Miley Cyrus - Heart Of Glass - Chord

Key E major – C# minor Chords E, Db, Dbm, A, Gb, B Easy key G

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Capo 0

E                          Db
Once I'd love and it was a gas;
Dbm                               E
soon turned out, I had a heart of glass
                                   Db
Seemed like the real thing only to find;
Dbm                          E
much mistrust, love's gone behind

E                          Db
Once I'd love and it was divine;
Dbm                            E
soon found out I was losing my mind
                                           Db
It seemed like the real thing but I was so blind;
Dbm                          E
much mistrust, love's gone behind

A                                           E
In between, what I find is pleasing and I'm feeling fine
                                A
Love is so confusing there's no peace of mind,

if I fear I'm losing you
     Gb                B                E
It's just no good, you teasing like you do

E                          Db
Once I'd love and it was a gas;
Dbm                               E
soon turned out, I had a heart of glass
                                   Db
Seemed like the real thing only to find;
Dbm                          E
much mistrust, love's gone behind

A                                    E
Lost inside, adorable illusion and I cannot hide
                                       A
I'm the one you're using, please don't push me aside,
                              E
we could've made it crusin’, yeah

A  E  A  E

      Gb             B
Yeah, riding high on love's true bluish light

E
Ooo ooo oo  Ooo ooo ooo  Ooo ooo oo  Ooo ooo oo

E                          Db
Once I'd love and it was a gas;
Dbm                                 E
soon turned out to be a pain in the ass
                                   Db
Seemed like the real thing only to find;
Dbm                           E
mucho mistrust, love's gone behind

E
Ooo ooo wo  Ooo ooo wo  Ooo ooo wo  Ooo ooo wo

End of song Play again?

Miley Cyrus - Heart Of Glass Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Miley Cyrus – Heart Of Glass: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

E major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

C# minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = A (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = B (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the E major side because it both starts and finishes on E and E is heard 20 times against 8 for C#m. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from C# minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to E or to C#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 E major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	E	Tonic — home	E · G# · B	20×
ii	F#m	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	F# · A · C#	—
V/V	Gb	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Bsecondary dominant	Gb · Bb · Db	2×
iii	G#m	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	G# · B · D#	—
V/vi	G#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Dbmsecondary dominant	G# · B# · D#	—
IV	A	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C# · E	6×
V	B	Dominant — strongest pull home	B · D# · F#	2×
vi	Dbm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	Db · Fb · Ab	8×
V/ii	Db	Secondary dominant V/ii — leads to Gbmsecondary dominant	Db · F · Ab	8×
vii°	D#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	D# · F# · A	—

Seen from C# minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Dbm	Tonic — home	Db · Fb · Ab	8×
V/iv	Db	Secondary dominant V/iv — leads to Gbmsecondary dominant	Db · F · Ab	8×
ii°	D#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D# · F# · A	—
III	E	Relative major — the bright side	E · G# · B	20×
iv	F#m	Subdominant — moves away from home	F# · A · C#	—
IV	Gb	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	Gb · Bb · Db	2×
v	G#m	Minor dominant — soft pull	G# · B · D#	—
V	G#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	G# · B# · D#	—
VI	A	Submediant — warm colour	A · C# · E	6×
VII	B	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	B · D# · F#	2×

Analysis

The key pair is E major and its relative C# minor (4 sharps). 6 different chords appear 46 times in total; 4 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Db, Gb act as secondary dominants, briefly pointing at another chord of the key.

Chord movement

A E EIV → Iplagal cadence C#mVI → III ×5
B E EV → Iauthentic cadence C#mVII → III ×2

The move to watch is A → E, heard 5 times. From the E side it reads IV → I (plagal cadence: the soft 'amen' ending); from the C#m side it is VI → III. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

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

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 E major shapes

No capo — open E shapes
Capo 2 + D shapes
Capo 4 + C shapes

With C# minor shapes

Capo 4 + Am shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

3 semitones up
4 semitones down · capo 4 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is E; the ear learns where home is within a second. E, Db, Dbm, A carry the song: I–V/ii–vi–IV relative to E, III–V/iv–i–VI relative to C#m. Db adds a moment of surprise: secondary dominant V/ii — leads to Gbm. Keep an ear on A → E (IV → I in E, VI → III in C#m): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. It closes on E, letting the E 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.