I Won’t Back Down | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
||: E5 D5 | G5 :||
Verse 1
| E5 D5 | G5 |
Well I, won’t back down.
| E5 D5 | G5 |
No I, won’t back down.
| E5 D5 | C5 |
You could stand me up at the gates of Hell.
| E5 D5 | G5 |
But I, won’t back down.
Verse 2
No I’ll, stand my ground.
Won’t be, turned around.
And I’ll keep this world from dragging me down.
Gonna, stand my ground.
| E5 D5 | G C/G G |
And I, won’t back down.
Chorus 1
| C (G) | D5 (G) |
(I won’t back) Hey baby.
| C (G) | D5 (G) |
There ain’t no easy way out.
| C (G) | D5 | E5 D5 | G |
(I won’t back) Hey I, will stand my ground.
| E5 D5 | G5 |
And I Won’t back down.
Verse 3 (as verse 2)
Well, I know what’s right
I got just one life
In a world that keeps on pushin’ me around
But I’ll stand my ground
And I won’t back down
Chorus 2
(I won’t back) Hey baby.
There ain’t no easy way out.
(I won’t back) Hey I, will stand my ground.
(I won’t back down) And I won’t back down.
Solo
| Em D5 | G | Em D5 | G |
| Em D5 | C | Em D5 | G |
| Em D5 | G C/G G |
Outro chorus
| C (G) | D5 (G) |
(I won’t back) Hey baby.
| C (G) | D5 (G) |
There ain’t no easy way out.
| C (G) | D5 | Em D5 | G C/G G |
(I won’t back) Hey I, won’t back down
| C (G) | D5 (G) |
(I won’t back) Hey baby.
| C (G) | D5 (G) |
There ain’t no easy way out.
| C (G) | D5 | Em D5 | G |
(I won’t back) Hey I, will stand my ground.
| Em D5 | G |
(I won’t back down) And I won’t back down.
| Em D5 | G |
(I won’t back down) No, I won’t back down.
I Won’t Back Down Chords: Master the Minimalist Progression
I Won’t Back Down is from Tom Petty‘s 1989 solo album Full Moon Fever.
Co-written with Jeff Lynne, the song emerged during a time when Tom had taken a break from the Heartbreakers and formed The Traveling Wilburys alongside Jeff, Roy, George, and Bob.
A masterclass in minimalist songwriting, I Won’t Back Down is a 4-chord masterpiece with no extensions—just the raw power of the chords themselves. The verse chords are simple, following a progression that starts on chord VI, moves down to V, and ends on I.
Though we’re using power chords, the progression still carries the feel of VI – V – I due to the space between the chords, which our brains naturally associate with the major scale.
The only variation comes the third time through when we go to chord IV instead of I, like this:
| Em D5 | G | Em D5 | G |
| Em D5 | C | Em D5 | G |
| Em D5 | G C/G G |
The final bar features the signature riff of the song, G C/G G, a riff that has been used many times before, mainly by Bo Diddley.
The chorus is a bit more complex, mostly due to a quick passing chord (G), and is written with chords and lyrics like this:
||: C (G) | D5 (G) :||
| C (G) | D5 | E5 D5 | G |
| E5 D5 | G5 |
Once you’ve got the hang of the chord progression, a simple chord chart is all you need. Here’s one I made for you!
I Won’t Back Down Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
Perhaps the chord chart looks unnecessarily complicated. I could have simply listed the various sections and their order instead, which would have made it clearer.
There are many ways to write a chord chart. My aim is to show you different methods and approaches.
Notice how the passing chord in the chorus is placed on beat 4 in the chord chart but is shown in brackets in the chords and lyrics section. This is another example of how there are multiple ways to approach chord notation.
If you’d like to download my chord chart, here’s the PDF: I Won’t Back Down chord chart PDF.
This chart was created using iReal Pro. Here’s the file link for that: I Won’t Back Down chord chart iReal Pro.
With iRealPro, you can change the key, but I wouldn’t recommend doing so, as the sound of I Won’t Back Down is closely tied to the specific chord shapes used.
I Won’t Back Down vs. Stay With Me!
In recent years, songs have been accused of borrowing from previous hits. Blurred Lines was compared to Marvin Gaye‘s Got To Give It Up, and Ed Sheeran‘s Thinking Out Loud was likened to Marvin’s Let’s Get It On.
Both of these cases went to court—Robin Thicke lost, but Ed Sheeran won.
Tom Petty has also been “borrowed from” a few times. Last Nite by The Strokes sounds like American Girl, and Dani California by the Red Hot Chili Peppers has similarities to Mary Jane’s Last Dance. For both of these tunes, Petty chose not to take action. However, when Sam Smith’s Stay With Me was released, Petty settled out of court, receiving 12.5% of the royalties. Personally, I think Sam Smith should have given him more, but I also believe Ed Sheeran should have lost his case.
It might feel like writing something truly original is impossible these days. There are only so many chord progressions, and to craft a memorable hook, you have to hit certain “money notes,” like the third, etc.
In fact, many artists start writing by taking inspiration from existing songs, rewriting them as a foundation. Robin Thicke and Pharrell even admitted that Blurred Lines was written this way.
This isn’t a new phenomenon. Charlie Parker did it many times, and there’s even a term for it: contrafact—a new melody written over an old progression and form.
Instead of debating whether this is right or wrong, why not give it a try? You might improve your songwriting by experimenting with it. And if something great comes out of it, you could always be honest about where the inspiration came from.
If Sam Smith only had to send Tom Petty 12.5% for blatantly borrowing from I Won’t Back Down, perhaps it’s worth considering. You could also embrace the idea of honesty and give a percentage to the artist you drew inspiration from. Ed Sheeran did this for his biggest hit, Shape of You, which was inspired by TLC’s No Scrubs.
In a recent Song Exploder podcast, Sam Smith shared the story of how he wrote Stay With Me with his producer, Jimmy Napes. There was no mention of I Won’t Back Down—the way they tell it, it could be 100% true. Maybe no reference track was used, and sometimes these things happen subconsciously.
My question to you is: Does it matter?
I Won’t Back Down Chords: Continue Learning
Want to master this song? Check out the full TAB lesson here: I Won’t Back Down (Tom Petty) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy: