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)
Taylor Swift - Daylight - Chord
Key C major – A minor Chords C, G, F, Dm Easy key D
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Key: C | Am
Capo: 0
C G F
My love was as cruel as the cities I lived in
C G F
Everyone looked worse in the light
C G F
There are so many lines that I've crossed unforgiven
C G F
I'll tell you the truth, but never goodbye
C G
I don't wanna look at anything else now that I saw you
Dm F
I don't wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you
C G
I've been sleeping so long in a 20 year dark night
Dm
And now I see daylight,
F
I only see daylight
C G F
Luck of the draw only draws the unlucky
C G F
And so I became the butt of the joke
C G F
I wounded the good and I trusted the wicked
C G F
Clearing the air, I breathed in the smoke
C
Maybe you ran with the wolves and refused to settle down
G
Maybe I've stormed out of every single room in this town
Dm
Threw out our cloaks and our daggers because it's morning now
F
It's brighter now, now
C G
I don't wanna look at anything else now that I saw you
Dm F
I don't wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you
C G
I've been sleeping so long in a 20 year dark night
Dm
And now I see daylight ,
F
I only see daylight
C G
I only see daylight, daylight, daylight, daylight
Dm F
I only see daylight, daylight, daylight, daylight
C
And I can still see it all
G
All of you, all of me
Dm
I once believed love would be
F
But it's golden
C
And I can still see it all
G
Back and forth from New York
Dm
I once believed love would be
F
But it's golden
C
Like Daylight
G
Like daylight
Dm
Like daylight
F
Daylight
C G
I don't wanna look at anything else now that I saw you
Dm F
I don't wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you
C G
I've been sleeping so long in a 20 year dark night
Dm
And now I see daylight ,
F
I only see daylight
C G
I only see daylight, daylight, daylight, daylight
Dm F
I only see daylight, daylight, daylight, daylight
C G
I only see daylight, daylight, daylight, daylight
Dm F
I only see daylight, daylight, daylight, daylight
C G
Like daylight
Dm F
It's golden like daylight
C G
You gotta step into the daylight and let it go
Dm F C G
Just let it go, let it go
Dm
I wanna be defined by the things that I love
F
Not the things I hate
C
Not the things that I'm afraid of, I'm afraid of
G
Not the things that haunt me in the middle of the night
Dm
I, I just think that
F
You are what you love
End of song Play again?
Taylor Swift - Daylight Tabs
NotesX
Harmony analysis
Taylor Swift – Daylight: key and chord analysis
The song opens on C and ends on F. 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)
Which side does the ear lean to?
Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the C major side because it opens on C and C is heard 25 times while Am never appears. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from A minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.
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 | 25× |
| ii | Dm | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | D · F · A | 17× |
| iii | Em | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | E · G · B | — |
| III | E | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | E · G# · B | — |
| IV | F | Subdominant — moves away from home | F · A · C | 25× |
| V | G | Dominant — strongest pull home | G · B · D | 25× |
| vi | Am | Relative minor — the melancholy side | A · C · E | — |
| vii° | Bdim | Leading-tone chord — tension | B · D · F | — |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | Am | Tonic — home | A · C · E | — |
| ii° | Bdim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | B · D · F | — |
| III | C | Relative major — the bright side | C · E · G | 25× |
| iv | Dm | Subdominant — moves away from home | D · F · A | 17× |
| v | Em | Minor dominant — soft pull | E · G · B | — |
| V | E | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | E · G# · B | — |
| VI | F | Submediant — warm colour | F · A · C | 25× |
| VII | G | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | G · B · D | 25× |
Analysis
The key pair is C major and its relative A minor (no sharps or flats). 4 different chords appear 92 times in total; 4 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
- F C CIV → Iplagal cadence AmVI → III ×24
The move to watch is F → C, heard 24 times. From the C side it reads IV → I (plagal cadence: the soft 'amen' ending); from the Am side it is VI → III. 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 C, land on C, E, G — 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 F, land on F, A, C — 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 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
- 2 semitones up
- 5 semitones down · capo 5 keeps the original pitch
The song's harmonic story
Starting on C, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. C, G, F, Dm carry the song: I–V–IV–ii relative to C, III–VII–VI–iv relative to Am. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on F → C (IV → I in C, VI → III in Am): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. Ending on F, the song seals C 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.
Taylor Swift - Daylight 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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