Chord Guide for Wildflowers and If I Had A Boat

Lesson #413 • Jan 27, 2022

Video lesson

Instructional PDF 1 page

Editor’s notes

As part of me relisting my song sheets for Wildflowers and If I Had a Boat, I wanted to make the following instructional PDF to help y’all get a handle on the chord shapes used in each of these songs.

Specifically, I want to call out how the chords each of these songs use allow you to keep some of your left-hand fingers on the same note the entire time. This is crucially important to recognize, as it makes learning the chords a bit easier – and likewise, makes juggling the chord changes easier as well.

While I do call this out in each individual full-song lesson for Wildflowers and If I Had a Boat, I wanted to make this new PDF to shine a singular, specific light on the topic. The PDF linked below won’t teach you these full songs, but it will provide a deep dive into the chord shapes needed for each song. Check it out!

Back in lesson #334 I tackled this same topic, looking at the different ways you can position your left-hand fingers to play the G-major chord. For instance, should you play the G chord’s low-E string with your left-middle finger, or left-ring finger? The answer: it depends! It’s all about the other chords you’re playing. You’ll simply want to use a G-major voicing that sets you up for easier chord changes later in the song. See my full lesson for details, including a link to the Instructional PDF.

Song lessons this references

Wildflowers by Tom Petty

Lesson #232. View my full lesson notes and get the song sheet »

If I Had a Boat by Lyle Lovett

Lesson #229. View my full lesson notes and get the song sheet »

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Chord Guide for Wildflowers and If I Had A Boat

Video lesson

Instructional PDF 1 page

Editor’s notes