If you’re a big Bruno Mars fan then you’ll love this guide that includes all of the chords and lyrics to one of his hit songs. When I Was Your Man also uses some of the most common guitar chords for beginners so the simplified version can be suitable for novice players. However, the version we are giving you here is the full one that uses some more complex chords so we would suggest that only advanced players attempt this.
Below you will find everything you need to know to play this song. We have also included a video tutorial to help you along if you get stuck at any point.
When I Was Your Man Chords
There are a lot of chords you will need to use in order to play this song on your guitar. You will have to have a great knowledge of guitar chords and be able to play them smoothly before moving on to playing the full song.
The chords included in this hit song are D7, Dm7, C, G, B, Am, Dm, G, G7, Em, Bb, F and Fm. That’s a lot of chords to get your hands and fingers around so practice, practice, practice until you can play them perfectly and know how to transition between them as well.
When I Was Your Man Strumming Pattern
There are two strumming patterns that make up this song and both are played at 73bpm. The main, basic pattern goes as follows: D-DUX-D-DUX. The X’s in this instant mean that you have to palm mute the up strum which is a tricky technique to master. Try each chord that we have mentioned above so you can get used to the strumming pattern.
There is another strumming pattern that appears occasionally throughout the song and it goes D-D-DU-D-D-DU-D. Again, you can practice this using all of the chords that are involved in the song.
When I Was Your Man Chords with Lyrics
Once you have managed to learn all of the chords and think you are confident with the strumming patterns, move on to playing the song. Feel free to break it down into separate sections if you feel this would make it easier. There are a lot of chord changes so take it step by step so that you don’t get frustrated and lose confidence. In the lyrics below you will find the chords placed within the words. Play these chords before the word that comes next to it, or in the centre of the word if the lyrics dictate that.
Verse 1
[Am] Same bed, but it [C] feels just a little bit [Dm] bigger now
[G] Our song on the [G7] radio, but don’t [C] sound the same [Em/B]
[Am] When our friends talk [C] about you all it does is just [Dm] tear me down
[G] Cause my heart breaks a little when I [C] hear your name
Pre-Chorus
It [Em/B] all just sounds like [Am] ooh, ooh, oooh, [Em] oooh
[Bb] Mmm too young, too dumb to real-[C/G]-ize
Chorus
That [G] I should’ve bought you [F] flowers [G] and held your [C] hand
Shoulda gave you all my [F] hours [G] when I had [C] the chance
Take you to every [F] party cause all you [G] wanted to was [Am] dance
[D7]Now my baby’s [F] dancing, but she’s [Fm] dancing with another [C] man [F] [C] [Em/B]
Verse 2
[Am] My pride, my [C] ego, my needs and my [Dm] selfish ways
[G] Caused a good strong [G7] woman like you to walk [C] out of my life [Em/B]
Now I’ll [Am] never, [C] never get to clean up the [Dm] mess I made ooh
[G] And that haunts me every time I close [C] my eyes
Pre-Chorus
It [Em/B] all just sounds like [Am] ooh, ooh, oooh, [Em] oooh
[Bb] Mmm too young, too dumb to real-[C/G]-ize
Chorus
That [G] I should’ve bought you [F] flowers [G] and held your [C] hand
Shoulda gave you all my [F] hours [G] when I had [C] the chance
Take you to every [F] party cause all you [G] wanted to was [Am] dance
[D7]Now my baby’s [F] dancing, but she’s [Fm] dancing with another [C] man
Bridge
Although it [F] hurts I’ll be the [G] first to say that I was [C] wrong [G/B] [Am] [Em/G]
Oh, I [D7] know I’m probably much too late
To try and [Dm7] apologize for my mistakes
But I just [G] want you to know
Chorus
I hope he buys you [F] flowers, [G] I hope he holds your [C] hand
Give you all his [F] hours [G] when he has [C] the chance
Take you to every [F] party cause I [G] remember how much you [Am] love to dance
[D7] Do all the things I [F] should’ve done [Fm] when I was your [C] man
[D7] Do all the things I [F] should’ve done [Fm] when I was your [C] man
Conclusion
That should be everything you need to know to play this song. We hope you enjoy learning it and that you can play it from start to finish in no time. Happy playing.