Band Of Gold | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
||: G riff :|| x4
Verse 1
| G | G | D/F# |
Now that you’re gone, all that’s left is a band of gold.
| D | C | C |
All that’s left of the dreams I hold, is a band of gold.
| G/B | C |
And the memories of what love could be.
| G/B | D7 |
If you were still here with me.
Verse 2
| G | G | D/F# |
You took me from the shelter of my mother, I had never known.
| D | C | C |
Or loved any other, we kissed after taking vows.
| G/B | C |
But that night on our honeymoon.
| G/B | D7 |
We stayed in separate rooms.
Verse 3
| G | G | D/F# |
I wait in the darkness of my lonely room.
| D | C | C |
Filled with sadness, filled with gloom, hoping soon.
| G/B | C |
That you’ll walk back through that door.
| G/B | D7 |
And love me like you tried before.
Verse 4
| G | G | D/F# |
Since you’ve been gone, all that’s left is a band of gold.
| D | C | C |
All that’s left of the dreams I hold, is a band of gold.
| G/B | C |
And the dream of what love could be.
| G/B | D7 |
If you were still here with me.
Solo
| G | G | D/F# |
| D | C | C |
| G/B | C |
| G/B | D7 |
Breakdown
||: G riff :|| x4
Oh,
Verse 5
| G | G | D/F# |
Don’t you know that I wait, in the darkness of my lonely room.
| D | C | C |
Filled with sadness, filled with gloom, hoping soon.
| G/B | C |
That you’ll walk back through that door.
| G/B | D7 |
And love me like you tried before.
Verse 6
| G | G | D/F# |
Since you’ve been gone, all that’s left is a band of gold
| D | C | C |
All that’s left of the dreams I hold, is a band of gold
| G/B | C |
And the dream of what love could be.
| G/B | D7 |
If you were still here with me.
Outro
| G | G | D |
Since you’ve been gone, all that’s left is a band of gold.
Band Of Gold’s chords and progression
The chords for Band Of Gold are almost only the I – V – IV progression.
The only difference is that the V chord finds the use of its 3rd in the bass very often, and so does the I chord.
So instead of the chords: G – D – C, Band Of Gold’s chords are: G – D/F# – D – C, followed by G/B – C – G/B – D7.
It may not sound like a big change but in the world of hit writing, you want to stick with familiarity and simply add a little twist!
Only consisting of a riff using the minor pentatonic, swapping the m3rd for a b9 and a verse, Band Of Gold’s chords can be memorized very quickly, this is the chord progression.
| G (I) | G (I) | D/F# (V/3) | D (V) | C (IV) | C (IV) |
| G/B (I/3) | C (IV) | G/B (I/3) | D7 (V) |
Band Of Gold was Invictus’ biggest hit
Band Of Gold is another smash hit by Motown’s main songwriting team, Holland-Dozier-Holland, although they released it under a different name on their own label Invictus.
They even managed to lure over and use some of the band members from Motown’s house band The Funk Brothers.
These events took place in 1970 when the songwriting team had fallen out with Berry Gordy as they had been involved in a lawsuit with their old boss since 1967.
As an instant success, Band Of Gold reached #2 in the U.S. and #1 in the U.K.
Initially reluctant to record the song because of the lyrical content, Band Of Gold was by far Freda Payne’s biggest hit.
As a relatively mature singer, she would mainly perform in musicals as well as act in films and even host TV shows.
Freda Payne did release many more albums but never got close to the success she had with Band Of Gold. Her latest release came in 2021, as she was 78 years old!
On the good old 500 greatest songs of all time list by Rolling Stone Magazine, Band Of Gold claimed the #391 spot.
Band Of Gold chords | Related pages
Intermediate Electric
The intermediate electric tunes will help you with learning the CAGED system all over the fretboard, both for chords and pentatonic scales.
Learn these Motown/Soul classics, and you’ll not just improve dramatically but also gain yourself a repertoire.
Five similar tunes
- Be My Baby chords
- Dancing In The Street chords
- It Takes Two chords
- Nowhere To Run chords
- Rescue Me chords
Freda Payne
Freda Payne is the older sister of Scherrie, who sang in The Supremes during the 70s after Diana had gone solo.
Freda wasn’t just a singer with a #1 in Band Of Gold, she also acted in films, on Broadway, and even hosted her own TV show.
Freda Payne on the web
Motown & Soul
You can learn how to play these Motown & Soul tunes, and in doing so, gain yourself a repertoire so you can jam with, or even join a working band.
Study these tunes in-depth and you will map out the fretboard, master the CAGED system, and learn how to design a rhythm guitar part that works in a band.
