Learn "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" on Guitar

In this super easy lesson, we'll learn how to play Can You Feel The Love Tonight on the acoustic guitar. We all know this Elton John song from the Lion King film; it's another masterpiece from the fantastic duo Elton John and Bernie Taupin. :)

We'll start with the chords, along with easy options for beginners. Then we'll look at the strumming before finishing with the string melody in the intro and interludes, which is a nice challenge for intermediate players and finger pickers.

This lesson is my guitar arrangement of a piano/orchestral tune, so there are loads of approaches to it. I've decided to strum it without a pick, but you could also play fingerstyle throughout.

🧐 Rhythm and Chords: Each chord lasts half a bar, unless I say otherwise. Can You Feel The Love Tonight is in 4/4, so half a bar lasts two beats.

The key to performing this song well is to vary the dynamics in each section. Play less in the verses, then lift the volume in the choruses. We'll talk about this in loads more detail further down. :)

Grab your guitar, pop your capo on fret 3, and let's get to it. :)

Can You Feel The Love Tonight by Elton John – Intro

The first two bars of the intro sequence are G, D/F#, C/E (032010), then G. Notice that the slash chords give us a lovely movement in the bass: G, F#, E.

The third bar is C to G/B. In the final bar, we play D/F#, G, Am, then G/B, each for one beat.

There are several grips for D/F#. You can go for 2X0232, using a regular D chord shape and wrapping the thumb around the top of the neck to fret 6:2 (string 6, fret 2).

That grip is pretty tricky for beginners. You might prefer 2X023X, using finger 2 on 2:2, finger 3 on 3:2, and finger 4 on 2:3. It's a fairly easy change to this grip from G (3X0003) played with fingers 3 and 4. If you don't like either of these, play a standard open D chord. :)

💡 Slash Chord Theory: D/F# means a D Major chord with an F# as the bass note instead of D. Can you guess what C/E means? That’s a C Major chord with an E in the bass. Check out my guide to Essential Slash Chords.

As for G/B, I think the grip X2003X sounds great in this song. Put finger 2 on 5:2 and finger 4 on 2:3. Another option is X20003. Play around and see which one you prefer. :)

We'll look at the melody line later! It's time to check out the verse chords.

Can You Feel The Love Tonight by Elton John – Guitar Verse

The first four bars of the verse are C, G/B, C, G/B, C, G/B, Am, then D. The next four bars are very similar: C, G/B, C, G/B, C, Em, F, and D. Pretty easy, but remember that the progression changes at the end. :)

🎸 F Chord Variations: If you find barre chord F tricky, you can try FMaj7 XX3210 or “little F” (XX3211). In my opinion, little F sounds best in this context. Explore these grips with my lesson on F chord variations.

Can You Feel The Love Tonight has only two verses, with the same chord progression. We've nailed the verse, so let's look at the chorus. :)

How To Play The Chorus: Guitar Chords and Strumming

The first two bars are G, D/F#, Em, then C. We now play G, C for one beat, A/C# for one beat, and D for a whole bar.

The change from C to A/C# (X4222X) is probably the trickiest part of the whole song. We play a regular C (X32010), then use finger 1 to barre strings 4, 3, and 2 at fret 2 and fret 5:4 with finger 3.

💡 More Slash Chord Theory: Why this chord called A/C#? Notice that finger 1 is playing a mini A Major grip. This is a standard A chord (X02220) but with two notes missing. And finger 2 plays a C# note in the bass. Hence A/C#. :)

It's worth spending some time on A/C# – you create a beautiful walk in the bass from C to C# to D. But it's a funny chord if you've never played it before, so play a regular A chord if it doesn't work for you.

The next four bars start with C to G/B. Then we play Em and D for one beat each, then C for half a bar. The penultimate bar is Am, G, C, and A/C#, all for one beat. Then we go to D for a full bar.

The second-last bar is tricky! There is roughly one chord for each word:

1        2      3        4        1
That     we    got     this      far
Am       G      C       C#        D

The chords stay consistent, but the singing isn't rigidly in time. Each word comes slightly before the beat.

We repeat this eight-bar sequence twice for a full chorus, with a little tweak in the penultimate bar. Here, we play Am, G, each for half a bar, then C/D (XX0010), C/G (3X2013), then finish with a bar of G.

🚨 C/D is an unusual chord, but it sounds wicked here. Notice that XXX010 is a C Major Chord triad. Add the open D string in the bass, and we have C/D. :) Make sure you don’t hit strings 5 or 6 – we don’t want them to ring out.

For the C/G, grab a regular C chord (X32010), add your little finger to 1:3, move your finger 3 to 6:3, and mute string 5 with the underside of it. It's easy to transition to the G chord from this grip – lift off fingers 1 and 2.

Can You Feel The Love Tonight – Structure and Arrangement

The structure of Can You Feel The Love Tonight is intro, verse, chorus, interlude, verse, chorus, and it finishes with the last two lines of the chorus. Pretty simple. :)

This song is originally a piano and orchestra arrangement, so experiment with different ways of playing it on guitar.

No matter how you approach it, it would be best to lift the choruses. Strumming them is a great way to do that. Keep a consistent pattern, and play one down strum per chord when you reach the one-chord-per-beat lines. I like this 16th-note pattern for the choruses:

DDD   DUD DD  DU
1+2   +a  3+  4+a

🔥 Backbeat Accent: Accenting beats 2 and 4 of the bar mimics the feel of the drums, bringing your rhythm guitar to life. It's a must for pro strumming!

Strip back the verses, especially the first four bars. One strum per chord works well. In the second four bars, you can start to build the volume and add fills at the end of bars 6 and 8.

You can also try fingerstyle patterns, new chord grips, sus 2 and sus 4 embellishments, and more. Ultimately, it's up to you to be creative and add your style. What do you like? Do you dig your interpretation of it? That's the key thing.

🚨 Tag me on Instagram | Facebook | TikTok! Come up with your own guitar arrangement of Can You Feel The Love Tonight, post it on social media, and tag me! I’d love to see you play. :)

Now let's check out the melody you can hear in the intro and interlude sections.

How To Play The String Melody On Guitar

The interlude uses the same chords as the intro. It begins with G, D/F#, C/E, and G. Then, it's C, G/B, followed by D/F#, G, Am, and G/B, each for one beat.

In these sections, you can hear a lovely melody played by strings.

The notes for the melody, relative to the capo, are B (2:0), A (3:2), D (2:3), C (2:1), C, B, G (3:0), D (4:0), E (4:2), F# (4:4), G, E, D (4:0), G, A, B, C, D, and E. We play the melody as we fingerpick the chords. :)

🎸 Fingerstyle Chord-Melody: Check out the video to see how to play the melody with the chords as a fingerstyle part, and get the full TAB at JustinGuitarTabs. :)

My version is what you hear on the record, and it's a great idea to learn it. Once you have, start exploring and improvising. Maybe use the same chords and change the melody, as I do in the video! It's up to you. And remember: if it sounds good, it is good.

Have loads of fun with Can You Feel The Love Tonight, and remember to tag me on social when you share your cover version with the world. :) Laters!

🎵 Add a pro touch to your strumming with my new Strumming Dynamics Course.