Row, Row, Row Your Boat is written in C major, with 2 chords: C and G7. Tap Fits a small voice and Iโll move the whole song to where you can sing it.
Row, Row, Row Your Boat in C major
The tune goes from C4 to C5: try โFits a small voiceโ.
C
G7
CRow,ย row,ย rowย yourย boat,
CGentlyย downย theย stream.
CMerrily,ย merrily,ย merrily,ย merrily,
G7Lifeย isย butย aCdream.
Traditional American song (1852). Public domain. peabody.kids/music
Where the song comes from
Row, Row, Row Your Boat was printed in America in 1852. The tune sung today came in 1881, in the Franklin Square Song Collection, credited to Eliphalet Oram Lyte. It is a round: a second group starts when the first reaches 'Gently', and the two fit together.
Words: American, printed 1852. Tune: Eliphalet Oram Lyte, in the Franklin Square Song Collection (New York, 1881). Both were printed before 1931, so the song is in the public domain in the United States: anyone may sing it, print it and share it. Peabody wrote out the tune and the chords for this page. Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Row,_Row,_Row_Your_Boat.
For teachers
The tune runs from C4 to C5 in C major. For a class from Pre-K to 2nd grade, try C major (C, G7), which keeps it inside C4 to C5.
Easiest to play
On a ukulele: F major (F, C7). On a guitar: D major (D, A7).
Sing it with the words lit up
The sing-along plays the tune and lights each word as it is sung.