Chords + Lyrics | Sunshine Of Your Love
Intro
||: D blues scale riff :|| x8
Verse 1
||: D blues scale riff :|| x8
It’s getting near dawn, when lights close their tired eyes.
I’ll soon be with you my love, to give you my dawn surprise.
| G riff | G riff | G5 G7 | G riff G7#9 ||: D blues scale riff :|| x4
I’ll be with you darling soon, I’ll be with you when the stars start falling.
Chorus 1
| A | C/G G |
I’ve been waiting so long,
| A | C G/D |
to be where I’m going,
| A7 | C5 G5 | A5 | A5 | D riff | D riff |
in the sunshine of your love.
Verse 2
I’m with you my love, the light’s shining through on you.
Yes, I’m with you my love, it’s the morning, and just we two.
I’ll stay with you darling now, I’ll stay with you till my seeds are all dried up.
Chorus 2
I’ve been waiting so long,
to be where I’m going,
| A7 | C G5 | A | A7 A7#9 |
in the sunshine of your love.
Solo
||: D blues scale riff :|| x8
| G riff | G riff | G5 G7 | G riff |
||: D blues scale riff :|| x4
| A5 | C/G G5 | A5 | C/G G5 |
| A7 | C/G G5 | A | A7 |
||: D riff :|| x4
Verse 3
I’m with you my love, the light shining through on you.
Yes, I’m with you my love, it’s the morning, and just we two.
I’ll stay with you darling now, I’ll stay with you till my seeds are all dried up.
Chorus 3
I’ve been waiting so long, I’ve been waiting so long.
I’ve been waiting so long, I’ve been waiting so long.
| A | C5 G | A | A7 | A7 | A7#9 | D riff | D riff D7#9 |
To be where I’m going, in the sunshine of your love.
Sunshine Of Your Love Chords: Mastering the Riffs and Progressions for Improvisation
To become free and capable of improvising, you must understand the chords and progressions in Sunshine of Your Love. Focus on how the song changes and builds in each section, and ensure you can play the riff and chords anywhere on the neck.
Intro
The intro is simply the riff, which is based on the D minor blues scale.
Verse
The first verse shifts the riff to chord IV, like this:
||: D blues scale riff :|| x8
| G riff | G riff | G5 G7 | G riff G7#9 |
||: D blues scale riff :|| x4
Chorus
The chorus begins on chord V, followed by a chord outside the key, a bVIIx (C). Here are the Sunshine of Your Love chorus chords:
| A | C/G G | A | C G/D |
| A7 | C5 G5 | A5 | A5 | D riff | D riff |
In my arrangement, the second verse introduces a D7#9.
Chorus 2 differs slightly from the first, with subtle changes that bring the arrangement to life. It looks like this:
| A7 | C5 G5 | A5 | C5 G/D |
| A7 | C G5 | A | A7 A7#9 |
Solo
The solo lingers longer on the D before returning to the verse. This is followed by verse 3.
Outro Chorus
The final chorus repeats more times and stays on A for longer, like this:
| A | C5 G | A | C G |
| A | C5 G | A | C G |
| A | C5 G | A | A7 | A7 | A7#9 | D riff | D riff D7#9 |
Here’s a chord chart I’ve created for you.
Sunshine Of Your Love Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
Verses 1 and 2 don’t include the G7#9, but I’ve decided to add it to the chart for the entire verse rather than leave it out. Verse 3 is where it naturally appears.
For the chorus, there are more changes, which have been addressed through variations 1, 2, 3, and the ending.
If you’d like to download this chart, here’s a PDF link: Sunshine of Your Love chord chart PDF.
This chart was created using iRealPro, and here’s a link to that file: Sunshine of Your Love iRealPro.
Most importantly, you should aim to play the riff in as many areas of the neck as possible. This is crucial to becoming free and improvising when playing Sunshine of Your Love‘s chords.
Sunshine Of Your Love TAB | Course Preview
My version of Sunshine of Your Love blends Cream’s original recording with Spanky Wilson’s cover.
I’d have loved to incorporate Ella Fitzgerald’s rendition too, but unfortunately, you can’t always get everything in!
Starting with the main riff, I’ve occasionally extended the chords to include a dom7#9 chord. Spanky’s version uses this chord, which happens to be Jimi Hendrix’s signature chord. Since Jack Bruce wrote this song after witnessing an early Hendrix gig in London, I thought it fitting to include it here.
To keep the arrangement fresh and build tension, I’ve varied the chords and riffs by exploring different shapes on the fretboard. This approach is more effective in keeping the song dynamic, compared to relying on muscle memory and repeating set parts, which you might find in a stricter rock band environment. It also makes jamming with friends far more enjoyable.
Most importantly, this method of playing can make it easier to write parts for your own songs.
Here’s example 1 from the course, where we explore the riff in the open position.
The course includes 9 more examples, each demonstrating different ways to approach the song, adding flourishes, and experimenting with playing the riff in different areas of the neck.
The chords themselves aren’t overly complicated; the key lies in “what you do with them”. To understand “what to do”, you need to play the riffs and progressions all over the neck, as demonstrated in the performance above.
In the course, you’ll find loops and TAB for all the variations—not just for the riff, but for all sections of the song. We also break down how to adapt that iconic solo to the acoustic guitar.
Here’s a link to the 8 step-by-step guitar lessons: Sunshine of Your Love – Guitar Lessons with TAB.
The solo was possible because Clapton changed strings
Eric Clapton‘s solo on the original Sunshine of Your Love recording is nothing short of iconic. With masterful use of large bends, he manipulates both the minor and major thirds, while his bluesy approach to the b5 is exceptional.
By the mid-’60s, Eric had already earned the title of “God” in his native England. Audiences were captivated by his lightning-fast blues solos, performed in front of adoring fans on London’s live music scene.
One of Clapton’s innovations at the time was swapping his 3rd string for a plain string, similar to the E and B strings. This adjustment reduced string tension, allowing him to bend notes further. While this is now standard practice on electric guitars, it was revolutionary at the time.
As we tackle this solo on the acoustic guitar, we face a challenge—acoustic strings are heavier, making it difficult to replicate those extreme bends. To work around this, the solo is transcribed lower down the neck, and instead of large bends, we switch between frets. If only someone had suggested this to Eric back then!
In the advanced acoustic guitar course, we spend four steps breaking down the Sunshine of Your Love solo. We start slow and work through each note, aiming to capture the essence of Clapton’s performance.
Notice how the solo opens by referencing the melody of Blue Moon. This playful connection, alongside the contrast between straight and swung rhythms, showcases the musical humour that Cream as a band truly embodied.
Sunshine Of Your Love Chords: Continue Learning
The most challenging part of playing Sunshine of Your Love is the solo—those huge bends need to be adapted for acoustic guitar.
In comparison, learning the main riff, the turnaround, and practising the blues scale is much simpler. This is a true classic with plenty to teach us.
Start learning with the full lesson series: Sunshine Of Your Love – Guitar Lessons with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy:
