Bad Moon Rising | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| D | A G | D6 riff | D6 riff |
Verse 1
||: D | A G | D6 riff | D6 riff :||
I see the bad moon a-risin’, I see trouble on the way.
I see earthquakes and lightnin’, I see bad times today.
Chorus 1
| G | G | D D/A | D |
Don’t go around tonight, well it’s bound to take your life.
| A | G | D6 riff | D6 riff |
There’s a bad moon on the rise.
Verse 2
||: D | A G | D6 riff | D6 riff :||
I hear hurricanes a-blowin’, I know the end is comin’ soon.
I fear, rivers overflowin’, I hear the voice of rage and ruin.
Chorus 2
| G | G | D D/A | D |
Don’t go around tonight, well it’s bound to take your life
| A | G | D6 riff | D6 riff |
There’s a bad moon on the rise, alright.
Solo
||: D | A G | D6 riff | D6 riff :||
| G | G | D6 riff | D6 riff |
| A6 | G6 | D6 riff | D6 riff |
Verse 3
||: D | A G | D6 riff | D6 riff :||
Hope you got your things together. Hope you are quite prepared to die.
Looks like we’re in for nasty weather, one eye is taken for an eye.
Chorus 3
| G | G | D D/A | D |
Well don’t go around tonight, well it’s bound to take your life.
| A | G | D6 riff | D6 riff |
There’s a bad moon on the rise.
Chorus 4
| G | G | D D/A | D |
Don’t come around tonight, well it’s bound to take your life.
| A | G | D6 riff | D |
There’s a bad moon on the rise.
Bad Moon Rising’s chords and progressions
Like the turnaround of a blues, Bad Moon Rising moves D – A – G – D, or I – V – IV – I.
Over the D chord, we hear a nice variation on the classic honky tonk 6 extensions. Above, I’ve called this D6 riff.
This D6 riff can only be described accurately using TAB as if I write all the chords, it’s just a lot of chords, but still, this is what it would be:
| D D6 G | D5 D6 G D5 D6 |
The chorus starts on chord IV as it goes IV – I – V – IV – I, or:
| G | G | D D/A | D |
| A | G | D6 riff | D6 riff |
Overall, Bad Moon Rising’s chord progression is extremely common, it’s all I – V, IV – I, and V – IV. Looking at my top 10 chord progression list, these are the movements that are the most popular.
It’s that clever, happy-sounding honky-tonk riff in combination with the dark lyrics that make it all work.
Members get TAB for how to play Bad Moon Rising’s chords on just one acoustic guitar, although, should you be in a band, the parts will work then as well.
Here’s a link to the complete lesson (members only): Bad Moon Rising chord analysis and TAB.
Become a member today and get unlimited access to all step-by-step guitar courses, TAB for the songbook, the Self-Eliminating Practice Routine, and the eBook Spytunes Method.
Bad Moon Rising uses contrast!
As a keen student of the hit song, you may have realized that most great songs have contrast.
Bad Moon Rising, by Creedence Clearwater Revival, is a great example of this. It’s all hurricanes and bad times, but the chords, riff, and melody are super happy.
John Fogerty admitted in an interview that he didn’t realize this at first, he was so focused on the doom and gloom. It wasn’t until the band started learning the song that he realized how happy it sounded.
Fogerty decided to roll with it and got one of his biggest hits as a consequence.
Sometimes the final line “there’s a bad moon on the rise” has been sung by punters and bar bands as “there’s a bathroom on the right”, Fogerty must have decided to roll with this too as on occasion he’s changed the lyric when performing it live.
Bad Moon Rising reached #1 in the U.K. and #2 in the U.S. in 1969. On Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs Of All Time, it claimed the 364th spot.
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