Major view
Gb major
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
- 7 = F (leading tone, pulls home)
- 4 = Cb (the note that leans on the 3rd)
Key Gb major – Eb minor Chords Ebm, Db, Ab, B Easy key G
Ebm
On a long and lonesome highway, east of Omaha
Db
You can listen to the engine moanin' out it's one lone song
Ab Ebm
You can think about the woman, or the girl you knew the night before
Ebm
But your thoughts will soon be wandering the way they always do
Db
When you're riding sixteen hours and there's nothing much to do
Ab Ebm
And you don't feel much like riding, you just wish the trip was through
Ebm Db Ebm
Say, here I am, on the road again
Db Ebm
There I am, up on the stage
Db Ab
Here I go, playing star again
B Db Ebm
There I go, turn the page, ah
Ebm
Well, you walk into a restaurant, strung out from the road
Db
And you feel the eyes upon you as you're shaking off the cold
Ab Ebm
You pretend it doesn't bother you but you just want to explode
Ebm
Most times you can't hear 'em talk, other times you can
Db
All the same old clichés: "Is that a woman or a man?"
Ab Ebm
And you always seem outnumbered, you don't dare make a stand
Ebm Db Ebm
Here I am, on the road again
Db Ebm
There I am, up on the stage
Db Ab
Here I go, playing star again
B Db Ebm
There I go, turn the page, ah
Ebm
Out there in the spotlight you're a million miles away
Db
Every ounce of energy you try to give away
Ab Ebm
As the sweat pours out your body like the music that you play
Ebm
Later in the evening as you lie awake in bed
Db
With the echoes from the amplifiers ringin' in your head
Ab Ebm
You smoke the day's last cigarette, remembering what she said
Ebm Db Ebm
Ah, here I am, on the road again
Db Ebm
There I am, up on the stage
Db Ab
Here I go, playing star again
B Db Ebm
There I go, turn the page
Ebm Db Ebm
Ah, here I am, on the road again
Db Ebm
There I am, up on the stage
Db Ab
Here I go, playing star again
B Db Ebm
There I go, there I go
End of song Play again?
Harmony analysis
The song opens on Ebm and ends on Ebm. Its chords belong to both Gb major and Ebm, so every chord below is read both ways.
Major view
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
Minor view
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
Which side does the ear lean to?
Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the Eb minor side because it both starts and finishes on Ebm and Ebm is heard 28 times while Gb never appears. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from Gb major, and switching between the two views is exactly where the practice value lies.
Show the degrees above the chords — relative to Gb or to Ebm; 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.
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | Gb | Tonic — home | Gb · Bb · Db | — |
| ii | Abm | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | Ab · Cb · Eb | — |
| V/V | Ab | Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Dbsecondary dominant | Ab · C · Eb | 10× |
| iii | Bbm | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | Bb · Db · F | — |
| V/vi | Bb | Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Ebmsecondary dominant | Bb · D · F | — |
| IV | B | Subdominant — moves away from home | B · D# · F# | 4× |
| V | Db | Dominant — strongest pull home | Db · F · Ab | 22× |
| vi | Ebm | Relative minor — the melancholy side | Eb · Gb · Bb | 28× |
| vii° | Fdim | Leading-tone chord — tension | F · Ab · Cb | — |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | Ebm | Tonic — home | Eb · Gb · Bb | 28× |
| ii° | Fdim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | F · Ab · Cb | — |
| III | Gb | Relative major — the bright side | Gb · Bb · Db | — |
| iv | Abm | Subdominant — moves away from home | Ab · Cb · Eb | — |
| IV | Ab | Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour | Ab · C · Eb | 10× |
| v | Bbm | Minor dominant — soft pull | Bb · Db · F | — |
| V | Bb | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | Bb · D · F | — |
| VI | B | Submediant — warm colour | B · D# · F# | 4× |
| VII | Db | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | Db · F · Ab | 22× |
The key pair is Gb major and its relative Eb minor (6 flats). 4 different chords appear 64 times in total; 3 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Ab acts as a secondary dominant, briefly pointing at another chord of the key.
The move to watch is Db → Ebm, heard 12 times. From the Ebm side it is VII → i (Aeolian arrival: rises a whole tone into home); from the Gb side it reads V → vi (deceptive cadence: expected Gb, lands on Ebm). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.
Empty slices are chords the song doesn't use.
Starting on Ebm, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. Ebm, Db, Ab, B carry the song: vi–V–V/V–IV relative to Gb, i–VII–IV–VI relative to Ebm. Ab adds a moment of surprise: secondary dominant V/V — leads to Db. Keep an ear on Db → Ebm (V → vi in Gb, VII → i in Ebm): Aeolian arrival — rises a whole tone into home. The final chord is Ebm; the ear comes to rest in Ebm.
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.
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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