Coldplay - Viva La Vida - Chord

Key Ab major – F minor Chords Fm, Db, Eb, Ab, Cm Easy key G (capo 1)

Add to Repertoire

No ratings yet

or your user informations

Capo 0

Db  Eb  Ab  Fm

Fm         Db       Eb
 I used to rule the world
           Ab                   Fm
Seas would rise when I gave the word
                     Db     Eb
Now in the morning I sleep alone
          Ab                Fm
Sweep the streets I used to own

Db  Eb  Ab  Fm

Fm         Db       Eb
 I used to roll the dice
         Ab                 Fm
Feel the fear in my enemy's eyes
              Db          Eb
Listen as the crowd would sing
         Ab                Fm
"Now the old king is dead! Long live the king"
             Db       Eb
One minute I held the key
         Ab                   Fm
Next the walls were closed on me
                         Db       Eb
And I discovered that my castles stand
     Ab                     Fm
Upon pillars of salt and pillars of sand

  Db             Eb
I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Ab            Fm
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Db               Eb
Be my mirror, my sword, and shield
   Ab                Fm
My missionaries in a foreign field
Db                Eb
For some reason I can't explain
Cm                    Fm              Db     Eb
Once you go there was never, never an honest word
         Ab               Fm
That was when I ruled the world

Db  Eb  Ab  Fm

Fm                    Db    Eb
It was the wicked and wild wind
              Ab              Fm
Blew down the doors to let me in
                          Db       Eb
Shattered windows and the sound of drums
       Ab                    Fm
People couldn't believe what I'd become
         Db     Eb
Revolutionaries wait 
       Ab                Fm
For my head on a silver plate
                   Db     Eb
Just a puppet on a lonely string
   Ab                        Fm
Oh who would ever want to be king

  Db             Eb
I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Ab            Fm
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Db               Eb
Be my mirror, my sword, and shield
   Ab                Fm
My missionaries in a foreign field
Db                Eb
For some reason I can't explain
Cm                    Fm              Db     Eb
Once you go there was never, never an honest word
         Ab               Fm
That was when I ruled the world

Db  Fm  Db  Fm  Db  Fm
Eb  Eb
Db  Eb  Ab  Fm

  Db             Eb
I hear Jerusalem bells are ringing
Ab            Fm
Roman Cavalry choirs are singing
Db               Eb
Be my mirror, my sword, and shield
   Ab                Fm
My missionaries in a foreign field
Db                Eb
For some reason I can't explain
Cm                    Fm              Db     Eb
Once you go there was never, never an honest word
         Ab               Fm
That was when I ruled the world

Db Eb Cm  Fm
Oooooh Oooooh Oooooh

End of song Play again?

Coldplay - Viva La Vida Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Coldplay – Viva La Vida: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

Ab major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

F minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Db (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = Eb (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the F minor side because it comes to rest on Fm and Fm is heard 33 times against 23 for Ab. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from Ab 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 Ab or to Fm; 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 Ab major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	Ab	Tonic — home	Ab · C · Eb	23×
ii	Bbm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	Bb · Db · F	—
iii	Cm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	C · Eb · G	4×
V/vi	C	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Fmsecondary dominant	C · E · G	—
IV	Db	Subdominant — moves away from home	Db · F · Ab	30×
V	Eb	Dominant — strongest pull home	Eb · G · Bb	29×
vi	Fm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	F · Ab · C	33×
vii°	Gdim	Leading-tone chord — tension	G · Bb · Db	—

Seen from F minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Fm	Tonic — home	F · Ab · C	33×
ii°	Gdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	G · Bb · Db	—
III	Ab	Relative major — the bright side	Ab · C · Eb	23×
iv	Bbm	Subdominant — moves away from home	Bb · Db · F	—
v	Cm	Minor dominant — soft pull	C · Eb · G	4×
V	C	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	C · E · G	—
VI	Db	Submediant — warm colour	Db · F · Ab	30×
VII	Eb	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	Eb · G · Bb	29×

Analysis

The key pair is Ab major and its relative F minor (4 flats). 5 different chords appear 119 times in total; 5 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

Db Eb AbIV → VIV → V FmVI → VIIVI → VII ×27
Eb Ab AbV → Iauthentic cadence FmVII → III ×23
Cm Fm Abiii → vi Fmv → inatural-minor cadence ×4
Db Fm AbIV → vi FmVI → iVI → i ×3

The move to watch is Db → Eb, heard 27 times. From the Fm side it is VI → VII (VI → VII: the rising step that heads for the tonic); from the Ab side it reads IV → V (IV → V: the lift that builds tension before home). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

Ab major pentatonic and F minor pentatonic are the same five notes (Ab – Bb – C – Eb – F): start from Ab for a brighter phrase, from F for a bluesier one.
Over Fm, land on F, Ab, C — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Db, land on Db, F, Ab — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Eb, land on Eb, G, Bb — 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 Ab major shapes

Capo 1 + G shapes
Capo 4 + E shapes
Capo 6 + D shapes

With F minor shapes

Capo 1 + Em shapes
Capo 3 + Dm shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

1 semitone down · capo 1 keeps the original pitch
4 semitones up

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is Db; the ear learns where home is within a second. The chords that keep coming back are Fm, Db, Eb, Ab; read them as vi–IV–V–I in Ab or i–VI–VII–III in Fm. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on Db → Eb (IV → V in Ab, VI → VII in Fm): VI → VII — the rising step that heads for the tonic. The final chord is Fm; the ear comes to rest in Fm.

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.