Let’s Stay Together | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| Gm9 Am7 | Gm7 Am7 | Gm9 Am7 | Gm7 C7 |
Let’s stay together.
Verse 1
| F (Fsus4) | F | Dm9 | Dm9 |
I, I’m I’m so in love with you.
| Bbadd9 | Bb69 | Bbm9/Db | Bbm9/Db |
Whatever you want to do, is all right with me.
Bridge 1
||: Am7 Gm7 | Fmaj7 Em7 | Dm9 | Dm9 :||
‘Cause you make me feel so brand new.
And I want to spend my life with you.
Verse 2
| F (Fsus4) | F | Dm9 | Dm9 |
Let me say that since, baby, since we’ve been together.
| Bbadd9 | Bb69 | Bbm9/Db | Bbm9/Db |
Ooh, loving you forever, is what I need.
Bridge 2
||: Am7 Gm7 | Fmaj7 Em7 | Dm9 | Dm9 :||
Let me, be the one you come running to
I’ll never be untrue. Oh baby.
Chorus 1
| Gm9 | Gm9 | Am7 | Am7 |
Let’s, let’s stay together (‘gether).
| Gm9 | Gm9 |
Lovin’ you whether, whether.
| Bbmaj7 Am7 | Dm7 C7 |
Times are good or bad, happy or sad.
Instrumental
| Gm9 | Gm9 Gm/Bb | C11/Ab | Gm9 |
Oh, oh, oh, oh, yeah.
| Ab (Ab6) | Ab | Bbmaj7 Am7 | Dm7 C7 |
Whether times are good or bad, happy or sad
Verse 3
| F (Fsus4) | F | Dm9 | Dm9 |
Why, somebody, why people break up? Oh, then turn around and
| Bbadd9 | Bb69 | Bbm9/Db | Bbm9/Db |
make up. I just can’t see.
Bridge 3
||: Am7 Gm7 | Fmaj7 Em7 | Dm9 | Dm9 :||
You’d never do that to me, would you, baby?
Just being around you is all I see. Here’s what I want us do.
Chorus 2
| Gm9 | Gm9 | Am7 | Am7 |
Let’s, we oughta stay together (‘gether).
| Gm9 | Gm9 |
Loving you whether, whether.
| Bbmaj7 Am7 | Dm7 C7 |
Times are good or bad, happy or sad. Come on.
Chorus 3
| Gm9 | Gm9 | Am7 | Am7 |
Let’s, woo (let’s stay together) let’s stay together.
| Gm9 | Gm9 |
Loving you whether, whether.
| Bbmaj7 Am7 | Dm7 C7 |
Times are good or bad, happy or sad.
Let’s Stay Together’s chords and progressions
There are quite a few sections to this song, let’s break them down one by one, starting with the beautiful intro which is chords II – III on repeat, finished off by V.
| Gm9 Am7 | Gm7 Am7 | Gm9 Am7 | Gm7 C7 |
Next, we have the verse. Lots of great extensions here for the pretty standard I – VI – IV – IVm. Personally, this is my favorite IVm chord of all time. He even puts that m3rd in the bass, as well as the 9th on top!
| F (Fsus4) | F | Dm9 | Dm9 |
| Bbadd9 | Bb69 | Bbm9/Db | Bbm9/Db |
This verse is followed by a descending bridge that repeats, like this
||: Am7 Gm7 | Fmaj7 Em7 | Dm9 | Dm9 :||
Let’s Stay Together’s chorus chords, just like the verse and intro, has some great extensions over the II – III – II progression. The final two bars are the hook, “good or bad, happy or sad…” It goes IV – III – II – V.
| Gm9 | Gm9 | Am7 | Am7 |
| Gm9 | Gm9 | Bbmaj7 Am7 | Dm7 C7 |
Following the first chorus, we get an instrumental section with some great chords. The final two bars are the same as what ended the chorus, including the vocals.
| Gm9 | Gm9 Gm/Bb | C11/Ab | Gm9 |
| Ab (Ab6) | Bbmaj7 Am7 | Dm7 C7 |
The perfect song for a Soul band
On par with My Girl, this must be the best song in the first set for the Motown/Soul band! The slick and gorgeous Let’s Stay Together will no doubt remain on the working Soul bands set list for many decades to come, it is simply flawless.
Al Green wrote, recorded, and released this in 1971, and had instant success. Once it reached #1, it stayed there for 16 weeks!
Even though Let’s Stay Together is Al Green’s signature song, there are plenty of cover versions out there.
Tina Turner, Isac Hayes, Roberta Flack, Michael Bolton, Boyz II Men, Donny Osmond, Seal, Usher, CeeLo Green, Maroon 5, and Craig David have all recorded it.
Even Robin Thicke often performs it live, along with another million wedding bands every Saturday!
If you want to be a professional guitarist, you must know how to play Let’s Stay Together’s chords.
Let’s Stay Together chords | Related pages
Advanced Acoustic
The advanced acoustic tunes use big chord extensions and sometimes, unique and complex chords that incorporate open strings.
Study these in-depth and you will gain a complete understanding of the guitar fretboard, including how to build any scale, arpeggio, or chord.
Five similar tunes
- I’ll Be There chords
- Just The Two Of Us chords
- Leave The Door Open chords
- My Girl chords
- You’re All I Need To Get By chords
Al Green
Al Green is an American gospel and soul singer who has enjoyed great popularity since the early 70s.
Best tunes include Let’s Stay Together and Take Me To The River and covers of A Change Is Gonna Come, Unchained Melody, Light My Fire, and My Girl.
Al Green 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.
