How to play "Born With A Beer In My Hand" Chords
on acoustic guitar
Morgan Wallen's song 'Born With A Beer In My Hand' in the music video with Chords .
Song Overview
Key: C major (works fine in Drop D or standard)
Capo: none
Difficulty: easy–intermediate (one barre-chord, steady pocket)
Tuning: D A D G B E (Drop D) – but nothing breaks in standard.
Strumming: 74 bpm, relaxed 4/4.
Chords Used
Performance of 'Born With A Beer In My Hand' by Morgan Wallen in the Chords video.
C x32010 F 133211 (barre) → quick swap: Fmaj7 x33210 Dm xx0231 Fsus2 133011 → shortcut: x33011
Tip: in Drop D let the sixth string ring open on C for extra low-end
thump—just be sure to slap-mute before F.
Strumming Pattern
Screenshot from the 'Born With A Beer In My Hand' music video, capturing the Chords .
| D D U | D U D U |
Count “1- 2-and- 3-and- 4-and” — accent beat 3 to mimic the laid-back kit.
Keep the wrist loose; think of tipping your hat rather than hammering nails.
Sections Breakdown
Visual effects scene from 'Born With A Beer In My Hand'.
Intro C | C | F | F – four bars, let chords bloom.
Verse C steady four bars, repeat; shift to F the last two for lift.
Nuance: palm-mute first half of each bar, open up on beats 3-4 for
contrast.
Pre-Chorus Dm → Fsus2. Hold Fs2 two full bars; slide pinky off/on at the
turnaround for a sighing effect.
Chorus C all the way until “redneck”, then F for two,
back to C. Strike the low open D on beat 1 each C to echo the record’s
808-like boom.
Bridge C vamp with vocal ad-libs, then F for two bars. Light scratch
mutes between vocal lines so the band “breathes”.
Common Mistakes
Letting the low D drone under F — thumb-wrap the sixth string or simply
avoid striking it.
Burying the back-beat (beat 3) — clap it out without the guitar first.
Barre-shape fatigue on F — rotate wrist outward, lead with elbow.
General Tips
Tuner: set reference to 440 Hz; Drop only the sixth string to D.
Pick choice: thin (.50-.60) keeps the groove silky at 74 bpm.
Tone: if you’re on electric, roll off a hair of treble and add 15–20 % slap-back
delay for the Nashville sparkle.
Practice transitions C→Fmaj7→Fsus2 slowly—aim for silent lifts rather than
fret squeaks.
Song Facts
This opener to One Thing At A Time dropped 3 March 2023 and shot straight to
#32 on the Hot 100 while anchoring the album’s binge-confession arc.
Wallen, Hardy, and Zach Abend wrote it in one late-night burst after a
discussion about inherited vices; producer Joey Moi kept the track dry,
placing Wallen’s rasp inches from your ear so every syllable feels like a
half-whispered bar-stool secret. Lyrically the
song maps three generations of Tennessee men who “drink like they’re born
thirsty,” reshaping the classic country trope of boozy bravado into
self-reckoning. The chorus admits sobriety is a day-by-day scrap, not a
Hollywood epiphany, echoing Wallen’s real-life on-again drinking freeze
documented in CMA interviews and Guardian profiles.
Notice the poetry trick: each verse ends with a rhyme on “view / blue /
time in,” a subliminal reminder of the bottle’s circular pull. By verse 2
he thanks the habit for giving him material—meta-songwriting at its most
cheeky.
Song Meaning (part by part)
Intro & Verse 1: establishes lineage—granddad heavy,
dad light, narrator somewhere between. Alcohol is destiny, painted as a
Smoky-Mountain landscape he can’t quite leave. Pre-Chorus: hangovers vs handcuffs: the inner courtroom where shame
and thrill wrestle. Chorus: the mantra “side of alive” signals cautious optimism; smiling
through sobriety is not denial but armor. Verse 2: gratitude wrapped in regret—scars on trucks and
self become songwriting fuel. Bridge: acknowledges past devilry; a promise he’ll relapse
“one day” echoes AA’s first-step honesty.
Taken together, the song reframes country
drinking anthems from celebration to self-audit—Wallen is at once the
party and the poster-boy for putting it down.
Comparisons to previous works
If “Whiskey Glasses” glamorized heartbreak lubrication, and “Don’t Think Jesus”
sought external absolution, “Born With A Beer In My Hand” sits dead-center:
earth-realist, no halo, no neon halo either—it’s a diary entry.
Production-wise it mirrors the dry vocal approach of “Sand In My Boots”
but trades piano for a swampy Drop D acoustic,
signaling Wallen’s gradual slide from bro-country gloss to confessional
roots.
Questions and Answers
Why use Drop D if the song sits in C?
Open D adds chest-rattle, lets you thump the root then slide to F
without changing shapes.
Can I capo 2 and play G-shapes?
Absolutely; you’ll strum G-C-Em-Csus2—great for singers who struggle in
Wallen’s register.
What’s the secret to the chorus groove?
Think “kick-clap-rest-clap.” Mute beats 2-and & 4-and with the heel of
your palm.
Is the F barre mandatory?
No. Use Fmaj7 (x33210) or slide an E-shape up one fret while muting the
sixth string.
How does this tune fit his live set?
It usually opens the show—house lights drop, Wallen strolls out alone,
acoustic hanging low, crowd sings verse 1 before the band kicks.
==============================================
[Intro]
| C | C | F | F |
[Verse 1]
C
Granddaddy drank heavy and daddy drank light
C F
I can turn any day to Saturday night if I want to
F
And most the time I want to
C
I can still paint a picture of a hemlock view
C F
My mountains had smoke, but the ones that were blue that we'd buy then
F
Were the ones I spent a little more time in
[Pre-Chorus]
Dm
Between the hangovers and the handcuffs
Fsus2
It's been a minute since I've had one in my hand 'cause
[Chorus]
C
Everybody says it's gonna be the death of me
F
But these days I'm livin' on the side of alive
F
Just 'cause I smile through my sobriety
C
Don't mean it ain't chillin' in the back of my mind
C
I ain't sayin' I swore it off for good
F
I'm just sayin' I'm doing the best I can
F
But what do you expect from a redneck?
C
Hell, I was born with a beer in my hand
[Verse 2]
C
When I was puttin' 'em down, they put me through hell
C
Put some scars on some trucks, myself as well
F
But if I never did put that can to my mouth
F
I wouldn't have nothin' I could sing about, yeah
[Chorus]
C
Everybody says it's gonna be the death of me
F
But these days I'm livin' on the side of alive
F
Just 'cause I smile through my sobriety
C
Don't mean it ain't chillin' in the back of my mind
C
I ain't sayin' I swore it off for good
F
I'm just sayin' I'm doing the best I can
F
But what do you expect from a redneck?
C
Hell, I was born with a beer in my hand
F
Ah yeah, I was born with a beer in my hand
[Bridge]
C
Whoa
C
I ain't the devil that I acted like years ago
F
Oh
F
But I'll be back one day, y'all, even though
[Chorus]
C
Everybody says it's gonna be the death of me
F
But these days I'm livin' on the side of alive
F
Just 'cause I smile through my sobriety
C
Don't mean it ain't chillin' in the back of my mind
C
I ain't sayin' I swore it off for good
F
I'm just sayin' I'm doing the best I can
F
But what do you expect from a redneck?
C
Hell, I was born with a beer in my hand
F
Ah yeah, I was born with a beer in my hand
C
Born with a beer in my hand
