Maroon 5 - Sugar - Chord

Key Db major – Bb minor Chords C#, A#m, D#m, F# Easy key G (capo 6)

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Capo 0

C#  A#m  D#m  C#

F#                A#m
 I'm hurting baby, I'm broken down
D#m                    C#         
 I need your loving, loving,
N.C.
 I need it now
F#
 When I'm without you
A#m                  
 I'm something weak
D#m                     C#
 You got me begging, begging,

 I'm on my knees

F#                               A#m
 I don't wanna be needing your love
                              D#m
I just wanna be deep in your love
                                 C#
And it's killing me when you're away
         F#                                     A#m
Ooh baby, 'cause I really don't care where you are
                                 D#m
I just wanna be there where you are
                             C#
And I gotta get one little taste

       F#
Your sugar
     A#m
Yes, please
           D#m                     C#
Won't you come and put it down on me
          F#             A#m
I'm right here, 'cause I need
       D#m                  C#
Little love and little sympathy
           F#
Yeah you show me good loving
 A#m
Make it alright
D#m                      C#
Need a little sweetness in my life
       F#
Your sugar
     A#m
Yes, please
           D#m                     C#
Won't you come and put it down on me

F#
 My broken pieces
A#m
 You pick them up
D#m                       C#
 Don't leave me hanging, hanging

 Come give me some
F#
 When I'm without ya
A#m
 I'm so insecure
D#m                         C#
 You are the one thing, the one thing

 I'm living for

F#                               A#m
 I don't wanna be needing your love
                              D#m
I just wanna be deep in your love
                                 C#
And it's killing me when you're away
         F#                                     A#m
Ooh baby, 'cause I really don't care where you are
                                 D#m
I just wanna be there where you are
                             C#
And I gotta get one little taste

       F#
Your sugar
     A#m
Yes, please
           D#m                     C#
Won't you come and put it down on me
          F#             A#m
I'm right here, 'cause I need
       D#m                  C#
Little love and little sympathy
           F#
Yeah you show me good loving
 A#m
Make it alright
D#m                      C#
Need a little sweetness in my life
       F#
Your sugar (your sugar)
     A#m
Yes, please (yes, please)
           D#m                     C#
Won't you come and put it down on me

C#
Yeah
F#
 I want that red velvet
A#m
 I want that sugar sweet
D#m
 Don't let nobody touch it
C#
Unless that somebody's me
F#
 I gotta be a man
A#m
 There ain't no other way
D#m                            C#
 'Cause girl you're hotter than southern California Bay
F#
 I don't wanna play no games
A#m
 I don't gotta be afraid
D#m
 Don't give all that shy shit
   C#
No make up on, that's my

  F#
Sugar
     A#m
Yes, please
           D#m                     C#
Won't you come and put it down on me
          F#             
I'm right here
         A#m
Cause I need
       D#m                  C#
Little love and little sympathy
           F#
Yeah you show me good loving
 A#m
Make it alright
D#m                      C#
Need a little sweetness in my life
       F#
Your sugar
     A#m
Yes, please
           D#m                     C#
Won't you come and put it down on me

       F#
Your sugar
     A#m
Yes, please
           D#m                     C#
Won't you come and put it down on me
          F#             
I'm right here (right here),
        A#m
Cause I need
       D#m                  C#
Little love and little sympathy
           F#
Yeah you show me good loving
 A#m
Make it alright
D#m                      C#
Need a little sweetness in my life
       F#
Your sugar
     A#m
Yes, please
           D#m                     C#
Won't you come and put it down on me
                    F# A#m D#m C#
Down on me, down on me

End of song Play again?

Maroon 5 - Sugar Tabs

NotesX

Harmony analysis

Maroon 5 – Sugar: key and chord analysis

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

Major view

Db major

Brightness rank 2/7 (bright)

Characteristic notes

7 = C (leading tone, pulls home)
4 = Gb (the note that leans on the 3rd)

Minor view

Bb minor

Brightness rank 5/7 (leaning dark)

Characteristic notes

b6 = Gb (the minor's melancholy)
b7 = Ab (natural-minor colour)

Which side does the ear lean to?

Our reading: to us the song feels closer to the Db major side because it both starts and finishes on Db and Db is heard 31 times against 29 for Bbm. That is an interpretation, not a rule — hearing the same chords from Bb minor is just as valid and teaches you something different.

Chord degrees: major and relative minor

Show the degrees above the chords — relative to Db or to Bbm; 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 Db major
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
I	C#	Tonic — home	C# · E# · G#	31×
ii	D#m	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	D# · F# · A#	29×
iii	Fm	Mediant — a tonic-family shade	F · Ab · C	—
V/vi	F	Secondary dominant V/vi — leads to A#msecondary dominant	F · A · C	—
IV	F#	Subdominant — moves away from home	F# · A# · C#	28×
V	Ab	Dominant — strongest pull home	Ab · C · Eb	—
vi	A#m	Relative minor — the melancholy side	A# · C# · E#	29×
vii°	Cdim	Leading-tone chord — tension	C · Eb · Gb	—

Seen from Bb minor
Degree	Chord	Role	Notes	In song
i	A#m	Tonic — home	A# · C# · E#	29×
ii°	Cdim	Supertonic — prepares the dominant	C · Eb · Gb	—
III	C#	Relative major — the bright side	C# · E# · G#	31×
iv	D#m	Subdominant — moves away from home	D# · F# · A#	29×
v	Fm	Minor dominant — soft pull	F · Ab · C	—
V	F	Dominant — borrowed from harmonic minor, pulls hard to the tonicharmonic minor	F · A · C	—
VI	F#	Submediant — warm colour	F# · A# · C#	28×
VII	Ab	Subtonic — steps back to the tonic	Ab · C · Eb	—

Analysis

The key pair is Db major and its relative Bb minor (5 flats). 4 different chords appear 117 times in total; 4 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

F# A#m DbIV → vi BbmVI → iVI → i ×28

The move to watch is F# → A#m, heard 28 times. From the Db side it reads IV → vi; from the Bbm side it is VI → i (VI → i: falls a half step into home). Knowing where these arrivals fall helps you feel the phrasing and anticipate the next chord.

Improvisation tips

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

Capo 1 + C shapes
Capo 4 + A shapes
Capo 6 + G shapes

With Bb minor shapes

Capo 1 + Am shapes
Capo 6 + Em shapes

Easiest keys on guitar

6 semitones up · capo 6 keeps the original pitch
1 semitone down · capo 1 keeps the original pitch

The song's harmonic story

Starting on C#, the song gives away its key from the very first bar. The backbone is C#, A#m, D#m, F# — I–vi–ii–IV from the Db side, III–i–iv–VI from the Bbm side. No chord leaves the shared scale, so a single pentatonic shape works over the whole song. Keep an ear on F# → A#m (IV → vi in Db, VI → i in Bbm): VI → i — falls a half step into home. Ending on C#, the song seals Db as home.

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.