Chords + Lyrics | Rock With You
Intro
| Ebm9 | Ab Bb | Ebm9 | Ab B |
| Ebm9 | Ab Bb | Ab11 Ab | Ab11 Ab |
Verse 1
||: Ebm9 | Ab | Bb11 | Bb11 :||
Girl, close your eyes, let that rhythm get into you.
Don’t try to fight it, there ain’t nothing that you can do.
Bridge 1
| Gbmaj7 | Fm7 | Bmaj7 | Ab11 |
Relax your mind, lay back and groove with mine.
| Ebm7 Fm7 Gbmaj7 | N.C |
You gotta feel that heat and we can ride the boogie.
| Ebm7 Fm7 Gbmaj7 G | Ab |
Share that beat of love.
Chorus 1
| Ebm9 | Ab Bb |
I wanna rock with you (all night).
| Ebm9 | Ab B |
Dance you into day (sunlight).
| Ebm9 | Ab Bb |
I wanna rock with you (all night).
| Ab11 Ab | Ab11 Ab |
We’re gonna rock the night away.
Verse 2
Out on the floor, there ain’t nobody there but us.
Girl, when you dance, there’s a magic that must be love.
Bridge 2
Just take it slow, ’cause we got so far to go.
When you feel that heat and we’re gonna ride the boogie.
Share that beat of love.
Chorus 2
I wanna rock with you (all night).
Dance you into day (sunlight).
I wanna rock with you (all night).
We gon’ rock the night away.
Middle 8
| Bbm7 | Bbm7 | Eb9 | Eb9 |
And when the groove is dead and gone (yeah).
| Gbmaj7 | Fm7 | Bmaj7 | Ab11 |
You know that love survives, so we can rock forever, on.
Solo
| Ebm9 | Ab Bb | Ebm9 | Ab B |
| Ebm9 | Ab Bb | Ab Bb Db | Db | Db |
I wanna rock with you, I wanna groove with you.
Solo 2nd half
| Ebm9 | Ab Bb | Ebm9 | Ab B |
| Ebm9 | Ab Bb Db | Db | Db D |
I wanna rock with you, I wanna groove with you.
Chorus 3 (key change)
| Em9 | A B |
I Wanna rock (all night),
| Em9 | A C |
With you, girl (sunlight).
| Em9 | A B |
Rock with you, rock with you, yeah (all night).
| A11 A | A11 A |
Dance the night away (rock, right).
Chorus 4 (as chorus 3)
I wanna rock with you, yeah (all night).
Rock you into day (sunlight).
I wanna rock with you (all night).
Rock the night away (rock, right)
Outro (as chorus 3)
Feel the heat, feel the beat (all night). Woo.
Rock you into day (sunlight).
I wanna rock (all night).
Rock the night away (rock, right).
Rock With You Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning Rock With You. I’ve used stem separation to extract the guitar while keeping the drums, bass, keys, horns, and vocals intact.
After studying the chords and TAB, use my backing tracks to prepare for playing this tune with a band.
Should you want to play along with the original recording instead, you need to tune your guitar down to 437Hz. In the backing track, I’ve done this job for you by tuning it up to 440Hz.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
I’d like to compare Rock With You with I Heard It Through the Grapevine—not because they share style, but because their chord movements are strikingly similar. Both feature two major chords a tone apart (Ab and Bb), resolving to an Ebm.
The key difference is in the order: Rock With You moves IV – V, whereas Grapevine moves V – IV. Either way, it’s no surprise this progression earned the #2 spot on my top 10 list.
The Ab11 breaks traditional harmonic rules—normally, the IV chord carries a #11. But who are we to argue with Quincy Jones, Rod Temperton, and Michael Jackson?
Chorus
In the chorus variation, the shift to a B chord instead of Bb makes Ebm feel like chord VI (Aeolian). However, when moving from Ebm to Ab, it feels like chord II (Dorian). This is a modal interchange—balancing between VI and II—and it’s a classic songwriting trick, also found in Master Blaster and Never Too Much.
Bridge
Now, let’s look at the bridge:
| Gbmaj7 | Fm7 | Bmaj7 | Ab11 |
From a Db major perspective, Gbmaj7 is IV, Fm7 is III, and Ab11 is V—but where does Bmaj7 fit? It’s the wildcard, much like the Fm7 in Sir Duke. Sometimes, you just have to step back and appreciate the genius of it.
To get TAB for all the sections discussed above and below, check out the TAB further down this guitar lesson.
Middle 8 + Solo
The middle 8 then shifts again, introducing Bbm7, which reinforces Ebm9 as a solid centre—until, unexpectedly, we get Eb9 instead! Just when it all seems to make sense, they flip the script again.
From here, the bridge progression repeats, followed by a solo over the chorus changes. The section eventually ends on a Db instead of Ab11.
There’s a completely genius arrangement detail here: the Db chord starts on beat 4, then gets two bars, effectively having 9 beats before we repeat.
After the repeat, the final bar has two beats of D, meaning that Db is appearing for 7 beats. Talk about building momentum—the listener is now gagging for what is about to happen next!
To cap it all off, the final chorus modulates up a semitone, moving from Ebm to Em. And that brings us back to the big question: is Ebm Dorian or Aeolian? The answer is—both.
Here’s a chord chart for Rock With You. You can download this in two different formats below.
When you can play as my TAB, try the backing tracks with this chord chart.
Rock With You Backing Track Chord Chart |
PDF + iReal Pro Download
You can download my chord chart for Rock With You as a PDF, as well as in iReal Pro format. It took me forever to get this one right—feel free to share it with your band members so you can all play the correct chords.
Rock With You | TAB
Let’s work through all sections using TAB. This is one of those tunes bands often attempt and then keep on the setlist — as long as the arrangement and chords are right!
Intro
The intro later returns as the chorus, although the rhythm changes slightly, so get this first section perfect. All 8th notes are played short, almost like 16th notes, this is indicated with a small dot above the stem to make reading easier.
Notice how bars 2, 4, and 6 feature small variations. Ab11 could also be described as Gb/Ab.
Verse
The verse follows the same idea as the intro, with subtle changes. These details matter, so practise the variations carefully.
The dot now appears above a dotted 8th note — perhaps extreme, but used here for clarity. Can you spot the changes and hear their impact?
Also note that Bb11 and Ab are the same shape — only the bass moves.
Bridge
This section is brilliant. Gbmaj7 is the same shape we used earlier for Ebm9 — again, it’s the bass note that changes. Fm7 feels like a Gb triad, and Ab11 resembles a Gb too.
In the second line, I’ve pushed the notation a bit further, showing dotted 8ths the first time and straight 8ths the second time — they should feel snappier the second time around.
Finish with power chords for the G and A.
You can also play these chords with different shapes; here the G and A are triads.
Chorus
The chorus mirrors the intro but with fewer strums to leave space for the vocal. In the final bar, we shift up to new shapes. Once again, Ab11 could be described as Gb/Ab.
Middle 8
This is my favourite part. The move from Ebm9 to Bbm7 is tiny, yet when it then becomes Eb9 (major), the lift feels massive — it’s perfect writing.
The second line matches the bridge, but with the first rhythm removed. A clever reuse of harmony.
Solo
We move into a solo that ends by modulating up a semitone. Otherwise, it’s essentially another chorus.
Outro
The outro is another chorus, now up a semitone. If your band nails these parts, you’ll sound properly rehearsed and polished.
When you can play all this TAB, try putting it together and play along with the backing tracks above.
Rock With You was Disco
By 1979, Michael Jackson had reached a turning point in his extraordinary career. Having grown up with The Jackson 5, he launched his solo career under the guidance of Quincy Jones.
His first album, Off the Wall, produced two major singles: Don’t Stop ’Til You Get Enough and the track we’re focusing on here—Rock With You.
At the time, disco was still at its peak, and Rock With You firmly belongs in that genre. The song reached #1 in the U.S. and charted highly in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and the U.K. Decades later, it remains a radio staple, a favourite among DJs, and—most importantly for you—a go-to cover for live bands.
The song’s chords are deceptively intricate, and playing them correctly makes a huge difference. As you study the chords, lyrics, and chord chart above, take the time to get them just right!
Rock With You Chords: Continue Learning
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