Chords + Lyrics | You Can’t Hurry Love
Intro
| N.C | N.C | N.C | N.C | Bb N.C | N.C |
Verse 1
| Bb | Bb | Eb Bb | Bb |
I need love, love, to ease my mind.
| Dm Gm7 | Gm7 | Eb | F |
I need to find, find, someone to call mine, but mama said.
Chorus 1
| Bb | Bb | Eb Bb | Bb |
You can’t hurry love, no you just have to wait,
| Dm Gm7 | Gm Gm7 | Eb | F |
she said love don’t come easy, it’s a game of give and take.
| Bb | Bb | Eb Bb | Bb |
You can’t hurry love, no you just have to wait,
| Dm Gm | Gm | Eb | F |
you gotta trust, give it time, no matter how long it takes.
Bridge 1
| Dm | Dm | Dm | Dm |
But how many heartaches must I stand,
| Gm | Gm | Gm | Gm |
before I find a love to let me live again.
| Eb | Eb | Eb | Eb |
Right now the only thing, that keeps me hanging on,
| F | F F6 | F7 | F7 F |
when I feel my strength, yeah it’s almost gone, I remember mama said.
Chorus 2
You can’t hurry love, no you just have to wait,
she said love don’t come easy, it’s a game of give and take.
How long must I wait, how much more can I take,
before loneliness, will ’cause my heart, heart to break?
Bridge 2
| Dm | Dm | Dm | Dm |
No, I can’t bear, to live my life alone,
| Gm7 | Gm7 Gm | Gm7 Gm | Gm |
I grow impatient for a love, to call my own.
| Eb | Eb | Eb | Eb E |
But when I feel that I, I can’t go on,
| F | F F6 | F7 | F7 F |
these precious words keeps me hanging on, I remember mama said.
Chorus 3
(You can’t hurry love) no you just have to wait.
She said love don’t come easy, it’s a game of give and take.
You can’t hurry love, no you just have to wait,
she said: “Trust, give it time, no matter how long it takes” (Now wait).
Breakdown
| N.C | N.C |
Verse 2 (triple)
| Bb | Bb | Eb Bb | Bb |
No love, love don’t come easy,
| Dm Gm7 | Gm7 | Eb | F |
but I keep on waiting, anticipating for that,
| Bb | Bb | Eb Bb | Bb |
soft voice, to talk to me at night.
| Dm Gm7 | Gm7 | Eb | F |
For some tender arms to hold me tight,
| Bb | Bb | Eb Bb | Bb |
I keep waiting, I keep on waiting,
| Dm Gm | Gm | Eb | F |
but it ain’t easy, it ain’t easy, when mama said.
Chorus 4
| Bb | Bb | Eb Bb | Bb |
You can’t hurry love, no you just have to wait,
| Dm Dsus4 Gm | Gm | Eb | F |
she said: “Trust, give it time, no matter how long it takes”.
| Bb | Bb | Eb Bb | Bb |
You can’t hurry love, no you just have to wait,
| Dm Gm | Gm | Eb | F | to fade
She said love don’t come easy.
You Can’t Hurry Love Backing Track | Chord Analysis
Above is a live backing track, recorded in the studio with a full band—minus the guitar part.
It’s used throughout the course to help you practise every section of You Can’t Hurry Love, not just as a full play-through, but also in looped segments. By working through each part across the fretboard, you’ll learn to improvise your rhythm guitar part with confidence and fluidity.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
Verse + Chorus
The verse chords are entirely diatonic to the key of Bb, following standard harmonic patterns:
| Bb (I) | Bb | Eb (IV) Bb (I) | Bb |
| Dm (III) Gm7 (VI) | Gm7 | Eb (IV) F (V) | F |
The first verse is brief, while the second verse appears much later and repeats three times.
The chorus uses the exact same chord progression as the verse, but with a new rhythm.
Bridge
The bridge, which follows the first chorus, introduces a static pattern that builds through extended harmony:
| Dm (III) | Dm | Dm | Dm |
| Gm (VI) | Gm | Gm | Gm |
| Eb (IV) | Eb | Eb | Eb |
| F (V) | F F6 | F7 | F7 F |
The song stays entirely within the key of Bb. What makes You Can’t Hurry Love stand out is the unique arrangement, which flows as follows:
- Intro (bass + drums)
- Verse 1
- Chorus 1
- Bridge 1
- Chorus 2
- Bridge 2
- Chorus 3
- Breakdown (N.C.)
- Verse 2
- Chorus 4
Since the verse and chorus share the same harmony, we label them as the A section, and the bridge as the B section, giving us a clean A–B structure to follow throughout.
Here’s a chord chart:
You Can’t Hurry Love Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
Here’s the chord chart I created, using the A/B structure described above.
- Download PDF: You Can’t Hurry Love chord chart PDF.
- Download iReal Pro: You Can’t Hurry Love iReal Pro
This layout is simple and efficient—by repeating section labels, you reduce visual clutter and make the chart easy to follow on stage. If you prefer each section fully written out, you can customise the chart in iRealPro.
The app also lets you transpose quickly—perfect if your vocalist needs a last-minute adjustment.
You Can’t Hurry Love TAB | Course Preview
The key challenge in You Can’t Hurry Love is maintaining a steady, hypnotic rhythm as the chords change.
This consistent rhythm provides a groove that feels instantly recognisable. To make it expressive, you’ll vary the chord shapes while keeping the rhythm identical—creating texture and movement without disrupting the pulse.
To do this fluently, we work through the chord progressions of each section in multiple positions across the neck.
Here’s TAB for Example 1:
Note how the Bb and Gm chords are anticipated on beat 4. We gradually move up the fretboard, applying the same rhythm to different shapes.
By practising with live band loops and systematic TAB breakdowns like this, you’ll soon be able to improvise your part, just like I do in the video above.
Here’s a link to the 8 step-by-step guitar lessons: You Can’t Hurry Love – Guitar Lessons with TAB.
The Supremes’ Signature Song
You Can’t Hurry Love is a 1966 single by The Supremes, and it quickly became one of the band’s biggest hits, epitomising the quintessential ‘60s Motown sound.
Written by the legendary Holland-Dozier-Holland, this song remains a true gem in the heart of Berry Gordy’s Motown empire.
Looking back, it may seem like The Supremes were an instant success at Motown, but this was not the case. Their first release came in 1960, and it took three years and nine singles before they finally hit their stride. In fact, other acts on the label referred to them as the “no-hit Supremes!”
But Diana Ross, who was Berry Gordy’s favourite, had his unwavering support, and he wasn’t about to give up on her.
It turns out, Gordy was right. Once they found their sound, the hits came fast. Over three intense years, The Supremes released a string of chart-toppers, including Where Did Our Love Go, Baby Love, and Come See About Me in 1964.
In 1965, they achieved further success with Stop! In the Name of Love, Back in My Arms Again, and I Hear A Symphony.
1966 was another exceptional year for them. They released You Can’t Hurry Love, You Keep Me Hanging On, Love Is Here and Now You’re Gone, and The Happening, all of which topped the charts at #1.
In total, The Supremes had 12 #1 hits. And as every band since the ’70s knows, You Can’t Hurry Love remains the one they all return to. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a female-fronted Motown group leave it out of their set.
You Can’t Hurry Love Chords: Continue Learning
Learn how to play You Can’t Hurry Love step by step by practising each section of the song with the band.
In addition, we’ll go through all the dominant 7 CAGED shapes. Mastering these shapes will allow you to play the song in a more improvised and dynamic way.
Start learning with the full lesson series: You Can’t Hurry Love – Guitar Lessons with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy: