sounds. In fact, it’s surprisingly straightforward once you understand the structure.
Main section
The main chord progression moves through VI – II – III – IV. In the key of Fm, that’s:
||: Fm7 (VI) Bbm7 (II) | Cm7 (III) Dbmaj7 (IV) :||
Think of Give Me the Night as a sophisticated minor blues. Once that clicked for me, everything made sense. Compare it to Ain’t No Sunshine or The Thrill Is Gone and you’ll quickly feel at home.
I solo using the F minor blues scale as a foundation, adding colour tones like the 9, and major 7, and occasionally the b6. Anything beyond that tends to be chromatic. The aim is to weave improvised licks around the main theme—check the TAB further down this guitar lesson.
Chorus
The chorus starts on the II chord, heads to the V, then drops back into the familiar minor blues loop:
| Bbm7 | Eb11 |
||: Fm7 Bbm7 | Cm7 Dbmaj7 :||
Bridge
Here’s where it gets interesting. The bridge begins on what would normally be the I chord (Ab), but we get a modal shift to Aeolian, turning Ab into Abm—now functioning as chord VI.
In simple terms, we’ve modulated from Fm to Abm. The chords move through VI – V – II – I:
||: Abm7 (VI) Gb (V) | Ebm7 (II) Db (I) :||
Then comes an unexpected Emaj7, giving a touch of Lydian flavour, followed by Db7—hinting at a Lydian dominant sound.
| Abm7 Gb | Emaj7 | Db7 |
| Emaj7 | Eb11 |
From there, it slides right back into the Fm groove. Don’t overthink this—just hold the chords through the bridge; when it’s time to solo, it’s back to F minor blues.
If George Benson can play this while roller-skating, you’ve got this! 😎
Here’s a chord chart to guide you.
Give Me The Night Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
Here you can download my chord chart in two formats — a static PDF or an editable iReal Pro file.
With iReal Pro, you can easily change the key to fit your vocal range or band setup. It’s also great for jamming, as the app provides MIDI backing tracks in various styles—perfect for locking into that smooth George Benson groove.
Give Me The Night | TAB
Let’s look at a variety of ways to play Give Me The Night. The original recording is layered with production and subtle variations, giving the impression that it’s effortless.
Our goal is to make hard sound easy by internalising these ideas so you can improvise naturally.
Main Riff
The main riff stays consistent but can be varied with slides or pull-offs. The ending lick changes subtly each time. Learn it as written, then let your creativity take over—just like George does.
Verse
In the verse, the recording includes melodic licks alongside production. For live performance, a Nile Rodgers-style rhythm works well. Notice the similarity between Fm7 (VI) and Dbmaj7 (IV)—explore other positions on the neck to exploit these relationships.
Chorus
The chorus is short and follows the II–V progression in Ab. This can be embellished in numerous ways, allowing improvisation in a live setting.
Bridge
The bridge (II–I–VI–V in Gb) challenges unrehearsed bands. The standout Emaj7 has a Lydian feel, followed by Db7, which can be interpreted as Lydian Dominant (Lydian with a b7) if soloing. This section is ideal for practising modal shifts.
Once comfortable with all sections, play along with Benson’s band using the backing tracks and chord chart.
Give Me The Night Chords: Continue Learning
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