Song chords
Wagon Wheel chords
Old Crow Medicine Show
Eight bars that repeat all night: G–D–Em–C, then G–D–C–C. The only structural detail worth knowing is that the second half drops the Em, and the song is over 140 bpm so the changes come fast.
Before you start
The chords you need.
4 shapes covers the whole song, fretted with the capo at fret 2. Tap any diagram’s play button to hear it, or open its page for every voicing on six instruments.
The chart
Section by section.
Capo 2 with G shapes puts it in the recorded key of A. Verse and chorus are the same eight bars. Hit play on any section to hear it walk through at 150 bpm.
Verse
8 barsShapes as fretted with the capo on — the names above are what you grab, not what you hear.
Chorus
8 barsIdentical eight bars — the second half drops the Em.
Shapes as fretted with the capo on — the names above are what you grab, not what you hear.
Need it in a different key, or without the capo? Run it through the transposer — move every chord by the same interval and the song is unchanged.
Playing it
What actually trips people up.
The tempo is the difficulty. Practise the G→D change alone until it is clean at 150 bpm; everything else follows.
The chart above is the commonly played arrangement — the version a competent player would hand you, not a bar-for-bar transcription of a specific master. Section labels are there to orient you; live and studio versions repeat, extend and drop sections freely, and none of that changes which chords you need.
About this page
Chord names and song structure are facts; for lyrics and official notation, support the artist. This page carries no lyrics on purpose — Wagon Wheel was written and recorded by Old Crow Medicine Show, and the words belong to them. What you get here is the harmony: the key, the capo, the tempo, and which chord goes where.
Next
Songs that sit near this one.
FAQ
Questions people actually ask.
What key is Wagon Wheel in?
Wagon Wheel sounds in A Major. The common arrangement gets there with a capo at fret 2 and G Major shapes, which is why the chords written here are G Major chords rather than A Major ones.
Do I need a capo for Wagon Wheel?
Yes for the standard arrangement: capo 2. Without it you would be playing A Major shapes, which needs barre chords. With the capo on, the shapes are G Major — much friendlier under the hand.
What chords are in Wagon Wheel?
G, D, Em and C — 4 chords across 2 sections. Capo 2 with G shapes puts it in the recorded key of A. Verse and chorus are the same eight bars.
What is the easiest way to play Wagon Wheel?
Beginner overall. The tempo is the difficulty. Practise the G→D change alone until it is clean at 150 bpm; everything else follows.
How fast is Wagon Wheel?
About 150 bpm. Every section on this page plays back at that tempo, so you can hear how long each chord is meant to be held before you try it yourself.
Can I play Wagon Wheel in a different key?
Yes — the progression is the song, not the letters. Move every chord by the same number of semitones and it still works. The transposer will do the arithmetic, or you can move the capo and keep these shapes.