Mar152020

Niall Horan – San Francisco Piano & Ukulele Chord Progression and Tab

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This is the chords of San Francisco by Niall Horan on Piano, Ukulele, Guitar and Keyboard.

[Intro]
Gm Eb 2x

[Verse 1]
Gm
Moon shining, sun rising
Eb
You’re the one I want to wake up to
Gm
Lights fading, I’m changing
Eb
Overthinking, I don’t know what to do

[Pre-Chorus]
Gm
I wanna kiss you like the first time. Hold you like it’s not goodbye
Eb Bb
Wish I hadn’t been so cruel
Gm
I wanna let all my defenses down. Scream until you hear me out
Eb Bb
I’ll lay it on the line for you

[Chorus]
My mind’s made up
Gm Eb
Take me back, take me back
Bb
To San Francisco
Gm Eb
I know what we had would never last
Bb
Now I can’t let go of you
Gm
I might show up on your doorstep, soakin’ wet
Eb Bb
Say I’m done runnin’ from the one that I want so bad
Gm Eb Bb
Take me back, take me back

[Verse 2]
Gm
Drunk dialin’, full dive in
Eb
Don’t you tell me that it’s too late now
Gm
‘Cause I’m pacing, I keep breaking
Eb
Is there a way to make it up somehow?

[Pre-Chorus]
Gm
I wanna kiss you like the first time. Hold you like it’s not goodbye
Eb Bb
Before you fall for somebody new
Gm
I wanna let all my defenses down. Scream until you hear me out
Eb Bb
I know that I’ll be good to you

[Bridge]
Gm Eb Bb
My mind’s made up, up, up, up, up
Gm Eb Bb
My mind’s made up

[Chorus]
Gm Eb
And take me back, take me back
Bb
To San Francisco
Gm Eb
I know what we had could never last
Bb
Now I can’t let go of you
Gm
I might show up on your doorstep, soakin’ wet
Eb Bb
Say I’m done runnin’ from the one that I want so bad
Gm Eb Bb
Take me back, take me back

[Outro]
Gm Eb Bb
Take me back, take me back
Gm Eb Bb
Take me back, take me back
Oh

How to play San Francisco: key, chords and progression

San Francisco by Niall Horan is centred on E♭ major (three flats: B♭, E♭, A♭). The song uses 3 chords: Gm, Eb and Bb.

The backbone of the song is Gm – Eb – Bb – Gm (iii – I – V – iii in E♭ major). In solfa, that is mi – doh – soh – mi. Practise these 4 changes until they feel natural and you can play most of it.

Easier on guitar: put a capo on the 3rd fret and play the shapes Em, C, G (100% of the chords become easy open shapes, against 0% without a capo). It sounds exactly the same.