Major view
A major
Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)
Characteristic notes
- 7 = G# (leading tone, pulls home)
- 4 = D (the note that leans on the 3rd)
Chris Isaak - Wicked Game - Chord
Key A major – F# minor Chords Bm, A, E Easy key G (capo 2)
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Key: A | Gbm | F#m
Capo: 0
Bm A E
Bm A E
The world was on fire and no one could save me but you
Bm A E
It's strange what desire will make foolish people do
Bm A E
I never dreamed that I'd meet somebody like you
Bm A E
I never dreamed that I'd love somebody like you
Bm A E
I don't want to fall in love. (This world is only gonna break your heart)
Bm A E
I don't want to fall in love. (This world is only gonna break your heart)
With you. With you. (This world is only gonna break your heart)
Bm A E
What a wicked game to play, to make me feel this way
Bm A E
What a wicked thing to do, to let me dream of you
Bm A E
What a wicked thing to say, you never felt this way
Bm A E
What a wicked thing to do, to make me dream of you and
Bm A E
I don't want to fall in love. (This world is only gonna break your heart)
Bm A E
I don't want to fall in love. (This world is only gonna break your heart)
With you
Bm A E
The world was on fire and no one could save me but you
Bm A E
It's strange what desire will make foolish people do
Bm A E
I never dreamed that I'd love somebody like you
Bm A E
I never dreamed that I'd loose somebody like you no
Bm A E
I don't want to fall in love. (This world is only gonna break your heart)
Bm A E
I don't want to fall in love. (This world is only gonna break your heart)
With you. With you. (This world is only gonna break your heart)
Bm A E
Nobody loves no one
End of song Play again?
Chris Isaak - Wicked Game Tabs
NotesX
Harmony analysis
Chris Isaak – Wicked Game: key and chord analysis
The song opens on Bm and ends on E. Its chords belong to both A major and F#m, so every chord below is read both ways.
Minor view
F# minor
Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)
Characteristic notes
- b6 = D (the minor's melancholy)
- b7 = E (natural-minor colour)
Which side does the ear lean to?
Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the A major side because A is heard 20 times while F#m never appears. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from F# minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.
Chord degrees: major and relative minor
Show the degrees above the chords — relative to A or to F#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.
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | A | Tonic — home | A · C# · E | 20× |
| ii | Bm | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | B · D · F# | 20× |
| iii | C#m | Mediant — a tonic-family shade | C# · E · G# | — |
| III | C# | Chromatic colour chordoutside the key | C# · E# · G# | — |
| IV | D | Subdominant — moves away from home | D · F# · A | — |
| V | E | Dominant — strongest pull home | E · G# · B | 20× |
| vi | F#m | Relative minor — the melancholy side | F# · A · C# | — |
| vii° | G#dim | Leading-tone chord — tension | G# · B · D | — |
| Degree | Chord | Role | Notes | In song |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| i | F#m | Tonic — home | F# · A · C# | — |
| ii° | G#dim | Supertonic — prepares the dominant | G# · B · D | — |
| III | A | Relative major — the bright side | A · C# · E | 20× |
| iv | Bm | Subdominant — moves away from home | B · D · F# | 20× |
| v | C#m | Minor dominant — soft pull | C# · E · G# | — |
| V | C# | Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor | C# · E# · G# | — |
| VI | D | Submediant — warm colour | D · F# · A | — |
| VII | E | Subtonic — steps back to the tonic | E · G# · B | 20× |
Analysis
The key pair is A major and its relative F# minor (3 sharps). 3 different chords appear 60 times in total; 3 of them sit naturally inside the shared scale. Everything stays inside one scale, which is why the song is easy to follow by ear.
Chord movement
There's no textbook cadence here; the chords circle around each other in a loop, so the song feels more like a groove than a series of arrivals.
Improvisation tips
- A major pentatonic and F# minor pentatonic are the same five notes (A – B – C# – E – F#): start from A for a brighter phrase, from F# for a bluesier one.
- Over Bm, land on B, D, F# — 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 E, land on E, G#, B — 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 A major shapes
- No capo — open A shapes
- Capo 2 + G shapes
- Capo 5 + E shapes
With F# minor shapes
- Capo 2 + Em shapes
- Capo 4 + Dm shapes
Easiest keys on guitar
- 2 semitones down · capo 2 keeps the original pitch
- 3 semitones up
The song's harmonic story
The opening Bm lays a solid floor for everything that follows. The backbone is Bm, A, E — ii–I–V from the A side, iv–III–VII from the F#m side. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. The final chord is E; the ear comes to rest in A.
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.
Chris Isaak - Wicked Game 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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