Elton John - Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word - Chord

Key Bb major – G minor Chords Cm, Gm, D7, F, Eb, Bb, C, A# Easy key G (capo 3)

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Capo 0

Gm                                    Cm
    What have I got to do to make you love me,
F                                     Bb   Cm   D7
    what have I got to do to make you care ?
Gm                              Cm
    What do I do when lightning strikes me,
F                                     Bb     Cm   D7
    and I wake to find that you're not there ?
 

Gm                           Cm
    What do I do to make you want me,
F                               Bb  Cm   D7
    what have I got to do to be heard ?
Gm                              Cm
    What do I say when it's all over,
             F                        Bb     F
    and sorry seems to be the hardest word ?


Cm           D7           Gm                 C
    It's sad,    so sad,     it's a sad, sad situation,
Eb                   D7            Gm    Cm   D7
    and it's getting more and more absurd.
Cm            D7              Gm              C
    It's sad,        so sad,     why can't we talk it over ?
Eb                     Cm             D7             Gm     
    Oh it seems to me, sorry seems to be the hardest word.
 

Gm  Cm  F  A#  Cm  D7
Gm  Cm  F  A#  F


Cm           D7           Gm                 C
    It's sad,    so sad,     it's a sad, sad situation,
Eb                   D7            Gm    Cm   D7
    and it's getting more and more absurd.
Cm            D7              Gm              C
    It's sad,        so sad,     why can't we talk it over ?
Eb                     Cm             D7             Gm     
    Oh it seems to me, sorry seems to be the hardest word.


Gm                           Cm
    What do I do to make you love me,
F                               Bb  Cm   D7
    what have I got to do to be heard?
Gm                              Cm          Eb
    What do I do when lightning strikes me ?
       Cm              D7    Gm                 Eb
    What have I got to do ?  What have I got to do,
         Cm            D7              Gm       
    When sorry seems to be the hardest word

End of song Play again?

Elton John - Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word Tabs

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Harmony analysis

Elton John – Sorry Seems To Be The Hardest Word: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

Bb major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

G minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Eb (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = F (natural-minor colour)
#7 = F# (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 G minor side because it both starts and finishes on Gm, Gm is heard 18 times against 7 for Bb and the major V chord points straight at Gm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from Bb 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 Bb or to Gm; 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 Bb major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	Bb	Tonic — home	Bb · D · F	5×
I	A#	Tonic — home	A# · D · E#	2×
ii	Cm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C · Eb · G	23×
V/V	C	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Fsecondary dominant	C · E · G	4×
iii	Dm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	D · F · A	—
V7/vi	D7	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Gmsecondary dominant	D · F# · A · C	17×
IV	Eb	Subdominant — moves away from home	Eb · G · Bb	6×
V	F	Dominant — strongest pull home	F · A · C	9×
vi	Gm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	G · Bb · D	18×
vii°	Adim	Leading-tone chord — tension	A · C · Eb	—

Seen from G minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Gm	Tonic — home	G · Bb · D	18×
ii°	Adim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	A · C · Eb	—
III	Bb	Relative major — the bright side	Bb · D · F	5×
III	A#	Relative major — the bright side	A# · D · E#	2×
iv	Cm	Subdominant — moves away from home	C · Eb · G	23×
IV	C	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	C · E · G	4×
v	Dm	Minor dominant — soft pull	D · F · A	—
V7	D7	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	D · F# · A · C	17×
VI	Eb	Submediant — warm colour	Eb · G · Bb	6×
VII	F	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	F · A · C	9×

Analysis

The key pair is Bb major and its relative G minor (2 flats). 8 different chords appear 84 times in total; 6 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Gm brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from Bb, the same D7 is V7/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Gm. C acts as a secondary dominant, briefly pointing at another chord of the key.

Chord movement

D7 Gm BbV7/vi → visecondary resolution GmV7 → iharmonic-minor cadence ×15
Cm D7 Bbii → V7/vi Gmiv → V7iv → V ×15
Cm F Bbii → Vii → V Gmiv → VII ×7
F Bb BbV → Iauthentic cadence GmVII → III ×5
F A# BbV → Iauthentic cadence GmVII → III ×2

The move to watch is D7 → Gm, heard 15 times. From the Gm side it is V7 → i (harmonic-minor cadence: the major V resolves dramatically); from the Bb side it reads V7/vi → vi (secondary resolution: D7 resolves a fourth up to Gm). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

Bb major pentatonic and G minor pentatonic are the same five notes (Bb – C – D – F – G): start from Bb for a brighter phrase, from G for a bluesier one.
Over Cm, land on C, Eb, G — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Gm, land on G, Bb, D — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over D7, land on D, F#, A — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
When D7 comes, swap the scale's F for F#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.

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 Bb major shapes

Capo 1 + A shapes
Capo 3 + G shapes
Capo 6 + E shapes

With G minor shapes

Capo 3 + Em shapes
Capo 5 + Dm shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

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

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is Gm; the ear learns where home is within a second. The backbone is Cm, Gm, D7, F — ii–vi–V7/vi–V from the Bb side, iv–i–V7–VII from the Gm side. D7 is the interesting twist: in Bb it is a chromatic chord (V7/vi), while in Gm it becomes the dominant (V7) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on D7 → Gm (V7/vi → vi in Bb, V7 → i in Gm): harmonic-minor cadence — the major V resolves dramatically. The final chord is Gm; the ear comes to rest in Gm.

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.