Madonna - True Blue - Chord

Key B major – G# minor Chords C, D, G, Em, D7, Am Difficulty already in its easiest key

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Capo 0

G  Em  C  D

 G                    Em
   I've had other guys            I've looked into their eyes,
C                               D                      D7
    but I never knew love before,      'til you walked through my door.
G                      Em
    I've had other lips,           I have sailed a thousand ships,
C
   but no matter where I go,
    D                           D7
   you're the one for me, baby, this I know, 'cause it's…

G                                 Em
    True love, you're the one I'm            dreaming of,
                  C
your heart fits me         like a glove,
                D                    D7
and I'm gonna be        true blue, baby I love you.

 G                         Em
   I've heard all the lines,         I've cried oh so many times,
C
    those tear drops they won't fall again,
D                               D7
    I'm so excited 'cause you're my best friend.
G                              Em
    So if you should ever doubt,            wonder what love is all about,
C
    just think back and remember, dear,
D                        D7
    those words whispered in your ear, I said...

C            D                      C
    No more sadness, I kiss it good bye,
               D                         C
    the sun is bursting right out of the sky.
                    Am                   D
    I searched the whole world for someone like you,
              D7
    don't you know, don't you know that it's

 G
    True love, oh baby, true love, oh baby,
Em                      C         D
    true love, oh baby,      true love, it's.
G
    True love, oh baby, true love, oh baby,
Em                      C         D
    true love, oh baby,      true love, it's.

G                                Em
    So if you should ever doubt,            wonder what love is all about,
C
    just think back and remember, dear,
D                        D7
    those words whispered in your ear, I said

C            D                      C
    No more sadness, I kiss it good bye,
               D                         C
    the sun is bursting right out of the sky.
                    Am                   D
    I searched the whole world for someone like you,
               D7
    don't you know, don't you know that it's

G                                 Em
    True love, you're the one I'm            dreaming of,
                   C
your heart fits me         like a glove,
                 D                    D7
and I'm gonna be        true blue, baby I love you.

G
    True love, oh baby, true love, oh baby,
Em                     C        D
    true love, oh baby,   true love, it's

End of song Play again?

Madonna - True Blue Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Madonna – True Blue: key and chord analysis

The song opens on G and ends on D. Its chords belong to both B major and G#m, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

B major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = A# (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = E (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

G# minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = E (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = F# (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: we can't honestly pick a side here — the song moves freely between B major and G# minor. Try reading the chords both ways and see which feels more like home to you.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to B or to G#m; 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 B major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	B	Tonic — home	B · D# · F#	—
bII	C	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	C · E · G	17×
ii	C#m	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C# · E · G#	—
bIII	D	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	D · F# · A	17×
bIII7	D7	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	D · F# · A · C	9×
iii	D#m	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	D# · F# · A#	—
III	D#	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	D# · G · A#	—
IV	E	Subdominant — moves away from home	E · G# · B	—
iv	Em	Minor iv — borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	E · G · B	11×
V	F#	Dominant — strongest pull home	F# · A# · C#	—
bVI	G	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	G · B · D	11×
vi	G#m	Relative minor — the melancholy side	G# · B · D#	—
bvii	Am	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C · E	2×
vii°	A#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	A# · C# · E	—

Seen from G# minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	G#m	Tonic — home	G# · B · D#	—
bii	Am	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C · E	2×
ii°	A#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	A# · C# · E	—
III	B	Relative major — the bright side	B · D# · F#	—
#III	C	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	C · E · G	17×
iv	C#m	Subdominant — moves away from home	C# · E · G#	—
#IV	D	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	D · F# · A	17×
#IV7	D7	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	D · F# · A · C	9×
v	D#m	Minor dominant — soft pull	D# · F# · A#	—
V	D#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	D# · G · A#	—
VI	E	Submediant — warm colour	E · G# · B	—
vi	Em	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	E · G · B	11×
VII	F#	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	F# · A# · C#	—
#VII	G	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	G · B · D	11×

Analysis

The key pair is B major and its relative G# minor (5 sharps). 6 different chords appear 67 times in total; 0 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. C, D, G, Em, D7 are borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

D7 G BbIII7 → bVIsecondary resolution G#m#IV7 → #VII ×7

The move to watch is D7 → G, heard 7 times. From the B side it reads bIII7 → bVI (secondary resolution: D7 resolves a fourth up to G); from the G#m side it is #IV7 → #VII. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

B major pentatonic and G# minor pentatonic are the same five notes (B – C# – D# – F# – G#): start from B for a brighter phrase, from G# for a bluesier one.
Over C, land on C, E, G — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over D, land on D, F#, A — 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.
On C, follow the chord's notes (C · E · 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 B major shapes

Capo 2 + A shapes
Capo 4 + G shapes
Capo 7 + E shapes

With G# minor shapes

Capo 4 + Em shapes
Capo 6 + Dm shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

The song is already written in its easiest key for guitar.

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is G; the ear learns where home is within a second. C, D, G, Em carry the song: bII–bIII–bVI–iv relative to B, #III–#IV–#VII–vi relative to G#m. C briefly darkens the picture: neapolitan bii — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonic. Keep an ear on D7 → G (bIII7 → bVI in B, #IV7 → #VII in G#m): secondary resolution — D7 resolves a fourth up to G. It closes on D, letting the B side have the last word.

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.