Dancing In The Moonlight (It’s Caught Me In Its Spotlight) | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| Em Em7 | D | C G/B | G (Gsus4) |
| Em Em7 | D | C G/B | G N.C | N.C |
Verse 1
||: Em Em7 | D | C G/B | G (Gsus4) :||
When I passed you in the doorway, well, you took me with a glance.
I should’ve took that last bus home, but I asked you for a dance.
Now we go steady to the pictures, I always get chocolate stains on my pants.
And my father, he’s going crazy, he says I’m livin’ in a trance.
Chorus 1
| Em Em7 | D | C G/B | G (Gsus4) |
But I’m dancing in the moonlight, it’s caught me in its spotlight (it’s alright, alright).
| Em Em7 | D | C G/B | G N.C | N.C |
Dancing in the moonlight, on this long, hot summer night.
Verse 2
It’s three o’clock in the morning, and I’m on the streets again.
I disobeyed another warning, I should’ve been in by ten.
Now I won’t get out until Sunday, I’ll have to say I stayed with friends.
Oh, but it’s a habit worth forming, if it means to justify the end.
Chorus 2
Dancing in the moonlight, it’s caught me in its spotlight (it’s alright, alright).
Dancing in the moonlight, on this long, hot summer night.
Verse 3 (breakdown)
||: Em | D | C5 G/B | G (Gsus4) :|| x3
And I’m walking home, the last bus has long gone.
Chorus 3 (short)
| Em | D | C5 G/B | G N.C | N.C |
But I’m dancing in the moonlight.
Solo
||: Em Em7 | D | C G/B | G (Gsus4) :|| x4
Outro
||: Em Em7 | D | C G/B | G (Gsus4) :||
Dancing in the moonlight, it’s caught me in its spotlight (it’s alright, it’s alright).
Dancing in the moonlight, on this long, hot summer night.
Dancing in the moonlight (I’m dancing in the moonlight) it’s caught me in its spotlight (it’s caught me in its spotlight).
Dancing in the moonlight (dancing in the moonlight), on this long, hot summer night (it’s got me hot).
Dancing in the moonlight (I’m dancing in the moonlight), it’s caught me in its spotlight (it’s caught me alright, alright).
Dancing in the moonlight (alright, alright, alright, alright, alright), on this long, hot summer night (got so goddamn hot).
Dancing in the moonlight (I’m dancing), it’s caught me in its spotlight (I’m still dancing).
Dancing in the moonlight (I’m dancing in the moonlight), on this long, hot summer night.
Dancing in the Moonlight Chords: Play the Classic VI – V – IV – I Progression
||: Em (VI) | D (V) | C (IV) | G (I) :||
However, to truly capture the feel, you need to include some extensions—and, most importantly, that iconic bass line!
I recommend starting with the bass line first, then adding the chords.
To do this, you’ll need TAB. Here’s a link to that part of the lesson: Dancing in the Moonlight (It’s Caught Me in Its Spotlight) – Guitar Lesson with TAB.
The TAB lesson focuses on blending the bass line with the chords, creating a full acoustic guitar part.
Master this, and you’ll be able to play the tune solo or seamlessly fit into a band, with a full understanding of its structure.
Dancing In The Moonlight Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
At first, this song seems easy, as it’s essentially the same chords on repeat. However, the arrangement introduces some unexpected twists.
Using the chart above, along with the chords and lyrics, you’ll quickly work out what happens from the breakdown verse to the end, where things start to get more complex.
If you’d like to download the chart, here’s a PDF: Dancing in the Moonlight (It’s Caught Me in Its Spotlight) chord chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro—here’s a link to that file: Dancing in the Moonlight (It’s Caught Me in Its Spotlight) chord chart iReal Pro.
With the iRealPro app, you can change the key, but if you’re playing solo, this will be quite challenging.
This is not the Toploader or King Harvest song!
Thin Lizzy’s Dancing in the Moonlight (It’s Caught Me in Its Spotlight) is completely different from Toploader’s cover of the old King Harvest hit.
Released a few months before the album Bad Reputation (1977), Dancing in the Moonlight (It’s Caught Me in Its Spotlight) came out as a single. It performed reasonably well in the U.K. and Canadian charts and has only grown in popularity over the years. Still played on the radio today, it has also featured in several adverts.
A guest artist appears on this track—Supertramp’s John Helliwell plays the saxophone.
For the working guitarist, there’s one challenge—which song does the singer mean when they call out: “Let’s play Dancing in the Moonlight!”
The best advice? Learn both—and be ready for half the band to start playing the wrong one!
Dancing In The Moonlight (It’s Caught Me In Its Spotlight) Chords: Continue Learning
Want to master this song? Check out the full TAB lesson here: Dancing In The Moonlight (Thin Lizzy) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy: