Live to Tell by Madonna

Overview

Key: D minor · Chords used: 16 · Sections: 16

Form: Intro → Verse → Chorus → Transition → Verse → Chorus → Interlude → Chorus → Interlude → Bridge → Bridge → Chorus → Interlude → Chorus → Interlude → Outro

Where these chords come from: an expert transcription of the original recording made for the McGill Billboard Project (Burgoyne, Wild & Fujinaga, 2011). This page shows that transcription 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

Intro

• D5 – Dmadd9 – Dm9 – Dm11/A
  I5 – iadd9 – i9 – i11 (bass A)
• Dm11 – Am – B♭ – C – B♭ (×3)
  i11 – v – bVI – bVII – bVI
• Dm11 – Am – B♭ – C – Dm
  i11 – v – bVI – bVII – i

Verse 1

• C – Gm – C – Dm (×3)
  bVII – iv – bVII – i
• C – Gm – C
  bVII – iv – bVII

Chorus 1

• Fsus2 – Fsus4 – F – Fsus2 – Fsus4 – Am – B♭ – Fsus2 – Fsus4 – F – Dm – C/E – Dm – C – B♭ – C
  bIIIsus2 – bIIIsus4 – bIII – bIIIsus2 – bIIIsus4 – v – bVI – bIIIsus2 – bIIIsus4 – bIII – i – bVII⁶ – i – bVII – bVI – bVII

Transition

• Dm11 – Am – B♭ – C – B♭ – Dm11 – Am – B♭ – C – Dm
  i11 – v – bVI – bVII – bVI – i11 – v – bVI – bVII – i

Verse 2

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 2

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Interlude 1

• Dm11
  i11

Chorus 3

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Interlude 2

• D5 – Dmadd9 – Dm9 – Dm11
  I5 – iadd9 – i9 – i11

Bridge 1

• B♭ – C – Dm7 – Am – B♭ – C – Amadd9 – B♭ – C – Dm7 – Am – B♭ – C – Dm7
  bVI – bVII – i7 – v – bVI – bVII – vadd9 – bVI – bVII – i7 – v – bVI – bVII – i7

Bridge 2

• C – Gm – C
  bVII – iv – bVII

Chorus 4

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Interlude 3

Same chords as Interlude 1.

Chorus 5

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Interlude 4

Same chords as Interlude 1.

Outro

• Fsus2 – Fsus4 – F – Fsus2 – Fsus4 – Am – B♭ – Fsus2 – Fsus4 – F – Dm – C/E – Dm – C – B♭ – C – Dm11
  bIIIsus2 – bIIIsus4 – bIII – bIIIsus2 – bIIIsus4 – v – bVI – bIIIsus2 – bIIIsus4 – bIII – i – bVII⁶ – i – bVII – bVI – bVII – i11

Chord vocabulary

Sources & accuracy

• Chords and sections: the McGill Billboard Project (Burgoyne, Wild & Fujinaga, 2011). Expert transcription by trained musicians (song 1173, CC0), via ChoCo.
• Not verified: only one expert transcription of this song is available so far.
• Rhythm and chord durations aren't shown; each step is one chord change.