Johnny B. Goode | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| N.C | N.C | Bb N.C | N.C |
| Eb6 | Eb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
| F6 | F6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Verse 1
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
Deep down in Louisiana close to New Orleans,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
way back up in the woods among the evergreens.
| Eb6 | Eb6 |
There stood a log cabin made of earth and wood,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
where lived a country boy named Johnny B. Goode.
| F6 | F6 |
Who never ever learned to read or write so well,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
but he could play a guitar just like a-ringin’ a bell. Go, go.
Chorus 1
| Bb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Go, Johnny go, go. Go Johnny go, go.
| Eb6 | Eb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Go, Johnny go, go. Go Johnny go, go.
| F6 | F6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Johnny B. Goode.
Verse 2
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
He used to carry his guitar in a gunny sack,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
go sit beneath the tree by the railroad track.
| Eb6 | Eb6 |
All the engineers would see him sitting in the shade,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
strumming with the rhythm that the drivers made.
| F6 | F6 |
The people passing by they would stop and say,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
“Oh my what that little country boy could play”. Go, go.
Chorus 2
| Bb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Go, Johnny go, go. Go Johnny go, go.
| Eb6 | Eb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Go, Johnny go, go. Go Johnny go, go.
| F6 | F6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Johnny B. Goode.
Solo
||: Bb N.C | Bb N.C | Bb N.C Bb N.C | Bb |
| Eb6 | Eb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
| F6 | F6 | Bb6 | Bb6 :||
Verse 3
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
His mother told him “Someday you will be a man,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
and you will be the leader of a big old band.
| Eb6 | Eb6 |
Many people coming from miles around,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
to hear you play your music when the sun go down.
| F6 | F6 |
Maybe someday your name will be in lights,
| Bb6 | Bb6 |
saying: Johnny B. Goode tonight”. Go, go.
Chorus 3
| Bb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Go, Johnny go. Go, go, go Johnny go.
| Eb6 | Eb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Go, go, go Johnny go. Go, go, go Johnny go.
| F6 | F6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
Go. Johnny B. Goode.
Johnny B. Goode Chords: Learn the progressions
Using the classic honky tonk riff, we could describe the chords as 6 chords to include the riff in the chord.
As a traditional twelve-bar, Johnny B. Goode’s chords move like this:
| Bb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
| Eb6 | Eb6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
| F6 | F6 | Bb6 | Bb6 |
This is the same for both the verse and the chorus.
The only variation is during the intro/solo section where we have stops.
The intro’s first line has just one stop, like this:
| N.C | N.C | Bb N.C | N.C |
For the solo, the stops are more frequent, like this:
| Bb N.C | Bb N.C | Bb N.C Bb N.C | Bb |
Clearly, a worldwide smash hit that has come to almost represent its genre doesn’t have to be complicated. Johnny B. Goode’s chord proves that!
Funnily enough, most bands I’ve played in that have had this song on their setlist have not done it in the original key, instead, it tends to be in either A or B.
My top tip is to learn it in all three keys as the worst thing that can happen to a band that meets in the parking lot before the gig is to play the same song in different keys, nothing gives the game away more clearly than this!
The most recognized Rock n’ Roll song of all time!
As #7 on Rolling Stone magazine’s 500 greatest songs of all time, Johnny B. Goode by Chuck Berry is synonymous with the electric guitar.
Released in 1958 on the Blues label Chess, it didn’t actually reach the top spot, instead peaking at #2. It is instead its long-lasting legacy that has made it so legendary and some say, the most recognized rock n roll song of all time.
If you ever questioned if this is a song you should know, maybe you have a future career as a bass player instead of as a guitarist! Make no mistake – This is a must-know song, only note for note will do when playing the intro!
We can only place this alongside more modern classics like Sweet Child O’ Mine, Sweet Home Alabama, and Summer Of 69 on the “must know this” list for any serious rock guitar player.
Johnny B. Goode is music history in a song – Study the chords and lyrics above carefully, you’ll play this one for years!
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Chuck Berry tunes
The father of Rock n Roll, Chuck Berry came to prominence in the 50s as he would make Rhythm n Blues fun.
His best tunes include Maybellene, Johnny B. Goode, Sweet Little Sixteen, No Particular Place To Go, and You Never Can Tell.
Chuck Berry on the web
Rock N Roll & Early Pop
As popular music was starting to take shape, the earliest styles that came out of Jazz and Blues were Rock N Roll & Early Pop.
Learn tunes by The Beatles, Elvis, The Monkees, Chuck Berry, The Kinks, and The Rolling Stones.
About me | Dan Lundholm
This was a guitar lesson about Johnny B. Goode chords, by Dan Lundholm. Discover more about him and learn guitar with Spytunes.
Most importantly, find out why you should learn guitar through playing tunes, not practising scales, and studying theory in isolation.
