Dumb Things by Paul Kelly

Overview

Key: A minor · Chords used: 6 · Sections: 27

Form: Verse → Chorus → Verse → Chorus → Verse → Chorus → B Section → Interlude → B Section → Interlude → B Section → Interlude → C Section → Verse → A Section → Chorus → A Section → Chorus → A Section → Chorus → A Section → Chorus → B Section → Interlude → B Section → Interlude → D Section

Where these chords come from: a chord chart of this song written by a musician and shared on the iReal Pro forums, archived in the iReal Pro forum charts archived in ChoCo (de Berardinis et al., 2023). It's one musician's reading of the song, not a transcription checked against the recording. This page shows that chart as-is: the analysis below is generated directly from it by code, not written by AI. Consecutive repeats of a chord are shown once, and the piano voicings are our playable arrangement of each chord symbol, not a note-for-note transcription.

Section by section

Verse 1

• Am – Em (×3)
  i – v

Chorus 1

• Am – C – G – D
  i – bIII – bVII – IV

Verse 2

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 2

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Verse 3

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 3

Same chords as Chorus 1.

B Section 1

• F – C – Em – F – G – Am – Em – F – C – G – D
  bVI – bIII – v – bVI – bVII – i – v – bVI – bIII – bVII – IV

Interlude 1

• Am – Em
  i – v

B Section 2

Same chords as B Section 1.

Interlude 2

Same chords as Interlude 1.

B Section 3

Same chords as B Section 1.

Interlude 3

Same chords as Interlude 1.

C Section

• F – C – Em – F – G – Am – Em – F – C – G – D – Am – Em
  bVI – bIII – v – bVI – bVII – i – v – bVI – bIII – bVII – IV – i – v

Verse 4

• Am – C – G – D
  i – bIII – bVII – IV

A Section 1

• Am – Em (×3)
  i – v

Chorus 4

Same chords as Chorus 1.

A Section 2

Same chords as A Section 1.

Chorus 5

Same chords as Chorus 1.

A Section 3

Same chords as A Section 1.

Chorus 6

Same chords as Chorus 1.

A Section 4

Same chords as A Section 1.

Chorus 7

Same chords as Chorus 1.

B Section 4

Same chords as B Section 1.

Interlude 4

Same chords as Interlude 1.

B Section 5

Same chords as B Section 1.

Interlude 5

Same chords as Interlude 1.

D Section

• Am – Em – G – D – Am
  i – v – bVII – IV – i

Chord vocabulary

Chord	Roman numeral	Role	Heard in
Am	i	Home chord (tonic)	Verse, Chorus, B Section, Interlude, C Section, A Section, D Section
Em	v	In the key	Verse, B Section, Interlude, C Section, A Section, D Section
C	bIII	In the key	Chorus, B Section, C Section, Verse
G	bVII	In the key	Chorus, B Section, C Section, Verse, D Section
D	IV	Borrowed from A major	Chorus, B Section, C Section, Verse, D Section
F	bVI	In the key	B Section, C Section

Harmonic highlights

• D (IV) is borrowed from the parallel key, A major.

Sources & accuracy

• Chords: the iReal Pro forum charts archived in ChoCo (de Berardinis et al., 2023). Community chord chart “Dumb Things (A.B Original)” (credited “Kelly Paul”, style Funk Rock) from the forum file linked here, CC BY 4.0 via ChoCo. Performer/songwriter confirmed from Wikidata.
• Section names: from the chart's own markings: section names written on the chart (Intro, Verse, Chorus…) are kept, and rehearsal letters are shown as “A Section”, “B Section” and so on (the B of an AABA song is called the Bridge).
• Cross-check: the iReal Pro forum charts archived in ChoCo (de Berardinis et al., 2023). Community chord chart “Dumb Things” (credited “Kelly Paul”, style Rock Ballad) from the forum file linked here, CC BY 4.0 via ChoCo. Performer/songwriter confirmed from Wikidata. A separately posted chart of the same song; its chords match this page's closely when both are read in the same key (similarity 96%).
• Chord charts are often written in a key that suits a particular singer or band, so this may not be the key of the original recording.
• About the song: Wikipedia.
• Verified: two community charts of this song, posted in different forum threads, agree on its harmony. They're still charts, not transcriptions checked against the recording.
• Rhythm and chord durations aren't shown; each step is one chord change.