Coldplay - Up Up - Chord

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

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Capo 0

G  D  Em  C

G
Fixing up a car to drive in it again
D
Searching for the water, hoping for the rain
       Em          C
Up and up, Up and up

G
Down upon a canvas, working meal to meal
D
Waiting for a chance to pick your orange field
       Em          C
Up and up, Up and up

G
See a pearl form, a diamond in the rough
D
See a bird soaring high above the flood
               Em                  C
It's in your blood, it's in your blood

G
Underneath the storm an umbrella is saying
D
Sitting with the poison takes away the pain
       Em          C
Up and up, Up and up

G
We’re gonna get it, get it together
       D
Right now we’re gonna get it, get it together
     F                                      C
Somehow, gonna get it, get it together and flower
G
We’re gonna get it, get it together
    D
I know, we’re gonna get it, get it together
     F                                            C
And flow, we’re gonna get it, get it together and go
                 G
Up, and up, and up

G  D  Em  C

G
Lying in the gutter, aiming for the moon
D
Trying to empty out the ocean with a spoon
       Em         C
Up and up, Up and up

G
How come people suffer? How come people part?
D
How come people struggle? How come people
             Em                C
Break your heart? Break your heart?

G
Yes I wanna grow, yes I want to feel
D
Yes I wanna know, show me how to
        Em          C
Heal it up, heal it up

G
Try and see the forest, there in every seed
D
Angels in the marble waiting to be freed
           Em              C
Just need love, Just need love, when the going is rough, saying

G
We’re gonna get it, get it together
       D
Right now we’re gonna get it, get it together
     F                                      C
Somehow, gonna get it, get it together and flower
G
We’re gonna get it, get it together
    D
I know, we’re gonna get it, get it together
     F                                            C
And flow, we’re gonna get it, get it together and go

               G                D
Cause you can say what is, or fight for it
Em                    C
Close your mind and take a risk
         G                 D
You can say it’s mine and clench your fist
   Em                C
Or see each sunrise as a gift

G  D  F  C

G
We’re gonna get it, get it together
       D
Right now we’re gonna get it, get it together
     F                                       C
Somehow, gonna get it, get it together and flower
G
We’re gonna get it, get it together
    D
I know, we’re gonna get it, get it together
     F                                            C
And flow, we’re gonna get it, get it together and go
                G
Up, and up, and up

G
We’re gonna get it, get it together
       D
Right now we’re gonna get it, get it together
     F                                       C
Somehow, gonna get it, get it together and flower
G
We’re gonna get it, get it together
    D
I know, we’re gonna get it, get it together
     F                                            C
And flow, we’re gonna get it, get it together and go
                 G
Up, and up, and up

G  D  F   C
G  D  Em  C

G
Fixing up a car to drive in it again
D                                                Em
When you’re in pain, when you think you’ve had enough
C
  Don’t ever give up

G  D  Em  C
            Don't ever give up, just believe in love

End of song Play again?

Coldplay - Up Up Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Coldplay – Up Up: key and chord analysis

The song opens on G and ends on C. 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 G major side because it opens on G and G is heard 28 times against 15 for Em. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from E minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

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	28×
ii	Am	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	A · C · E	—
iii	Bm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	B · D · F#	—
V/vi	B	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Emsecondary dominant	B · D# · F#	—
IV	C	Subdominant — moves away from home	C · E · G	25×
V	D	Dominant — strongest pull home	D · F# · A	25×
vi	Em	Relative minor — the melancholy side	E · G · B	15×
bVII	F	bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord	F · A · C	10×
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	15×
bII	F	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	F · A · C	10×
ii°	F#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	F# · A · C	—
III	G	Relative major — the bright side	G · B · D	28×
iv	Am	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C · E	—
v	Bm	Minor dominant — soft pull	B · D · F#	—
V	B	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	B · D# · F#	—
VI	C	Submediant — warm colour	C · E · G	25×
VII	D	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	D · F# · A	25×

Analysis

The key pair is G major and its relative E minor (1 sharp). 5 different chords appear 103 times in total; 4 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. F is borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

C G GIV → Iplagal cadence EmVI → III ×24
D Em GV → videceptive cadence EmVII → iAeolian arrival ×15

The move to watch is C → G, heard 24 times. From the G side it reads IV → I (plagal cadence: the soft 'amen' ending); from the Em side it is VI → III. 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 G, land on G, B, D — 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 C, land on C, E, G — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
On F, follow the chord's notes (F · A · C) rather than the key's scale — it's a borrowed colour.

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

Starting on G, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. G, D, C, Em carry the song: I–V–IV–vi relative to G, III–VII–VI–i relative to Em. F briefly darkens the picture: bvii — borrowed (mixolydian / parallel minor). Keep an ear on C → G (IV → I in G, VI → III in Em): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. Ending on C, the song seals G as home.

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.