Believe | Chords + Lyrics (no capo)
Intro (as chorus)
||: Gb | Db | Abm7 | Cb |
| Gb | Bbm7 | Abm | Ebm :||
After love, after love…
Verse 1
| Gb | Gb | Gbmaj7 | Gbmaj7 |
No matter how hard I try, you keep pushing me aside.
| Cb | Cb | Db | Db |
And I can’t break through, there’s no talking to you.
| Gb | Gb | Bbm | Bbm |
It’s so sad that you’re leaving, it takes time to believe it.
| Cb | Cb | Db | Db |
But after all is said and done, you’re gonna be the lonely one, oh.
Chorus 1
| Gb | Db | Abm | Cb |
Do you believe in life after love?
| Gb | Db | Abm | Ebm |
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
| Gb | Db | Abm7 | Cb |
Do you believe in life after love?
| Gb | Db | Abm | Ebm |
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Verse 2
What am I supposed to do, sit around and wait for you?
Well, I can’t do that, and there’s no turning back.
I need time to move on, I need a love to feel strong.
‘Cause I’ve had time to think it through, and maybe I’m too good for you, oh.
Chorus 2
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Middle 8
| Ebm | Ebm | Db | Db |
Well, I know that I’ll get through this.
| Ebm | Ebm | Db | Db |
‘Cause I know that I am strong.
| Cb | Cb | Db | Db |
And I don’t need you anymore. Oh, I don’t need you anymore.
| Cb | Abm | Db | Db |
Oh-oh, I don’t need you anymore. No, I don’t need you anymore.
Chorus 3 (breakdown)
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Chorus 4
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Believe | Chords + Lyrics (tune down 1/2)
Intro (as chorus)
||: G | D | Am7 | C |
| G | Bm7 | Am | Em :||
After love, after love…
Verse 1
| G | G | Gmaj7 | Gmaj7 |
No matter how hard I try, you keep pushing me aside.
| C | C | D | D |
And I can’t break through, there’s no talking to you.
| G | G | Bm | Bm |
It’s so sad that you’re leaving, it takes time to believe it.
| C | C | D | D |
But after all is said and done, you’re gonna be the lonely one, oh.
Chorus 1
| G | D | Am | C |
Do you believe in life after love?
| G | D | Am | Em |
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
| G | D | Am | C |
Do you believe in life after love?
| G | D | Am | Em |
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Verse 2
What am I supposed to do, sit around and wait for you?
Well, I can’t do that, and there’s no turning back.
I need time to move on, I need a love to feel strong.
‘Cause I’ve had time to think it through, and maybe I’m too good for you, oh.
Chorus 2
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Middle 8
| Em | Em | D | D |
Well, I know that I’ll get through this.
| Em | Em | D | D |
‘Cause I know that I am strong.
| C | C | D | D |
And I don’t need you anymore. Oh, I don’t need you anymore.
| C | Am | D | D |
Oh-oh, I don’t need you anymore. No, I don’t need you anymore.
Chorus 3 (breakdown)
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Chorus 4
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Do you believe in life after love?
I can feel something inside me say, I really don’t think you’re strong enough, no.
Believe Chords: A Fresh Take on the Progressions
Most people approach the chords of Believe in one of two ways:
- Transposing it down to F and adding a capo on fret 1
- Writing the chord progression as if in F#
I reckon it’s better to go the other way—up to G. From there, you can keep the key change, use a guitar tuned down a half-step, or switch on the Digitech Drop pedal. After all, Cher was experimenting with tuning, so why can’t we? (More on this later.)
With this in mind, I’ve written the chords in both Gb and G, making it clear how easily you can raise it to G and see the simplicity of the progression.
Even though this meant including the awkward Cb (since there’s no B in Gb), I found this approach the most practical.
Chorus
Using Roman numerals, here’s the chorus progression in G:
| G (I) | D (V) | Am (II) | C (IV) |
On the repeat, there’s a subtle change—using the relative minor of V (III), followed by a bigger shift, replacing IV with VI:
| G (I) | Bm (III) | Am (II) | Em (VI) |
Notice how G – Bm feels similar to G – Gmaj7, just as Em instead of C resembles C – Cmaj7. Small yet effective tweaks like these are a staple of pop music.
Verse
The verse is even simpler, first climbing from I to Imaj7, then IV to V:
| G (I) | G | Gmaj7 | Gmaj7 | C (IV) | C | D (V) | D |
This is then varied by replacing Imaj7 with III—a subtle shift, as only the bass note changes. This idea also appears twice in the chorus:
| G (I) | G | Bm (III) | Bm | C (IV) | C | D (V) | D |
Middle 8
The middle 8 follows a straightforward pattern, first repeating VI – V, then IV – V, before introducing the II – V variation:
||: Em | Em | D | D ::||
| C | C | D | D |
| C | Am | D | D |
Acoustic Guitar Adaptation
I’ve arranged some TAB to show how this dance classic can be played on an acoustic guitar. Many songs like this are written that way—hence the well-known saying among pop producers:
“If it doesn’t work on one acoustic guitar, it doesn’t work.”
Here’s a link to that part of the lesson: Believe – Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Once you’ve studied the TAB, a simple chord chart will do. Here’s one I made for you.
Believe Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
Should you want to download this chord chart, here’s a PDF: Believe chord chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro, here’s a link to that file: Believe iReal Pro. Using this and the iRealPro app, you can change the key.
Changing the key is a great idea if you leave the capo and drop pedal at home and can’t convince the singer to sing it up a semitone.
Believe TAB | Course Preview
In the course, you get TAB for all sections of Believe, arranged for one acoustic guitar to support a singer in the key of G.
As a preview, here’s the chorus.
Auto-Tune – The Fad That Wouldn’t Fade
Believe was recorded and released in 1998, produced by Brian Rawling and Mark Taylor, it was their first major hit and served as a platform for working with many other pop acts in the years that followed.
Just a year earlier, the Antares Vocal Processor AVP-1 had been released, designed to help singers stay in tune so they could finish a track in a single take.
What Brian and Mark did was tweak the settings—not just to subtly correct Cher’s pitch, but to exaggerate the effect, making it obvious. It resembled a vocoder but sounded distinctly different.
At first, this approach was mocked and dismissed, but after Believe hit number one in most countries and sold 11 million copies worldwide, producers everywhere rushed to get their hands on the technology.
No one has since created a track with quite the same shock factor, but today, Auto-Tune is everywhere in pop music. In fact, it would be difficult to find a song without it.
As modern music production is now done entirely “in the box,” effects like Auto-Tune are implemented via software plugins rather than dedicated hardware units.
What’s most remarkable is that some singers who grew up hearing Auto-Tune have now adapted their phrasing to naturally mimic its effect.
Music history is filled with artists using equipment in ways far removed from its intended purpose, pushing the boundaries of sound and reshaping the industry.
Two famous examples come to mind:
- Keith Richards, aiming to replicate a saxophone’s tone, cranked his amp into distortion to create the iconic riff for Satisfaction.
- The Ibanez Tube Screamer, originally designed for solid-state amps, became legendary in the hands of Stevie Ray Vaughan. Paired with a Strat and a Fender amp, it defined the go-to tone for guitarists worldwide.
Believe Chords: Continue Learning
Want to master this song? Check out the full TAB lesson here: Believe (Cher) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy:
