Lana Del Rey - Brooklyn Baby - Chord

Key Ab major – F minor Chords Db, Gb, Fm, Ab, Bbm Easy key D (capo 6)

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Capo 0

Db  Fm  Db  Fm

Ab
  They say I'm too young to love you
Fm
  I don't know what I need
Db
  They think I don't understand
    Ab                 Gb
The Freedomland of the seventies
Ab
  I think I'm too cool to know ya
Fm
  You say I'm like the ice I freeze
Db
  I'm churning out novels like
     Ab           Gb       Fm
Beat poetry on Amphetamines

     Db  Fm      Gb
I say      I say

         Db                 Ab
Well, my boyfriend's in the band
            Gb                   Db
He plays guitar while I sing Lou Reed
         Gb             Db
I've got feathers in my hair
      Gb               Fm
I get down to Beat poetry
       Db                Ab
And my jazz collection's rare
       Gb             Db
I can play almost anything
      Gb       Db
I'm a Brooklyn baby
      Gb       Fm
I'm a Brooklyn baby

Db  Fm  Db Fm

Ab
  They say I'm too young to love you
Fm
  They say I'm too dumb to see
Db
  They judge me like a picture book
       Ab                  Gb
By the colors like they forgot to read
Ab
  I think we're like fire and water
Fm
  I think we're like the wind and sea
Db
  You're burning up, I'm cooling down
       Bbm
You're up, I'm down
                   Fm
You're blind, I see
           Db  Fm        Gb
But I'm free      I'm free

         Db                 Ab
Well, my boyfriend's in the band
            Gb                   Db
He plays guitar while I sing Lou Reed
         Gb             Db
I've got feathers in my hair
      Gb               Fm
I get down to Beat poetry
       Db                Ab
And my jazz collection's rare
       Gb             Db
I can play almost anything
      Gb       Db
I'm a Brooklyn baby
      Gb       Fm
I'm a Brooklyn baby

Db
  I'm talking about my generation
Fm
  Talking about that newer nation
Ab
  And if you don't like it
        Bbm
You can beat it, beat it, baby
Db
  You never liked the way I said it
Fm
  If you don't get it, then forget it
Ab                                   Bbm
  Cause I don't have to fucking explain  it

      Db                 Ab
And my boyfriend's in the band
            Gb                   Db
He plays guitar while I sing Lou Reed
         Gb             Db
I've got feathers in my hair
      Gb                 Fm
I get igh on hydroponic weed
        Db                Ab
And my jazz collection's rare
      Gb               Db
I get down to beat poetry
      Gb         Db
I'm a Brooklyn baby
      Gb         Fm
I'm a Brooklyn baby

Db  Ab  Gb  Db  Gb  Db  Gb  Fm

        Db                 Ab
Yeah my boyfriend's really cool
         Gb             Db
But he's not as cool as me
          Gb            Db
Cause I'm a Brooklyn baby
      Gb        Fm
I'm a Brooklyn baby

Db  Ab  Gb  Db  Gb  Db  Gb  Fm

Db  Fm  Db  Fm

End of song Play again?

Lana Del Rey - Brooklyn Baby Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Lana Del Rey – Brooklyn Baby: 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 25 times against 18 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	18×
ii	Bbm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	Bb · Db · F	3×
iii	Cm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	C · Eb · G	—
V/vi	C	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Fmsecondary dominant	C · E · G	—
IV	Db	Subdominant — moves away from home	Db · F · Ab	41×
V	Eb	Dominant — strongest pull home	Eb · G · Bb	—
vi	Fm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	F · Ab · C	25×
bVII	Gb	bVII — borrowed (Mixolydian / parallel minor)borrowed chord	Gb · Bb · Db	32×
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	25×
bII	Gb	Neapolitan bII — a dark, dramatic colour a half step above the tonicborrowed chord	Gb · Bb · Db	32×
ii°	Gdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	G · Bb · Db	—
III	Ab	Relative major — the bright side	Ab · C · Eb	18×
iv	Bbm	Subdominant — moves away from home	Bb · Db · F	3×
v	Cm	Minor dominant — soft pull	C · Eb · G	—
V	C	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	C · E · G	—
VI	Db	Submediant — warm colour	Db · F · Ab	41×
VII	Eb	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	Eb · G · Bb	—

Analysis

The key pair is Ab major and its relative F minor (4 flats). 5 different chords appear 119 times in total; 4 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Gb is borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

Db Ab AbIV → Iplagal cadence FmVI → III ×12
Db Fm AbIV → vi FmVI → iVI → i ×10
Gb Ab AbbVII → IbVII → I FmbII → III ×2
Bbm Fm Abii → vi Fmiv → iminor plagal ×1

The move to watch is Db → Ab, heard 12 times. From the Fm side it is VI → III; from the Ab side it reads IV → I (plagal cadence: the soft 'amen' ending). 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 Db, land on Db, F, Ab — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Gb, land on Gb, Bb, Db — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Fm, land on F, Ab, C — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
On Gb, follow the chord's notes (Gb · Bb · Db) 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 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

6 semitones up · capo 6 keeps the original pitch
1 semitone down · capo 1 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is Db; the ear learns where home is within a second. Db, Gb, Fm, Ab carry the song: IV–bVII–vi–I relative to Ab, VI–bII–i–III relative to Fm. Gb briefly darkens the picture: bvii — borrowed (mixolydian / parallel minor). Keep an ear on Db → Ab (IV → I in Ab, VI → III in Fm): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. It closes on Fm, letting the Fm 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.