Taylor Swift - Willow - Chord

Key G major – E minor Chords Em, D, G, Am, C, Bm Difficulty already in its easiest key

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Capo 0

Em  D  Em  D
Em  D  C

Em                           D                   Em   D
I'm like the water when your ship rolled in that night
Em                           D                  C
Rough on the surface but you cut through like a knife
Em                D
 And if it was an open/shut case
Em                D                           Em
 I never would've known from the look on your face
             D                    C
Lost in your current like a priceless wine

G                  D               Am
 The more that you say, the less I know
             Em          G
Wherever you stray, I follow
                D              Am
I'm begging for you to take my hand
         Em
Wreck my plans, that's my man

Em                       D                  Em  D
Life was a willow and it bent right to your wind
Em                          D                C
Head on the pillow, I could feel you sneakin' in
Em                D
 As if you were a mythical thing
Em               D                    Em
 Like you were a trophy or a champion ring
                  D              C
And there was one prize I'd cheat to win

G                  D               Am
 The more that you say, the less I know
             Em          G
Wherever you stray, I follow
                D              Am
I'm begging for you to take my hand
         Em               G
Wreck my plans, that's my man
                 D                    Am
You know that my train could take you home
         Em         G
Anywhere else is hollow
                D              Am
I'm begging for you to take my hand
         Em
Wreck my plans, that's my man

Bm  Em
 
Am                       G                  Bm  Em
Life was a willow and it bent right to your wind
Am                G               Bm  Em
 They count me out time and time again
Am                       G                  Bm  Em
Life was a willow and it bent right to your wind
Am               G
 But I come back stronger than a 90's trend

Em                           D              Em  D
Wait for the signal and I'll meet you after dark
Em                           D              C
Show me the places where the others gave you scars
Em              D
 Now this is an open/shut case
Em                   D                           Em
 I guess I should've known from the look on your face
               D                   C
Every bait-and-switch was a work of art

G                  D              Am
 The more that you say the less I know
             Em          G
Wherever you stray, I follow
                D              Am
I'm begging for you to take my hand
         Em               G
Wreck my plans, that's my man
                 D                    Am
You know that my train could take you home
         Em         G
Anywhere else is hollow
                D              Am
I'm begging for you to take my hand
         Em              G
Wreck my plans, that's my man
 
                  D              Am
The more that you say the less I know
             Em          G
Wherever you stray, I follow
                D              Am
I'm begging for you to take my hand
         Em               G
Wreck my plans, that's my man
                 D                    Am
You know that my train could take you home
         Em         G
Anywhere else is hollow
                D              Am
I'm begging for you to take my hand
         Em
Wreck my plans

         G   D
That's my man
               Am  Em
Hey, that's my man
          G  D
That's my man
                Am
Yeah, that's my man
                     Em                  G
Baby, every bait-and-switch was a work of art
         D  Am
That's my man
               Em  G
Hey, that's my man
                D              Am
I'm begging for you to take my hand
         Em
Wreck my plans, that's my man

End of song Play again?

Taylor Swift - Willow Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Taylor Swift – Willow: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

G major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

E minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = C (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = D (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the E minor side because it both starts and finishes on Em and Em is heard 43 times against 22 for G. That is an interpretation, not a rule — the same chords are just as valid seen from G 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 G or to Em; 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 G major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	G	Tonic — home	G · B · D	22×
ii	Am	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	A · C · E	22×
iii	Bm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	B · D · F#	4×
V/vi	B	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Emsecondary dominant	B · D# · F#	—
IV	C	Subdominant — moves away from home	C · E · G	7×
V	D	Dominant — strongest pull home	D · F# · A	39×
vi	Em	Relative minor — the melancholy side	E · G · B	43×
vii°	F#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	F# · A · C	—

Seen from E minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Em	Tonic — home	E · G · B	43×
ii°	F#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	F# · A · C	—
III	G	Relative major — the bright side	G · B · D	22×
iv	Am	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C · E	22×
v	Bm	Minor dominant — soft pull	B · D · F#	4×
V	B	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	B · D# · F#	—
VI	C	Submediant — warm colour	C · E · G	7×
VII	D	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	D · F# · A	39×

Analysis

The key pair is G major and its relative E minor (1 sharp). 6 different chords appear 137 times in total; 6 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

Am Em Gii → vi Emiv → iminor plagal ×18
D Em GV → videceptive cadence EmVII → iAeolian arrival ×14
C Em GIV → vi EmVI → iVI → i ×4
Bm Em Giii → vi Emv → inatural-minor cadence ×4
C G GIV → Iplagal cadence EmVI → III ×3

The move to watch is Am → Em, heard 18 times. From the Em side it is iv → i (minor plagal: deep and melancholic); from the G side it reads ii → vi. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

G major pentatonic and E minor pentatonic are the same five notes (G – A – B – D – E): start from G for a brighter phrase, from E for a bluesier one.
Over Em, land on E, G, B — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over D, land on D, F#, A — 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.

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 G major shapes

No capo — open G shapes
Capo 3 + E shapes
Capo 5 + D shapes

With E minor shapes

No capo — open Em shapes
Capo 2 + Dm shapes
Capo 7 + Am shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

The song is already written in its easiest key for guitar.

The song's harmonic story

The opening Em lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The chords that keep coming back are Em, D, G, Am; read them as vi–V–I–ii in G or i–VII–III–iv in Em. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on Am → Em (ii → vi in G, iv → i in Em): minor plagal — deep and melancholic. The final chord is Em; the ear comes to rest in Em.

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.