Adele - He Won't Go - Chord

Key Eb major – C minor Chords Gbm, Em, G, Bm, A, F#m, Gb Easy key C# (capo 2)

Add to Repertoire

No ratings yet

or your user informations

Capo 0

Bm  F#m  Em

Bm                      Gbm                                  Em
Some say I'll be better without you, but they don't know you like I do

Or at least the sides I thought I knew
        Bm                               Gbm
I can't bear this time, it drags on as I lose my mind
            Em
Reminded by things I find, like notes and clothes you've left behind
Bm                          Gbm
Wake me up, wake me up when all is done
                        Em
I won't rise until this battle's won, my dignity's become undone

    Em Gbm   G     G           A     Gbm
But I  won't go, I can't do it on my own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
    Em         Gbm      Bm
I'm willing to take the risk
Em Gbm   G     G           A     Gbm
 I won't go, I can't do it on my own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
    Em         Gbm      Bm
I'm willing to take the risk

   Bm                          Gbm
So petrified, I'm so scared to step into this ride
                            Em
What if I lose my heart and fail, declined

I won't forgive me if I give up trying
            Bm                             Gbm
I heard his voice today, I didn't know a single word he said
                           Em
Not one resemblance to the man I met, just a vacant broken boy instead

    Em Gbm   G     G           A     Gbm
But I  won't go, I can't do it on my own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
    Em         Gbm      Bm
I'm willing to take the risk
Em Gbm   G     G           A     Gbm
 I won't go, I can't do it on my own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
       Em         Gbm      Em
I, I'm willing to take the risk

           F#m                     Bm
There will be times, we'll try and give it up
                          
Bursting at the seams, no doubt
Em                                   Gbm
   We'll almost fall apart, then burn to pieces
G                                  Gb
   So watch them turn to dust, but nothing will ever taint us

Em Gbm   G     G           A     Gbm
 I won't go, I can't do it on my own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
    Em         Gbm      Bm
I'm willing to take the risk
Em Gbm   G     G           A     Gbm
 I won't go, I can't do it on my own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
       Em         Gbm      Bm
I, I'm willing to take the risk

                    F#m
Will he, will he still remember me
                           Em
Will he still love me even when he's free
                                                                Bm
Or will he go back to the place where he will choose the poison over me
                  Gbm                                          Em
When we spoke yesterday, he said to hold my breath and sit and wait

I'll be home so soon, I won't be late

Em Gbm   G      G           A      Gbm
He won't go, he can't do it on his own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
     Em         Gbm      Bm
He's willing to take the risk
  Em Gbm   G      G           A      Gbm
So I won't go, he can't do it on his own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
    Em         Gbm      Bm
I'm willing to take the risk

       Em Gbm   G      G           A      Gbm
'Cause he won't go, he can't do it on his own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
      Em         Gbm      Bm
We're willing to take the risk
Em Gbm   G     G           A    Gbm
 I won't go, I can't do it on my own
   Gbm              G       Em
If this ain't love, then what is
    Em         Gbm      Bm     
I'm willing to take the risk.

End of song Play again?

Adele - He Won't Go Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Adele – He Won't Go: key and chord analysis

The song opens on Bm and ends on Bm. Its chords belong to both Eb major and Cm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

Eb major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

C minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Ab (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = Bb (natural-minor colour)
#7 = B (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 C minor side because the major V chord points straight at Cm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from Eb 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 Eb or to Cm; 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 Eb major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	Eb	Tonic — home	Eb · G · Bb	—
bii	Em	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	E · G · B	40×
ii	Fm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	F · Ab · C	—
biii	Gbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · A · Db	47×
biii	F#m	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F# · A · C#	3×
bIII	Gb	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	Gb · Bb · Db	1×
iii	Gm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	G · Bb · D	—
III	G	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	G · B · D	31×
IV	Ab	Subdominant — moves away from home	Ab · C · Eb	—
#IV	A	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C# · E	10×
V	Bb	Dominant — strongest pull home	Bb · D · F	—
bvi	Bm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	B · D · F#	17×
vi	Cm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	C · Eb · G	—
vii°	Ddim	Leading-tone chord — tension	D · F · Ab	—

Seen from C minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Cm	Tonic — home	C · Eb · G	—
ii°	Ddim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D · F · Ab	—
III	Eb	Relative major — the bright side	Eb · G · Bb	—
#iii	Em	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	E · G · B	40×
iv	Fm	Subdominant — moves away from home	F · Ab · C	—
#iv	Gbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · A · Db	47×
#iv	F#m	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F# · A · C#	3×
#IV	Gb	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · Bb · Db	1×
v	Gm	Minor dominant — soft pull	G · Bb · D	—
V	G	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	G · B · D	31×
VI	Ab	Submediant — warm colour	Ab · C · Eb	—
#VI	A	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C# · E	10×
VII	Bb	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	Bb · D · F	—
#vii	Bm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	B · D · F#	17×

Analysis

The key pair is Eb major and its relative C minor (3 flats). 7 different chords appear 149 times in total; 0 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Cm brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull. Gb 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

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

Capo 1 + D shapes
Capo 3 + C shapes
Capo 6 + A shapes

With C minor shapes

Capo 3 + Am shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

2 semitones down · capo 2 keeps the original pitch
5 semitones up · capo 7 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is Bm; the ear learns where home is within a second. The chords that keep coming back are Gbm, Em, G, Bm; read them as biii–bii–III–bvi in Eb or #iv–#iii–V–#vii in Cm. G is the interesting twist: in Eb it is a chromatic chord (III), while in Cm it becomes the dominant (V) that makes the minor side sound so determined. It closes on Bm, letting the Eb 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.