These Boots Are Made for Walkin' chords

Nancy Sinatra

Song Key: E Major

Time Signature: 4/4

Tempo: 84 bpm


Guitar Tuning: Standard (E A D G B e)

Skill Level: Beginner 🟢

Chords: E, Em, G, A

Arrangement Bass Run Song Details
R-H Chord Charts Chord Chart Legend
E Major Em G Major A Major
L-H Chord Charts Lefties Chord Chart Legend
E Major-LH Em-LH G Major-LH A Major-LH
Music Video
Speed: x0.1

These Boots Are Made for Walkin'

Song Key is highlighted - Transpose to any other key 
Intro: 4/4
            E                             E                           E     E
Bass Run:| /E /E /D# /D# /D /D /C# /C# | /C /C /B /B /Bb /Bb /A /A |     |     |
   E
1. You keep say-in' you got some-thin' for me

   Some-thin' you call love, but con-fess
   A
   You've been a-mes-sin' where you should-n't have been a-mes-sin'
           E
   And now some-one else is get-tin' all your best

          G                  Em  
CH: These boots are made for walk-in'
        G                        Em  
    And that's just what they'll do
    G                        E                                E
    One of these days, these boots are gon-na walk all o-ver (you)
   E                             E                          E         E
| /E /E /D# /D# /D /D /C# /C# | /C /C /B /B /Bb /Bb /A /A |  Yeah! |     |
  (you) 

   E
2. You keep lyin' when you ought to be truth-in'

   And you keep lo-sin' when you ought to not bet
   A
   You keep sam-in' when you ought to be a-chan-gin'
              E
   Now what's right is right, but you ain't been right yet

          G                  Em  
CH: These boots are made for walk-in'
        G                        Em  
    And that's just what they'll do
    G                        E                                E
    One of these days, these boots are gon-na walk all o-ver (you)  
   E                             E                           E     E
| /E /E /D# /D# /D /D /C# /C# | /C /C /B /B /Bb /Bb /A /A |     |     |
  (you) 

   E 
3. You keep play-in' where you should-n't be play-in'

   And you keep think-in' that you'll ne-ver get burnt, ha!
   A
   I just found me a brand-new box of mat-ches, yeah
       E
   And what he knows, you ain't had time to learn   
 
          G                  Em  
CH: These boots are made for walk-in'
        G                        Em
    And that's just what they'll do
    G                        E                                E
    One of these days, these boots are gon-na walk all o-ver (you)
    E                             E
 | /E /E /D# /D# /D /D /C# /C# | /C /C /B /B /Bb /Bb /A /A |
   (you)

   E                            E
 |    Are you rea-dy, boots?  |    Start walk-in'  |
      E 
 |  (Sax)  |  %  |  %  |  % |...

Arrangement Details:

  • Key Signature: 4 sharps (F#, C#, G#, D#)
  • Time Signature: 4/4 — Four quarter-note beats per measure
  • Tempo: Moderately
  • Metronome: ♩ = 84
  • Voice Range: E3 - E4
  • Chord Types in This Arrangement:
    • Major: E, G, A
    • Minor: Em

How to Play the Bass Run

The Bass Run is very straightforward:
  • Start on String 6 (the thickest string) — Fret 12 — the note E.
  • From there, move down one fret at a time (a semitone each step), playing two notes on every fret.
  • Continue descending until you reach Fret 5 — the note A.
  • Then you strum the E chord for the next 2 bars.
  • A forward slash followed by a note (e.g., /E /A /G) indicates individual bass notes.
    So in this song, the line:
    | /E /E /D# /D# /D /D /C# /C# | /C /C /B /B /Bb /Bb /A /A |
    is a sequence of bass notes only.

    This Bass Run spans two bars.
    In 4/4 time, with 8 bass notes per bar, each bass note is played as an eighth‑note.

    You can think of each bar like this
    | ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ |
     which aligns with:
    | 1+ 2+ 3+ 4+ |
    So each bass note lands cleanly on either the beat (1, 2, 3, 4) or the off‑beat (+).

Song Details:

Boots Album Cover
Album Cover
  • Songwriter: Lee Hazlewood - American country and pop singer, songwriter, and record producer.
  • Lyrics Begin: You keep sayin' you got somethin' for me, somethin' you call love, but confess.
  • Genre: Go-go, folk rock, country
  • Featured Artist: Nancy Sinatra
  • Single:
    Recorded: November 19, 1965
    Released: December 16, 1965
    B-side: The City Never Sleeps at Night
  • Album: Boots
    Released: March 15, 1966
Song / Artist Capo Key Chords
Dance On - Kathy Kirby +1 D D, Em, G, A
Da Doo Ron Ron - The Crystals +1 D D, G, A
Downtown - Petula Clark - E→F E, Emaj7, F#, F#m7, G#m, A, B, B6, B7, B11, C#m, C#m7 → F, Fmaj7, G, Am, Bb, C, C6, C11, Dm, Dm7
He's So Fine - The Chiffons - G G, Am7, C, D, D7, Em
I Only Want To Be With You - Dusty Springfield - G G, Am, Am7, A7, C, D, D7, Eb, Em
Loco-Motion, The - Little Eva +1 D D, Em, G, A
My Boyfriend's Back - The Angels - D D, G, A7, E
Shoop Shoop Song (It's in His Kiss) - Cher - C C, D, Dm, E, F, G, G7, Am
Where Did Our Love Go - The Supremes - C C, Dm, Dm7, F, F6, G, G7
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