How to play St James Infirmary on guitar
An eight-bar minor blues. Short, moody, and the quickest way to learn how a minor key resolves.
At a glance
- Key A minor
- Time 4/4
- Level Improver
- Chords Am, Dm, E7, C
Why this song is worth learning
At eight bars this is the shortest song in the library, which makes it the best one for learning a full form by memory. It is also a minor blues, so it teaches you the Am, Dm, E7 relationship that underpins an enormous amount of blues, jazz and folk. Learn these eight bars and you have a sequence you can improvise over for years.
The chords, as shapes
| Chord | Frets (low E to high e) |
|---|---|
| Am | x 0 2 2 1 0 |
| Dm | x x 0 2 3 1 |
| E7 | 0 2 0 1 0 0 |
| C | x 3 2 0 1 0 |
x means do not play that string, 0 means play it open. Tap any shape on the page to hear it.
Play along
Press play. The track counts you in, clicks the beat and lights up the chord you should be holding. Drop the tempo while you are learning and raise it once you can get through without stopping.
Chord order
| Verse | Am | Am | Dm | Dm | Am | C | E7 | Am |
|---|
Each group is one bar. Count 4 beats per bar.
The picking pattern
Am — one bar of the pattern
5:0 4:2 3:2 2:1 3:2 4:2
Dm — one bar of the pattern
4:0 3:2 2:3 1:1 2:3 3:2
E7 — one bar of the pattern
6:0 5:2 4:0 3:1 4:0 5:2
C — one bar of the pattern
5:3 4:2 3:0 2:1 3:0 4:2
Every note comes straight out of the chord shape, so if you can hold the chord you can play the pattern. Numbers are string:fret, counting string 1 as the thin high E.
How to learn it
- Learn Am, Dm and E7. All three are open chords in the same region of the neck.
- Play the picking pattern on Am, then Dm. The two shapes are closely related.
- Play bars one to four: two bars of Am, two of Dm.
- Add bars five to eight: Am, C, E7, Am. The E7 to Am at the end is the resolution.
- Play the eight bars round and round with the play-along until you know them without looking.
Tips that matter
- E7 to Am is the point of the song. Listen to how strongly it pulls home. That pull is why E7 is used instead of Em.
- Eight bars, then repeat. Learn it as a loop rather than as a line with an ending.
- Try strumming it too. A slow, heavy four-to-the-bar strum suits it as well as picking does.
Questions about St James Infirmary
What chords are in St James Infirmary?
Am, Dm, E7 and C. It is usually played as an eight-bar minor blues in A minor.
Is St James Infirmary a blues?
It is an eight-bar minor blues, which is a shorter and older form than the twelve-bar blues most people know. The chord movement and the feel are both blues.
Why E7 and not Em?
The E7 contains a G sharp, which sits a semitone below the A and pulls strongly back to Am. Em has no such pull, so the ending sounds much weaker.
Is St James Infirmary in the public domain?
Yes. It descends from the English ballad The Unfortunate Rake and the traditional song is not under copyright.