Play Wonderwall on Guitar

"Wonderwall", the 1995 hit from English rock band Oasis, is a favorite for campfires and dorm rooms all around the world. This song has chords with intimidating names, but they're all easy to play, making this a good song for beginners and intermediate players. The strumming can be a little challenging, but follow along with the original recording and you'll be able to master it in no time.

Steps

This article discusses many of the basic "open" guitar chords without explaining them in depth. If you need help, check out our chord basics article, which includes a downloadable fingering chart.

Playing the Intro

  1. Put a capo on the second fret. This is how the song is played on the recording. You don't need to do this, but if you leave the capo off, the entire song will be two semitones lower.[1] If you're singing, you'll need to adjust your voice accordingly.
    • Note: Past this point, all fret names are relative to the capo. In other words, the "third fret" is actually the fifth fret, and so on.
  2. Keep your third and fourth fingers on the third frets of the highest two strings. Your pinky will go on the third fret of the high E string (G) and your ring finger will go on the third fret of the B string (D). They'll stay here for most of the song!
  3. Play an Em chord, keeping your third and fourth fingers in place. Use your index and middle fingers to press on the second frets of the A string and D string. Now, strum all the strings. You'll play a modified Em7 chord. A finger guide is below:
    • Em7 Chord
      High E string: 3
      B string: 3
      G string: 0
      D string: 2
      A string: 2
      Low E string: 0
  4. Play a G chord. Now, shift your middle finger to the third fret of the low E string. Keep your other fingers where they are. Strum all the strings. You'll play a modified G major chord.
    • G Chord
      High E string: 3
      B string: 3
      G string: 0
      D string: 0
      A string: 2
      Low E string: 3
  5. Play a D chord. Again, keep your pinky and ring finger where they are. Move your index finger to the second fret of the G string (A). Strum the four thinnest strings. You'll play a D major chord with the top note (normally F#) raised a half step (to G). This gives you Dsus4.
    • Dsus4 Chord
      High E string: 3
      B string: 3
      G string: 2
      D string: 0
      A string: X
      Low E string: X
  6. Play an A7 chord. Move your index finger one string down so it's on the second fret of the D string (E). Strum the five thinnest strings. You'll play an A7sus4. If it's easier for you, you can also fret the second fret of the G string (A). This won't affect the sound very much.
    • A7sus4 Chord
      High E string: 3
      B string: 3
      G string: 0
      D string: 2
      A string: 0
      Low E string: X
  7. Cycle through these four chords. Now you know everything you need to jam on the intro section. The entire section is just Em7-G-Dsus4-A7sus4 repeated again and again.
    • Listen to a recording to get the strumming pattern down. With a little practice, it's not hard — you're doing the same thing for the entire section.

Playing the Verses

  1. Learn the Cadd9 chord. The verses in this song are very similar to the intro. In fact, the only difference is in this one chord, which only appears in the first verse. To play it, keep your pinky and ring finger on the same two frets that they have been on, then fret the bottom two notes of an open C chord with your other two fingers. In other words, put your middle finger on the third fret of the A string (C) and your index finger on the second fret of the D string (E).
    • Cadd9 Chord
      High E string: 3
      B string: 3
      G string: 0
      D string: 2
      A string: 3
      Low E string: X
    • For reference, the verses are the parts of the song that start with "Today was gonna be the day...," "Backbeat, the word is on the street...," and so on.
  2. Repeat the intro pattern four times for the verses. As noted above, the verses for this song are more or less like the intro. Use the same Em7-G-Dsus4-A7sus4 pattern that you learned for the intro. Repeat this cycle four times for each verse.
  3. For the first verse only, substitute Cadd9 for the last Em7. The first verse has this one tiny change in it and that's it — otherwise, it's the exact same. You only want to change the very last Em7, and only in this verse.[2]
    • If you're singing, hit this chord just as you start singing the final word of the verse ("now"). In other words, "I don't believe that anybody feels the way I do/ about you now(Cadd9)."

