Chords + Lyrics | Rolling In The Deep
Intro
| C5 | C5 |
Verse 1
| C5 | (C5) G5 |
There’s a fire starting in my heart.
| (G5) Bb5 | (Bb5) G5 Bb5 |
Reaching a fever pitch, it’s bringing me out the dark.
| C5 | (C5) G5 |
Finally, I can see you crystal clear.
| (G5) Bb5 | (Bb5) G5 Bb5 |
Go ahead and sell me out and I’ll lay your ship bare
Verse 2
See how I’ll leave with every piece of you.
Don’t underestimate the things that I will do.
There’s a fire starting in my heart.
Reaching a fever pitch and it’s bringing me out the dark.
Bridge 1
| Ab | Bb |
The scars of your love remind me of us.
| Gm | Ab |
They keep me thinking that we almost had it all.
| Ab | Bb |
The scars of your love, they leave me breathless.
| Gm | G |
I can’t help feeling, we could’ve had it.
Chorus 1
| Cm | Bb |
All (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
| Ab | Ab Bb |
Rolling in the deep (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
| Cm | Bb |
You had my heart inside of your hands (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
| Ab | Ab Bb |
And you played it to the beat (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
Verse 3
Baby, I have no story to be told.
But I’ve heard one on you, now I’m gonna make your head burn.
Think of me in the depths of your despair.
Make a home down there, as mine sure won’t be shared.
Bridge 2
The scars of your love remind me of us (never had met me, tears are gonna fall).
They keep me thinking that we almost had it all (rolling in the deep).
The scars of your love (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
They leave me breathless, I can’t help feeling. (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep) We could’ve had it.
Chorus 2
All (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
Rolling in the deep (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
You had my heart inside of your hands (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
And you played it, to the beat (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep). Could have had it.
Chorus tag
| Ab | Bb | Cm | Bb |
All. Rolling in the deep.
| Ab | Ab |
You had my heart inside of your hands.
| Bb | Bb |
But you played it, with a beating.
Verse 4 (breakdown)
| N.C | N.C |
Throw your soul through every open door (whoa).
| N.C | N.C |
Count your blessings to find what you look for (whoa).
| (Cm) | (Cm) |
Turn my sorrow into treasured gold (whoa).
| (Cm) | (Cm) |
You pay me back in kind and reap just what you’ve sown.
Chorus 3 (hold)
(You’re gonna wish you, never had met me) we could’ve had it all.
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep) we could’ve had it all, yeah.
(You’re gonna wish you, never had met me) it all, it all, it all .
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep). We could’ve had it.
Chorus 4
All (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
Rolling in the deep (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
You had my heart inside of your hands (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
And you played it, to the beat (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep). Could have had it.
Chorus 5
All (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
Rolling in the deep (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
You had my heart inside of your hands (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
| Ab | Ab Bb | Cm N.C |
But you played it, you played it, you played it, you played it to the beat.
Rolling In The Deep | Chords + Lyrics (capo 3)
Intro
| A5 | A5 |
Verse 1
| A5 | (A5) E5 |
There’s a fire starting in my heart.
| (E5) G5 | (G5) E5 G5 |
Reaching a fever pitch, it’s bringing me out the dark.
| A5 | (A5) E5 |
Finally, I can see you crystal clear.
| (E5) G5 | (G5) E5 G5 |
Go ahead and sell me out and I’ll lay your ship bare
Verse 2
See how I’ll leave with every piece of you.
Don’t underestimate the things that I will do.
There’s a fire starting in my heart.
Reaching a fever pitch and it’s bringing me out the dark.
Bridge 1
| F | G |
The scars of your love remind me of us.
| Em | F |
They keep me thinking that we almost had it all.
| F | G |
The scars of your love they leave me breathless.
| Em | E |
I can’t help feeling, we could’ve had it.
Chorus 1
| Am | G |
All (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
| F | F G |
Rolling in the deep (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
| Am | G |
You had my heart inside of your hands (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
| F | F G |
And you played it to the beat (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
Verse 3
Baby, I have no story to be told.
But I’ve heard one on you, now I’m gonna make your head burn.
Think of me in the depths of your despair.
Make a home down there, as mine sure won’t be shared.
Bridge 2
The scars of your love remind me of us (never had met me, tears are gonna fall).
They keep me thinking that we almost had it all (rolling in the deep).
The scars of your love (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
They leave me breathless, I can’t help feeling. (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep) We could’ve had it.
Chorus 2
All (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
Rolling in the deep (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
You had my heart inside of your hands (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
And you played it, to the beat (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep). Could have had it.
Chorus tag
| F | G | Am | G |
All. Rolling in the deep.
| F | F |
You had my heart inside of your hands.
| G | G |
But you played it, with a beating.
Verse 4 (breakdown)
| N.C | N.C |
Throw your soul through every open door (whoa).
| N.C | N.C |
Count your blessings to find what you look for (whoa).
| (Am) | (Am) |
Turn my sorrow into treasured gold (whoa).
| (Am) | (Am) |
You pay me back in kind and reap just what you’ve sown.
