Bob Dylan - Just Like A Woman - Chord

Key E major – C# minor Chords E, A, B7, B, B7sus4, B7sus2, G#m, F#m … Easy key G

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Capo 0

  E    A     B   E
Nobody feels any pain
  E          A       B        E
Tonight as I stand inside the rain
A         B
Everybody knows
     A              B
That Baby's got new clothes
    A   G#m  F#mE       B7
But lately   I  see her ribbons and her bows
     C#m    E    A   B7sus4  B7  B7sus2  B7
Have fallen from her curls

    E     G#m  F#m    A
She takes just like a woman, yes she does
    E          G#m  F#m    A
she makes love just like a woman, yes she does
        E     G#m  F#m    A
And she aches just like a woman
        B7sus4    B7       B7sus2  B7  E
but she breaks just like a little      girl

 E    A     B   E
Queen Mary, she's my friend.
 E    A     B   E
Yes I believe I'll go see her again.
A         B
Noboby has to guess
A         B
That baby can't be blessed,
 A   G#m  F#mE       B7
'Till she sees finally that she's like all the rest.
C#m    E    A   B7sus4  B7  B7sus2  B7
With her fog, her amphetamines,   and her pearls

       G#
It was raining from the first

And I was dying there of thirst
     E            Esus4 E
So I came in here
         G#
And your long time curse hurts

But what's worse
        A
Is this pain in here
B7sus4     B7           B7sus2  B7
   I can't stay in here
B7sus4  B7 B7sus2     B7
Ain't it   clear that
E   A   B   E
I just can't fit
E    A     B   E
Yes I believe it's time for us to quit
A         B
And when we meet again,
A         B
Introduced as friends,
A   G#m  F#mE       B7
Please don't let on that you knew me when
C#m    E    A   B7sus4  B7  B7sus2  B7
I was hungry, and it was  your  world

 E     G#m  F#m    A
Ah, you fake just like a woman, yes, you do
 E     G#m  F#m    A
You make love just like a woman, yes, you do
 E     G#m  F#m    A
Then you ache just like a woman
B7sus4    B7       B7sus2  B7  E
But you break just like a   little girl

End of song Play again?

Bob Dylan - Just Like A Woman Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Bob Dylan – Just Like A Woman: 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)
#7 = B# (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 E major side because it both starts and finishes on E, E is heard 26 times against 3 for C#m and the major V chord points straight at 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	25×
Isus4	Esus4	Tonic — home	E · A · B	1×
ii	F#m	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	F# · A · C#	6×
iii	G#m	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	G# · B · D#	6×
V/vi	G#	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to C#msecondary dominant	G# · B# · D#	2×
IV	A	Subdominant — moves away from home	A · C# · E	22×
V7	B7	Dominant — strongest pull home	B · D# · F# · A	14×
V	B	Dominant — strongest pull home	B · D# · F#	12×
V7sus4	B7sus4	Dominant — strongest pull home	B · E · F# · A	7×
V7sus2	B7sus2	Dominant — strongest pull home	B · C# · F# · A	7×
vi	C#m	Relative minor — the melancholy side	C# · E · G#	3×
vii°	D#dim	Leading-tone chord — tension	D# · F# · A	—

Seen from C# minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	C#m	Tonic — home	C# · E · G#	3×
ii°	D#dim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D# · F# · A	—
III	E	Relative major — the bright side	E · G# · B	25×
IIIsus4	Esus4	Relative major — the bright side	E · A · B	1×
iv	F#m	Subdominant — moves away from home	F# · A · C#	6×
v	G#m	Minor dominant — soft pull	G# · B · D#	6×
V	G#	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	G# · B# · D#	2×
VI	A	Submediant — warm colour	A · C# · E	22×
VII7	B7	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	B · D# · F# · A	14×
VII	B	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	B · D# · F#	12×
VII7sus4	B7sus4	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	B · E · F# · A	7×
VII7sus2	B7sus2	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	B · C# · F# · A	7×

Analysis

The key pair is E major and its relative C# minor (4 sharps). 11 different chords appear 105 times in total; 10 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. The major V of C#m brings the harmonic-minor leading tone, giving the minor side a sharper, more dramatic pull; seen from E, the same G# is V/vi, a secondary dominant heading for C#m.

Chord movement

A B EIV → VIV → V C#mVI → VIIVI → VII ×12
B E EV → Iauthentic cadence C#mVII → III ×6
A B7sus4 EIV → V7sus4IV → V C#mVI → VII7sus4VI → VII ×6
B7 E EV7 → Iauthentic cadence C#mVII7 → III ×5
A E EIV → Iplagal cadence C#mVI → III ×4
B C#m EV → videceptive cadence C#mVII → iAeolian arrival ×3

The move to watch is A → B, heard 12 times. From the E side it reads IV → V (IV → V: the lift that builds tension before home); from the C#m side it is VI → VII (VI → VII: the rising step that heads for the tonic). 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 B7, land on B, D#, F# — the chord's own tones always sound right on strong beats.
When G# comes, swap the scale's B for B#: that single note is the harmonic-minor sound of the chord.

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
4 semitones down · capo 4 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

The first chord is E; the ear learns where home is within a second. The backbone is E, A, B7, B — I–IV–V7–V from the E side, III–VI–VII7–VII from the C#m side. G# is the interesting twist: in E it is a chromatic chord (V/vi), while in C#m it becomes the dominant (V) that makes the minor side sound so determined. Keep an ear on A → B (IV → V in E, VI → VII in C#m): IV → V — the lift that builds tension before home. 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.