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James Bay - Hold Back The River Ukulele Chords

DATA-DRIVENWhich Chord Comes Next?Learn the most likely chord transitions on the ukulele and start playing songs with confidence.
ChordsDm, F, Bb, C, Gm
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

Before you play, tune your ukulele and use the tools below to set up your view and flow.

  • Ukulele Dm chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-1-0Ukulele Dm chord diagram
  • Ukulele F chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-1-0Ukulele F chord diagram
  • Ukulele A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Ukulele A# | B♭ chord diagram
  • Ukulele C chord diagram Fingering: 0-0-0-3Ukulele C chord diagram
  • Ukulele Gm chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-3-1Ukulele Gm chord diagram

[Opening]
[Dm]Tried to [F]keep you [Bb]close to [F]me, but [Bb]life got [F]in [C]between
[Dm]Tried to [F]square not [Bb]being [F]there, but [Bb]think that [F]I should have [C]been

[chorus]
[Bb]Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes, [Bb]hold back the river so I
[F]Can stop for a minute and see where you hide, [F]hold back the river, hold back

[section 2]
[Dm]Once up[F]on a [Bb]different [F]life, we [Bb]rode our [F]bikes into the sky [C]
But [Dm]now we [F]crawl [Bb]against the [F]tide, those [Bb]distant [F]days are flashing [C]by

[chorus]
[Bb]Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes, [Bb]hold back the river so I
[F]Can stop for a minute and see where you hide, [F]hold back the river, hold back
[Bb]Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes, hold back the river so I
[F]Can stop for a minute and see where you hide, hold back the river, [C]hold back

[section 3]
[Dm]Ooh [F]ho, [Bb]oho, [F]oho, [Bb]oho, [F]oho, [C]oh ooh
[F]Lonely water, lonely water won’t you [Bb]let us wander, [Gm]let us hold each other
[F]Lonely water, lonely water won’t you [Bb]let us wander, [Gm]let us hold each other

[section 4]
[Bb]Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes, [Bb]hold back the river so I
[F]Can stop for a minute and be by your side, hold back the river, [C]hold back
[Bb]Hold back the river, let me look in your eyes, [Bb]hold back the river so I
[F]Can stop for a minute and be by your side, hold back the river, [C]ooh

[Closing]
[F]Lonely water, lonely water won’t you [Bb]let us wander, [Gm]let us hold each other
[F]Lonely water, lonely water won’t you [Bb]let us wander, [Gm]let us hold each other
[F]Lonely water, lonely water won’t you [Bb]let us wander, [Gm]let us hold each other
[F]Lonely water, lonely water won’t you [Bb]let us wander, [Gm]let us hold each other

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SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookDiscover the most-used three-chord combinations in songs and build real command on the ukulele.
14,015 TRANSITIONS ANALYZED#1 at 23%: Which Transition?Master ukulele today with the 100 most repeated chord transitions from 14,015 analyzed.
ArtistJames Bay
AlbumChaos and the Calm
GenresAlternative, Folk, Folk Rock, Indie, Rock
Year2014
KeyDm

How to play Hold Back The River on Ukulele (Step-by-step)

James Bay - Hold Back The River on ukulele requires 5 chords and 7 core chord transitions. You can find the full step-by-step guide below. Before you start, tune your instrument. The song uses the ↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑ pattern; practice it muted first, or simplify to downstrokes while you learn the changes.

Hold Back The River uses these transitions most often: F → Bb (17), Bb → F (15), and F → C (8). These transitions may feel a little challenging at first, but with steady practice you can play this song quickly.When you are ready, begin with Dm - F chord transition.

1. Dm → F chord transition

Ukulele Dm chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-1-0Ukulele Dm chord diagram
Ukulele F chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-1-0Ukulele F chord diagram

To move from Dm to F;

  1. While playing Dm, lift your ring finger from C string fret 2.
  2. Keep index finger on E string fret 1.
  3. Keep middle finger on G string fret 2.
Dm to F

2. F → Bb chord transition

Ukulele F chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-1-0Ukulele F chord diagram
Ukulele A# | B♭ chord diagram Fingering: 3-2-1-1 Barre at fret 1.Ukulele A# | B♭ chord diagram

To move from F to Bb;

  1. Keep index finger on E string fret 1.
  2. Lift your middle finger from G string fret 2 and place it on C string fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on G string fret 3.
F to Bb

3. F → C chord transition

Ukulele F chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-1-0Ukulele F chord diagram
Ukulele C chord diagram Fingering: 0-0-0-3Ukulele C chord diagram

To move from F to C;

  1. While playing F, first lift your index finger and middle finger.
  2. Place ring finger on A string fret 3.
F to C

4. C → Dm chord transition

Ukulele C chord diagram Fingering: 0-0-0-3Ukulele C chord diagram
Ukulele Dm chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-1-0Ukulele Dm chord diagram

To move from C to Dm;

  1. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on C string fret 2.
  2. Place index finger on E string fret 1.
  3. Place middle finger on G string fret 2.
C to Dm

5. C → Bb chord transition

To move from C to Bb;

  1. Lift your ring finger from A string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 3.
  2. Place index finger on E string fret 1.
  3. Place middle finger on C string fret 2.

6. Bb → Gm chord transition

To move from Bb to Gm;

  1. Lift your index finger from E string fret 1 and place it on A string fret 1.
  2. Keep middle finger on C string fret 2.
  3. Slide your ring finger from G string fret 3 to E string fret 3.

7. Gm → F chord transition

To move from Gm to F;

  1. While playing Gm, lift your ring finger from E string fret 3.
  2. Lift your index finger from A string fret 1 and place it on E string fret 1.
  3. Slide your middle finger from C string fret 2 to G string fret 2.

Hold Back The River chord transition analysis

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Hold Back The River.

  • Hold Back The River includes 65 chord transitions, 7 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.02% of all chord transitions in Ukulelearn.
  • Hold Back The River contains 1 of the top 10 transitions across Ukulelearn.
  • These transition patterns show how Hold Back The River connects to the rest of Ukulelearn. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After F, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are C (40%), G (21%), and Am (11%).
    • F → C: 40%
    • F → Dm: 5%
    After Bb, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are F (34%), C (20%), and Dm (9%).
    • Bb → F: 34%
    • Bb → Gm: 6%
SONG DATA3 Chords, 200 Chains, 1 BookThe 200 most popular three-chord chains extracted from real songs. See which songs use each chain, learn the finger transitions, and expand your repertoire with patterns that actually matter.