Playing the Bridge

  1. Play Cadd9-Dsus4-Em7-Em7 twice. The basic pattern for the bridge is (finally) different from the intro/verse pattern. Luckily, we already know most of the chords we'll use. Start by playing a Cadd9-Dsus4-Em7-Em7 twice. Note that the Em7 repeats.
    • For reference, the bridge is the part of the song that starts, "...and all the paths we have to walk are winding..." You'll switch from the Em7 to the Cadd9 when the second line starts: "...and all the lights that lead..."
  2. Play Cadd9-Dsus4-G5-G5/F# -G5/E. This is without a doubt the trickiest part of the song, but all it takes is a little practice to master. You'll start out the progression the same as before, but end with a quick run through of G5 chords with a moving bassline. This is easier than it sounds.
    • First, finger the G5 chord simply by putting your middle finger on the third fret of the low E string (G).
    • G5 Chord
      High E string: 3
      B string: 3
      G string: 0
      D string: 0
      A string: 2
      Low E string: 3
    • Then, slide your middle finger down one fret and put your index finger on the second fret of the G string (A).
    • G5/F# Chord
      High E string: 3
      B string: 3
      G string: 2
      D string: 0
      A string: 0
      Low E string: 2
    • Then, move your fingers together to the second frets of the A and D strings (B and E) so that you're basically fingering the Em7 chord from before:
    • G5/E Chord
      High E string: 3
      B string: 3
      G string: 0
      D string: 2
      A string: 2
      Low E string: 0
    • Hit these chords on "like," "say," and "you": "There are many things that I would like (G5) to say (G5/F#) to you (G5/E)..."
  3. End with G5-A7sus4-A7sus4-A7sus4. After the fast passage above, just fret the same G5 chord from before, then switch to the A7sus4 chord and keep strumming it for a few repetitions. You've just made your way through the bridge. Transition from the held A7sus4 to the chorus section (below).
    • Hit the A7sus4 chord on "how": "...like to say to you, but I don't know how (A7sus4)..."

Playing the Chorus

  1. Play and repeat Cadd9-Em7-G-Em7. The chorus is easy — you're just playing chords you've already learned in a steady pattern. Play this progression four times for the chorus.
    • For reference, the chorus is the part of the song that starts, "because maybe/ you're gonna be the one that saves me..."
  2. Transition into the next section with Asus4. This is only after the first chorus. In the recording, there's about a measure of rest after the last Em7 of the chorus. Then, as the song transitions into the third verse, there's about a measure of A7sus4 strumming that switches to Em7 strumming as soon as the verse starts.
    • Listening to the recording will help a lot here. The timing with the rest beats can be a little challenging to get at first.

Putting it All Together

  1. Play the intro progression four times. Now that you know all of the parts of the song, you just need to stitch them together. For the intro, you'll play:[1]
    • Em7-G-Dsus4-A7sus4 (4X)
  2. Play the first verse, then the second verse. The verse progression isn't really different than the intro besides the one Cadd9, but for our purposes the verse starts with the first "Today was gonna be the day..." The first two verses come right in a row, but remember that only the first verse gets the Cadd9. In other words, you'll play:[1]
    • Em7-G-Dsus4-A7sus4
    • Em7-G-Dsus4-A7sus4
    • Em7-G-Dsus4-A7sus4
    • Cadd9-G-Dsus4-A7sus4
    • Em7-G-Dsus4-A7sus4 (4X)
  3. Play the bridge, then the chorus. This is fairly straight forward — you just need to play each part once. In other words, play:[1]
    • Cadd9-Dsus4-Em7-Em7 (2X)
    • Cadd9-Dsus4-G5-G5/F# -G5/E
    • G5-A7sus4-A7sus4-A7sus4
    • Cadd9-Em7-G-Em7 (4X)
    • A7sus4 (right before third verse)
  4. Play the third verse, then the bridge, then the chorus (twice). Here, you're only playing one verse, but you're playing two choruses. In other words, play:[1]
    • Em7-G-Dsus4-A7sus4 (4X)
    • Cadd9-Dsus4-Em7-Em7 (2X)
    • Cadd9-Dsus4-G5-G5/F# -G5/E
    • G5-A7sus4-A7sus4-A7sus4
    • Cadd9-Em7-G-Em7 (8X)
  5. End by repeating the chorus progression. After the third chorus, the singing stops, but the instruments keep playing the Cadd9-Em7-G-Em7 four more times. If you're playing live, make sure everyone in your band knows when to stop!
    • If you stretch this section out, it makes a good place to take a solo since the singer isn't singing anymore.



Tips

  • Learning the chords before you try to play this song live is essential. Without thorough practice, you'll find yourself pausing between chords to find your fingers, which throws off the rhythm of your song.
  • Here is a link to the "Wonderwall" video. Listening to this can make it much easier to work out the more difficult strumming patterns.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 http://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/o/oasis/wonderwall_ver2_crd.htm
  2. ↑ http://www.justinguitar.com/en/BS-805-Wonderwall-Oasis.php
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