Oh, Pretty Woman | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| N.C | E7 (riff) | E7 (riff) | E7 (riff) |
||: E9 (riff) :|| x4
Chorus 1
| A | F#m |
Pretty woman, walkin’ down the street.
| A | F#m |
Pretty woman, the kind I like to meet.
|6/4 D |4/4 E | E |
Pretty woman, I don’t believe you, you’re not the truth.
| E | E |
No one could look as good as you.
||: E9 (riff) :|| x4
Mercy.
Chorus 2
Pretty woman, won’t you pardon me.
Pretty woman, I couldn’t help but see.
Pretty woman, that you look lovely as can be.
Are you lonely just like me?
Rrrowrr…
Verse
| Dm | G | C | Am |
Pretty woman stop awhile. Pretty woman, talk a while.
| Dm | G | C | C |
Pretty woman, give your smile to me.
| Dm | G | C | Am |
Pretty woman, yeah, yeah, yeah. Pretty woman look my way.
| Dm | G | C | A |
Pretty woman, say you’ll stay with me.
Bridge
| F#m | Dm | E |
‘Cause I need you, I’ll treat you right.
| A | F#m | Dm |
Come with me baby, be mine tonight.
||: E9 (riff) :|| x4
Chorus 3 (longer)
| A | F#m |
Pretty woman, don’t walk on by.
| A | F#m |
Pretty woman, don’t make me cry.
|6/4 D |4/4 E | E | E |
Pretty woman, don’t walk away, hey.
| E | E | E | E |
OK. If that’s the way it must be, OK.
| E | E | E | E |
I guess I’ll go on home, it’s late, there’ll be tomorrow night,
Outro
| N.C | N.C | E7 (riff) | E7 (riff) | E7 (riff) |
but wait, what do I see? Is she walkin’ back to me?
||: E9 (riff) :|| x8
Yeah, she’s walkin’ back to me. Oh, oh.
| E9 (riff) | A |
Pretty woman.
Pretty Woman Chords: Learn the progressions
Roy Orbison‘s Oh, Pretty Woman is built around a series of modal interchanges.
During the intro, because of what is coming up, we could potentially argue that E is chord V, but really, it’s a blues riff in the key of E when we first hear it as that’s what it feels like.
When the chorus starts we are in the key of A (this is why we could be fooled to say E is chord V). It moves I – VI on repeat, then IV – V with a 6/4 bar, like this:
||: A (I) | F#m (VI) :|| 6/4 D (IV) |4/4 E (V) | E |
However, at first that A feels like chord IV, making the F#m II. Only once the D chord appears and the E returns does it feel like a V chord and the key A. It is as if the key signature has been disguised.
All this put together is what gives Oh Pretty Woman’s chords tension.
The verse is in the key of C/Am. This means we’ve had another modal interchange where A has gone from Ionian to Aeolian, even Lydian if we imagined that first E as chord I.
Here are Oh, Pretty Woman’s verse chords:
||: Dm (II) | G (V) | C (I) | Am (VI) |
| Dm | G | C |
| 1. C :|| 2. A (VIx) |
In the TAB lesson, we look at how to play the main riff, here’s a link: Oh, Pretty Woman – Guitar Lesson with TAB. Returning from learning the riff, use this chord chart as you play with Roy.
Oh, Pretty Woman Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
Should you want to download this chart, here’s a PDF: Oh, Pretty Woman Chord Chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro, here’s a link to that file: Oh, Pretty Woman iReal Pro. Using this and the iRealPro app, you can change the key.
Oh, Pretty Woman is Roy Orbison’s signature song!
Oh, Pretty Woman is synonymous with Roy Orbison. Released in 1964, it was a worldwide hit, reaching #1 in 10 countries, and selling over 2 million copies.
Interestingly, the mono version (single) had different lyrics to the stereo version that you got on the album which sold a further 7 million copies.
The song was revived in 1990 as it was featured in the Richard Gere/Julia Roberts classic movie, Pretty Woman.
Before then, Van Halen covered and released it as a single in 1982 complete with an insane music video (you simply must check the playlist above!).
The last time I saw it out of context was during Tyson Fury’s crossover fight with Francis Ngannou. Tyson walked on to Oh, Pretty Woman, a very strange choice perhaps but when a tune is this great, nobody cares, it just always works.
If you have a band that plays tunes from the ’60s, you simply must try fitting this classic in, trust me, it will work.
Oh, Pretty Woman Chords: Continue Learning
Want to master this song? Check out the full TAB lesson here: Oh, Pretty Woman (Roy Orbison) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy: