Elvis Presley - My Way - Chord

Key C major – A minor Chords C, F, G7, Dm7, G/B, A7, Gm/Bb, Dm … Easy key G (capo 5)

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Capo 0

     C             G/B
And now the end is near
          Gm/Bb             A7
And so I face the final curtain
     Dm                  Dm7
My friend, I'll say it clear
            G/B  G7                 C
I'll state my case, of which I'm certain

      C                   C/Bb
I've lived a life that's full  
           F               Fm
I traveled each and every highway
     C          G7                       F  C
And more, much more than this, I did it my way

 C                  G/B
Regrets, I've had a few
          Gm/Bb             A7
But then again, too few to mention
   Dm                Dm7
I did what I had to do
           G/B  G7          C
And saw it through without exemption 

    C                    C/Bb
I planned each charted course
                F            Fm
Each carefull step along the byway
     C          G7                        F  C
And more, much more than this, I did it  my way

                 C                    C7
Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew
           F
When I bit off  more than I could chew
            Dm7                  G
But through it all, when there was doubt
         E7             Am
I ate it up, and spit it out
           Dm7               G7                F  C
I faced it all, and I stood tall, and did it my way

      C                       G/B
I've loved, I've laughed and cried
            Gm/Bb              A7 A7
I've had my fill, my share of losing
     Dm                Dm7
And now,  as tears subside
          G7       C
I find it all so amusing

     C              C/Bb
To think I did all that 
           F               Fm
And may I say,  “Not in a shy way”
    C           G7                F  C
Oh no,  oh no, not me,  I did it my way

               C                C7
For what is a man, what has he got 
           F
If not himself, then he has naught 
             Dm7            G
To say the things he truly feels
             E7               Am
And not the words of one who kneels
             Dm7              G7                F  C
The record shows I took the blows, and did it my way
             Dm7              G7                F  C
The record shows I took the blows, and did it my way

End of song Play again?

Elvis Presley - My Way Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Elvis Presley – My Way: key and chord analysis

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

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)

Minor view

A minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = F (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = G (natural-minor colour)
#7 = G# (harmonic-minor leading tone from the V chord)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the C major side because it both starts and finishes on C, C is heard 25 times against 2 for Am and the major V chord points straight at Am. 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.

Seen from C major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	C	Tonic — home	C · E · G	20×
I	C/Bb	Tonic — home	C · E · G	3×
V7/IV	C7	Secondary dominant V/IV — leads to Fsecondary dominant	C · E · G · Bb	2×
ii7	Dm7	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D · F · A · C	8×
ii	Dm	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D · F · A	3×
iii	Em	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	E · G · B	—
V7/vi	E7	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to Amsecondary dominant	E · G# · B · D	2×
IV	F	Subdominant — moves away from home	F · A · C	11×
iv	Fm	Minor iv — borrowed from the parallel minorborrowed chord	F · Ab · C	3×
V7	G7	Dominant — strongest pull home	G · B · D · F	9×
V	G/B	Dominant — strongest pull home	G · B · D	5×
V	G	Dominant — strongest pull home	G · B · D	2×
v	Gm/Bb	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	G · Bb · D	3×
vi	Am	Relative minor — the melancholy side	A · C · E	2×
V7/ii	A7	Secondary dominant V/ii — leads to Dmsecondary dominant	A · C# · E · G	4×
vii°	Bdim	Leading-tone chord — tension	B · D · F	—

Seen from A minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	Am	Tonic — home	A · C · E	2×
V7/iv	A7	Secondary dominant V/iv — leads to Dmsecondary dominant	A · C# · E · G	4×
ii°	Bdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	B · D · F	—
III	C	Relative major — the bright side	C · E · G	20×
III	C/Bb	Relative major — the bright side	C · E · G	3×
V7/VI	C7	Secondary dominant V/VI — leads to Fsecondary dominant	C · E · G · Bb	2×
iv7	Dm7	Subdominant — moves away from home	D · F · A · C	8×
iv	Dm	Subdominant — moves away from home	D · F · A	3×
v	Em	Minor dominant — soft pull	E · G · B	—
V7	E7	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	E · G# · B · D	2×
VI	F	Submediant — warm colour	F · A · C	11×
vi	Fm	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	F · Ab · C	3×
VII7	G7	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	G · B · D · F	9×
VII	G/B	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	G · B · D	5×
VII	G	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	G · B · D	2×
vii	Gm/Bb	Chromatic colour chordoutside the key	G · Bb · D	3×

Analysis

The key pair is C major and its relative A minor (no sharps or flats). 14 different chords appear 77 times in total; 9 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of Am brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from C, the same E7 is V7/vi, a secondary dominant heading for Am. A7, C7 act as secondary dominants, briefly pointing at another chord of the key. Fm is borrowed from the parallel minor, adding a darker shade to the major side.

Chord movement

F C CIV → Iplagal cadence AmVI → III ×6
Dm7 G7 Cii7 → V7ii → V Amiv7 → VII7 ×4
G7 C CV7 → Iauthentic cadence AmVII7 → III ×3
Fm C Civ → Iminor plagal Amvi → III ×3
A7 Dm CV7/ii → iisecondary resolution AmV7/iv → iv ×3
E7 Am CV7/vi → visecondary resolution AmV7 → iharmonic-minor cadence ×2

The move to watch is F → C, heard 6 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 F, land on F, A, C — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
Over G7, land on G, B, D — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
When E7 comes, swap the scale's G for G#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.
On Fm, follow the chord's notes (F · Ab · C) 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 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

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

The song's harmonic story

Starting on C, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. The backbone is C, F, G7, Dm7 — I–IV–V7–ii7 from the C side, III–VI–VII7–iv7 from the Am side. A7 is the interesting twist: in C it is a chromatic chord (V7/ii), while in Am it becomes the dominant (V7/iv) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on F → C (IV → I in C, VI → III in Am): plagal cadence — the soft 'amen' ending. The final chord is C; the ear comes to rest in C.

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.

Elvis Presley - My Way 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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