“I’m Yours” by Jason Mraz is a breezy, laidback pop classic which translates perfectly to the ukulele, despite not featuring the instrument in the original recording. The relaxed tempo and simple harmony in “I’m Yours” make the song straightforward and fun to play, too, with most of the song being based around the same four chords.
One thing to keep in mind when learning “I’m Yours” on the ukulele is that the song was actually recorded in the key of B Major. Playing it in the original key means playing almost entirely bar chords without open strings, which can be challenging for beginners who are not completely familiar with playing the ukulele yet.
Fortunately, we can make “I’m Yours” much easier to tackle on the ukulele by transposing it to the key of C, where most of the chords are based around open strings. However, if you’d like more of a challenge, you can also try learning “I’m Yours” in the original key.
Find more easy ukulele songs here >>> 57+ Easy Ukulele Songs for Beginners (using basic chords)
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Chords
One reason that makes learning “I’m Yours” so worthwhile is that the song is based around a very common chord progression, the I-V-vi-IV progression. Familiarizing yourself with this progression will allow you to play almost countless other songs, too. Some other popular songs based around this progression are “Poker Face” by Lady Gaga, “Hello” by Adele, “Take on Me” by Aha, to name just a few.
The primary chords played throughout this song are C, G, A minor, and F. These are all relatively simple ukulele chords to play, and also appear in many other songs.
There are two chords in the short interlude that might throw some newer ukulele players off. Inexperienced players may not have encountered the D7/F# or G/B chords before; however, they are also quite simple to play. The G/B chord on a ukulele is exactly the same as a G chord.
Intro/Verse
[C] [G] [Am] [F]
This is the chord progression that repeats throughout the whole song and, when combined with the instrumental, gives “I’m Yours” its bouncy feel. It’s important to note that the chord doesn’t change at the beginning of each vocal phrase, but slightly after; this is reflected in the chart below.
Well, [C] you done done me an’ you bet I felt it
I [G] tried to be chill, but you’re so hot that I melted
I [Am] fell right through the cracks
Now I’m [F] trying to get back
In the last line of the second verse, the progression changes slightly and a D7/F# is thrown into the mix for a bit of variation:
[C] Listen to the music of the moment; people dance and [G] sing
We’re just one big [Am] family
And it’s our godforsaken right to be [F] loved,
Loved, loved, loved, [D7/F#] loved.
Chorus
For the first chorus, the chords are the same as the first verse:
But [C] I won’t hesitate [G] no more, no [Am] more
It cannot [F] wait, I’m [C] yours
Mm, [G] mm, hmm, [Am] mm…
Hey, hey-ey, hey, hey, [F] hey…
And the second, extended chorus features a G/B chord, as well as that D7/F# again, before leading into the interlude:
So [C] I won’t hesitate [G], no more, no [Am] more
It cannot [F] wait, I’m sure
There’s no [C] need to complicate [G]
Our time is [Am] short
This is our [F] fate, I’m yours
[C] Tuch-tu… [G/B]~[Am] don’t you want to come on [G]
Skooch on over [F] closer, dear
And I will nibble your [D7/F#] ear
Interlude
The interlude features the following chords in this order:
[C] [G/B] [Am] [G] [F] [D7/F#]
View the complete ukulele chord chart for “I’m Yours” here.
Strumming Patterns
The fact that the chords for this song are fairly simple and repetitive means you have plenty of room for experimenting with the strumming pattern. This is a nice way to change the overall feel of the song and add some rhythmic complexity to your performance, if that’s what you’re going for.
Strumming – Original Pattern
This strumming pattern is essentially the same as what the guitar plays in the original recording. To us, it almost sounds like the guitar in the recording is mimicking the percussive effect you can get from a ukulele with extensive palm muting, so we thought it would only be fitting to play this pattern on the uke and see how it sounds. If you’re comfortable with playing slightly more complex rhythms, then this is a really fun way to play through the chords in “I’m Yours”.
Here’s a diagram for the ‘original’ strumming pattern. To really nail the feel that Mraz gets out of his guitar, try to attack or play the chords on the 2& and 4& beats harder than the others. It’s important to listen to the recording and pay close attention to the guitar, because the instrumentation in “I’m Yours” is not recorded with a simple/straight feel.
In the chord diagram below, a lowercase d/u designates a normal downstroke or upstroke, while an uppercase d/u represents a stroke played with extra attack/emphasis. If you want to get as close a sound as possible to the original recording, you can try palm-muting the chords represented by lowercase d/u.
d u D U d u D U
1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &
Strumming – Rhythmic Pattern
If you want to make strumming along to “I’m Yours” even funkier, you can try adding a ghost note to the strumming pattern (denoted by x). Instead of playing a chord, you simply flatten your fretting hand across the strings and strum. Ghost notes are an easy way of adding a percussive element to your ukulele playing and work especially well in songs with a strong, rhythmic feel like “I’m Yours”.
You’ll notice that there is a rest between the first and second note of this pattern. Also, both of those first two notes are downstrokes. This isn’t necessary per se, but helps recreate the feel of the original recording.
D – D U x U D U
1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &
Strumming – Simplified/Easier Pattern
If you’d like a simplified strumming pattern, then you can use the one below. This simply involves playing on the up and downbeats, meaning you don’t have to think about more complex or irregular rhythms when playing:
D U D U D U D U
1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &
Final Notes
Despite not actually featuring any ukulele on the recording, we think “I’m Yours” is a fantastic choice for beginners to the instrument to learn. It’s simple and fun to play along to, and the laidback tempo makes it a good piece to practice chord changes to.
Video Tutorial
Here is a very helpful video tutorial for learning how to play “I’m Yours” on ukulele:
Enjoyed this tutorial?
If you enjoyed this song tutorial, you might like messing around with these ukulele songs as well:
- “Counting Stars” by One Republic (Am, C, G, F)
- “Riptide” by Vance Joy (Am, C, G, F)
- “Someone Like You” by Adele (C, G, Am, F)
Or, check out our full list of easy ukulele songs for beginners for even more songs to play.