Chords + Lyrics | Last Nite
Intro
||: C5 | C5 :|| x4
||: C5/F | C5/F | C5/G | C5/G :|| x4
Verse 1 (x3)
| C | C | C | C | Dm | Dm |
Last night she said, “Oh, baby, I feel so down”.
| G | G | Em7 | Em7/D |
“Oh, it turn me off, when I feel left out”.
| C | C | C | C | Dm | Dm |
So I, I turned around, oh, baby, I don’t care no more.
| G | G | Em7 | Em7/D |
I know this for sure, I’m walking out that door.
| C | C | C | C | Dm | Dm |
Well, I’ve been in town for just about fifteen, oh, minutes now. Oh baby, I feel so down.
| G | G | Em7 | Em7/D |
And I don’t know why. I keep walking for miles.
Bridge 1
||: C5/F | C5/F | C5/G | C5/G :||
And see, people, they don’t understand.
Your girlfriends, they can’t understand.
Your grandsons, they won’t understand.
On top of this, I ain’t ever gonna understand.
Verse 2 (x2)
Last night she said, ”Oh, baby, don’t feel so down”.
“Oh, it turn me off, when I feel left out”.
So I, I turned around, oh, baby, gonna be alright.
It was a great big lie, ’cause I left that night, yeah.
Breakdown
||: C5 | C5 :||
||: C5/F | C5/F | C5/G | C5/G :||
Solo
| C | C | C | C |
| F | F | F | F |
| G | G | G | G |
Bridge 2
||: C5/F | C5/F | C5/G | C5/G :||
Oh, people, they don’t understand.
No, girlfriends, they don’t understand.
In spaceships, they won’t understand.
| C5/F | C5/F | C5/G | C5/G N.C |
And me, I ain’t ever gonna understand.
Verse 3 (x2)
Last night she said, ”Oh, baby, I feel so down”.
“See, it turn me off when I feel left out”.
So I, I turned around, oh little girl, I don’t care no more.
I know this for sure, I’m walking out that door, yeah.
Outro
||: C5 | C5 :||
||: C5/F | C5/F | C5/G | C5/G :||
||: C5 | C5 :|| C5 N.C |
Last Nite Chords: Guitar Stays, Bass Shifts – A Hit Writing Trick
In the key of C, Last Nite’s intro and bridge chords employ a harmonic trick: the guitar stays on a C5 while the bass moves between F and G.
Compare this with Money (That’s What I Want), where the guitar remains on the chord while the rest of the band moves from I to IV.
The C5 held by the guitar during the bridge transforms a simple IV – V progression (which sits at #2 on my Top 10 chord progression list) into something more interesting. Without this, the bridge would be just another straightforward progression.
Here’s how it looks:
||: C5/F | C5/F | C5/G | C5/G :|| (x4)
| C5/F | C5/F | C5/G | C5/G N.C |
What The Strokes have done here is use a classic hit-writing trick: familiarity with a twist.
Verse + Chorus
The verse progression starts simply with the I – II, then becomes more complex. First, we move to the V chord, a G. As the guitar stays on G for four bars, the bass shifts the meaning of this G to Em7, and then to Em7/D – genius!
||: C (I) | C | C | C | Dm (II) | Dm |
| G (V) | G | Em7 (III) | Em7/D (III/b7) :||
These two sections represent all the chords used in Last Nite.
If you’re an aspiring songwriter, two great lessons emerge here: keep it simple, and don’t be afraid to stick to the basics—but always add a twist to keep things fresh!
If you want TAB, check that part of the lesson here: Last Nite – Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Here’s a chord chart.
Last Nite Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
I can’t imagine this tune being played in any key other than the original, so the iReal Pro version might be unnecessary. That said, you may still want to adjust my layout to suit your needs!
Last Nite TAB | Course Preview
In the course, you’ll get TAB for all sections, allowing you to play Last Nite in a band as the sole guitarist. This TAB is custom-made because the original recording features two guitars.
One guitar plays power chords using the same rhythm found in You Can’t Hurry Love and Are You Gonna Be My Girl, while the second plays full triads using stabs. As the only guitarist in your band, you’ll need to combine these two parts effectively.
As a preview, here are the first seven bars of the verse/chorus. Notice how the sequence alternates between a power chord and a triad, following the rhythm of the first guitar.
A Rock Standard
New York garage rockers The Strokes released Last Nite in 2001, achieving moderate success and reaching #1 on the U.K. Indie chart. Over time, the song became a slow burner, embraced by working bands worldwide, and it continues to be regularly played on the radio and by DJs decades later.
It sits comfortably alongside Are You Gonna Be My Girl, Molly’s Chambers, and Seven Nation Army on indie rock cover band setlists and remains a staple for years to come.
During the writing of Last Nite, the band drew inspiration from Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers’ classic American Girl and Freddie King’s raw, powerful solo tone. This blend of influences helped propel both the song and the band to worldwide recognition, despite the absence of a major follow-up hit.
Tom Petty, recognising the nod to his classic tune, was unbothered and even invited The Strokes to support him on his worldwide tour five years later.
Other notable influences include Money (That’s What I Want) for its interplay of stationary guitars and shifting bass, and You Can’t Hurry Love for its distinctive rhythm.
A few years later, Jet released Are You Gonna Be My Girl, adopting a similar rhythm, making these two tracks a perfect medley for indie rock bands on the live circuit.
Last Nite Chords: Continue Learning
Want to master this song? Check out the full TAB lesson here: Last Nite (The Strokes) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy:
