Could You Be Loved | Chords + Lyrics
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
The song consists of three main sections, each with its own harmonic character:
- Intro/Instrumental Groove
- A static Bm chord, where the guitar plays a muted picking pattern incorporating the 9th, making it Bm(add9).
- Chorus
- Starts on chord I (D), followed by VI – IV – I, creating a melancholic feel: D – Bm – G – D
- This is a less common progression than the typical I – VI – IV – V, as Marley circles back to I instead of the V chord.
- Verse
- First, it moves VI – II (Bm – Em), a classic reggae movement.
- Then, it follows a descending stepwise motion (IV – III – II): G – F#m – Em.
- A descending motion like this is very common in songwriting.
Each section contributes to the song’s laid-back yet engaging groove, making Could You Be Loved both rhythmically and harmonically compelling.
Here’s a chord chart I made for you, notice how the A chord is played for an extra bar in verse 2.
Could You Be Loved Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
You can download my chord chart and share it with your bandmates using a PDF: Could You Be Loved chord chart PDF.
If you use the iReal Pro app so you can easily change the key and the layout of arrangements, here’s a link to that file as well: Could You Be Loved chord chart iReal Pro.
Playing Along to Records That Are Not Perfectly in Tune
Bob Marley‘s Could You Be Loved, like many other recordings, is not perfectly in tune. If you tune your guitar using a standard tuner and then play along with the video above or on Spotify, you may find yourself slightly out of tune.
To fix this, you have two options:
- Tune the recording to match your guitar. This can be done by importing the track into a DAW and using a pitch adjustment plugin to shift it up or down until it aligns with your tuning.
- Tune your guitar to match the recording. This is done by adjusting the Hz setting on your tuner from the standard 440Hz to, for example, 448Hz, until your instrument aligns with the track.
My free online tuner allows you to do this easily. For the best results, use your smartphone and place it on the waist of your acoustic guitar while tuning.
From the Album Uprising
Clearly, Could You Be Loved lived up to its title, as it remains one of the most loved songs in the world.
Released in 1980 on Uprising—the final album Bob Marley and The Wailers recorded during his lifetime—the song was the lead single and found instant success worldwide.
Another notable single from the album was Redemption Song.
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