Eric Clapton - Bell Bottom Blues - Chord

Key F major – D minor Chords E, A, D, C, F, G, Amaj7, A7 … Difficulty already in its easiest key

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Capo 0

C  E/B  Am  C/G  F  G  F  C  G

            C          E/B     Am
Bell bottom blues, you made me cry
C/G               F                G    F  C  G
    I don't wanna lose this feelin', oh
               C        E/B      Am
And if I could choose a place to die
C/G             F            G
    It would be in your arms, yeah

A                   E                      Gbm    D    E
Do you wanna see me crawl across the floor to you
A                    E                    Gbm
Do you wanna hear me beg to take me back
D                E
I'd gladly do it because

A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E
Give me one more date please
A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E         D  A  E
In your heart I wanna stay

            C          E/B     Am
It's all wrong but it's all right
C/G               F                G    F  C  G
The way that you treat me baby, oh
               C        E/B      Am
Once I was strong, hmmm but I lost the fight
C/G             F            G
And you won't find a better loser, no

A                   E                      Gbm    D    E
Do you wanna see me crawl across the floor to you
A                    E                    Gbm
Do you wanna hear me beg to take me back
D                E
I'd gladly do it because

A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E
Give me one more date please
A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E         D A E
In your heart I wanna stay

A                   E                      Gbm    D    E
Do you wanna see me crawl across the floor to you
A                    E                    Gbm
Do you wanna hear me beg to take me back
D                E
I'd gladly do it because

A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E
Give me one more date please
A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E         D  A  E
In your heart I wanna stay

            C          E/B     Am
Bell bottom blues, don'tcha ya say goodbye
C/G               F                G    F  C  G
We're surely gonna meet again, yeah
               C        E/B      Am
And if we do, don'tcha be suprised
C/G             F            G
If you find me with another lover, oh

A                   E                      Gbm    D    E
Do you wanna see me crawl across the floor to you
A                    E                    Gbm
Do you wanna hear me beg to take me back
D                E
I'd gladly do it because

A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E
Give me one more date please
A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E
In your heart I wanna stay

A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E
Give me one more, give me one more
A             Amaj7     A7
I don't wanna fade away
D                E         D  A  E
In your heart I wanna stay

End of song Play again?

Eric Clapton - Bell Bottom Blues Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Eric Clapton – Bell Bottom Blues: key and chord analysis

The song opens on C and ends on E. Its chords belong to both F major and Dm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

F major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = E (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = Bb (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

D minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Bb (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = C (natural-minor colour)
#7 = C# (harmonic-minor leading tone from the V chord)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: we can't honestly pick a side here — the song moves freely between F major and D minor because F is heard 11 times while Dm never appears and the major V chord points straight at Dm. Try reading the chords both ways and see which feels more like home to you.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to F or to Dm; comparing both readings is a practice of its own.

Every chord of the key, listed 1 to 7 separately for each key. Chords played in the song show how often they appear; chords from outside the scale sit next to their own degree.

Seen from F major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	F	Tonic — home	F · A · C	11×
bii	Gbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · A · Db	8×
ii	Gm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	G · Bb · D	—
V/V	G	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Csecondary dominant	G · B · D	11×
iii	Am	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	A · C · E	7×
V/vi	A	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Dmsecondary dominant	A · C# · E	22×
V/vi	Amaj7	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Dmsecondary dominant	A · C# · E · G#	10×
V7/vi	A7	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Dmsecondary dominant	A · C# · E · G	10×
IV	Bb	Subdominant — moves away from home	Bb · D · F	—
V	C	Dominant — strongest pull home	C · E · G	11×
V	C/G	Dominant — strongest pull home	C · E · G	7×
vi	Dm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	D · F · A	—
V/ii	D	Secondary dominant V/ii — leads to Gmsecondary dominant	D · F# · A	22×
vii°	Edim	Leading-tone chord — tension	E · G · Bb	—
V/iii	E	Secondary dominant V/iii — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B	30×
V/iii	E/B	Secondary dominant V/iii — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B	7×

Seen from D minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Dm	Tonic — home	D · F · A	—
V/iv	D	Secondary dominant V/iv — leads to Gmsecondary dominant	D · F# · A	22×
ii°	Edim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	E · G · Bb	—
V/v	E	Secondary dominant V/v — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B	30×
V/v	E/B	Secondary dominant V/v — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B	7×
III	F	Relative major — the bright side	F · A · C	11×
#iii	Gbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · A · Db	8×
iv	Gm	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · Bb · D	—
IV	G	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	G · B · D	11×
v	Am	Minor dominant — soft pull	A · C · E	7×
V	A	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	A · C# · E	22×
Vmaj7	Amaj7	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	A · C# · E · G#	10×
V7	A7	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	A · C# · E · G	10×
VI	Bb	Submediant — warm colour	Bb · D · F	—
VII	C	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	C · E · G	11×
VII	C/G	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	C · E · G	7×

Analysis

The key pair is F major and its relative D minor (1 flat). 12 different chords appear 156 times in total; 4 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Dm brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from F, the same A / Amaj7 / A7 is V/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Dm. E, D, G, E/B act as secondary dominants, briefly pointing at another chord of the key.

Chord movement

A7 D FV7/vi → V/iisecondary resolution DmV7 → V/iv ×10
C/G F FV → Iauthentic cadence DmVII → III ×7

The move to watch is A7 → D, heard 10 times. From the F side it reads V7/vi → V/ii (secondary resolution: A7 resolves a fourth up to D); from the Dm side it is V7 → V/iv. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

F major pentatonic and D minor pentatonic are the same five notes (F – G – A – C – D): start from F for a brighter phrase, from D for a bluesier one.
Over E, land on E, G#, B — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over A, land on A, C#, E — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over D, land on D, F#, A — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
When A comes, swap the scale's C for C#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.

The song on the circle of fifths

Played in the song — chord of the key
Played — the minor's harmonic V or a secondary dominant
Played — borrowed or outside chord
Home region: IV–I–V and ii–vi–iii

Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.

Capo and easier keys

With F major shapes

Capo 1 + E shapes
Capo 3 + D shapes
Capo 5 + C shapes

With D minor shapes

No capo — open Dm shapes
Capo 5 + Am shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

The song is already written in its easiest key for guitar.

The song's harmonic story

Starting on C, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. E, A, D, C carry the song: V/iii–V/vi–V/ii–V relative to F, V/v–V–V/iv–VII relative to Dm. E is the interesting twist: in F it is a chromatic chord (V/iii), while in Dm it becomes the dominant (V/v) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on A7 → D (V7/vi → V/ii in F, V7 → V/iv in Dm): secondary resolution — A7 resolves a fourth up to D. Ending on E, the song seals F as home.

This analysis is generated from the song's chords by akorculuk's harmony engine using consistent rules. When you change key, the degrees stay the same; only the chord names change.