Chords + Lyrics | Could You Be Loved
Intro
||: Bm(add9):||
Chorus 1
||: D | Bm7 | G | D :||
Could you be loved, and be loved?
Could you be loved, and be loved?
Verse 1
| Bm | Bm | Em | Em |
Don’t let them fool ya,
| Bm | Bm | Em | Em |
Or even try to school ya! Oh, no!
| Bm | Bm | G F#m | Em |
We’ve got a mind of our own. So go to hell if what you’re thinking is not right!
| Bm | Bm | G F#m | A |
Love would never leave us alone. Ay, in the darkness, there must come out the light.
Chorus 2
Could you be loved, and be loved?
Could you be loved, wo now, and be loved?
Bridge
||: Bm(add9):||
(The road of life is rocky, and you may stumble too).
(So while you point your finger, someone else is judging you). Love your brotherman.
(Could you be, could you be, could you be loved?) (Could you be, could you be loved?)
(Could you be, could you be, could you be loved?) (Could you be, could you be loved?)
Verse 2
Don’t let them change ya, oh.
Or even rearrange ya. Oh, no.
We’ve got a life to live, (oh, oh, oh)
| Bm | Bm | G F#m | A | A |
They say, “Only, only. Only the fittest of the fittest shall survive”. Stay alive, eh.
Chorus 3
Could you be loved, and be loved?
Could you be loved, wo, now, and be loved?
Outro
||: Bm(add9):||
(Never miss your water, until your well runs dry).
(No matter how you treat him, the man will never be satisfied).
Say something (could you be, could you be, could you be loved?)
(Could you be, could you be loved?). Say something.
Say something (could you be, could you be, could you be loved?)
(Could you be, could you be loved?). Say something.
Say something, say something (say something)
Say something, say something (Could you be loved?)
Say something, say something (Reggae, reggae)
Say something (Rockers, rockers)
Say something (Reggae, reggae)
Say something (Rockers, rockers)
Say something (Could you be loved?)
Say something, uh. Say something, come on.
Say something (Could you be, could you be, could you be loved?)
Say something (Could you be, could you be loved?)
Say something (Could you be, could you be, could you be loved?)
Say something (Could you be, could you be loved?)
Could You Be Loved Chords: Understanding Marley’s Harmonic Choices
This tune consists of three sections, each with its own harmonic character.
Intro + Instrumental
The first section sits on a static Bm chord. The guitar plays a muted picking pattern that incorporates the 9th, effectively creating a Bm(add9) chord.
Chorus
Here, we start on chord I (D), followed by VI – IV – I, giving the section a subtle, melancholic feel: D – Bm – G – D.
It’s a less common progression than the usual I – VI – IV – V, as it circles back to I instead of moving to the dominant.
Verse
The verse begins with VI – II (Bm – Em), a classic reggae movement, then descends stepwise through IV – III – II (G – F#m – Em).
Each section adds to the tune’s laid-back yet engaging groove, making Could You Be Loved both rhythmically and harmonically compelling.
To explore how to play these chords, check out my TAB here: Could You Be Loved – Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Could You Be Loved is a tune many bands attempt but often abandon—I suspect because they play it too fast or haven’t worked out solid parts. My advice is to use the picked part for all sections except the chorus, and make sure you’ve got a keyboard player to fill out the sound.
Once you’ve tried my TAB, play along with Bob and The Wailers using the chord chart—and don’t miss that extra bar on the A chord in verse 2.
Could You Be Loved Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
You can download my chord chart and share it with your bandmates as a PDF: Could You Be Loved chord chart PDF.
If you use the iReal Pro app to adjust keys or customise your arrangement layout, here’s that version too: Could You Be Loved iReal Pro.
Could You Be Loved TAB | Course Preview
In the course, you get TAB for all sections of Could You Be Loved. There are two main parts: one simple skank (played on the upstroke and upbeat) and one intricate picked part.
The picked part changes constantly—it took me two days to transcribe it! As a preview, here’s the intro. The Bm chord here is best described as Bmadd9.
Playing Along to Records That Are Not Perfectly in Tune
Bob Marley’s Could You Be Loved, like many other classic recordings, isn’t perfectly in tune. If you tune your guitar to standard pitch and play along with the video above or the version on Spotify, you may notice that it sounds slightly off.
To fix this, you have two options:
- Tune the recording to your guitar. Import the track into a DAW and use a pitch adjustment plug-in to shift it up or down until it matches your tuning. Alternatively, you can use DJ software such as Serato.
- Tune your guitar to the recording. Adjust the Hz setting on your tuner from the standard 440Hz until your instrument aligns with the track.
In the case of Could You Be Loved, you’ll need to tune your guitar to 451Hz—almost half a semitone sharp! No wonder most guitarists find it tricky to play along with the original recording.
My free online tuner makes this easy. For the most accurate results, use your smartphone and place it on the waist of your acoustic guitar while tuning.
Could You Be Loved Chords: Continue Learning
Want to master this song? Check out the full TAB lesson here: Could You Be Loved (Bob Marley) Guitar Lesson with TAB.
Alternatively, here are five similar tunes you might enjoy:
