Shotgun | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
Verse 1
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
Homegrown alligator, see you later gotta hit the road, gotta hit the road.
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
Something changed in the atmosphere architecture unfamiliar, I could get used to this.
Bridge 1
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
Time flies by in the yellow and green stick around and you’ll see what I mean.
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C N.C |
There’s a mountaintop that I’m dreaming of, if you need me you know where I’ll be.
Chorus 1
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
I’ll be riding shotgun underneath the hot sun, feeling like a someone (someone).
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
I’ll be riding shotgun underneath the hot sun, feeling like a someone.
Verse 2
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
We’re south of the Equator, navigator, gotta hit the road, gotta hit the road.
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
Deep sea diving ’round the clock, bikini bottoms, lager tops, I could get used to this.
Bridge 2
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
Time flies by in the yellow and green stick around and you’ll see what I mean.
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C N.C |
There’s a mountaintop that I’m dreaming of, if you need me you know where I’ll be.
Chorus 2
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
I’ll be riding shotgun underneath the hot sun, feeling like a someone (someone).
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
I’ll be riding shotgun underneath the hot sun, feeling like a someone.
Middle 8
| F | Bb |
We got two in the front (hey). Two in the back (hey).
| Dm7 | C |
Sailing along and we don’t look back (back, back).
Instrumental
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
Bridge 3
| N.C | N.C | N.C | N.C |
Time flies by in the yellow and green, stick around and you’ll see what I mean.
| N.C | N.C | N.C | N.C |
There’s a mountaintop that I’m dreaming of, if you need me you know where I’ll be.
Chorus 3
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
I’ll be riding shotgun underneath the hot sun, feeling like a someone (someone).
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
I’ll be riding shotgun underneath the hot sun, feeling like a someone.
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
I’ll be riding shotgun underneath the hot sun, feeling like a someone (someone).
| F | Bb | Dm7 | C |
I’ll be riding shotgun underneath the hot sun, feeling like a someone, a someone, a someone, someone.
Outro
||: F | Bb | Dm7 | C :|| to fade
Shotgun’s chords and progressions
When all you have is the I – IV – VI – V progression, you have to make use of dynamics in the arrangement.
This is also a great trick for the working band, pick simple songs and focus on playing well together and audience participation.
You may think this is that famous chord progression that everyone has been using since the millennium, but it isn’t, the one you’re probably thinking of is I – V – VI – IV. I cover this to a great extent in my I’m Yours lessons (members only).
Anyway, since George Ezra’s Shotgun is in the key of F, we may want to use a capo to get easier chords. Here are a few examples of how you could play this smash hit, try them all!
- Key of F: ||: F | Bb | Dm7 | C :||
- Key of D: ||: D | G | Bm7 | A :|| (capo 3)
- Key of C: ||: C | F | Am7 | G :|| (capo 5)
- Key of A: ||: A | D | F#m7 | E :|| (capo 8)
Without a capo, you could use Shotgun’s chords as an exercise by trying out all CAGED chord shapes in all positions as you play along with the original recording.
Should you take me up on this challenge, do it along with the official video (which is awesome!) and try doing it as you watch the video, not the guitar neck.
George Ezra’s baritone guitar part
In the music video at the top of this page, you can clearly see how Ezra plays a baritone guitar, using a capo, thinking in the key of G.
The chords he plays are G5 – Cadd9 – Em7 – D. With the baritone guitar tuned B – E – A – D – F# – B, fitting a capo on fret 3, what we hear is F5 – Bbadd9 – Dm7 – C.
Compare these chords to Talking About A Revolution and Wonderwall.
You may now be thinking: Why haven’t you written those chords above with the lyrics?
The answer is, the other instruments play an F, not an F5, a Bb, not a Bbadd9. What George plays is very low in the mix.
It’s a bit like with Wonderwall, the initial guitar plays all strings like a beginner, and even though that gives the song attitude, it is quickly buried in the mix among other parts that actually work.
As a producer, the crucial skill to develop is to take what the artist does that works, which is the lyrics and melody, and make them feel great about this, build their confidence, and get a great vocal performance.
There will then be other things they do, like add too many backing vocals, or play the guitar like a beginner.
The producer must make the artist feel OK about these elements too, but then lose them in the mix, without upsetting the artist.
If the producer can’t achieve this, they’ll end up making a self-indulgent demo for the artist to play only to their family and close friends.
Shotgun chords | Related pages
Intermediate Acoustic
Most intermediate acoustic tunes can’t be played using just basic open-position chords. We have to move up the fretboard and play CAGED barre chords as well.
We incorporate bass lines, add licks, extend chords, and play vocal melodies. Most importantly, we invent second guitar parts and play these songs together.
Five similar tunes
George Ezra
George Ezra went to music college in 2011 to study songwriting, by 2013 he had signed to Columbia and started releasing his singles.
His best tunes include Shotgun, Budapest, Blame It On Me, Green Green Grass, and Hold My Girl.
George Ezra on the web
Pop & Rock
Whenever a tune doesn’t fit into a specific genre, it tends to end up here, in the Pop & Rock section.
Learn tunes from Tom Petty, Eagles, Toto, Oasis, Elvis, Clapton, John Mayer, Kings Of Leon, R.E.M., Radiohead, Bruno Mars, and more.
