Billie Eilish - Lost Cause - Chord

Key Db major – Bb minor Chords Bbm, Ab, Gbmaj7, F7 Easy key C (capo 1)

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Capo 0

Bbm  Ab  Gbmaj7  F7

Bbm
Something's in the air right now
                         Ab
Like I'm losing track of time (time, time)
               Gbmaj7                           F7
I don't really care right now, but maybe that's fine
Bbm
You weren't even there that day
                 Ab
I was waitin' on you (you)
                  Gbmaj7                      F7
I wondered if you aware that day was the last straw for me
          Bbm         Ab
And I know I sent you flowers
             Gbmaj7
Did you even care
            F7                            Bbm
You ran the shower and left them by the stairs
        Ab               Gbmaj7
Ooh ooh ooh, ayy ayy ayy ayy ayy

            F7
Thought you had your shit together
                Bbm
But damn, I was wrong
                                  Ab
You ain't nothing but a lost cause
                                       Gbmaj7
And this ain't nothing like it once was
                                      F7
I know you think you're such an outlaw
                  Bbm
But you got no job
                                  Ab
You ain't nothing but a lost cause
                                       Gbmaj7
And this ain't nothing like it once was
                                      F7
I know you think you're such an outlaw
                  Bbm
But you got no job

Bbm
I used to think you were shy
   Ab
Or maybe you just had nothing on your mind
Gbmaj7                            F7
Maybe you were thinkin' 'bout yourself all the time
Bbm
I used to wish you were mine
    Ab
But that was way before I realized
Gbmaj7                              F7         Bbm
Someone like you would always be so easy to fiiiiind
       Ab        Gbmaj7  F7
So easy (so easy)

Bbm         Ab
 Gave me no flowers
              Gbmaj7
Wish I didn't care
                    F7
You'd been gone for hours
                 Bbm  Ab  Gbmaj7
Could be anywhere
        F7
But you would've grown eventually
                    Bbm
But you proved me wrong

                                  Ab
You ain't nothing but a lost cause
                                       Gbmaj7
And this ain't nothing like it once was
                                      F7
I know you think you're such an outlaw
                  Bbm
But you got no job
                                  Ab
You ain't nothing but a lost cause
                                       Gbmaj7
And this ain't nothing like it once was
                                      F7
I know you think you're such an outlaw
                  Bbm
But you got no job

                    Ab
What did I tell you?
                    Gbmaj7
Don't get complacent
                     F7
It's time to face it now
Bbm                 Ab
What did I tell you?
                    Gbmaj7
Don't get complacent
                     F7
It's time to face it now

End of song Play again?

Billie Eilish - Lost Cause Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Billie Eilish – Lost Cause: key and chord analysis

The song opens on Bbm and ends on F7. Its chords belong to both Db major and Bbm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

Db major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = C (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = Gb (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

Bb minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Gb (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = Ab (natural-minor colour)
#7 = A (harmonic-minor leading tone from the V chord)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the Bb minor side because it opens on Bbm, Bbm is heard 17 times while Db never appears and the major V chord points straight at Bbm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from Db 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 Db or to Bbm; 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.

Seen from Db major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	Db	Tonic — home	Db · F · Ab	—
ii	Ebm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	Eb · Gb · Bb	—
iii	Fm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	F · Ab · C	—
V7/vi	F7	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Bbmsecondary dominant	F · A · C · Eb	16×
IVmaj7	Gbmaj7	Subdominant — moves away from home	Gb · Bb · Db · F	16×
V	Ab	Dominant — strongest pull home	Ab · C · Eb	16×
vi	Bbm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	Bb · Db · F	17×
vii°	Cdim	Leading-tone chord — tension	C · Eb · Gb	—

Seen from Bb minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Bbm	Tonic — home	Bb · Db · F	17×
ii°	Cdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C · Eb · Gb	—
III	Db	Relative major — the bright side	Db · F · Ab	—
iv	Ebm	Subdominant — moves away from home	Eb · Gb · Bb	—
v	Fm	Minor dominant — soft pull	F · Ab · C	—
V7	F7	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	F · A · C · Eb	16×
VImaj7	Gbmaj7	Submediant — warm colour	Gb · Bb · Db · F	16×
VII	Ab	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	Ab · C · Eb	16×

Analysis

The key pair is Db major and its relative Bb minor (5 flats). 4 different chords appear 65 times in total; 3 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Bbm brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from Db, the same F7 is V7/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Bbm.

Chord movement

F7 Bbm DbV7/vi → visecondary resolution BbmV7 → iharmonic-minor cadence ×15

The move to watch is F7 → Bbm, heard 15 times. From the Bbm side it is V7 → i (harmonic-minor cadence: the major V resolves dramatically); from the Db side it reads V7/vi → vi (secondary resolution: F7 resolves a fourth up to Bbm). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

Db major pentatonic and Bb minor pentatonic are the same five notes (Db – Eb – F – Ab – Bb): start from Db for a brighter phrase, from Bb for a bluesier one.
Over Bbm, land on Bb, Db, F — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Ab, land on Ab, C, Eb — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Gbmaj7, land on Gb, Bb, Db — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
When F7 comes, swap the scale's Ab for A: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.

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 Db major shapes

Capo 1 + C shapes
Capo 4 + A shapes
Capo 6 + G shapes

With Bb minor shapes

Capo 1 + Am shapes
Capo 6 + Em shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

1 semitone down · capo 1 keeps the original pitch
6 semitones up · capo 6 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

Starting on Bbm, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. The chords that keep coming back are Bbm, Ab, Gbmaj7, F7; read them as vi–V–IVmaj7–V7/vi in Db or i–VII–VImaj7–V7 in Bbm. F7 is the interesting twist: in Db it is a chromatic chord (V7/vi), while in Bbm it becomes the dominant (V7) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on F7 → Bbm (V7/vi → vi in Db, V7 → i in Bbm): harmonic-minor cadence — the major V resolves dramatically. The final chord is F7; the ear comes to rest in Db.

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.