We teach you how to play the “Three Little Birds” ukulele chords and provide an in-depth tutorial so that you can master this Reggae hit.
Written by Jay Searle / Published January 22, 2024
Last updated: April 04, 2024
“Three Little Birds” is one of the most famous tunes from the late great Bob Marley (and The Wailers). It’s equally happy and easy to play, featuring only three chords played at a “walking pace” of 78 beats per minute.
We’ve created the Three Little Birds uke tutorial for anyone enamored with this gorgeous song learn how to play it with easy step-by-step instructions, chord diagrams, and chord-over-lyrics, so let’s hop down to which chords you’ll need to know to play it.
Song Sheet: Jump to 3 Little Birds Chords & Lyrics Sheet
“Three Little Birds” Ukulele Chords
Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds” was originally composed in the Key of A major. As such, it is comprised of only three ukulele chords – the A, D and E7. We’ll break down each of these chords and help you play them on your ukulele, so consult the diagrams and instructions below.
A Chord
Beautifully sounding, easy to play, and a staple in virtually all of Bob’s songs, the A Chord embodies the best elements of “Three Little Birds”. It’s also a simple ukulele chord ever since you only need to press two frets to pull it off.
You’ll be using the A Chord to play the entire intro, and it opens the verse and chorus parts. Here’s a quick breakdown of its notes and finger positioning scheme
- A: Open;
- E: Open;
- C: Index finger on the first fret;
- G: Middle finger on the second fret.
D Chord
Happy, hopeful, and emotional would be the terms that best describe the sonic character of the D Chord, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that it’s the second most present chord in “Three Little Birds”.
Similar to the A Chord, the D Chord appears in both verses and choruses. Even though it’s slightly more complex since you’ll be using either two or three fingers, it’s still a very basic, easy-to-play chord. Follow these instructions to learn this chord:
- A: Open;
- E: Ring finger on the second fret;
- C: Middle finger on the second fret;
- G: Index finger on the second fret.
E7 Chord
The last chord you’ll need to learn to play “Three Little Birds” is another fundamental uke chord. The E7 chord is groovy and commonly used as a bridge between other chords with a similar vibe. It fits perfectly into this song and appropriates the joyous aspects of the A and D chords.
Even though it’s a relatively simple ukulele chord, the E7 chord can be considered the “most difficult” of the three since you’ll need to press three frets, with an open string in between. For maximal fretting accuracy and smooth playing, we recommend the following finger positioning style, but feel free to simply put a bar over the C, E and A strings – turning the chord into E major – if it feels more comfortable:
- A: Ring finger on the second fret;
- E: Open (or barred);
- C: Middle finger on the second fret;
- G: Index finger on the first fret.
“Three Little Birds” Ukulele Tutorial
Now that you know the chords used in Bob Marley and The Wailers’ “Three Little Birds”, let’s put them together in the order they are arranged.
This tune essentially has only two parts – the chorus and the verse. The intro and outro are essentially reduced versions of the chorus, but we’ll explain how to play them as well.
Intro: A Chord
The opening “riff” in “Three Little Birds” is a simple A Chord played four times. If you’re not keen on counting and want to fully immerse yourself in the tune, simply play this part until Bob starts singing.
Chorus: A-A-D-A
The song begins with the chorus section, which is just as easy to play as the intro but this time around counting is your friend. Play the A chord for the duration of a full bar, then play the D chord for a bar, and then play another A chord for a bar as illustrated above. Bear in mind that the chorus is played two times before leading into the verse.
Verse : A-E7-A-D, A-E7-D-A
The verse in “Three Little Birds” is a proper chord progression, featuring three different chords. Just like every other part in this tune, it begins with a A, followed by an E7 chord, then an A again, and ending with an D chord.
This chord progression is then repeated with the A and D chords in the last two bars swapped around.
Outro: D-A
The last two chords of the song are the D and A. Bob is simply strumming them on repeat while the song fades out, so do the same to finish this tune.
“Three Little Birds” Ukulele Strumming Pattern
A song as simple as “Three Little Birds” warrants simple strumming patterns. The two that we’ll teach you in this song tutorial involve all downstrokes, just with different accents depending on the vibe you’re going for. The more basic pattern requires one downwards strum on each beat of the bar. If you’re counting in time with the song, that’ll be on one, two, three, four.
The second has more of a Reggae vibe and requires a little bit more control from the strumming hand. Just like the previous pattern, you’ll be strumming on each down beat in the bar. The difference is that you’ll also strum on the “up-beat” as well. That is: one, and, two, and, three, and, four, and.
To make it sound Reggae, you want to accent the “up-beats” more than the “down-beats”. You’re still using all downstrums, you just want the “and” strum to be slightly more accented. To really get into the groove, you can try cutting the accented strum short.
Ukulele Tips to Master the Song:
Even though this tune is quite simple, we understand that some beginners may benefit from a bit of advice on how to memorize the chord order more easily. So, let us share some tips that might make learning “Three Little Birds” more enjoyable.
- If you’re struggling with the chord names, try remembering them by their finger positions/shapes
- Write down all three chords on a piece of paper and have them in front of you as you practice. This will help drill these chords into your muscle memory
- If you haven’t already, learn the lyrics of “Three Little Birds”. Singing or at least humming along can help you guess which chords come next
- You’ll only need to memorize half of this song since the second half is identical to the first.
“Three Little Birds” Ukulele Chords and Lyrics
Intro:
A [repeat for 4 bars]
Chorus x2:
A
Don’t worry, about a thing;
D A
‘Cause every little thing is gonna be alright.
Verse:
A E7
Rise up this mornin’, smiled with the risin’ sun;
A D
Three little birds, perched by my doorstep;
A E7
Singing sweet songs; of melodies pure and true,
D A
Sayin’ this is my message to you-ou-ou, singin’
Chorus x2:
A
Don’t worry, about a thing;
D A
‘Cause every little thing is gonna be alright.
Verse:
A E7
Rise up this mornin’, smiled with the risin’ sun;
A D
Three little birds, perched by my doorstep;
A E7
Singing sweet songs; of melodies pure and true,
D A
Sayin’ this is my message to you-ou-ou, singin’
Chorus x2:
A
Don’t worry, about a thing;
D A
‘Cause every little thing is gonna be alright.
Outro:
D A
‘Cause every little thing is gonna be alright.
D A
‘Cause every little thing is gonna be alright.
Conclusion
“Three Little Birds” is among the most beginner-friendly songs ever written, and it’s just as great for beach parties as it is good for warmup exercises and casual jamming. We hope that our “Three Little Birds” ukulele tutorial helped you cover it in as little time as possible!
Jay Searle
Website Founder & WriterJay is a self-professed music nerd and ukulele lover. When not working on the website you’ll find him strumming along to his favorite tunes, spending time with his family, or learning to play the piano.
