Whitney Houston - One Moment in Time - Chord

Key A major – F# minor Chords G, C, Ab, Am, G/B, Db, Dm7, F … Easy key E (capo 5)

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Capo 0

C  Am  Gbm7  Dm7  F/G  C

         C                        G
Each day I live I want to be a day to give the best of me
        C      Em    F             G
I'm only one but not alone. My finest day is yet unknown

  G/B     C                                 G
I broke my heart for every gain. To taste the sweet I faced the pain
          C                  F               G
I rise and fall, yet through it all this much remains

F/G   G    C     G/B   Am           Dm7                       G
I    want one moment in  time when I'm more than i thought I could be
     F        G          C    G/B   Am
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
       Dm7                 G
and the answers are all up to me
F/G  G/B C      G/B    Am           Dm7            G
Give  me one moment in  time when I'm racing with destiny
F   G           C   G/B  Am
Then in that one moment of time
      Dm7            Gsus4   G    C Am G
I will feel, I will feel  eternity

            C                        G
I've lived to be the very best. I want it all, no time for less
            C          Em      F                G
I've laid the plans, now lay the chance here in my hands

F/G  G  C      G/B   Am          Dm7        C9              G
Give me one moment in time when I'm more than i thought I could be
     F        G          C    G/B   Am
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
        Dm7                G
and the answers are all up to me.
F/G  G C      G/B   Am           Dm7        C     G
Give me one moment in time when I'm racing with destiny
F   G           C  G/B   Am
Then in that one moment of time
      Dm7     C     Gsus4    G   C
I will feel,  I will feel  eternity

Ab          C
You're a winner for a lifetime
Ab                  Ab   Abdim   F   G4   G          Absus4 Ab
if you seize that one mo   ment    in  time.  Make it shine

Gb/G#   Ab Db   Ab/C    Bbm          Ebm       Db             Ab
Give   me one moment in time when I'm more than i thought I could be
     Gb      Ab           Db  Ab/C   Bbm
When all of my dreams are a heartbeat away
Fm        Ebm7        Db        Ab
   and the answers are all up to me.
Gb/G#   Ab Db   Ab/C    Bbm          Ebm        Db   Ab
Give   me one moment in time when I'm racing with destiny
Gb  Ab         Db  Ab/C  Bbm    Fm
Then in that one moment of time,
     Ebm     Db       Absus4 Ab
I will be,        I will be
Ab        Db  Ab/C Bbm7 Fm Gb
I will be free
 Ab               Db
I will be, I will be free

End of song Play again?

Whitney Houston - One Moment in Time Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Whitney Houston – One Moment in Time: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

A major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

F# minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = D (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = E (natural-minor colour)
#7 = E# (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 F# minor side because F#m is heard 1 times while A never appears and the major V chord points straight at F#m. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from A 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 A or to F#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 A major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	A	Tonic — home	A · C# · E	—
i	Am	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C · E	10×
bii	Bbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Bb · Db · F	4×
bii7	Bbm7	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Bb · Db · F · Ab	1×
ii	Bm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	B · D · F#	—
bIII	C	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	C · E · G	21×
bIII7	C9	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	C · E · G · Bb · D	1×
iii	C#m	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	C# · E · G#	—
V/vi	Db	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Gbmsecondary dominant	Db · F · Ab	10×
IV	D	Subdominant — moves away from home	D · F# · A	—
iv7	Dm7	Minor iv — borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	D · F · A · C	9×
#iv	Ebm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Eb · Gb · Bb	3×
#iv7	Ebm7	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Eb · Gb · Bb · Db	1×
V	E	Dominant — strongest pull home	E · G# · B	—
v	Em	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	E · G · B	2×
bVI	F	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	F · A · C	8×
bVI	F/G	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	F · A · C	5×
bvi	Fm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F · Ab · C	3×
vi7	Gbm7	Relative minor — the melancholy side	Gb · A · Db · Fb	1×
VI	Gb	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · Bb · Db	3×
VI	Gb/G#	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · Bb · Db	2×
bVII	G	bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord	G · B · D	23×
bVII	G/B	bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord	G · B · D	10×
bVIIsus4	Gsus4	bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord	G · C · D	2×
bVII	G4	bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord	G · B · D	1×
VIIsus4	Absus4	Leading-tone chord — tension	Ab · Db · Eb	2×
vii°	Abdim	Leading-tone chord — tension	Ab · Cb · D	1×
V/iii	Ab	Secondary dominant V/iii — leads to Dbmsecondary dominant	Ab · C · Eb	14×
V/iii	Ab/C	Secondary dominant V/iii — leads to Dbmsecondary dominant	Ab · C · Eb	5×

Seen from F# minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i7	Gbm7	Tonic — home	Gb · A · Db · Fb	1×
I	Gb	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · Bb · Db	3×
I	Gb/G#	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · Bb · Db	2×
bII	G	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	G · B · D	23×
bII	G/B	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	G · B · D	10×
bIIsus4	Gsus4	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	G · C · D	2×
bII	G4	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	G · B · D	1×
IIsus4	Absus4	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	Ab · Db · Eb	2×
ii°	Abdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	Ab · Cb · D	1×
V/v	Ab	Secondary dominant V/v — leads to Dbmsecondary dominant	Ab · C · Eb	14×
V/v	Ab/C	Secondary dominant V/v — leads to Dbmsecondary dominant	Ab · C · Eb	5×
III	A	Relative major — the bright side	A · C# · E	—
iii	Am	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C · E	10×
#iii	Bbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Bb · Db · F	4×
#iii7	Bbm7	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Bb · Db · F · Ab	1×
iv	Bm	Subdominant — moves away from home	B · D · F#	—
#IV	C	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	C · E · G	21×
#IV7	C9	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	C · E · G · Bb · D	1×
v	C#m	Minor dominant — soft pull	C# · E · G#	—
V	Db	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	Db · F · Ab	10×
VI	D	Submediant — warm colour	D · F# · A	—
vi7	Dm7	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	D · F · A · C	9×
#vi	Ebm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Eb · Gb · Bb	3×
#vi7	Ebm7	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Eb · Gb · Bb · Db	1×
VII	E	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	E · G# · B	—
vii	Em	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	E · G · B	2×
#VII	F	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F · A · C	8×
#VII	F/G	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F · A · C	5×
#vii	Fm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F · Ab · C	3×

Analysis

The key pair is A major and its relative F# minor (3 sharps). 24 different chords appear 142 times in total; 3 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of F#m brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from A, the same Db is V/vi, a secondary dominant heading for F#m. Ab, Ab/C act as secondary dominants, briefly pointing at another chord of the key. G, C, G/B, Dm7, F, F/G, Gsus4, C9, G4 are 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

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

No capo — open A shapes
Capo 2 + G shapes
Capo 5 + E shapes

With F# minor shapes

Capo 2 + Em shapes
Capo 4 + Dm shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

5 semitones down · capo 5 keeps the original pitch
3 semitones down · capo 3 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is C; the ear learns where home is within a second. The chords that keep coming back are G, C, Ab, Am; read them as bVII–bIII–V/iii–i in A or bII–#IV–V/v–iii in F#m. Ab is the interesting twist: in A it is a chromatic chord (V/iii), while in F#m it becomes the dominant (V/v) that makes the minor side sound so determined. The final chord is Db; the ear comes to rest in A.

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.

Whitney Houston - One Moment in Time 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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