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"Blue Christmas" in Key of C: How to Change the Key & Keep the Correct Chords

Lesson #465 • Dec 22, 2022

Hey there, friends! Today we’re looking at Blue Christmas, the classic holiday tune made famous by Elvis Presley. While Elvis plays this in the key of E major (mostly using E, A, and B7) — I want to show you the process of transcribing it to the Key of C. This allows me to play the song using entirely different chords — which is what I want, as my goal is to play along with a neighbor who learned it on the ukulele in the Key of C.

This process requires a few bits of music theory knowledge: the chords in each key, how chord progressions work, and we’ll even need to navigate around a tricky diminished chord. But fear not, I’ll walk you through everything!

  • 0:00 Summary
  • 1:58 Song Overview (Key of E)
  • 4:03 Chords in Each Key
  • 8:16 Determining the Chord Progression
  • 18:20 Song Overview (Key of C)
  • 33:50 Playthrough (Key of C)
  • 35:09 Bonus: Vocal Melody Tab

Instructional PDF 2 pages

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Follow along with the print-friendly PDF!

It includes all of my notes for this lesson, allowing you to follow along at your own pace. You're free to download, print, and share the PDF across your devices.

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Want me to make a full song tutorial & song sheet?

If you’d like me to create a full lesson for this song, let me know! As of now, I haven’t made either — but if there’s enough demand I’ll make it happen sooner than later.

Want to Learn it in the Key of E?

Here’s a few lessons from other YouTube teachers, all of whom teach this in the Key of E (which matches the Elvis recording).

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Hey there! My name is David Potsiadlo, and I'm the creator of the 400+ weekly lessons here at Song Notes, going back to 2013. Here’s my guitar story »

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