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Leonard Cohen - Take This Waltz Ukulele Chords

ChordsG, Bm, Em, C, D, B7, Am, E7, Am7, D7, Cdim
Strumming↓-↓↑-↓↑-↓↑

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

  • Ukulele G chord diagram Fingering: 0-2-3-2Ukulele G chord diagram
  • Ukulele Bm chord diagram Fingering: 4-2-2-2 Barre at fret 2.Ukulele Bm chord diagram
  • Ukulele Em chord diagram Fingering: 0-4-3-2Ukulele Em chord diagram
  • Ukulele C chord diagram Fingering: 0-0-0-3Ukulele C chord diagram
  • Ukulele D chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-2-0Ukulele D chord diagram
  • Ukulele B7 chord diagram Fingering: 2-3-2-2 Barre at fret 2.Ukulele B7 chord diagram
  • Ukulele Am chord diagram Fingering: 2-0-0-0Ukulele Am chord diagram
  • Ukulele E7 chord diagram Fingering: 1-2-0-2Ukulele E7 chord diagram
  • Ukulele Am7 chord diagram Fingering: 0-0-0-0Ukulele Am7 chord diagram
  • Ukulele D7 chord diagram Fingering: 2-2-2-3 Barre at fret 2.Ukulele D7 chord diagram
  • Ukulele Cdim chord diagram Fingering: 5-3-2-3 Base fret 2.Ukulele Cdim chord diagram


Now in [G]Vienna there’s [Bm]ten pretty [Em]women
There’s a [G]shoulder where [Bm]death comes to [Em]cry
There’s a [C]lobby with nine hundred [D]windows
There’s a [C]tree where the doves go to [G]die [B7]


There’s a [Em]piece that was torn from the morning
And it [Am]hangs in the [E7]gallery of [Am]frost
[C]Ay Ay Ay [G]Ay take this [B7]waltz take this [Em]waltz
Take this [Am7]waltz with the clamp on its [C]jaws [D] [Em] [D] [D7]


Oh I [G]want you I [Bm]want you I [Em]want you
On a [G]chair with a [Bm]dead maga[Em]zine
In the [C]cave at the tip of the [D]lily in some [C]hallway
Where love’s never [G]been [B7]


On a [Em]bed where the moon has been sweating
In a [Am]cry filled with [E7]footsteps and [Am]sand
[C]Ay Ay Ay [G]Ay take this [B7]waltz take this [E7]waltz
Take its [Am7]broken waist in your [C]hand [Cdim] [Am7] [Em] [B7]


This [Em]waltz, this waltz, this waltz,
This waltz with its [Am]very own breath of [Em]brandy and death
[Am7]Dragging its tail in the [G]sea [D]
There’s a [G]concert [Bm]hall in Vi[Em]enna
Where your [G]mouth had a [Bm]thousand re[Em]views


There’s a [C]bar where the boys have stopped [D]talking
They’ve been [C]sentenced to death by the [G]blues [B7]
Ah but [Em]who is it climbs to your picture with a [Am]garland of [E7]freshly cut [Am]tears
[C]Ay Ay Ay [G]Ay take this [B7]waltz take this [Em]waltz
Take this [Am7]waltz it’s been dying for [C]years [G] [D]


There’s an [G]attic where [Bm]children are [Em]playing
Where I’ve [G]got to lie [Bm]down with you [Em]soon
In a [C]dream of Hungarian [D]lanterns in the [C]mist of some sweet after[G]noon [B7]


And I’ll [Em]see what you’ve chained to your sorrow
All your [Am]sheep and your [E7]lilies of [Am]snow
[C]Ay Ay Ay [G]Ay take this [B7]waltz take this [E7]waltz with its
I’ll [Am7]never forget you you [C]know [Cdim] [Am7] [Em] [B7]


This [Em]waltz, this waltz, this waltz, this waltz with its [Am]very own breath of [Em]brandy and death
[Am7]Dragging its tail in the [G]sea [D]
And I’ll [G]dance with [Bm]you in Vi[Em]enna I’ll be [G]wearing a [Bm]river’s dis[Em]guise
The [C]hyacinth wild on my [D]shoulder my [C]mouth on the dew of your [G]thighs
And I’ll [G]bury my [Bm]soul in a [Em]scrapbook, with the [G]photographs [Bm]there and the [Em]moss
And I’ll [C]yield to the flood of your [D]beauty my [C]cheap violin and my [G]cross [B7]


And you’ll [Em]carry me down on your dancing
To the [Am]pools that you [E7]lift on your [Am]wrist
Oh my [C]love oh my [G]love take this [B7]waltz take this [Em]waltz
It’s [Am]yours now it’s all that there [C]is [G] [D]


[G]La la la [Em]La la la [G]La la la [Bm] [Em]La la la [C]La la la [D]La la la
[C]La la la [G]La la la [B7] [Em]La la la La la la [Am]La la la [E7] [Am]La la la
[C]Ay Ay Ay [G]Ay [B7] [Em] [Am7] [C] [D] [Em] [D] [D7] [G]

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AlbumI'm Your Man
GenresPop
Year1986
KeyG

How to play Take This Waltz on Ukulele (Step-by-step)

Leonard Cohen - Take This Waltz on ukulele requires 11 chords and 22 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.

