Little Lion Man | Chords + Lyrics (capo 5)
Intro
||: Am | Am Am7 | C C6 C Csus2 | Csus2 C C6 C Csus2 :|| x4
Verse 1
| Am | Am | C | C |
Weep for yourself, my man, you’ll never be what is in your heart.
| Am | Am | C | C |
Weep, little lion man, you’re not as brave as you were at the start
| G | F C/E | C | C |
Rate yourself and rake yourself, take all the courage you have left
| G | F C/E | C | C |
And waste it on fixing all the problems that you made in your own head
Chorus 1 (hold)
||: Am F | C :||
But it was not your fault but mine.
And it was your heart on the line.
I really fucked it up this time.
| G | G |
Didn’t I, my dear? Didn’t I, my.
Instrumental 1
||: Am | Am | C | C :||
Verse 2
Tremble for yourself, my man, you know that you have seen this all before.
Tremble, little lion man, you’ll never settle any of your scores.
Your grace is wasted in your face, your boldness stands alone among the wreck.
Now learn from your mother or else spend your days biting your own neck.
Chorus 2
But it was not your fault but mine.
And it was your heart on the line.
I really fucked it up this time.
Didn’t I, my dear?
Chorus 3
But it was not your fault but mine.
And it was your heart on the line.
I really fucked it up this time.
Didn’t I, my dear? Didn’t I, my dear?
Instrumental 2
||: Am | Am | C | C :||
||: C | C | F | F :||
||: G | C | F | F :|| x6
Ha-aah, aah, aah, aah, ah.
Chorus 4
| Am N.C | C |
But it was not your fault but mine.
| Am F | C |
And it was your heart on the line.
| Am F | C |
I really fucked it up this time.
| G | G |
Didn’t I, my dear?
Chorus 5
| Am N.C | N.C |
But it was not your fault but mine.
| N.C | N.C |
And it was your heart on the line.
| N.C | N.C |
I really fucked it up this time.
| N.C | N.C | C |
Didn’t I, my dear? Didn’t I, my dear?
Little Lion Man | Chords + Lyrics (capo 1)
Intro
||: C#m | C#m C#m7 | E E6 E Esus2 | Esus2 E E6 E Esus2 :|| x4
Verse 1
| C#m | C#m | E | E |
Weep for yourself, my man, you’ll never be what is in your heart.
| C#m | C#m | E | E |
Weep, little lion man, you’re not as brave as you were at the start
| B | A E/G# | E | E |
Rate yourself and rake yourself, take all the courage you have left
| B | A E/G# | E | E |
And waste it on fixing all the problems that you made in your own head
Chorus 1
||: C#m A | E :||
But it was not your fault but mine.
And it was your heart on the line.
I really fucked it up this time.
| B5 | B5 |
Didn’t I, my dear? Didn’t I, my.
Instrumental 1
||: C#m | C#m | E | E :||
Verse 2
Tremble for yourself, my man, you know that you have seen this all before.
Tremble, little lion man, you’ll never settle any of your scores.
Your grace is wasted in your face, your boldness stands alone among the wreck.
Now learn from your mother or else spend your days biting your own neck.
Chorus 2
But it was not your fault but mine.
And it was your heart on the line.
I really fucked it up this time.
Didn’t I, my dear?
Chorus 3
But it was not your fault but mine.
And it was your heart on the line.
I really fucked it up this time.
Didn’t I, my dear? Didn’t I, my dear?
Instrumental 2
||: C#m | C#m | E | E :||
||: E | E | A | A :||
||: B5 | E | A | A :|| x6
Ha-aah, aah, aah, aah, ah.
Chorus 4
| C#m N.C | E |
But it was not your fault but mine.
| C#m A | E |
And it was your heart on the line.
| C#m A | E |
I really fucked it up this time.
| B5 | B5 |
Didn’t I, my dear?
Chorus 5
| C#m N.C | N.C |
But it was not your fault but mine.
| N.C | N.C |
And it was your heart on the line.
| N.C | N.C |
I really fucked it up this time.
| N.C | N.C | E |
Didn’t I, my dear? Didn’t I, my dear?
