Careless Love — Banjo & Mandolin Tab, Chords

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About Careless Love

Careless Love is a trad jazz tune in F major — beginner-friendly, running from B♭, to d and staying in first position on banjo, mandolin and fiddle.

Type: Jazz tune
Key: F major · 4/4
Range: B♭, to d · first position
Notes used: C C♯ D E F G G♯ A B♭
Level: Beginner-friendly

Careless Love — sheet music

F major · 4/4

The notes

Letter names, bar by bar · capitals up to C in the third space, lower case from the D on the 4th line

A F | E C B♭, G | F | F G A B♭ | C C d C | G | G G♯ A B♭ | C C♯ | d d d d B♭ | F G A F | E C E G | F | F

▶ Play along in the Melody Trainer

Careless Love — tab

Tenor banjo · mandolin · fiddle · guitar · ukulele — tap one to open it

Careless Love — Tenor banjo tab

G D A E (Irish tuning) · open position

E|-----|---------|---|-----|
A|-0---|---------|---|-----|
D|---3-|-2-----5-|-3-|-3-5-|
G|-----|---5-3---|---|-----|

E|-----|---------|---|-----|
A|-0-1-|-3-3-5-3-|---|-----|
D|-----|---------|-5-|-5-6-|
G|-----|---------|---|-----|

E|-----|-----|-----------|-----|
A|-0-1-|-3-4-|-5-5-5-5-1-|-----|
D|-----|-----|-----------|-3-5-|
G|-----|-----|-----------|-----|

E|-----|---------|---|---|
A|-0---|---------|---|---|
D|---3-|-2---2-5-|-3-|-3-|
G|-----|---5-----|---|---|

Numbers are frets. Tenor banjo sounds an octave below the written notes.

Careless Love — Mandolin tab

G D A E · open position

E|-----|---------|---|-----|
A|-0---|---------|---|-----|
D|---3-|-2-----5-|-3-|-3-5-|
G|-----|---5-3---|---|-----|

E|-----|---------|---|-----|
A|-0-1-|-3-3-5-3-|---|-----|
D|-----|---------|-5-|-5-6-|
G|-----|---------|---|-----|

E|-----|-----|-----------|-----|
A|-0-1-|-3-4-|-5-5-5-5-1-|-----|
D|-----|-----|-----------|-3-5-|
G|-----|-----|-----------|-----|

E|-----|---------|---|---|
A|-0---|---------|---|---|
D|---3-|-2---2-5-|-3-|-3-|
G|-----|---5-----|---|---|

Numbers are frets. Same strings as the fiddle, so the same notes fall in the same places.

Careless Love — fiddle fingering

G D A E · first position — finger numbers

E|------|----------|----|------|
A|-0----|----------|----|------|
D|---L2-|-1------3-|-L2-|-L2-3-|
G|------|---3-L2---|----|------|

E|------|------------|---|------|
A|-0-L1-|-L2-L2-3-L2-|---|------|
D|------|------------|-3-|-3-H3-|
G|------|------------|---|------|

E|------|------|------------|------|
A|-0-L1-|-L2-2-|-3-3-3-3-L1-|------|
D|------|------|------------|-L2-3-|
G|------|------|------------|------|

E|------|---------|----|----|
A|-0----|---------|----|----|
D|---L2-|-1---1-3-|-L2-|-L2-|
G|------|---3-----|----|----|

0 = open string · 1–4 = finger · L = low (half step back), H = high.

Careless Love — Guitar tab

E A D G B E · open position

e|-----|---------|---|-----|
B|-----|---------|---|-----|
G|-2---|-------0-|---|---0-|
D|---3-|-2-------|-3-|-3---|
A|-----|---3-1---|---|-----|
E|-----|---------|---|-----|

e|-----|---------|---|-----|
B|-----|-1-1-3-1-|---|-----|
G|-2-3-|---------|-0-|-0-1-|
D|-----|---------|---|-----|
A|-----|---------|---|-----|
E|-----|---------|---|-----|

e|-----|-----|-----------|-----|
B|-----|-1-2-|-3-3-3-3---|-----|
G|-2-3-|-----|---------3-|---0-|
D|-----|-----|-----------|-3---|
A|-----|-----|-----------|-----|
E|-----|-----|-----------|-----|

e|-----|---------|---|---|
B|-----|---------|---|---|
G|-2---|-------0-|---|---|
D|---3-|-2---2---|-3-|-3-|
A|-----|---3-----|---|---|
E|-----|---------|---|---|

Numbers are frets; the bottom line is the low E string.

Careless Love — Ukulele tab

G C E A (high G) · open position · played an octave up, as the tune dips below the lowest string

A|-12-8-|-7-3-1-10-|-8-|-8-10-|
E|------|----------|---|------|
C|------|----------|---|------|
G|------|----------|---|------|

A|-12-13-|-15-15-17-15-|-10-|-10-11-|
E|-------|-------------|----|-------|
C|-------|-------------|----|-------|
G|-------|-------------|----|-------|

A|-12-13-|-15-16-|-17-17-17-17-13-|-8-10-|
E|-------|-------|----------------|------|
C|-------|-------|----------------|------|
G|-------|-------|----------------|------|

A|-12-8-|-7-3-7-10-|-8-|-8-|
E|------|----------|---|---|
C|------|----------|---|---|
G|------|----------|---|---|

Numbers are frets; the top line is the A string, the bottom line the high G.

Careless Love chords

F major · 11 chords: F, C7, Gm7, Am7, D7, Cm7, F7, F7♯5, B♭, Bdim, F/C

F Gm7

Am7 D7

Gm7

F Cm7

F7 F7♯5

B♭

Bdim

F/C

One box per bar, in the same order as the sheet music. A faded chord carries on from the bar before. A slash chord like F/C means play F with C as the lowest note.

Guitar chords for Careless Love

Strings E A D G B E, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it

Ukulele chords for Careless Love

Strings G C E A, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it

Tenor banjo & mandolin chords for Careless Love

Strings G D A E, low to high · o = open string, × = don't play it

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This melody comes from The Public Domain Song Anthology (David Berger & Chuck Israels), released CC0. The song is in the public domain. Tabs and letter names worked out by The Music Arcade.