Major view
C major
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
- 7 = B (leading tone, pulls home)
- 4 = F (the note that leans on the 3rd)
Mother Mother - Hayloft - Chord
Key C major – A minor Chords Am, C/G, F, G# Easy key E
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Key: C | Am
Capo: 0
Am C/G F G#
Am C/G F
My daddy's got a gun, my daddy's got a gun
G#
My daddy's got a gun, you better run
Am C/G F
My daddy's got a gun, my daddy's got a gun
G#
My daddy's got a gun, ga ga ga ga ga ga
Am C/G
It started with the hay loft a-creaking
F G#
Well it just started in the hay loft
Am C/G
With his long John's on Pop went a-creeping
F G#
Out to barn out to the hay
Am C/G
Young lovers and they are not sleeping
F G#
Young lovers in the hay loft
Am C/G
With his gun turned on Pop went a-creeping
F G#
Out to the barn out to the hay loft
Am C/G F
My daddy's got a gun, my daddy's got a gun
G#
My daddy's got a gun, you better run
Am C/G F
My daddy's got a gun, my daddy's got a gun
G#
My daddy's got a gun, ga ga ga ga ga ga
Am C/G F G# Am C/G F G#
Aaaah yaaa yaaa ya! Aaaah yaaa yaaa ya
Am C/G F G# Am C/G F G#
Aaaah yaaa yaaa ya! Aaaah yaaa yaaa ya
Ga ga ga ga ga ga
Am C/G F
My daddy's got a gun, my daddy's got a gun
G#
My daddy's got a gun, you better run
Am C/G F
My daddy's got a gun, my daddy's got a gun
G#
My daddy's got a gun, ga ga ga ga ga ga
Am C/G
It started with the hay loft a-creaking
F G#
Well it just started in the hay
Am C/G
With his long John's on Pop went a-creeping
F G#
Out to the barn out to the hay loft
Am C/G
Young lovers with their legs tied up in knots
F G#
Young lovers with their legs tied up in knots
Am C/G
With his long tall gun Pop went a-creeping
F G#
To blow the hay loft dead head straight of
Am C/G F
My daddy's got a gun, my daddy's got a gun
G#
My daddy's got a gun, you better run
Am C/G F
My daddy's got a gun, my daddy's got a gun
G#
My daddy's got a gun, ga ga ga ga ga ga
Am C/G F G# Am C/G F G#
Aaaah yaaa yaaa ya, aaaah yaaa yaaa ya
Am C/G F G# Am C/G F G#
Aaaah yaaa yaaa ya, aaaah yaaa yaaa ya
Ga ga ga ga ga ga
End of song Play again?
Mother Mother - Hayloft Tabs
NotesX
Harmony analysis
Mother Mother – Hayloft: key and chord analysis
The song opens on Am and ends on G#. Its chords belong to both C major and Am, so every chord below is read both ways.
Minor view
A minor
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
- b6 = F (the minor's melancholy)
- b7 = G (natural-minor colour)
Which side does the ear lean to?
Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the A minor side because it opens on Am. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from C major, and switching between the two views is exactly where the practice value lies.
Chord degrees: major and relative minor
Show the degrees above the chords — relative to C or to Am; comparing both readings is a practice of its own.
Every chord of the key, listed 1 to 7 separately for each key. Chords played in the song show how often they appear; chords from outside the scale sit next to their own degree.
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | C/G | Tonic — home | C · E · G | 25× |
| ii | Dm | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | D · F · A | — |
| iii | Em | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | E · G · B | — |
| V/vi | E | Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Amsecondary dominant | E · G# · B | — |
| IV | F | Subdominant — moves away from home | F · A · C | 25× |
| V | G | Dominant — strongest pull home | G · B · D | — |
| bVI | G# | Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord | G# · B# · D# | 25× |
| vi | Am | Relative minor — the melancholy side | A · C · E | 25× |
| vii° | Bdim | Leading-tone chord — tension | B · D · F | — |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | Am | Tonic — home | A · C · E | 25× |
| ii° | Bdim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | B · D · F | — |
| III | C/G | Relative major — the bright side | C · E · G | 25× |
| iv | Dm | Subdominant — moves away from home | D · F · A | — |
| v | Em | Minor dominant — soft pull | E · G · B | — |
| V | E | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | E · G# · B | — |
| VI | F | Submediant — warm colour | F · A · C | 25× |
| VII | G | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | G · B · D | — |
| #VII | G# | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | G# · B# · D# | 25× |
Analysis
The key pair is C major and its relative A minor (no sharps or flats). 4 different chords appear 100 times in total; 3 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. G# is borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.
Chord movement
There's no textbook cadence here; the chords circle around each other in a loop, so the song feels more like a groove than a series of arrivals.
Improvisation tips
- C major pentatonic and A minor pentatonic are the same five notes (C – D – E – G – A): start from C for a brighter phrase, from A for a bluesier one.
- Over Am, land on A, C, E — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over C/G, land on C, E, G — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over F, land on F, A, C — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- On G#, follow the chord's notes (G# · B# · D#) rather than the key's scale — it's a borrowed colour.
The song on the circle of fifths
- Played in the song — chord of the key
- Played — the minor's harmonic V or a secondary dominant
- Played — borrowed or outside chord
- Home region: IV–I–V and ii–vi–iii
Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.
Capo and easier keys
With C major shapes
- No capo — open C shapes
- Capo 3 + A shapes
- Capo 5 + G shapes
With A minor shapes
- No capo — open Am shapes
- Capo 5 + Em shapes
- Capo 7 + Dm shapes
Easiest keys on guitar
- 4 semitones up
- 5 semitones down · capo 5 keeps the original pitch
The song's harmonic story
The opening Am lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The chords that keep coming back are Am, C/G, F, G#; read them as vi–I–IV–bVI in C or i–III–VI–#VII in Am. G# briefly darkens the picture: borrowed from the parallel minor. Ending on G#, the song seals C as home.
This analysis is generated from the song's chords by akorculuk's harmony engine using consistent rules. When you change key, the degrees stay the same; only the chord names change.
Mother Mother - Hayloft Chords on Guitar, Ukulele and Piano
Hover over or tap a chord in the lyrics for its shapes, its degree in both keys and a listen button. Here you have every chord of the song side by side.
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