Imagine chords

by John Lennon

Song Key: C Major

Time Signature: 4/4

Tempo: 72 bpm


Guitar Tuning: E A D G B e

Skill Level: Beginner 🟢

Chords: C, Cmaj7, F, F/C, G, G7, E7, Am/E, Dm7

Arrangement Song Details
Play-Along Video
R-H Chord Charts Chord Chart Legend
C Major Cmaj7 F Major F Major barre chord F/C Major G Major G7 E7 Am/E Dm7
L-H Chord Charts Lefties Chord Chart Legend
C Major-LH Cmaj7-LH F Major-LH F Major barre chord-LH F/C Major-LH G Major-LH G7-LH E7-LH Am/E-LH Dm7-LH
Speed: x0.1

Imagine

Song Key is highlighted - Transpose to any other key 
             C        Cmaj7  F          C        Cmaj7   F  
Intro: 4/4 ‖ 1+ 2+ 3+ 4+   | 1+2+3+4+ | 1+ 2+ 3+ 4+    | 1+2+3++4+ ‖
               
 C                   Cmaj7       F   C               Cmaj7    F
1. Im-agine there’s  no  hea-ven       It's easy if  you  try-y
 C          Cmaj7       F     C              Cmaj7        F
   No hell  be - low  us        A-bove  us   on - ly  sky-y
 F          Am/E        Dm7       F/C   G              G7
   Imag-ine all the peo-ple             Li-ving for to-day   Ah...


 C                   Cmaj7     F          C                 Cmaj7   F
2. Im-agine there's  no  count-ries         It isn't  hard  to   do-o
 C                   Cmaj7  F            C              Cmaj7     F
   Noth-ing to kill  or     die for        And no re-li-gion  too-oo
 F          Am/E          Dm7     F/C   G               G7
   Im-agine all the peo - ple           Li-ving life in peace Yoo-hoo...

      F         G                     C              Cmaj7   E7
Chorus: You may sa-a-a-ay    I'm  a | dream-er-er-er ♩       ♩ ♩ |
      F         G               C    Cmaj7   E7
        But I'm not the on-ly | one  ♩       ♩♩  |
      F             G                     C           Cmaj7  E7
        I hope some da-a-a-ay    You'll | join u-u-us ♩      ♩ ♩ |
      F         G                    C                  
        And the wo-o-o-orld     Will be as  one...

 C              Cmaj7        F    C                Cmaj7     F
3. Im-agine no  pos–ses-sions       I  won-der if  you  ca-an
 C                    Cmaj7   F    C                  Cmaj7   F
   No need for greed  or  hun-ger    A bro-ther-hood  of   ma-an
 F          Am/E    Dm7     F/C    G                G7 
   Im-agine all the peo-ple   _    Shar-ing all the world  Yoo-hoo...

    
      F         G                    C               Cmaj7  E7
Chorus: You may sa-a-a-ay    I'm a | dream-er-er-er  ♩      ♩ ♩ |
      F         G               C    Cmaj7  E7
        But I'm not the on-ly | one  ♩      ♩ ♩ |
      F             G                     C           Cmaj7  E7
        I hope some da-a-a-ay    You'll | join u-u-us ♩      ♩ ♩ |
      F         G                   C 
        And the wo-o-o-orld    Will live as  one...

Arrangement Details:

  • Key Signature: C Major - 3 flats (Bb, Eb, Ab)
  • Time Signature: 4/4 — Four quarter-note beats per measure
  • Tempo: Slowly
  • Metronome: ♩ = 72
  • Voice Range: E4 - G5
  • Chord Types Used:
    🔹 Major: C, F, G - Core diatonic chords in C Major
    🔹 Major seventh: Cmaj7 - Adds color
    🔹 Dominant seventh: G7, E7 - Provide tension and resolution; G7 is the primary V7 in C major, E7 often functions as a secondary dominant.
    🔹 Minor seventh: Dm7 - Softens the minor sound, often used in ii–V–I progressions.
    🔹 Slash chords: - Show how bass notes change the chord’s feel:
    • F/C — F major with C bass - grounds the harmony
    • Am/E — A minor with E bass - adds fullness.
  • This live version has a 2 bar intro whereas the recorded version has a 4 bar intro. We included the 4 bars which is simply a repeat of the first 2 bars.
  • | C / / Cmaj7 | - The simile marks ( / ) indicate the previous chord is to be repeated. In this example the C chord is played for 3 beats, while the Cmaj7 is played for 1 beat. This is evident in the Intro where beat counts have been displayed instead, i.e., 1+ 2+ 3+ 4+.

    In the choruses where you see: 
             C              Cmaj7   E7
I'm  a | dream-er-er-er ♩       ♩ ♩ |

    C is played for for 1 beat, Cmaj7 for 1 beat and E7 for 2 beats.

Song Details:

Imagine Album Cover
Album Cover
  • Songwriter: John Lennon
  • Lyrics Begin: Imagine there's no heaven.
  • Featured Artist: John Lenon
  • Single:
    Recorded: 27 May – 4 July 1971
    Released: 11 October, 1971
    B-side: It's So Hard
  • Genre: Soft Rock
  • Album: Imagine
    Recorded: 1–12 February, 24 May – 5 July 1971
    Released: 9 September, 1971 (US), 8 October 1971 (UK)
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