Little Lion Man: Understanding the Chords and Capo Placement
Little Lion Man is originally played with a capo on fret 5, using open-position chords in the key of Am. However, this high position relies on a bass player for the low end and a banjo to provide the song’s characteristic rhythm.
Without these elements, replicating Marcus Mumford’s exact guitar part can feel incomplete—much like Everybody’s Talkin’, where the fast-picked guitar part doesn’t stand alone effectively.
If you don’t have a full band, I recommend placing a capo on fret 1 instead and thinking in the key of C#m. This allows you to play mostly barre chords while still using the open low E string, keeping the song’s energy intact.
Here are the verse chords in Am (capo 5):
||: Am (VI) | Am | C (I) | C :||
||: G (V) | F (IV) C/E (I/3) | C | C :||
And in C#m (capo 1):
||: C#m (VI) | C#m | E (I) | E :||
||: B (V) | A (IV) E/G# (I/3) | E | E :||
Try both versions and notice how they produce the same harmonic structure.
Above, I provide both versions with chords and lyrics, but to fully capture the picking patterns and feel, you’ll need TAB. Here’s a link to that part of the lesson: Little Lion Man – Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Little Lion Man Chords Continued: Chorus Variations and Arrangement Tricks
It’s fascinating how similar the two approaches are—whether thinking in C#m or Am. When played with a capo on the 5th fret (Am shapes), you use a C chord; in C#m (capo 1), you play the same C shape but gain the low E string for added depth.
The chorus progression starts on VI, moves to IV, and resolves to I, looping before landing on V. Here it is in Am (capo 5):
||: Am (VI) F (IV) | C (I) :||
| G (V) | G |
And in C#m (capo 1):
||: C#m (VI) A (IV) | E (I) :||
| B5 (V) | B5 |
As the song progresses, some chorus chords are removed—a great arrangement trick that proves taking elements out can be more effective than adding.
To me, this reinforces why “thinking in C#m” works better when the banjo isn’t present. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened to Mumford & Sons when their banjo player went rogue on Twitter!
After working through the TAB, playing along with the original recording, and getting comfortable with the structure, a simple chord chart is all you’ll need. Here’s one I made for you.
Little Lion Man Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
The chord chart above is in Am, even though I’ve just been advocating for playing it in C#m. This was intentional—I recommend starting in Am with a capo on fret 5 and playing along with the original recording first.
If you’d like to download the chart, here’s a PDF: Little Lion Man chord chart PDF.
This chart was created using iReal Pro, and you can find the file here: Little Lion Man chord chart iReal Pro. With the iReal Pro app, you can change the key.
I suggest transposing to C#m and moving the capo to fret 1, as this will work much better when playing Little Lion Man‘s chords outside the original arrangement.
Mumford & Sons and the Rise of Nu-Folk
Mumford & Sons burst onto the scene in 2009 with their debut album Sigh No More.
The album—especially the single Little Lion Man—made such an impact that it sparked a folk revival in the U.K., often referred to as nu-folk. Following their rise, other artists like Noah and the Whale, Emmy The Great, Laura Marling, King Charles, and Johnny Flynn gained popularity in the same style.
Critics were divided, with some dismissing the movement as “Coldplay with a Banjo” (Evening Standard).
Across the Atlantic, bands like The Lumineers and Fleet Foxes had already been shaping a similar sound, though in the U.S., it was more commonly called indie-folk rather than nu-folk.
Of course, folk music has been around for centuries, but Mumford & Sons played a key role in bringing it back to the mainstream in Britain. Interestingly, the nu-folk movement is said to have begun in Bosun’s Locker, a small basement venue in West London—fittingly located beneath a pastry shop. Very Cornwall, very pirate, very sea shanty!
Little Lion Man Chords: Continue Learning
Want to master this song? Check out the full TAB lesson here: Little Lion Man (Mumford & Sons) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy: