Wonderful World | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| B | G#m |
Verse 1
||: B | G#m | E | F# :||
Don’t know much about History, don’t know much Biology.
Don’t know much about a Science book, don’t know much about the French I took.
Bridge 1
| B | E | B | E |
But I do know that I love you, and I know that if you love me, too.
| F# | B |
What a wonderful world this would be.
Verse 2
Don’t know much about Geography, don’t know much Trigonometry.
Don’t know much about Algebra, don’t know what a slide rule is for.
Bridge 2
But I do know one and one is two, and if this one could be with you.
What a wonderful world this would be.
Middle 8
| F# | B | F# | B |
Now, I don’t claim to be an A student but I’m trying to be.
| C#7 | B |
For maybe by being an A student, baby.
| C#7 | F#7 |
I can win your love for me
Verse 3
Don’t know much about History, don’t know much Biology.
Don’t know much about a Science book, don’t know much about the French I took.
Bridge 3
But I do know that I love you and I know that if you love me, too.
What a wonderful world this would be.
Verse 4
La ta ta ta ta ta ta (History). Hmm-mm-mm (Biology).
La ta ta ta ta ta ta (Science book). Hmm-mm-mm (French I took).
Outro
| B | E | B | E |
Yeah, but I do know that I love you, And I know that if you love me, too.
| F# | B F# B | B |
What a wonderful world this would be.
Wonderful World | Chords + Lyrics (capo 2)
Intro
| A | F#m |
Verse 1
||: A | F#m | D | E :||
Don’t know much about History, don’t know much Biology.
Don’t know much about a Science book, don’t know much about the French I took.
Bridge 1
| A | D | A | D |
But I do know that I love you, and I know that if you love me, too.
| E | A |
What a wonderful world this would be.
Verse 2
Don’t know much about Geography, don’t know much Trigonometry.
Don’t know much about Algebra, don’t know what a slide rule is for.
Bridge 2
But I do know one and one is two, and if this one could be with you.
What a wonderful world this would be.
Middle 8
| E | A | E | A |
Now, I don’t claim to be an A student but I’m trying to be.
| B7 | A |
For maybe by being an A student, baby.
| B7 | E7 |
I can win your love for me
Verse 3
Don’t know much about History, don’t know much Biology.
Don’t know much about a Science book, don’t know much about the French I took.
Bridge 3
But I do know that I love you and I know that if you love me, too.
What a wonderful world this would be.
Verse 4
La ta ta ta ta ta ta (History). Hmm-mm-mm (Biology).
La ta ta ta ta ta ta (Science book). Hmm-mm-mm (French I took).
Outro
| A | D | A | D |
Yeah, but I do know that I love you, And I know that if you love me, too.
| E | A E A | A |
What a wonderful world this would be.
Wonderful World | Chords + Lyrics (capo 4)
Intro
| G | Em |
Verse 1
||: G | Em | C | D :||
Don’t know much about History, don’t know much Biology.
Don’t know much about a science book, don’t know much about the French I took.
Bridge 1
| G | C | G | C |
But I do know that I love you, and I know that if you love me, too.
| D | G |
What a wonderful world this would be.
Verse 2
Don’t know much about Geography, don’t know much Trigonometry.
Don’t know much about Algebra, don’t know what a slide rule is for.
Bridge 2
But I do know one and one is two, and if this one could be with you.
What a wonderful world this would be.
Middle 8
| D | G | D | G |
Now, I don’t claim to be an A student but I’m trying to be.
| A7 | G |
For maybe by being an A student, baby.
| A7 | D7 |
I can win your love for me
Verse 3
Don’t know much about History, don’t know much Biology.
Don’t know much about a Science book, don’t know much about the French I took.
Bridge 3
But I do know that I love you and I know that if you love me, too.
What a wonderful world this would be.
Verse 4
La ta ta ta ta ta ta (History). Hmm-mm-mm (Biology).
La ta ta ta ta ta ta (Science book). Hmm-mm-mm (French I took).
Outro
| G | C | G | C |
Yeah, but I do know that I love you, And I know that if you love me, too.
| D | G D G | G |
What a wonderful world this would be.
Wonderful World Chords: Learn the progressions
This is a classic chord progression, and Wonderful World is probably the second-best example when referencing it.
The I – VI – IV – V, also known as the Stand By Me changes, should be practised in all keys. For Wonderful World (without a capo) it’s in the key of B, like this:
||: B (I) | G#m (VI) | E (IV) | F# (V) :||
There are two more sections in Wonderful World, the bridge goes between chords I and IV, then to V – I, like this:
| B (I) | E (IV) | B | E |
| F# (V) | B |
The last and most adventurous section is the middle 8, here we go between V – I, then outside the key using the IIx chord (C#), like this:
| F# (V) | B (I) | F# | B |
| C#7 (IIx) | B |
| C#7 | F#7 |
There’s TAB for playing this in the keys of A and G as well as the original key of B. Here’s a link to the complete lesson: Wonderful World – Guitar Lesson with TAB.
The keys of A and G work much better, especially if you play Wonderful World’s chords on your own or as a duo using acoustic guitars.
As there are three keys to consider, I made 6 TAB examples for how to play Wonderful World’s chords.
Upon completing the TAB lesson, all you need is this simple chord chart.
Wonderful World Card Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
Should you want to download this chart, here’s a PDF: Wonderful World Chord Chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro, here’s a link to that file: Wonderful World iReal Pro.
Using this and the iRealPro app, you can change the key which is a great plan as discussed above.
Wonderful World is a perfect example of early Sam Cooke!
This was Sam Cooke’s biggest hit since You Send Me (’57).
Released in 1960, Wonderful World, also known as What A Wonderful World, was written by a songwriting team, although Sam rewrote some of the lyrics.
Charting at #2 in the U.S. and the U.K., Wonderful World was a hit, although its legacy over the years has grown to far outperform its initial impact.
Perhaps this is down to the several cover versions we’ve heard from Art Garfunkel, Don McLean, Michael Bolton, James Taylor, Otis Redding, and Hermans’s Hermits.
The Herman’s Hermits version had Jimi Page playing guitar on it, apparently, he was paid £12.
Wonderful World Chords | Related Pages
Wonderful World | Guitar Lesson + TAB
With this guitar lesson, you can learn to play Wonderful World by Sam Cooke using TAB and chord analysis.
||: B | G#m | E | F# :||
Don’t know much about History, don’t know much Biology…
Five similar tunes | Chords + Lyrics
Sam Cooke tunes
Sam Cooke has been called The King Of Soul. His legacy is extensive and his impact on soul music is undeniable.
Between 1957 and 1963, Sam Cooke managed twenty-nine top 40 hits including You Send Me, Chain Gang, A Change Is Gonna Come, and Wonderful World.
Sam Cooke on the web
About me | Dan Lundholm
This was a guitar lesson about Wonderful World chords, by Dan Lundholm. Discover more about him and how you can learn guitar with Spytunes.
Most importantly, find out why you should learn guitar through playing tunes, not practising scales, and studying theory in isolation.
