Me and Bobby McGee chords
by Janis Joplin
- Me and Bobby McGee was written by Kris Kristofferson and Fred Foster.
- Recorded by Janis Joplin between Sep 5 - Oct 1, 1970
- Single released on Jan 11, 1971 from the album Pearl.
- Music: Key of G Major with a key change to A Major in 4/4 time at ~ 94 bpm (♩)
- Chords in G Major: G, Gadd4, G7, C, D, D7
Chart Legend
Numbered Circles: Fingers used to play chords O: Optional Note
Barre Line: One finger holds down multiple strings R: Root Note
Unmarked strings: Play open X: Don't play string B: Bass Note
Barre Line: One finger holds down multiple strings R: Root Note
Unmarked strings: Play open X: Don't play string B: Bass Note




















Me and Bobby McGee
Song Key is highlighted - Transpose to any other keyG Gadd4 G Gadd4 G Intro: 4/4 | | | G 1. Bust-ed flat in Bat-on Rouge Waiting for a train D And I's feel-ing near-ly as fa-ded as my jeans Bob-by thumbed a die-sel down Just be-fore it rained G Gadd4 G It rode us all the way to New Or-|leans | G I pulled my har-poon out of my di-rty red ban-dan-na G7 C I was play-ing soft while Bob-by sang the blues C G Wind-shield wip-ers slap-ping time I was hold-ing Bob-by's hand in mine D D7 We sang ev'-ry song that driv-er knew C G Chorus: Free-dom's just a-no-ther word for no-thing left to lose D7 G Noth-ing don't mean noth-ing honey if it ain't free no no C G And feel-ing good was ea-sy Lord when he sang the blues D You know feel-ing good was good en-ough for me G A Good e-nough for me and my Bob-by Mc-Gee... |(key change)| A 2. From the Ken-tuck-y coal mine to the Cal-i-for-nia sun E Hey Bob-by shared the sec-rets of my soul Through all kinds of weath-er through ev’-ry-thing we done A Hey Bob-by ba-by kept me from the cold A One day up near Sa-li-nas Lord I let him slip a-way A7 D He's look-ing for that home and I hope he finds it D A But I'd trade all of my to-mor-rows for one sing-le yes-ter-day E E7 To be hold-ing Bob-by's bo-dy next to mine D A Chorus: Freed-om is just a-noth-er word for noth-ing left to lose E7 A No-thing that's all that Bob-by left me yeah D A But feel-ing good was ea-sy Lord when he sang the blues E7 Hey feel-ing good was good e-nough for me hmm hmm A Good e-nough for me and my Bob-by Mc-Gee A 3. La da da la da da la da da la da da da E La da da la da da Bob-by Mc-Gee La da da da da da La na na na na A La la la la la la Bob-by Mc-Gee yeah A 4. La na na la na la la na la la na na La na na la na na la na na E Hey now Bob–by lo-na Bob-by Mc-Gee yeah Lo-na Lo-la-la lo-na-na Lo-na-na lo-na-na lo-na-na lo-na-na lo-na-na A Hey now Bob-by lo - na Bob-by Mc-Gee yeah A 5. Lord I'm cal-ling my lov-er call-ing my man I said I'm call-ing my lov-er just the best I can E C'mon hey now Bob-by yeah hey now Bob-by Mc-Gee yeah Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lord A Hey hey hey Bob-by Mc-Gee Lord A E A Instr: | | 𝄎 | 𝄎 | | 𝄎 | 𝄎 | 𝄎 | | A E | | 𝄎 | 𝄎 | | (Lordy) E (Lordy) Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lor-dy Lord A Hey hey hey Bob-by Mc-|Gee yeah... |
Notes:
- Level Of Ease: Easy song for beginners
- Song Keys: G Major (1 sharp - F#) with a key change to A Major (3 sharps - F# C# G#) after the first chorus, going into the second verse.
- In the Intro, the Gadd4 chord represents GaddC. Play a G chord using fingers 2, 3, and 4, and add the C note with your first finger (first fret, 2nd string). You don't have to play the chord, but it does add a nice touch.
- You may want to add 7th and sus4 versions of chords, e.g., in the instrumental section at the end of the song. This can help make the song sound a little more interesting if you are playing solo. Instead of playing the same chord for 6 bars you might consider the following:
Instead of | A | A | A | E |, try | A - A7 | A - Asus4 | A - A7 | E |... or make up your own. - | E | E | E | E | can also have been written as | E | 𝄎 | 𝄎 | 𝄎 | where the repeat sign 𝄎 signifies a repeat of the previous bar.
Janis Joplin

- Born: Janis Lyn Joplin on January 19th, 1943 in Port Arthur, Texas, United States
- Occupation: singer-songwriter
- Years Active: 1962–1970
- Died: October 4th, 1970 (aged 27) in Los Angeles, California, United States
- Instruments: Vocals, guitar, autoharp, harmonica, piano, percussion
- Music Styles: Blues rock, psychedelic soul, soul, country, jazz blues
- Associations: Big Brother and the Holding Company, Kozmic Blues Band, Full Tilt Boogie Band, Grateful Dead, Kris Kristofferson.
- 🌍 janisjoplin.net