Major view
G major
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
- 7 = F# (leading tone, pulls home)
- 4 = C (the note that leans on the 3rd)
Hozier - Take Me To Church - Chord
Key G major – E minor Chords Am, G, Em, C, B7, F#, D, Cm … Difficulty already in its easiest key
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Key: G | Em
Capo: 0
Em Am Em
My lover's got humour
Am G
She's the giggle at a funeral
Am Em
Knows everybody's disapproval
Am Em
I should've worshipped her sooner
Am Em
If the Heavens ever did speak
Am G
She is the last true mouth piece
Am Em
Every Sunday's getting more bleak
Am D
A fresh poison each week
C Em
'We were born sick, you heard them say it
Am Em
My church offers no absolutes
Am G
She tells me 'worship in the bedroom'
Am Em
The only heaven I'll be sent to
Am D
Is when I'm alone with you
C
I was born sick, but I love it
Command me to be well
G C G C G Cm G G F# F# F
Aaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaamen Aaaaaaaamen Amen
Em
Take me to church
B7
I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
G
I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
Am
Offer me that deathless death
Em Am G G F# = *power chords
Good God, let me give you my life
Em Am
If I'm a pagan of the good times
Em Am
My lover's the sunlight
G Am
To keep the Goddess on my side
Em Am
She demands a sacrifice
D
To drain the whole sea
C
Get something shiny
Em Am Em
Something meaty for the main course
Am G
That's a fine looking high horse
Am Em
What you got in the stable?
Am
We've a lot of starving faithful
D
That looks tasty
C
That looks plenty
C G F# F# F
This is hungry work
Em
Take me to church
B7
I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
G
I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
Am
Offer me that deathless death
Em Am G G F# = *power chords
Good God, let me give you my life
C G B7 Em
No masters or kings when the ritual begins
C G B7 Em
There is no sweeter innocence than our gentle sin
C G B7 Em
In the madness and soil of that sad earthly scene
C G
Only then I am human
B7 Em D C
Only then I am clean
G C G Cm G Cm G G F# F# F
Amenm Amen Amen
Em
Take me to church
B7
I'll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
G
I'll tell you my sins and you can sharpen your knife
Am
Offer me that deathless death
Em Am G G F# = *power chords
Good God, let me give you my life
End of song Play again?
Hozier - Take Me To Church Tabs
NotesX
Harmony analysis
Hozier – Take Me To Church: key and chord analysis
The song opens on Em and ends on Am. Its chords belong to both G major and Em, so every chord below is read both ways.
Minor view
E minor
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
- b6 = C (the minor's melancholy)
- b7 = D (natural-minor colour)
- #7 = D# (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 E minor side because it opens on Em, G is heard 23 times against 22 for Em and the major V chord points straight at Em. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from G 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 G or to Em; 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 | G | Tonic — home | G · B · D | 23× |
| ii | Am | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | A · C · E | 23× |
| iii | Bm | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | B · D · F# | — |
| V7/vi | B7 | Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Emsecondary dominant | B · D# · F# · A | 7× |
| IV | C | Subdominant — moves away from home | C · E · G | 13× |
| iv | Cm | Minor iv — borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord | C · Eb · G | 3× |
| V | D | Dominant — strongest pull home | D · F# · A | 5× |
| vi | Em | Relative minor — the melancholy side | E · G · B | 22× |
| bVII | F | bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord | F · A · C | 3× |
| vii° | F#dim | Leading-tone chord — tension | F# · A · C | — |
| V/iii | F# | Secondary dominant V/iii — leads to Bmsecondary dominant | F# · A# · C# | 6× |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | Em | Tonic — home | E · G · B | 22× |
| bII | F | Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord | F · A · C | 3× |
| ii° | F#dim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | F# · A · C | — |
| V/v | F# | Secondary dominant V/v — leads to Bmsecondary dominant | F# · A# · C# | 6× |
| III | G | Relative major — the bright side | G · B · D | 23× |
| iv | Am | Subdominant — moves away from home | A · C · E | 23× |
| v | Bm | Minor dominant — soft pull | B · D · F# | — |
| V7 | B7 | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | B · D# · F# · A | 7× |
| VI | C | Submediant — warm colour | C · E · G | 13× |
| vi | Cm | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | C · Eb · G | 3× |
| VII | D | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | D · F# · A | 5× |
Analysis
The key pair is G major and its relative E minor (1 sharp). 9 different chords appear 105 times in total; 5 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Em brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from G, the same B7 is V7/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Em. F# acts as a secondary dominant, briefly pointing at another chord of the key. Cm, F are borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.
Chord movement
- Am Em Gii → vi Emiv → iminor plagal ×12
- C G GIV → Iplagal cadence EmVI → III ×10
- B7 Em GV7/vi → visecondary resolution EmV7 → iharmonic-minor cadence ×4
- Am D Gii → Vii → V Emiv → VII ×4
- Cm G Giv → Iminor plagal Emvi → III ×3
- C Em GIV → vi EmVI → iVI → i ×2
The move to watch is Am → Em, heard 12 times. From the Em side it is iv → i (minor plagal: deep and melancholic); from the G side it reads ii → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.
Improvisation tips
- G major pentatonic and E minor pentatonic are the same five notes (G – A – B – D – E): start from G for a brighter phrase, from E for a bluesier one.
- Over Am, land on A, C, E — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over G, land on G, B, D — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- Over Em, land on E, G, B — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- When B7 comes, swap the scale's D for D#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.
- On Cm, follow the chord's notes (C · Eb · G) 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 G major shapes
- No capo — open G shapes
- Capo 3 + E shapes
- Capo 5 + D shapes
With E minor shapes
- No capo — open Em shapes
- Capo 2 + Dm shapes
- Capo 7 + Am shapes
Easiest keys on guitar
The song is already written in its easiest key for guitar.
The song's harmonic story
The opening Em lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The backbone is Am, G, Em, C — ii–I–vi–IV from the G side, iv–III–i–VI from the Em side. B7 is the interesting twist: in G it is a chromatic chord (V7/vi), while in Em it becomes the dominant (V7) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on Am → Em (ii → vi in G, iv → i in Em): minor plagal — deep and melancholic. Ending on Am, the song seals G 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.
Hozier - Take Me To Church 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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