PianoChords.studio

War by Edwin Starr

Piano chords, voicings & structure breakdown · 3 steps · 2 unique chords · 1970s

Expert transcription. These chords come from a published research transcription of the original recording by trained musicians. A second independent transcription to cross-check against isn't available (or differs in places), so this page isn't marked verified.
Chorus 1 (×6)Step 1 of 3

E♭m

LeftE♭2, B♭2RightB♭3, E♭4, G♭4
C4E♭2B♭2B♭3E♭4G♭4
Left hand Right hand Middle C (C4)

Harmonic Analysis & Structure

Overview

Key: E♭ minor · Chords used: 2 · Sections: 9

Form: Chorus → Verse → Chorus → Verse → Chorus → Verse → Chorus → Verse → Chorus

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

Chorus 1

  • E♭m – G♭ (×6)
    i – bIII

Verse 1

  • E♭m
    i

Chorus 2

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Verse 2

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 3

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Verse 3

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 4

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Verse 4

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 5

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Chord vocabulary

ChordRoman numeralRoleHeard in
E♭miHome chord (tonic)Chorus, Verse
G♭bIIIIn the keyChorus

Sources & accuracy

  • Chords and sections: the McGill Billboard Project (Burgoyne, Wild & Fujinaga, 2011). Expert transcription by trained musicians (song 0893, 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.

Sources & Accuracy

Every chord on this page comes from the expert transcription listed first below. Piano voicings are our arrangement of the reported chord symbols, not a note-for-note transcription.

All Piano Voicings

#SectionChordLeft handRight handSources
1Chorus 1 (×6)E♭mE♭2, B♭2B♭3, E♭4, G♭4—
2Chorus 1 (×6)G♭G♭2, D♭3B♭3, D♭4, G♭4—
3Verse 1E♭mE♭2, B♭2B♭3, E♭4, G♭4—