Shawn Mendes - If I Can't Have You - Chord

Key D major – B minor Chords Gbm, Em, G, Bm Easy key C (capo 2)

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Capo 0

G  Gbm  Em  Gbm  G
I can't write one song that's not about you
            Gbm    Em             Gbm  G
Can't drink    without thinking about you
       Gbm  Em           Gbm
Is it too  late to tell you that
G                 Gbm          Em
Everything means nothing if I can't have you

G  Gbm  Bm  Em  Gbm 

G                       Gbm      Bm
  I'm in Toronto and I got this view
       Em                          Gbm
But I might as well be in a hotel room, yeah
G                               Gbm   Bm
  It doesn't matter 'cause I'm so consumed
         Em                     Em         Gbm
Spending all my nights reading texts from you

G                Gbm        Bm
Oh, I'm good at keeping my distance
    Em                  Em          Gbm
I know that you're the feeling I'm missing
 G               Gbm       Bm
You know that I hate to admit it
    G                 Gbm          Em
But everything means nothing if I can't have you

G             Gbm  Em               Gbm  G
I can't write one song that's not about you
            Gbm    Em             Gbm  G
Can't drink    without thinking about you
       Gbm  Em           Gbm
Is it too  late to tell you that
G                 Gbm          Em
Everything means nothing if I can't have you

G             Gbm  Em               Gbm  G
I can't write one song that's not about you
            Gbm    Em             Gbm  G
Can't drink    without thinking about you
       Gbm  Em           Gbm
Is it too  late to tell you that
G                 Gbm          Em
Everything means nothing if I can't have you

G                       Gbm     Bm
  I'm so sorry that my timing's off
       Em                                 Gbm
But I can't move on if we're still gonna talk
G                        Gbm      Bm
  Is it wrong for me to not want half
       Em                     Em      Gbm
I want all of you, all the strings attached

G                Gbm        Bm
Oh, I'm good at keeping my distance
    Em                  Em          Gbm
I know that you're the feeling I'm missing
 G               Gbm       Bm
You know that I hate to admit it
    G                 Gbm          Em
But everything means nothing if I can't have you

G             Gbm  Em               Gbm  G
I can't write one song that's not about you
            Gbm    Em             Gbm  G
Can't drink    without thinking about you
       Gbm  Em           Gbm
Is it too  late to tell you that
G                 Gbm          Em
Everything means nothing if I can't have you

G             Gbm  Em               Gbm  G
I can't write one song that's not about you
            Gbm    Em             Gbm  G
Can't drink    without thinking about you
       Gbm  Em           Gbm
Is it too  late to tell you that
G                 Gbm          Em
Everything means nothing if I can't have you

G                       Gbm            Bm
  I'm trying to move on,    forget you,   but I hold on
Em                                          Gbm
Everything means nothing, everything means nothing, babe
G                       Gbm            Bm
  I'm trying to move on,    forget you,   but I hold on
G                 Gbm          Em
Everything means nothing if I can't have you

G             Gbm  Em               Gbm  G
I can't write one song that's not about you
            Gbm    Em             Gbm  G
Can't drink    without thinking about you
       Gbm  Em           Gbm
Is it too  late to tell you that
G                 Gbm          Em
Everything means nothing if I can't have you

G             Gbm  Em               Gbm  G
I can't write one song that's not about you
            Gbm    Em             Gbm  G
Can't drink    without thinking about you
       Gbm  Em           Gbm
Is it too  late to tell you that
G                 Gbm          Em
Everything means nothing if I can't have you

End of song Play again?

Shawn Mendes - If I Can't Have You Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Shawn Mendes – If I Can't Have You: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

D major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

B minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

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

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the B minor side because Bm is heard 11 times while D never appears. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from D 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 D or to Bm; 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 D major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	D	Tonic — home	D · F# · A	—
ii	Em	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	E · G · B	43×
iii	Gbm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	Gb · A · Db	71×
V/vi	F#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Bmsecondary dominant	F# · A# · C#	—
IV	G	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · B · D	42×
V	A	Dominant — strongest pull home	A · C# · E	—
vi	Bm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	B · D · F#	11×
vii°	C#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	C# · E · G	—

Seen from B minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Bm	Tonic — home	B · D · F#	11×
ii°	C#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C# · E · G	—
III	D	Relative major — the bright side	D · F# · A	—
iv	Em	Subdominant — moves away from home	E · G · B	43×
v	Gbm	Minor dominant — soft pull	Gb · A · Db	71×
V	F#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	F# · A# · C#	—
VI	G	Submediant — warm colour	G · B · D	42×
VII	A	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	A · C# · E	—

Analysis

The key pair is D major and its relative B minor (2 sharps). 4 different chords appear 167 times in total; 4 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Everything stays inside one scale, which is why the song is easy to follow by ear.

Chord movement

Gbm Bm Diii → vi Bmv → inatural-minor cadence ×11

The move to watch is Gbm → Bm, heard 11 times. From the Bm side it is v → i (natural-minor cadence: gentle, modal arrival); from the D side it reads iii → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

D major pentatonic and B minor pentatonic are the same five notes (D – E – F# – A – B): start from D for a brighter phrase, from B 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.

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 D major shapes

No capo — open D shapes
Capo 2 + C shapes
Capo 5 + A shapes

With B minor shapes

Capo 2 + Am shapes
Capo 7 + Em 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 G; the ear learns where home is within a second. The chords that keep coming back are Gbm, Em, G, Bm; read them as iii–ii–IV–vi in D or v–iv–VI–i in Bm. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on Gbm → Bm (iii → vi in D, v → i in Bm): natural-minor cadence — gentle, modal arrival. The final chord is Em; the ear comes to rest in D.

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.