Nov62020

Don McLean – Perfect Love Chords on Piano & Ukulele

Updated January 8, 2026

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INTRO:
C           Am       C          Am   
C           Am       C          Am

VERSE:
    C                  Am
If something had been different
    C                  Am
If something had gone right
    C                  Am
If something had been better,
             C              C7
I might not sing my song tonight

CHORUS:
    F                G
If all my plans had come 
to past
    Am                F
And fit like hand in glove
      C             Am
Then I'd of lost my only chance
    G              C
To know a perfect love
C       Am     C        Am

VERSE:
C                      Am
If all my wrongs were righted
 C                    Am
And all the dreams I planned
     C               Am
Had worked out as I thought 
they should
     C               C7
And not turned into sand

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CHORUS:
      F                   G
Then we'd of walked down different 
paths
     Am           F
Not guided from above
         C             
For the greatest dream 
  Am
I ever dreamed
       G              C   C7
Is to know a perfect love

BREAK:
   F               G              
A perfect love is sometimes found 
      E                 Am
with just one right mistake
      F                  C     
That brings the perfect couple 
        D                    G
to the crossroads that they make
     C               E        
And now that I have found her 
    F                  C
I changed my point of view
       Am                        
And I learned that old regretful 
      Dm                     G
paths can lead to something new

INSTRUMENTAL/SOLO:
G     C   E     F     C    Am       
C    G     C      Am   C     Am

VERSE:
C               
So if you think 
         Am
there's nothing left
    C                    Am
And if you think you're through
    C                 Am       
And if you've written off your 
         C          C7
life as many people do

Feel free to use our free Chord Shape Generator to see every chord in this song on guitar, ukulele and piano.

CHORUS:
    F                    G
And if your plans don't come to past
    Am                F
And fit like hand in glove
    C               Am
Perhaps it means tomorrow
          G              C  C7
You will find a perfect love

OUTRO:
F                    G
If your plans don't come to past
    Am                F
And fit like hand in glove
 C                  Am
Perhaps it means tomorrow
          Dm     G       C
You will find a perfect love
   C           Am   G           C

How to play Perfect Love: key, chords and progression

These are the chords for Perfect Love by Don McLean on Piano, Ukulele, Guitar, and Keyboard

To play Perfect Love by Don McLean, think in C major (no sharps or flats). It takes 8 chords: C, Am, C7, F, G, E, D and Dm.

The backbone of the song is C – C7 – F – G (I – I7 – IV – V in C major). In solfa, that is doh – doh – fah – soh. Practise these 4 changes until they feel natural and you can play most of it.

Beginner-friendly: on guitar almost every chord is an open shape, which makes this a good song to learn early on.