Mama Cass – Dream a Little Dream of Me

Mama Cass – Dream a Little Dream of Me (Chords)

Dream a Little Dream of Me has been covered by many people since it first appeared in 1931, but it’s best remembered in the version by Mama Cass of The Mamas and the Papas.

I was discussing this song with UkeJill and we decided that the version on Ukulele Boogaloo wasn’t quite right, so I set about working out a version myself.

The most important chord I added in is the E7 just before the ‘stars fading…’ part. The verse section of the song is in C but changes to A for this part. The E7 acts as a pivot between the two keys. E7 is the V chord of the key of A and leads you into it. It’s very common to use the V chord to lead into the new key and to stop the two keys jarring against each other.

The chords to this song are a little tricky, but if you’ve got them down you might like to try this little variation.

Dream a Little Dream of Me ukulele sheet music

After the C note lead-in, this follows the melody of, “Stars shinning bright above you.” For the last two strums in the first bar, I strum down on the top the strings with my index finger, then follow through with my thumb on the bottom two strings.

You can catch UkeJill’s version of the tune here. And you can watch the version Pete Doherty and Carl Barat performed when they reunited last year.

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23 Comments

  1. Howlin' Hobbit January 29th, 2008 7:49 pm

    Must be Mama Cass day. Every morning I do several crossword puzzles and then move on to the blogs I read. The last puzzle I did before coming here had “Dream A Little Dream Of Me singer” as a clue and Mama Cass (of course) was the answer.

  2. Woodshed January 29th, 2008 8:18 pm

    *Plays the Twilight Zone*

  3. amber January 30th, 2008 3:51 am

    More weirdness:
    I play it
    C B7 Bb7 A7
    too and I’ve never seen anyone else do that way… until now. When I saw that I said aloud “He’s been spying on me!” which kind of startled my boyfriend and cats.

  4. Jill January 30th, 2008 11:27 am

    Thanks so much again for this, Al. My friend was delighted I played for her on her birthday. I opened for a rockabilly band! You saved the day.

  5. Woodshed January 30th, 2008 11:43 pm

    Amber: It scared me when you said it as well, I almost fell backwards into your hedge.

    Jill: Glad it went well. Are you going to put your version of Good Ship Lollypop on YouTube?

  6. Olesya June 30th, 2010 8:13 pm

    Hey! Thanks for the better version. I found Boogaloo version first and didn’t sound quite right for me, so I found yours! I am so happy w/it. That’s my first song that I am trying to learn and with right chords it’s much easier))
    The only one thing is rhytm, I figured out how to play verses, but the middle 8 a liitle bit confusing, especially Bm E7, i just don’t know how to strumming those chords in order to achieve right sound and rhytm. If you could help me w that I would really appreciate that. Thank you!

  7. Xavier Belanche July 31st, 2010 1:18 am

    Watch this incredibly cover :-) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7SfQVoMGxfw

    Thanks!

  8. Jem May 13th, 2011 2:34 pm

    Hi,
    Any tips for the intro?
    Thanks.

  9. Ali October 19th, 2011 6:08 am

    I just covered this, let me know what you think! :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCPGis0hnv4

  10. Ambient Doughnut October 20th, 2011 1:27 pm

    Hey interesting – the e7 pivot into a is exactly what happens in the middle of ‘Devil and the Deep Blue Sea’ too yes? Really getting into this sort of thing lately and it’s beginning to all fit together. All started with your chord progressions e-book. Good stuff!

  11. Woodshed October 21st, 2011 7:31 am

    Ambient: Thanks! Very glad you found that ebook useful.

  12. Ambient Doughnut October 21st, 2011 2:06 pm

    Still do – I revisit it regularly and a little more clicks into place each time. Thinking about trying the ragtime one next. Maybe when I feel I’ve completely exhausted this one!

  13. Jo December 19th, 2011 3:00 am

    Thank you so much for this! I don’t know how I didn’t find this song sooner on your site, this is my favorite song. I’ve been learning the other version from Ukulele Boogaloo but I never felt it was right either. Never felt satisfied til now. Thanks again!

  14. Woodshed December 20th, 2011 8:27 pm

    Jo: Thanks! Glad you like it.

  15. Tiffani January 3rd, 2012 4:36 pm

    HEY! I just couldn’t get my head in to the Ab in the 1st lines of the verses….try Ao!!! (A diminished)

    It works famously!
    “above”, “kiss” and “find”….

    WVUker (tiff)

  16. haley May 13th, 2012 1:40 am

    what is the strum for this?

  17. Tyler December 11th, 2012 5:54 pm

    I don’t suppose that I can find it in a lower key? Like with G being the first chord? I can sing it but I have to strain a little.

  18. Woodshed December 12th, 2012 11:00 am

    Tyler: You can use this transposer.

  19. Terry (peepster2010) November 24th, 2014 9:41 am

    Thanks so much. Love Mama Cass and love this song. And thanks to The Ukulele Teacher for sending me to you guys.

  20. Woodshed November 24th, 2014 11:15 am

    Terry: Thanks very much!

  21. Eve March 27th, 2015 4:04 pm

    Got here on recommendation of the great Uketeacher !

  22. gRACE September 15th, 2015 4:06 pm

    U are a great teacher!! Thanks from HongKong!

  23. Woodshed September 17th, 2015 8:33 am

    gRACE: Thanks very much!

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