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Row, Row, Row Your Boat: guitar chords and tab for beginners
United States, 1852
Row, Row, Row Your Boat
by Traditional
- Tempo
- 100beats per minute
- Count
- 3beats in each bar
- Key
- C majorthe home note
- Level
- 1 of 3easiest
Level 1. Strum one chord per beat. Start here.
Chord names above, strum arrows below. Down arrow = strum down toward the floor, up arrow = back up.
Hold this chord
How to read it
- Red cross: don’t play that string. Skip it when you strum.
- Green circle: play that string open, with no finger on it.
- Number: press there with that finger. 1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 pinky.
- Letters: the strings, thickest (low E) on the left to thinnest (high e) on the right.
Space bar plays and pauses. Left and right arrows jump a bar.
The chords
The chords in Row, Row, Row Your Boat
2 chords, all open shapes: C, G7. 3 beats in each bar, 100 beats per minute, in C major.
In words: C major is x 3 2 0 1 0. G seven is 3 2 0 0 0 1. Numbers are frets, thick string to thin, and x means do not play that string.
About the song
First printed in 1852 and sung as a round ever since. It sits on one chord until the very end, and its rocking rhythm is a good way to feel three beats in a bar. Count it in two big swings, one per bar.
Questions people ask
- What chords are in Row, Row, Row Your Boat?
- Two chords: C and G7. All of them are open shapes, so some strings ring without a finger on them.
- What key is Row, Row, Row Your Boat in?
- C major. The key control on this page moves it up or down, and tells you where to put a capo so you can keep the same easy shapes.
- Is Row, Row, Row Your Boat easy to play on guitar?
- Yes. It is one of the easier songs here: two chords at 100 beats per minute, and you can slow it to half speed while you learn it.
- What is the strumming pattern for Row, Row, Row Your Boat?
- Five strums in each bar: down, down, up, down, up. There are 3 beats in every bar. The arrows above the chord boxes move with the sound, so you can see the pattern as you hear it.
- How do I play Row, Row, Row Your Boat on guitar?
- Three ways on this page, all from the same arrangement. Chords mode strums one chord at a time, Melody mode picks the tune from the tab, and Fingerstyle mode plays the bass with your thumb under the tune. Start in Chords mode at 60 percent speed.
- Who wrote Row, Row, Row Your Boat?
- Traditional. United States, 1852. The music is old enough to be in the public domain, so it is free to learn, play and record.
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