Leaving on a Jet Plane by John Denver

Leaving on a Jet Plane is an iconic folk song written and recorded by John Denver in 1966. Originally called Babe I Hate To Go, the song appeared on his first recording John Denver Sings.

At just 23, Denver had not yet made a name for himself in the Los Angeles folk scene, so he made some copies of the demo and gave them out as Christmas presents. At the time he shared a record label with close friends Peter Paul and Mary, and his producer gave the demo to them. The song became became their biggest and final hit, and brought the words of John Denver to a global audience.

Denver released the song again in 1969 as a single and on the album Rhymes & Reasons, and a final time in 1973 for John Denver’s Greatest Hits. During one of his BBC Radio Specials, Denver recalled writing the song while on a layover at Washington airport and what the song meant to him...

This is a very personal and very special song for me. It doesn't conjure up jets for me as much as it does the simple scenes of leaving. Bags packed and standing by the front door, taxi pulling up in the early morning hours, the sound of a door closing behind you, and the thought of leaving someone that you care for very much. I was fortunate to have Peter, Paul and Mary record it and have it become a hit, but it still strikes a lonely and anguished chord in me, because the separation still continues, although not so long and not so often nowadays.

Pictured is a black and white photo of folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary with John Denver, singing a song during the peace march in Washington D.C, April 24, 1971. Pictured from left to right: Paul Stookey, Mary Travers, John Denver and Peter Yarrow stand around a podium with microphones. Paul and Peter are holding guitars up to the crowd that is gathered around them on the steps of the Capitol Building.

This is an important song for beginners! It uses just three easy chords that are found in many popular songs, and will sound great whether with a simple or more involved strumming pattern.

We start with a G chord. Using your second, third and pinky fingers for this will make the transition to the next chord, a C, a lot easier. When learning guitar you will find G and C together more than almost any other chords, so it’s good to get the hang of changing between them.

Pictured is a diagram of a G Chord. Place your second finger on the fifth string second fret, third finger on the sixth string third fret, fourth finger or pinky on the first string third fret.

Pictured is a digram of a C Chord. Place your first finger on the second string first fret, second finger on the fourth string second fret, third finger on the fifth string third fret.

The first line of the song is four bars, G C G C. The second line is G C D7 D7. These two lines repeat the whole song, so once you get the hang of the transitions and counting, you’ve learnt to play the whole song!

Pictured is a diagram of a D7 Chord. Place your first finger on the second string first fret, second finger on the third string second fret, third finger on the first string second fret.

Start with a simple strumming pattern of two down strums, on the first and third beats of every bar. Try this while changing from G to C (two strums each). To get the hang of the timing, it can be useful to count out loud and emphasise the first and third beats. A lot of contemporary music is built on strong first and third beats, so it is an important skill to learn when starting out.

If you are finding the strumming quite simple, try a more complex pattern that brings a bit more substance to the song. It is down, down, down up down up, counted 1 2 3+4+.

When singing along, look at the chord sheet below for where the chord changes happen in relation to the lyrics. The first strum of G doesn’t come in until the third word of the first verse.

Both strumming patterns work well for this song, use whichever one works best for you! A folk classic and nice song to sing a long to, give it a go today!

Here is a chord sheet I made...

Watch the full lesson here...