Bruno Mars - Gorilla - Chord

Key G major – E minor Chords C, Bb, Bm, G, D, Bm/A, Bm/G, Gbm … Easy key C (capo 7)

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Capo 0

Bm
Ooh I got a body full of liquor
 Bm/A
With a cocaine kicker
                                      Bm/G
And I'm feeling like I'm thirty feet tall
 Bb              C
So lay it down, lay it down
 Bm
You got your legs up in the sky
 Bm/A
With the devil in your eyes
                                Bm/G
Let me hear you say you want it all
 Bb          C
Say it now, say it now

 Gbm              Bm                        E
Look what you're doing, look what you've done
 Em
But in this jungle you can't run
 G
Cause what I got for you
I promise it's a killer
           A
You'll be banging on my chest
Bang bang, gorilla

D     C   G
Uuhh yeah
                        Bb             C
You and me baby making love like gorillas

 Bm
Yeah, I got a fistful of your hair
 Bm/A
But you don't look like you're scared
                                          Bm/G
You just smile and tell me, "Daddy, it's yours."
Bb
'Cause you know how I like it
 C
You's a dirty little lover

Bm
If the neighbors call the cops,
                             Bm/A
Call the sheriff, call the SWAT   we don't stop,
                                               Bm/G
We keep rocking while they're knocking on our door
Bb
And you're screaming, "Give it to me baby,
 C
Give it to me motherfucker!"

 Gbm              Bm                        E
Look what you're doing, look what you've done
 Em
But in this jungle you can't run
 G
Cause what I got for you
I promise it's a killer
           A
You'll be banging on my chest
Bang bang, gorilla

D     C   G
Uuhh yeah
                        Bb             C
You and me baby making love like gorillas

Gbm                           Bm
I bet you never ever felt so good, so good
Gbm                          Bm
I got your body trembling like it should, it should
 G                                                A
You'll never be the same baby once I'm done with you

D     C   G
Uuhh yeah
                      Bb               C
Oh, you with me baby making love like gorillas

D     C   G
Uuhh yeah
                       Bb              C
You and me baby we'll be fuckin' it like gorillas

D     C   G
Uuhh yeah
                        Bb             C
You and me baby making love like gorillas

End of song Play again?

Bruno Mars - Gorilla Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Bruno Mars – Gorilla: key and chord analysis

The song opens on Bm 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 G is heard 8 times against 2 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	8×
ii	Am	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	A · C · E	—
V/V	A	Secondary dominant V/V — leads to Dsecondary dominant	A · C# · E	3×
bIII	Bb	Borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	Bb · D · F	9×
iii	Bm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	B · D · F#	8×
iii	Bm/A	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	B · D · F#	4×
iii	Bm/G	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	B · D · F#	4×
V/vi	B	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Emsecondary dominant	B · D# · F#	—
IV	C	Subdominant — moves away from home	C · E · G	14×
V	D	Dominant — strongest pull home	D · F# · A	5×
vi	Em	Relative minor — the melancholy side	E · G · B	2×
V/ii	E	Secondary dominant V/ii — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B	2×
vii°	F#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	F# · A · C	—
vii	Gbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · A · Db	4×

Seen from E minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Em	Tonic — home	E · G · B	2×
V/iv	E	Secondary dominant V/iv — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B	2×
ii°	F#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	F# · A · C	—
ii	Gbm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Gb · A · Db	4×
III	G	Relative major — the bright side	G · B · D	8×
iv	Am	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C · E	—
IV	A	Major IV — Dorian / melodic-minor colourmodal colour	A · C# · E	3×
#IV	Bb	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	Bb · D · F	9×
v	Bm	Minor dominant — soft pull	B · D · F#	8×
v	Bm/A	Minor dominant — soft pull	B · D · F#	4×
v	Bm/G	Minor dominant — soft pull	B · D · F#	4×
V	B	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	B · D# · F#	—
VI	C	Submediant — warm colour	C · E · G	14×
VII	D	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	D · F# · A	5×

Analysis

The key pair is G major and its relative E minor (1 sharp). 11 different chords appear 63 times in total; 7 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. A, E act as secondary dominants, briefly pointing at another chord of the key. Bb is borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

C G GIV → Iplagal cadence EmVI → III ×5
C D GIV → VIV → V EmVI → VIIVI → VII ×2

The move to watch is C → G, heard 5 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 C, land on C, E, G — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Bb, land on Bb, D, F — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over Bm, land on B, D, F# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
On Bb, follow the chord's notes (Bb · D · F) 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

5 semitones up · capo 7 keeps the original pitch
2 semitones down · capo 2 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

Starting on Bm, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. C, Bb, Bm, G carry the song: IV–bIII–iii–I relative to G, VI–#IV–v–III relative to Em. A adds a moment of surprise: secondary dominant V/V — leads to D. Keep an ear on C → G (IV → I in G, VI → III in Em): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. It closes on C, letting the G 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.