When I Was Young Chords
by Ramones
When I Was Young by Ramones is a moderately challenging guitar song played in the key of Em. It uses the chords Em, D, G, Gm, F and Bb. Use the transpose and diagram tools on this page to change the key, see each shape, or simplify the chords.
Intro: Em
verse 1:
Em D Em D
Rooms were so much colder then, my father was a soldier then
Em D Em D Em
Times were very hard when I was young, when I was young
verse 2:
Em D Em D
I smoked my first cigarette at ten and the girls, I had a bad yen
Em D Em D Em
I had quite a ball when I was young
G Em G Em
When I was young, it was more important, pain more painful and laughter lots louder
D Em D Em
Yeah, when I was young, when I was young
verse 3:
Em D Em D
I met my first love at thirteen, he was brown and I was pretty green
Em D Em D Em
And I learned quite a lot when I was young, when I was young
KEY CHANGE:
BREAK: Gm F X3 Gm
Bb Gm Bb Gm
When I was young, it was more important, pain more painful and laughter lots louder
F Gm F Gm
Yeah, when I was young, when I was young
verse 4 (vocal to fade):
Gm F Gm F
My faith was so much stronger then, I believed in fellow men
Gm F Gm Gm
And I was so much older then, when I was young, when I was young
Gm
When I was young, when I was young, when I was young, when I was young, when I was young