Honey chords
Bobby GoldsboroSong Key: C Major → D Major
Time Signature: 4/4
Tempo: 93 bpm
Guitar Tuning: Standard (E A D G B e)
Skill Level: Beginner 🟢
Chords in C major: C, C6, Cmaj7, Dm7, G7
Chords in D major: D, D6, Dmaj7, Em7, A7
Chord Charts & Performance Video
R-H Chord Charts
L-H Chord Charts
Performance Video
Speed: x0.1
Honey
Song Key is highlighted - Transpose to any other key
Dm7 G7 C C6 Cmaj7 C6
Intro: | | | 1+2+ 3+4+ | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
C C6
1. See the tree, how big it's grown,
Cmaj7 C6
But friend it hasn't been too long,
Dm7 G7 Dm7 G7
It was-n't big. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Dm7 G7
I laughed at her and she got mad,
Dm7 G7
The first day that she plant-ed it,
C C6 Cmaj7 C6
Was just a twig | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
C C6
2. Then the first snow came,
Cmaj7 C6
And she ran out to brush the snow a-way,
Dm7 G7 Dm7 G7
So it would-n't die. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Dm7 G7
Came run-nin' in all ex-cit-ed,
Dm7 G7
Slip-ped and al-most hurt her-self,
C C6 Cmaj7 C6
And I laughed till I cried | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
C C6
3. She was al-ways young at heart,
Cmaj7 C6
Kin-da dumb and kin-da smart,
Dm7 G7 Dm7 G7
And I loved her so | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Dm7 G7
And I sur-prised her with a pup-py,
Dm7 G7
Kept me up all Christ-mas Eve,
C C6 Cmaj7 C6
Two years ago | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
C C6
4. And it would sure em-bar-rass her,
Cmaj7 C
When I came in from work-in' late,
Dm7 G7 Dm7 G7
'Cause I would know. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Dm7 G7
That she'd been sit-tin' there and cry-in',
Dm7 G7
O-ver some sad and sil-ly,
C C6
Late, late show.
C Dm7 G7
CH: And hon-ey, I miss you,
Dm7 G7 C C6
And I'm be-in' good.
Cmaj7 C6 Dm7 G7
And I'd love to be with you,
Dm7 G7 C C6 Cmaj7 C6
If on-ly I could | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
C C6
5. She wrecked the car and she was sad,
Cmaj7 C6
And so af-raid that I'd be mad,
Dm7 G7 Dm7 G7
But what the heck. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Dm7 G7
Though I pre-ten-ded hard to be,
Dm7 G7
Guess you could say she saw through me,
C C6 Cmaj7 C6
And hugged my neck | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
C C6
6. I came home un-ex-pect-ed-ly
Cmaj7 C6
And caught her cryin' need-les-sly,
Dm7 G7 Dm7 G7
In the mid-dle of the day. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Dm7 G7
And it was in the ear-ly spring,
Dm7 G7
When flow-ers bloom and ro-bins sing,
C C6
She went a-way
C Dm7 G7
CH: And hon-ey, I miss you,
Dm7 G7 C C6
And I'm be-in' good.
Cmaj7 C6 Dm7 G7
And I'd love to be with you,
Dm7 G7 C C6 Em7 A7
If on-ly I could | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
(key change)
D D6
7. One day while I was not at home,
Dmaj7 D6
While she was there and all a-lone,
Em7 A7 Em7 A7
The an-gels came. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Em7 A7
Now all I have is mem-o-ries,
Em7 A7
Of Hon-ey and I wake up nights,
D D6 Dmaj7 D6
And call her name | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
D D6
8. Now my life's an emp-ty stage,
Dmaj7 D6
Where Hon-ey lived and Hon-ey played,
Em7 A7 Em7 A7
And love grew up. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Em7 A7
And a small cloud passes o-ver-head,
Em7 A7
And cries down on the flow-er bed,
D D6 Dmaj7 D6
That Hon-ey loved | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
D D6
9. And see the tree how big it's grown,
Dmaj7 D6
But friend it has-n't been too long,
Em7 A7 Em7 A7
It was-n't big. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |
Em7 A7
And I laughed at her and she got mad,
Em7 A7
The first day that she plant-ed it,
D D6 Dmaj7 D6
Was just a twig. | 1+2+ 3+4+ |...
Arrangement Details:
- Key Signature: C Major (no sharps or flats) with a key change to D Major - 2 sharps (F#, C#)
- Time Signature: 4/4 — Four quarter-note beats per measure
- Tempo: Moderately
- Metronome: ♩ = 93
- Voice Range: B3 - A4
Beginner Guitarists:
If you find the transition from C → C6 → Cmaj7 → C challenging, you can continue playing the C Major chord.
The same applies to D → D6 → Dmaj7 → D — you can simply play D Major here.
That said, give all the chords a try! They're commonly used in many songs, easy to play once you're familiar with them, and a great way to expand your chord repertoire.💪
The C6 chord in this arrangement uses the notes C–E–A. Here, the usual 5th (G) is simply replaced by the major 6th (A), giving the chord its open C6 sound. Why can we do this? 👇
The 5th doesn’t define the chord
🎶The 5th (G in a C chord) is neutral:- Major chords have a perfect 5th
- Minor chords have a perfect 5th
- Dominant chords have a perfect 5th
So the 5th never tells you whether the chord is major, minor, dominant, diminished, or extended.
The tones that do define the chord are:- Root → tells you what chord it is
- 3rd → tells you major or minor
- 7th → tells you dominant or major‑7
- 6th, 9th, 11th, 13th → give color and character
Song Details:
- Songwriter: Bobby Russell
- Lyrics Begin: See the tree how big it's grown, but friend, it hasn't been too long, it wasn't big.
- Genre: Country, Pop
- Featured Artist: Bobby Goldsboro
- Single:
Recorded: January 30, 1968
Released: February 17, 1968
B-side: Danny - Album: Honey
Released: 1968
You may also like:
| Song / Artist | Capo | Key | Core Chords |
|---|---|---|---|
| Are You Lonesome Tonight - Elvis Presley | - | C | C, Cmaj7, D7, Dm, Em7, F, G7, Am, A7 |
| Crying - Roy Orbison | - | D | D, Daug, F#m, G, Gm, A, A7, Bm |
| I Can't Stop Loving You - Ray Charles | - | F | F, F7, Gm, Bb, C, C7 |
| Moon River - Andy Williams | +1 | C | C, C7, C6, Dm, Dm6, Dm7, Eb, E7, Em, Em7, F, F7, G7, Ab, Am, Am6, Am7, Bb7b5, B7 |
| Roses Are Red (My Love) - Bobby Vinton | +5 | C | C, C7, D7, F, G7, Am7 |
| This Guy's in Love with You - Herb Alpert | +1 | C | C, Cmaj7, C7, D7, Dm11, E7, Em7, E7sus4, Fmaj7, Fm6, G, G7, Gmaj7, Gm7, G9sus4, Am7, Bbmaj7, Bb, Bm7 |
