A Whiter Shade Of Pale chords

by Procol Harum

Song Key: C Major

Key Signature: No sharps or flats

Time Signature: 4/4

Tempo: 75 bpm


Guitar Tuning: E A D G B e

Skill Level: Beginner (see charts below)

Chords: C, Em/B, Am, C/G, F, Am/E, Dm, F/C, G, G7, Em

Arrangement Beginners Song Details
Play-Along Video
R-H Chord Charts Chord Chart Legend
C Major C/G Dm Em Em/B F Major F Major Barre Chord G Major G/F G7 Am Am/E
L-H Chord Charts Lefties Chord Chart Legend
C Major - LH C/G - LH Dm - LH Em - LH Em/B - LH F Major - LH F Major Barre Chord - LH G Major - LH G/F - LH G7 - LH Am - LH Am/E - LH
Speed: x0.1

Whiter Shade Of Pale

Song Key is highlighted - Transpose to any other key 

              C     Em/B     Am     C/G     F     Am/E     Dm     F/C 
Intro: 4/4 |     -        |      -       |     -        |      -        |  
              G     G/F      Em     G7      C     F        G     F  G7   
           |     -        |      -       |     -        |     /         |   

 C    Em/B                   Am    C/G
1. We skip-ped the light fan-dan-go 
 F        Am/E                    Dm     F/C
   Turned cart-wheels a-cross the floor
 G       G/F              Em      G7
   I was feel-ing kind of sea-sick
 C     Em/B                 Am     C/G
   The crowd called out for more
 F     Am/E              Dm      F/C
   The room was hum-ming hard-er
 G        G/F             Em     G7
   As the ceil-ing flew a-way
 C         Em/B             Am      C/G
   When we called out for a-noth-er drink
 F     Am/E              Dm      G
   The wait-er brought a tray...(and so it)

                  C    Em/B     Am     C/G
Chorus: And so it wa – as  that lat-er
      F        Am/E             Dm     F/C
        As the mil-ler told his tale
      G          G/F                Em      G7
        That her face at first just ghost-ly
                  C      F          C    G7
        Turn-ed a Whit-er  Shade Of Pale
        

          C     Em/B     Am     C/G     F     Am/E     Dm     F/C 
Instr: |     -        |      -       |     -        |      -        |  
          G     G/F      Em     G7      C     F        G     F  G7   
       |     -        |      -       |     -        |     /         | 
       

 C     Em/B             Am     C/G
2. She said there is no reas-on
 F         Am/E              Dm     F/C
   And the truth is plain to see
 G       G/F                  Em           G7
   But I wand-ered through my play-ing cards
 C     Em/B              Am     C/G
   And would not let her be
 F        Am/E             Dm      F/C
   One of six-teen vest-al virg-ins
 G          G/F              Em     G7
   Who were leav-ing for the coast
C         Em/B      Am            C/G
   And al-though my eyes were o-pen
 F            Am/E                   Dm        G
   They might just as well have been closed...(and so it)

                  C    Em/B     Am     C/G
Chorus: And so it wa – as  that lat-er
      F        Am/E             Dm     F/C
        As the mil-ler told his tale
      G          G/F                Em      G7
        That her face at first just ghost-ly
                  C      F          C    G7
        Turn-ed a Whit-er  Shade Of Pale
        
        
          C     Em/B     Am     C/G     F     Am/E     Dm     F/C 
Instr: |     -        |      -       |     -        |      -        |  
          G     G/F      Em     G7      C     F        G  
       |     -        |      -       |     -        |    (and so it)|         
                                                          
                     C    Em/B        Am     C/G         
Chorus: And  so  it  wa – as    that  lat-er ... (fade out)

Arrangement Details:

  • Key Signature: C Major – no sharps or flats
  • Time Signature: 4/4 — Four quarter-note beats per measure
  • Tempo: Slowly
  • Metronome: ♩ = 75
  • Voice Range: G4 - A5
  • Chord Types in This Arrangement:
    • Major chords: C, F, G
    • Minor chords: Am, Dm, Em
    • Dominant 7th chord: G7
    • Slash chords: Em/B, C/G, Am/E, F/C,

🎸 Beginner Guitarists

This song is fairly easy once you become familiar with all the chords. Make sure you are comfortable playing all the chords before playing the song, as it saves a huge amount of time and frustration, and you’ll enjoy the song much more.
  • Slash Chords: Em/B, C/G, Am/E F/C
    A slash chord is a normal chord with a specific bass note written after the slash.
    The format is Chord/Bass, therefore:
    • Em/B is an Em chord leading with a B bass-note
    • C/G is a C chord leading with a G bass note
    • F/C is an F chord leading with a C bass note
    • Am/E is an Am chord leading with an E bass note
  • There are several different ways to play most of these chords. They have been simplified as much as possible, all hovering around the first 3 frets.
  • The Intro consists of 8 bars of music. The first 7 bars each contain 2 chords separated by a hyphen. This means each chord is played for 2 beats with the hyphen splitting the beat count of each bar in half.
  • The 8th bar | G / F G7 | consists of a repeat sign / which means you repeat the previous chord within the bar - play G for 2 beats, F for 1 beat and G7 for 1 beat.
  • If you find the chord structure with added bass notes a little confusing, you can simply play the Intro, Instrumental and related sections of the song using normal chords without the leading bass notes. Replace:
| C - Em/B | Am - C/G | F - Am/E | Dm - F/C | G - G7/F | Em - G7 | C - F | G / F G7 | 
WITH
|     C    |    Am    |     F    |    Dm    |     G    | Em - G7 | C - F | G / F G7 |

Song Details:

Procol Harum Album Cover
Album Cover
  • Songwriters: Gary Brooker, Keith Reid, Matthew Fisher
  • Date: 1967
  • Lyrics Begin: We skipped the light fandango, turned cartwheels 'cross the floor.
  • Artists: Procul Harum
  • Albums: Procol Harum (1967), Procol Harum – The Collection (1991)
Back to 60's Songs Back To Top
Contact Me

A seasoned performer joyfully playing the guitar