Skip to content

R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A. (A Salute to 60's Rock) chords by John Mellencamp (Official Version)

GuitarPianoUkulele

A
E
Aadd9
Bm/D
A/E
D/E
D
B7
A/B

Intro 1
A 
 (A major) 
E 
Aadd9 
Bm/D 
 (E major)  (Aadd9)  (B minor/D) 1,2,3,4
E 
A/E 
D/E 
A/E 
 (E major)  (A/E)  (D/E)  (A/E) 
E 
A/E 
D/E 
A/E 
 (E major)  (A/E)  (D/E)  (A/E) 
E 
A/E 
D/E 
A/E 
 (E major)  (A/E)  (D/E)  (A/E) 
E 
A/E 
D/E 
A/E 
 (E major)  (A/E)  (D/E)  (A/E) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 

Verse 1
E 
A 
They  (E major) come from the  (A major) cities
D 
A 
And they  (D major) come from the  (A major) smaller towns
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
 (E major) Beat up cars  (A major) with guitars  (D major) and drummers
A 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (A major) Goin  (E major) crack  (A major) boom  (D major) bam  (A major) 

New- Play with audio & scroll

Upgrade to play 20,000+ songs ads free, and enjoy playing with music.

Chorus 1

R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.

R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.

R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A., Yeah, Yeah!

Interlude 1

Rockin' in the U.S.A.

Verse 2
E 
A 
D 
 (E major) Said goodbye  (A major) to their families  (D major) 
A 
Said good (A major) bye to their friends
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
With  (E major) pipe dreams in their  (A major) heads
D 
A 
And very  (D major) little money  (A major) in their hands
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major) Some are black  (A major) and  (D major) some are white  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
Ain't  (E major) to proud to  (A major) sleep on the floor  (D major) tonight  (A major) 
E 
A 
With the  (E major) blind faith of  (A major) Jesus
D 
A 
B7 
you  (D major) know that they  (A major) just  (B7) might, be
Rockin' in the

Interlude 2

(U.S.A.) Hey!

Solo 1
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major)  (A major)  (D major)  (A major) 
E 
E 
E 
E 
 (E major)  (E major)  (E major)  (E major) 

Verse 3
E 
A/B 
 (E major) Voices from  (A/B) nowhere
D/E 
A/B 
And voices  (D/E) from the  (A/B) larger towns
E 
A/B 
D/E 
A/B 
 (E major)  (A/B)  (D/E)  (A/B) 
E 
A/B 
D/E 
Filled  (E major) our head  (A/B) full of dreams  (D/E) 
A/B 
E 
A/B 
D/E 
Turned the  (A/B) world upside  (E major) down  (A/B)  (D/E) 
A/B 
E 
 (A/B) And there was  (E major) Frankie
A/B 
D/E 
Lyman-  (A/B) Bobby Fuller-  (D/E) Mitch Ryder
A/B 
 (A/B) (They were Rockin')
E 
A/B 
D/E 
 (E major) Jackie Wilson-  (A/B) Shangra-las-  (D/E) Young Rascals
A/B 
 (A/B) (They were Rockin')
E 
A/B 
D/E 
 (E major) Spotlight on  (A/B) Martha Reeves  (D/E) 
A/B 
B7 
Let's don't for (A/B) get   James  (B7) Brown
E 
A 
D 
Rockin' in the U.S. (E major) A.  (A major)  (D major) 
A 
 (A major) Hey!

Chorus 2
E 
A 
D 
A 
 (E major) R.O. (A major) C.K. in the  (D major) U.S.A.  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
R.O. (E major)  (A major) C.K. in the  (D major) U.S.A.  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
R.O. (E major)  (A major) C.K. in the  (D major) U.S.A.  (A major) 
E 
A 
D 
A 
R.O. (E major)  (A major) C.K. in the  (D major) U.S.A.  (A major) 
[Repeat and fade]

1985Rock

Unlock All Tools

100+ tunings, chord games & metronome

GuitarPianoUkulele

0

A
E
Aadd9
Bm/D
A/E
D/E
D
B7
A/B

Tuning: E A D G B EDifficulty: IntermediateKey: E majorBPM: 165

How did you like the song?

5.0 (1)

You need to to leave a rating.

5.0 (1)572 views

Finger positions, low to high (E A D G B e). 0 is open, x is muted.

A: x-0-2-2-2-0
E: 0-2-2-1-0-0
Aadd9: x-0-7-6-0-0
Bm/D: x-x-0-4-3-2
A/E: 0-x-2-2-2-0
D/E: x-x-2-2-3-2
D: x-x-0-2-3-2
B7: x-2-1-2-0-2
A/B: x-2-x-2-2-0

Accurately transcribed by the GuitarTuna team.

Barre chords ask a lot of the fretting hand. The barre course walks through hand position, pressure, and the cleanest way to land each shape. Practice barre chords

Add9 chords keep the major or minor triad and add a 9th on top, giving a brighter sound. A short course covers the shapes and where they fit. Learn add9 chords

Even perfectly fretted chords sound wrong on an out-of-tune guitar. Get in tune in seconds, right in your browser, with the free online guitar tuner

This is the definitive original version of R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A. (A Salute to 60's Rock) by John Mellencamp, transcribed exactly as it was recorded in the studio. Unlike our simplified arrangement, this chart preserves the precise chord voicings and progressions in the original key of E major. It is designed for guitarists ready to move past the basics and capture the true feel of John Mellencamp's performance.

R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A. (A Salute to 60's Rock)

John Mellencamp

More songs by John Mellencamp

Discover chords for more songs to play

Jack & Diane

4.7

11.2K

Hurts So Good

5.0

3.9K

Pink Houses

4.8

2.8K

The Courtesy of Kings

4

Small Town

4.4

795

Sometimes a Great Notion

23

A Graceful Fall

2

Related songs

Discover chords for more songs to play

Play The GameTabs

Queen

4.6

3.1K

Save MeTabs

Queen

4.9

4.7K

Another One Bites The DustTabs

Queen

4.5

162K

Remember

Bryan Adams

4.0

351

Shoot To ThrillTabs

AC/DC

4.9

4.5K

When The World Is Running Down, You Make The Best Of What's Still Around

The Police

1.1K

The Lights Go Down

Electric Light Orchestra

715

Recently added

Recently added chords & tabs

The Sacrament

HIM

Vicky Donor - Pani Da Rang

Misc Soundtrack

5

When Love and Death Embrace

HIM

ARRANCÁRMELO

WOS

2.0

38

When You Dance I Can Really Love

Neil Young

12

Natural Beauty

Neil Young

Pelangi

Hivi!

99