Chorus 3 (hold)
(You’re gonna wish you, never had met me) we could’ve had it all.
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep) we could’ve had it all, yeah.
(You’re gonna wish you, never had met me) it all, it all, it all .
(Tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep). We could’ve had it.
Chorus 4
All (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
Rolling in the deep (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
You had my heart inside of your hands (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
And you played it, to the beat (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep). Could have had it.
Chorus 5
All (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
Rolling in the deep (tears are gonna fall, rolling in the deep).
You had my heart inside of your hands (you’re gonna wish you, never had met me).
| F | F G | Am N.C |
But you played it, you played it, you played it, you played it to the beat.
Rolling in the Deep Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning Rolling in the Deep. I’ve used stem separation to extract the guitar while keeping the drums, bass, piano, and vocals intact.
After studying the chords and TAB, use my backing tracks to prepare for playing this tune with a band.
Should you want to play along with the original recording instead, you need to tune your guitar sharp to 441Hz. In the backing tracks, I’ve done this job for you by tuning it to 440Hz.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
Adele‘s smash hit Rolling in the Deep is played in the key of Cm. The chords are mostly diatonic and familiar, what sets this tune apart is its rhythmic placement. Before we get to that, let’s investigate the progressions.
Verse
The verse chord progression moves like this:
| Cm (VI) | G (IIIx) | Bb (V) | G Bb |
At the start of each bar, the chord from the previous bar is played for an eighth note before switching. I’ve indicated this by adding a chord in brackets above the lyrics but really, it’s better displayed using TAB.
Keep scrolling down this guitar lesson to find the TAB you need to play Rolling in the Deep’s chords just right.
The verse chords are best played as power chords:
| C5 | G5 | Bb5 | G5 Bb5 |
If you understand Roman Numerals, you know how the movement subconsciously signals whether they are major or minor. Avoiding the full triad creates anticipation—genius!
Bridge
The bridge starts on IV, moving up to V, then down to III. When repeated, it ends with Gm – G (III – IIIx), like this:
| Ab (IV) | Bb (V) | Gm (III) | Ab |
| Ab | Bb | Gm | G (IIIx) |
You can play the bridge chords as triads or stick with power chords. If two players are handling chords, one could hold the triads while the other pumps power chords.
The only downside? You might have to coordinate with a keyboard player, never an easy task.
Chorus
For the chorus, Rolling in the Deep’s chords move VI – V – IV – V, like this:
||: Cm (VI) | Bb (V) | Ab (IV) | Ab Bb :||
Chorus Tag
The chorus tag, which appears only once, keeps the same chords but changes their order:
| Ab (IV) | Bb (V) | Cm (VI) | Bb |
| Ab | Ab | Bb | Bb |
Once you’ve worked through the TAB to get the rhythms right, this chord chart is all you need for the gig.
Rolling In The Deep Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
Should you want to download this chart, here’s a PDF: Rolling In The Deep chord chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro, here’s a link to that file: Rolling In The Deep iReal Pro. Using this and the iRealPro app, you can change the key.
Rolling In The Deep | TAB
When playing Rolling In The Deep on electric guitar in a band, your job is simple—stay disciplined and pump power chords throughout. Let the keyboard player handle the full triads; your role is to bring the drive.
Verse
Here’s what the verse looks like on electric:
Notice the little dot on the first chord in bars 2 and 3—this means you should play short, letting it breathe so you have time to shift to the next chord.
Now, here’s an arrangement for how to play the verse on an acoustic guitar when you’re on your own (put a capo on fret 3):
I’m using a 123, 123, 12 rhythm to breathe life into the part. The rhythm shifts in the last bar. When playing solo, you often need to adapt the original—don’t be afraid to deviate slightly to make the groove work.
Bridge
Let’s look at the bridge, first on electric:
Play along with the backign tracks. The most important thing here is staying locked in with the rhythm section—don’t overplay!
Here’s an acoustic take on the bridge:
We’re still using the 123, 123, 12 rhythm, but now we alternate between chord and bass note. I also vary the chord voicings to keep it interesting. Without a band behind you, you must create more dynamics within the part.
Chorus
Now for the chorus:
This is the simplest section rhythmically. Can you keep it tight and consistent? This is where discipline really counts.
There’s a tag too—apply the same approach and stay in your lane as the rhythm guitarist. Keep chugging!
Here’s the chorus arranged for acoustic:
I’m now using a fuller “1” by playing full chords with bass notes. The rhythm is still present, but I deviate from the recording again to serve the arrangement.
There’s an open E in bar 2 to get to F, and in bar 4, some open strings played an 8th note early lead into G.
Once you’ve learned all the parts, play along with the backing tracks. Finally, using everything you’ve picked up, see if you can figure out how to play the tagwithout any additional help.
Rolling In The Deep Chords: Continue Learning
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