9 distinct chords · 114 changes · 3:39 long
Chord timeline
Chords in this song
- F♯m
- D
- A
- E
- C♯
- Bm
- B
- F♯
- G♯m
What you are playing
Chords for I Want It That Way, laid out across its 3:39 exactly where they fall. Most of it sits in F♯ minor. It leans on barre chords — with a capo on fret 2 the same song becomes Em C G D B Am A E F♯m, which sits easier under the hand. Every one of its 9 chords is a plain triad, so three notes under the right hand covers the whole song.
Play it in another key
The same song, moved. Every row is I Want It That Way shifted by that many semitones — useful when the recording sits too high or too low for your voice. The chords keep their relationships, so the song is unchanged apart from its pitch.
| Shift | Key | Chords |
|---|---|---|
| C♯ minor | C♯mAEBG♯F♯mF♯C♯D♯m | |
| D minor | DmA♯FCAGmGDEm | |
| D♯ minor | D♯mBF♯C♯A♯G♯mG♯D♯Fm | |
| E minor | EmCGDBAmAEF♯m | |
| F minor | FmC♯G♯D♯CA♯mA♯FGm | |
| F♯ minor | F♯mDAEC♯BmBF♯G♯m | |
| G minor | GmD♯A♯FDCmCGAm | |
| G♯ minor | G♯mEBF♯D♯C♯mC♯G♯A♯m | |
| A minor | AmFCGEDmDABm | |
| A♯ minor | A♯mF♯C♯G♯FD♯mD♯A♯Cm | |
| B minor | BmGDAF♯EmEBC♯m | |
| C minor | CmG♯D♯A♯GFmFCDm |
On a guitar there is a shortcut in one direction: transpose down by n and put a capo on fret n, and you are back at the original pitch while playing the easier shapes. That is what the capo line above is doing.
