London Bridge — Guitar Tab

• Notes24, 6 pitches
• RangeG3–E4
• Key hereG major
• Tempo112 bpm · about 17 s
• LevelEasy

Can a guitar play London Bridge?

Yes — every one on this page plays it. The check is made note by note against what each one can actually sound. Where the tune does not fit as the library writes it, another key or octave is tried, and the table says which; where nothing fits, it names the notes that are missing.

• Acoustic✓ Plays as writtenIn G major, G3–E4 · loaded above
• Classical✓ Plays as writtenIn G major, G3–E4 · load it

London Bridge: guitar tab

The large line is the fret — 0 is the open string; the small line under it is the string it is on. A dash holds the note another beat, an underline is half a beat, and a dot beside a note makes it half as long again. Each line is one phrase.

London Bridge guitar tab as text

The same notes as tablature: one line per string, the thin high E on top, and each number the fret to press on that line — 0 is the open string. Read it left to right, one note at a time.

e|---0----------------------------0------------|
B|-3---3-1-0-1-3----0-1--0-1-3--3---3-1-0-1-3--|
G|----------------2----------------------------|
D|---------------------------------------------|
A|---------------------------------------------|
E|---------------------------------------------|

e|------------|
B|----3--0----|
G|-2-------0--|
D|------------|
A|------------|
E|------------|

Are there chords for it?

Not on this page. The chords here are chosen by rule — the three chords of the key — and they are only offered where that rule can be checked against a published harmonisation and agrees with it on most bars. This melody has no barred score in its sources to hang chords on. The tab above is the whole tune.

The 6 notes it uses

Lowest to highest, with how many times each is played. Learn these 6 and you can play the whole tune.

• 0G×1
• 2G×2
• 0B×5
• 1B×6
• 3B×8
• 0High E×2

What to expect on a guitar

• It runs from G3 to E4, a major sixth, using 6 different notes. That leaves 15 semitones unused below and 12 above.
• 78% of its moves are a step or a repeated note. The widest is a fourth, D4 to A3, at note 8.
• The whole tune sits in first position: nothing above the 3rd fret, one finger per fret.
• It is played on 3 strings (G, B and High E), and 8 notes are an open string.
• The picking hand changes string 9 times.

About the tune

The rhyme has been in print since the 1740s and the singing game is older still, with relatives across Europe. The tune sung today is not the one in the earliest books: it was written down in the 19th century and displaced the older melodies.

Traditional English nursery rhyme, in print since 1744; the tune sung today was written down in the 19th century. Public domain. More about London Bridge →

London Bridge on other instruments

The same melody, in each instrument’s own notation. It is not offered for the guzheng, which does not have the notes.

• London Bridge — kalimbatabs
• London Bridge — pianoletter notes
• London Bridge — ukuleletab
• London Bridge — mbiratabs
• London Bridge — handpantabs
• London Bridge — oudnotes
• London Bridge — violinnotes
• London Bridge — cellonotes
• London Bridge — erhunotes
• London Bridge — dulcimertab
• London Bridge — xylophoneletter notes
• London Bridge — marimbaletter notes
• London Bridge — glockenspielletter notes
• London Bridge — steel drumletter notes
• London Bridge — ocarinanotes
• London Bridge — harmonicatabs
• London Bridge — trumpetnotes
• London Bridge — clarinetnotes
• London Bridge — saxophonenotes
• London Bridge — flutenotes
• London Bridge — recordernotes
• London Bridge — tubanotes
• London Bridge — euphoniumnotes
• London Bridge — trombonenotes
• London Bridge — accordionletter notes
• London Bridge — harpletter notes
• London Bridge — lyretabs

More songs for the guitar

• Hot Cross BunsNursery rhymes · major third
• Lightly RowNursery rhymes · fifth
• Twinkle Twinkle Little StarNursery rhymes · major sixth
• Mary Had a Little LambNursery rhymes · fifth
• Row, Row, Row Your BoatNursery rhymes · octave
• Old MacDonaldNursery rhymes · major sixth
• Frère JacquesNursery rhymes · major sixth
• Going Home (New World Largo)Classical melodies · fifth

All 36 guitar songs · Christmas songs for guitar · The online guitar on its own