Take This Waltz uses these transitions most often: C → G (15), Bm → Em (13), and G → Bm (13). 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 G - Bm chord transition.

1. G → Bm chord transition

To move from G to Bm;

  1. While playing G, lift your middle finger from A string fret 2.
  2. Keep index finger on C string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from E string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 4.
G to Bm

2. Bm → Em chord transition

To move from Bm to Em;

  1. Lift your index finger from C string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  2. Slide your ring finger from G string fret 4 to C string fret 4.
  3. Place middle finger on E string fret 3.
Bm to Em

3. Em → G chord transition

To move from Em to G;

  1. Lift your index finger from A string fret 2 and place it on C string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from E string fret 3 to A string fret 2.
  3. Lift your ring finger from C string fret 4 and place it on E string fret 3.
Em to G

4. Em → C chord transition

To move from Em to C;

  1. While playing Em, first lift your index finger and middle finger.
  2. Lift your ring finger from C string fret 4 and place it on A string fret 3.
Em to C

5. C → D chord transition

To move from C to D;

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

6. C → G chord transition

To move from C to G;

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

7. G → B7 chord transition

To move from G to B7;

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

8. B7 → Em chord transition

To move from B7 to Em;

  1. Lift your index finger from G string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from C string fret 3 to E string fret 3.
  3. Place ring finger on C string fret 4.

9. Em → Am chord transition

To move from Em to Am;

  1. While playing Em, first lift your index finger and ring finger.
  2. Lift your middle finger from E string fret 3 and place it on G string fret 2.

10. Am → E7 chord transition

To move from Am to E7;

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

11. Am → C chord transition

To move from Am to C;

  1. While playing Am, lift your middle finger from G string fret 2.
  2. Place ring finger on A string fret 3.

12. Em → Am7 chord transition

To move from Em to Am7;

  1. While playing Em, first lift your index finger, middle finger, and ring finger.

13. Am7 → C chord transition

To move from Am7 to C;

  1. Place ring finger on A string fret 3.

14. D → Em chord transition

To move from D to Em;

  1. Lift your index finger from G string fret 2 and place it on A string fret 2.
  2. Slide your middle finger from C string fret 2 to E string fret 3.
  3. Lift your ring finger from E string fret 2 and place it on C string fret 4.

15. D → D7 chord transition

To move from D to D7;

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

16. D7 → G chord transition

To move from D7 to G;

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

17. B7 → E7 chord transition

To move from B7 to E7;

  1. Slide your index finger on G string from fret 2 to fret 1.
  2. Slide your middle finger on C string from fret 3 to fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on A string fret 2.

18. E7 → Am7 chord transition

To move from E7 to Am7;

  1. While playing E7, first lift your index finger, middle finger, and ring finger.

19. C → Cdim chord transition

To move from C to Cdim;

  1. Keep ring finger on A string fret 3.
  2. Place index finger on E string fret 2.
  3. Place middle finger on C string fret 3.
  4. Place pinky on G string fret 5.

20. Cdim → Am7 chord transition

To move from Cdim to Am7;

  1. While playing Cdim, first lift your index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and pinky.

21. Am7 → G chord transition

To move from Am7 to G;

  1. Place index finger on C string fret 2.
  2. Place middle finger on A string fret 2.
  3. Place ring finger on E string fret 3.

22. G → D chord transition

To move from G to D;

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

A short, data-driven summary of the chord flow in Take This Waltz.

  • Take This Waltz includes 166 chord transitions, 22 of them unique.
  • These transitions represent 0.04% of all chord transitions in Ukulelearn.
  • Take This Waltz contains 5 of the top 10 transitions across Ukulelearn.
  • These transition patterns show how Take This Waltz connects to the rest of Ukulelearn. Mastering them helps you move to similar songs faster.
    After G, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are C (25%), D (24%), and Am (13%).
    • G → D: 24%
    • G → Em: 9%
    After Em, the most likely next chords across Ukulelearn are C (27%), G (18%), and D (17%).
    • Em → C: 27%
    • Em → G: 18%