The ULTIMATE Losing My Religion Chords & Guitar Lesson

If you were around in the early ‘90s, here’s a little ditty you couldn’t escape. 

It was on the radio, MTV, and playing in the background of countless coffee shops and dorm rooms. But here’s the crazy thing: R.E.M. never expected it to be a hit.

Below I’m going to break down how to play guitar in the style of this iconic tune. So grab your axe and let’s dive into this “Losing My Religion” chords and guitar lesson!

Who Wrote Losing My Religion?

“Losing My Religion” was written by all four members of the American alternative rock band R.E.M. Including Michael Stipe (vocals), Peter Buck (guitar, mandolin), Mike Mills (bass, keyboards), and Bill Berry (drums). It was the lead single from their 1991 album Out of Time, and despite having no traditional chorus, no electric guitar riff, and being built around a mandolin, it became their biggest song. 

While at a first glance, it’s easy to think the song is about religion. But the phrase "losing my religion" comes from a Southern saying that means losing patience, feeling frustrated, or running out of hope. Michael Stipe has said that the song is really about obsession—that feeling of wanting someone so badly but knowing they probably don’t feel the same way.

It’s that quiet, aching kind of longing, the kind where every little thing the other person does feels like a sign… and also, not a sign at all.  

Like a lot of great songs, "Losing My Religion" started by accident. Guitarist Peter Buck had just bought a mandolin and was fooling around with it when he stumbled upon that now-iconic riff. He recorded it on a cassette, thinking nothing of it. When the band got together to work on new material, that little mandolin riff turned into something much bigger. At first, they didn’t think it had "hit potential". But when they played it for their producer, Scott Litt, he encouraged them to run with it. The result? A song that would define their career.

"Losing My Religion" was recorded in 1990 at Bearsville Studios in Woodstock, New York, and at John Keane Studio in Athens, Georgia. They brought in live strings, arranged by Mark Bingham, which added to the song’s haunting feel. 

Upon release it hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100—the highest-charting R.E.M. song ever. And also went #1 in multiple countries, including Canada and the Netherlands. In 1992, it won two Grammy Awards: Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal and Best Music Video – Short Form. 

Another cool note about this song is that it brought the mandolin back into mainstream music. After this, suddenly everyone wanted to add folk and acoustic elements to rock.

Now, you may be wondering…

What is the tuning for Losing My Religion?

The tuning for "Losing My Religion" as recorded by R.E.M. is standard tuning. Standard tuning for a guitar is spelled out as EADGBE. 

Here are the strings:

• E (6th string, lowest pitch)
• A (5th string)
• D (4th string)
• G (3rd string)
• B (2nd string)
• E (1st string, highest pitch) 

Now that you know the “Losing My Religion” tuning, let’s next talk about the…

Losing My Religion Chords

If you want to play “Losing My Religion” on guitar, you’ll need to know 6 main chords, they are F, G, Am, Em, C, and Dm. Let’s take a look at a few ways these chords can be played on the fretboard.

F is played as a bar chord in 1st position like so:

Note: If you want to play the mandolin riff off this chord, I recommend playing this chord as a Jimi Hendrix style thumb chord. (See video above for demonstration.) 

G I play in a folk-style, using only 2 fingers like so:

Am is played from the 5th string down like this:

Em uses all 6 strings like this:

C is another very common open position chord. Here we’ll play it from the 5th string down like so:

Finally, Dm is played from the 4th string down like this:

If you’ve struggled to understand the fretboard for RHYTHM and LEAD guitar and want to discover the easiest and fastest way. Then get your hands on my free fretboard guide PDF right here now:  

Is Losing My Religion hard to play on guitar?

The basic progression and strumming for “Losing My Religion” is not too difficult to play. However, if you want to nail the riffs and the rhythms all at once and get a great sound, that’s going to require a more intermediate to advanced skill level.

What key is Losing My Religion in?

“Losing My Religion” as recorded by R.E.M is in the key of C major. The primary scale is the C major scale which uses the notes: C – D – E – F – G – A – B – C 

In the key of C major, the chords F, G, Am, Em, C, and Dm all function within the diatonic harmony. Here’s how they relate:

C major (I - Tonic)

Notes: C - E - G

This is the home chord of the key and provides the strongest sense of resolution.

D minor (ii - Supertonic)

Notes: D - F - A

This is a minor chord built on the second degree of the scale, often leading to G (V) or Am (vi).

E minor (iii - Mediant)

Notes: E - G - B

The iii chord provides a softer, more subtle tension and connects well to both C (I) and Am (vi).

F major (IV - Subdominant)

Notes: F - A - C

One of the strongest chords in the key, often leading to G (V) before resolving back to C.

G major (V - Dominant)

Notes: G - B - D

The most powerful tension chord in the key, naturally leading back to C for resolution.

A minor (vi - Relative Minor)

Notes: A - C - E

The relative minor of C major, often used for a more emotional or melancholic sound.

So that’s the theory, but all of that doesn’t mean a thing without a good…

Losing My Religion Strumming Pattern

The main underlying groove for “Losing My Religion” is a driving 8th-note rock feel. In 4/4 time, 8th notes divide each beat into two equal parts, creating a driving, steady rhythm like this: 

1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &

The numbers (1, 2, 3, 4) represent the main beats in the measure, while the "&" represents the offbeats that add energy and momentum.

When counted out loud, it sounds like: 

"One-and, Two-and, Three-and, Four-and."

This gives the tune a strong and consistent forward motion. A great option is to strum this rhythm using an alternating strumming pattern like this: 

1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &

D u d u d u d u

If you want to spice things up a bit, try playing the bass note of each chord as a quarter note first, then go into 8th note strumming like this:

Conclusion

To wrap it up, “Losing My Religion” is a classic tune from the 90s. While not necessarily about religion, it seems to strike a nerve about the complexities of the human experience.

Keep practicing, and if you want to learn songs way faster, better understand the fretboard, and not waste years spinning your wheels with guitar, grab my free fretboard guide here right now: 

Jon MacLennan