Sam Smith - Leave Your Lover - Chord

Key E major – C# minor Chords E, A, Gbm, B, A/G#, Dbm, Gb7, A/F# … Easy key G

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Capo 0

E                              B                 A
I don't have much to give, but I don't care for gold 
A         A/G#             Gbm                     E
What use is money, when you need someone to hold 
E                              B               A
Don't have direction I'm just rolling down this road 
A         A/G#             Gbm                     E
Waiting for you to bring me in from out the cold 

        Gbm                                 Abm
You'll never know the endless nights, the rhyming of the rain, 
   Gbm                               B
Or how it feels to fall behind and watch you call his name 

E                            A/F#
Pack up and leave everything, don't you see what I can bring 
A         A/G#         Gbm      E
Can't keep this beating heart at bay 
E                            A/F#
Set my midnight terror free, I will give you all of me 
Dbm         Gb7     A       E
Leave your lover, leave him for me 
Dbm         Gb7     A       E
Leave your lover, leave him for me 

E                               B              A
We sit in bars and raise our drinks to growing old 
A       A/G#                Gbm         E
I'm in love with you and you will never know 
E                              B             A
But if I can't have you I'll walk this life alone 
A            A/G#              Gbm            E
Spare you the rising storms and let the river flow 

        Gbm                                 Abm
You'll never know the endless nights, the rhyming of the rain, 
    Gbm                              B
Or how it feels to fall behind and watch you call his name 

E                             A/F#
Pack up and leave everything, don't you see what I can bring 
A         A/G#         Gbm      E
Can't keep this beating heart at bay 
E                           A/F#
Set my midnight terror free, I will give you all of me 
Dbm         Gb7     A         E
Leave your lover, leave him for me 
Dbm         Gb7     A         E
Leave your lover, leave him for me 
Dbm         Gb7     A         E
Leave your lover, leave him for me

End of song Play again?

Sam Smith - Leave Your Lover Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Sam Smith – Leave Your Lover: key and chord analysis

The song opens on E and ends on E. Its chords belong to both E major and C#m, so every chord below is read both ways.

Major view

E major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

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

Minor view

C# minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = A (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = B (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the E major side because it both starts and finishes on E and E is heard 19 times against 5 for C#m. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from C# minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to E or to C#m; 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 E major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	E	Tonic — home	E · G# · B	19×
ii	Gbm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	Gb · A · Db	10×
V7/V	Gb7	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Bsecondary dominant	Gb · Bb · Db · Fb	5×
iii	Abm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	Ab · Cb · Eb	2×
V/vi	G#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Dbmsecondary dominant	G# · B# · D#	—
IV	A	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C# · E	15×
IV	A/G#	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C# · E	6×
IV	A/F#	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C# · E	4×
V	B	Dominant — strongest pull home	B · D# · F#	6×
vi	Dbm	Relative minor — the melancholy side	Db · Fb · Ab	5×
vii°	D#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	D# · F# · A	—

Seen from C# minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Dbm	Tonic — home	Db · Fb · Ab	5×
ii°	D#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D# · F# · A	—
III	E	Relative major — the bright side	E · G# · B	19×
iv	Gbm	Subdominant — moves away from home	Gb · A · Db	10×
IV7	Gb7	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	Gb · Bb · Db · Fb	5×
v	Abm	Minor dominant — soft pull	Ab · Cb · Eb	2×
V	G#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	G# · B# · D#	—
VI	A	Submediant — warm colour	A · C# · E	15×
VI	A/G#	Submediant — warm colour	A · C# · E	6×
VI	A/F#	Submediant — warm colour	A · C# · E	4×
VII	B	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	B · D# · F#	6×

Analysis

The key pair is E major and its relative C# minor (4 sharps). 9 different chords appear 72 times in total; 8 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Gb7 acts as a secondary dominant, briefly pointing at another chord of the key.

Chord movement

A E EIV → Iplagal cadence C#mVI → III ×5
B E EV → Iauthentic cadence C#mVII → III ×2
Gbm B Eii → Vii → V C#miv → VII ×2
A/F# Dbm EIV → vi C#mVI → iVI → i ×2

The move to watch is A → E, heard 5 times. From the E side it reads IV → I (plagal cadence: the soft 'amen' ending); from the C#m side it is VI → III. Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

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

No capo — open E shapes
Capo 2 + D shapes
Capo 4 + C shapes

With C# minor shapes

Capo 4 + Am shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

3 semitones up
2 semitones down · capo 2 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is E; the ear learns where home is within a second. E, A, Gbm, B carry the song: I–IV–ii–V relative to E, III–VI–iv–VII relative to C#m. Gb7 adds a moment of surprise: secondary dominant V/V — leads to B. Keep an ear on A → E (IV → I in E, VI → III in C#m): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. The final chord is E; the ear comes to rest in E.

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.