Sam Smith - To Die For - Chord

Key F major – D minor Chords Fmaj7, C, Am, Em, F Easy key C (capo 5)

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Capo 0

Fmaj7   Am      C
    It is if everyone dies alone

  Does that scare you
Fmaj7
  I don't wanna be alone

Fmaj7             Am
   I look for you
       C          F
Every day, every night
Fmaj7          Am
   I close my eyes
          C             F
From the fear, from the light

Fmaj7                      C
As I wander down the avenue, so confused
Em                       
   Guess I'll try and force a smile

                            Fmaj7
Pink lemonade sippin' on a Sunday
                            C
Couples holding hands on a runway
                         Em
They're all posing in a picture frame
                            Am
Whilst my world's crashing down
                  F
Solo shadow on a sidewalk
                       C
Just want somebody to die for
                      Em
Sunshine livin' on a perfect day
                           Am
While my world's crashing down
                         Fmaj7
I just want somebody to die for

Fmaj7            Am
   I long for you
        C
Just a touch 
         F
Of your hand
     Fmaj7            Am
You don't leave my mind
        C
Lonely days, I'm feeling
        F
Like a fool for dreaming

Fmaj7                      C
As I wander down the avenue, so confused
Em                       
   Guess I'll try and force a smile

                            Fmaj7
Pink lemonade sippin' on a Sunday
                            C
Couples holding hands on a runway
                         Em
They're all posing in a picture frame
                            Am
Whilst my world's crashing down
                  F
Solo shadow on a sidewalk
                       C
Just want somebody to die for
                      Em
Sunshine livin' on a perfect day
                           Am
While my world's crashing down
                         Fmaj7
I just want somebody to die for
                         C     
I just want somebody to die for
         Fmaj7

                             Am
I just want somebody to die for


                            Fmaj7
Pink lemonade sippin' on a Sunday
                            C
Couples holding hands on a runway
                         Em
They're all posing in a picture frame
                            Am
Whilst my world's crashing down
                  F
Solo shadow on a sidewalk
                       C
Just want somebody to die for
                      Em
Sunshine livin' on a perfect day
                           Am
While my world's crashing down
                         Fmaj7
I just want somebody to die for
                         C     
I just want somebody to die for
         Fmaj7

End of song Play again?

Sam Smith - To Die For Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Sam Smith – To Die For: key and chord analysis

The song opens on Fmaj7 and ends on Fmaj7. Its chords belong to both F major and Dm, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

F major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

D minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

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

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the F major side because it both starts and finishes on F and F is heard 23 times while Dm never appears. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from D minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to F or to Dm; 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 F major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
Imaj7	Fmaj7	Tonic — home	F · A · C · E	16×
I	F	Tonic — home	F · A · C	7×
ii	Gm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	G · Bb · D	—
iii	Am	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	A · C · E	12×
III	A	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	A · C# · E	—
IV	Bb	Subdominant — moves away from home	Bb · D · F	—
V	C	Dominant — strongest pull home	C · E · G	15×
vi	Dm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	D · F · A	—
vii°	Edim	Leading-tone chord — tension	E · G · Bb	—
vii	Em	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	E · G · B	8×

Seen from D minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Dm	Tonic — home	D · F · A	—
ii°	Edim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	E · G · Bb	—
ii	Em	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	E · G · B	8×
IIImaj7	Fmaj7	Relative major — the bright side	F · A · C · E	16×
III	F	Relative major — the bright side	F · A · C	7×
iv	Gm	Subdominant — moves away from home	G · Bb · D	—
v	Am	Minor dominant — soft pull	A · C · E	12×
V	A	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	A · C# · E	—
VI	Bb	Submediant — warm colour	Bb · D · F	—
VII	C	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	C · E · G	15×

Analysis

The key pair is F major and its relative D minor (1 flat). 5 different chords appear 58 times in total; 4 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Em step outside the scale as colour chords.

Chord movement

C F FV → Iauthentic cadence DmVII → III ×4
C Fmaj7 FV → Imaj7authentic cadence DmVII → IIImaj7 ×3

The move to watch is C → F, heard 4 times. From the F side it reads V → I (authentic cadence: the strongest arrival home); from the Dm side it is VII → III. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

F major pentatonic and D minor pentatonic are the same five notes (F – G – A – C – D): start from F for a brighter phrase, from D for a bluesier one.
Over Fmaj7, land on F, A, C — 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.
Over Am, land on A, C, E — 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 F major shapes

Capo 1 + E shapes
Capo 3 + D shapes
Capo 5 + C shapes

With D minor shapes

No capo — open Dm shapes
Capo 5 + Am shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

5 semitones down · capo 5 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is Fmaj7; the ear learns where home is within a second. The backbone is Fmaj7, C, Am, Em — Imaj7–V–iii–vii from the F side, IIImaj7–VII–v–ii from the Dm side. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on C → F (V → I in F, VII → III in Dm): authentic cadence — the strongest arrival home. It closes on Fmaj7, letting the F 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.