Major view
C major
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
- 7 = B (leading tone, pulls home)
- 4 = F (the note that leans on the 3rd)
Santana - Maria Maria (The Product GB) - Chord
Key C major – A minor Chords Am, G, Dm, Em, F, E, E/G# Difficulty already in its easiest key
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Key: C | Am
Capo: 0
Am
Dm
Maria Maria
Am
She reminds me of a west side story
Em
Growing up in Spanish Harlem
Am
She's living the life just like a movie star
Dm
Maria Maria
Am
She fell in love in East L.A.
Em
To the sounds of the guitar, yeah, yeah
Am
Played by Carlos Santana
Am
Stop the looting, stop the shooting
G
Pick pocking on the corner
F
See as the rich is getting richer
G E/G#
The poor is getting poorer
Am
Se Mira Maria on the corner
G
Thinking of ways to make it better
F
In my mailbox there's an eviction letter
G E
Somebody just said see you later
Am
Ahora vengo mama chola mama chola
Ahora vengo mama chola
Ahora vengo mama chola mama chola
Ahora vengo mama chola
Dm
Maria Maria
Am
She reminds me of a west side story
Em
Growing up in Spanish Harlem
Am
She's living the life just like a movie star
Dm
Maria Maria
Am
She fell in love in East L.A.
Em
To the sounds of the guitar, yeah, yeah
Am
Played by Carlos Santana
Am
I said a la favella los colores
G
The streets are getting hotter
F
There is no water to put out the fire
E
Mi canto la esperanza
E Am
Se Mira Maria on the corner
G
Thinking of ways to make it better
F
Then I looked up in the sky
E
Hoping of days of paradise
Am
Ahora vengo mama chola mama chola
Ahora vengo mama chola
Am G
Maria you know you're my lover
F E
When the wind blows I can feel you
Am G
Through the weather and even when we're apart
F E
I still feel like we're together
Dm
Maria Maria
Am
She reminds me of a west side story
Em
Growing up in Spanish Harlem
Am
She's living the life just like a movie star
Dm
Maria Maria
Am
She fell in love in East L.A.
Em
To the sounds of the guitar, yeah, yeah
Am
Played by Carlos Santana
End of song Play again?
Santana - Maria Maria (The Product GB) Tabs
NotesX
Harmony analysis
Santana – Maria Maria (The Product GB): key and chord analysis
The song opens on Am and ends on Am. Its chords belong to both C major and Am, so every chord below is read both ways.
Minor view
A minor
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
- b6 = F (the minor's melancholy)
- b7 = G (natural-minor colour)
- #7 = G# (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 A minor side because it both starts and finishes on Am, Am is heard 21 times while C never appears and the major V chord points straight at Am. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from C 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 C or to Am; 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 | C | Tonic — home | C · E · G | — |
| ii | Dm | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | D · F · A | 6× |
| iii | Em | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | E · G · B | 6× |
| V/vi | E | Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Amsecondary dominant | E · G# · B | 6× |
| V/vi | E/G# | Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Amsecondary dominant | E · G# · B | 1× |
| IV | F | Subdominant — moves away from home | F · A · C | 6× |
| V | G | Dominant — strongest pull home | G · B · D | 8× |
| vi | Am | Relative minor — the melancholy side | A · C · E | 21× |
| vii° | Bdim | Leading-tone chord — tension | B · D · F | — |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | Am | Tonic — home | A · C · E | 21× |
| ii° | Bdim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | B · D · F | — |
| III | C | Relative major — the bright side | C · E · G | — |
| iv | Dm | Subdominant — moves away from home | D · F · A | 6× |
| v | Em | Minor dominant — soft pull | E · G · B | 6× |
| V | E | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | E · G# · B | 6× |
| V | E/G# | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | E · G# · B | 1× |
| VI | F | Submediant — warm colour | F · A · C | 6× |
| VII | G | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | G · B · D | 8× |
Analysis
The key pair is C major and its relative A minor (no sharps or flats). 7 different chords appear 54 times in total; 5 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Am brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from C, the same E / E/G# is V/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Am.
Chord movement
- Dm Am Cii → vi Amiv → iminor plagal ×6
- Em Am Ciii → vi Amv → inatural-minor cadence ×6
- E Am CV/vi → vi AmV → iharmonic-minor cadence ×4
- F G CIV → VIV → V AmVI → VIIVI → VII ×2
- E/G# Am CV/vi → vi AmV → iharmonic-minor cadence ×1
The move to watch is Dm → Am, heard 6 times. From the Am side it is iv → i (minor plagal: deep and melancholic); from the C side it reads ii → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.
Improvisation tips
- C major pentatonic and A minor pentatonic are the same five notes (C – D – E – G – A): start from C for a brighter phrase, from A for a bluesier one.
- Over Am, land on A, C, E — 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.
- Over Dm, land on D, F, A — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
- When E/G# comes, swap the scale's G for G#: 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 C major shapes
- No capo — open C shapes
- Capo 3 + A shapes
- Capo 5 + G shapes
With A minor shapes
- No capo — open Am shapes
- Capo 5 + Em shapes
- Capo 7 + Dm shapes
Easiest keys on guitar
The song is already written in its easiest key for guitar.
The song's harmonic story
The first chord is Am; the ear learns where home is within a second. The chords that keep coming back are Am, G, Dm, Em; read them as vi–V–ii–iii in C or i–VII–iv–v in Am. E is the interesting twist: in C it is a chromatic chord (V/vi), while in Am it becomes the dominant (V) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on Dm → Am (ii → vi in C, iv → i in Am): minor plagal — deep and melancholic. It closes on Am, letting the Am 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.
Santana - Maria Maria (The Product GB) 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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