If I Ain’t Got You | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
|6/8 Cmaj7 | Bm7 | Am7 | G (G Am7 G/B) |
| Cmaj7 | Bm7 | Am7 | G C/G |
Verse 1
| G | Em7 | Am7 | D7sus2 C/G |
Some people live for the fortune. Some people live just for the fame.
| G | G#dim7 | Am7 | D7 |
Some people live for the power, yeah. Some people live just to play the game.
Bridge 1
| Gmaj7 Am7 | Bm7 Am7 | Gmaj7 Am7 | Bm7 Cmaj7 Bm7 Am7 |
Some people think that the physical things, define what’s within.
| Gmaj7 Am7 | Bm7 Am7 | Gmaj7 Am7 | Bm7 |
And I’ve been there before, that life’s a bore, so full of the superficial.
Chorus 1
| Cmaj7 | Bm7 |
Some people want it all, but I don’t want nothing at all.
| Am7 | Gmaj7 |
If it ain’t you, baby. If I ain’t got you, baby.
| Cmaj7 | Bm7 |
Some people want diamond rings, some just want everything.
| Am7 | Gmaj7 C/G |
But everything means nothing. If I ain’t got you, yeah.
Verse 2
Some people search for a fountain, promises forever young.
Some people need three dozen roses and that’s the only way to prove you love them.
Bridge 1
Hand me the world on a silver platter and what good would it be.
With no one to share, with no one who truly cares for me.
Chorus 2
Some people want it all but I don’t want nothing at all.
If it ain’t you, baby. If I ain’t got you, baby.
Some people want diamond rings, some just want everything.
| Am7 | Gmaj7 |
But everything means nothing, if I ain’t got you, you, you.
Chorus 3
Some people want it all but I don’t want nothing at all.
If it ain’t you, baby. If I ain’t got you, baby.
Some people want diamond rings, some just want everything.
But everything means nothing. If I ain’t got you, yeah.
End
| Cmaj7 | Bm7 | Am7 | G (G Am7 G/B) |
If I ain’t got you with me baby, oh, ooh.
| Cmaj7 | Bm7 | Am7 | Gmaj7 |
Said nothing in this whole wide world don’t mean a thing if I ain’t got you with me, baby.
If I Ain’t Got You Chords: Learn the progressions
It’s the simplicity of If I Ain’t Got You‘s chords which makes it work so well.
As a listener, you feel as if you know exactly what’s going to happen next. This is what makes it a hit, it feels like you’ve heard it before, and, you want to hear it again!
Let’s work through the chords to see if they can give us a clue as to why this is the case.
The intro chords are what later come up in the chorus, although during the intro, the chords are played as fast triplet arpeggios, very clever. Here are the chords:
|6/8 Cmaj7 (IV) | Bm7 (III) | Am7 (II) | G (I) (G Am7 G/B) |
| Cmaj7 | Bm7 | Am7 | G C/G |
As you can see, we’re starting on chord IV, and then move down to chord I like this: IV – III – II – I. Then quickly up again, I – II – III only to repeat it. It couldn’t be simpler!
This is of course played on the piano but we can play it on the guitar. You’ll need to use your fingers and some TAB to see it in detail, check this: If I Ain’t Got You – Guitar Lesson with TAB.
The verse starts on chord I and is just like the intro/chorus simple and predictable:
| G (I) | Em7 (VI) | Am7 (II) | D7sus2 (V) C/G |
| G | G#dim7 (#Idim7) | Am7 | D7 |
What we have here is a I – VI – II – V. One of the most common chord progressions around. The C/G is just a passing chord, adding a Gospel influence.
On the second line, we change from chord VI (Em7) to a G#dim7. Again, this is very standard stuff. Notice the subtle variation of D7sus2 the first time, and D7 the second time (check the TAB!).
It is the simplicity of this jazz/blues/gospel language which makes it so accessible and therefore a hit.
Most artists would have tried harder in order to prove themselves. Alicia Keys understands how to use the basics well. She talks about this in the 2nd video of the playlist above.
The bridge moves in a similar way to Lean On Me, do compare these two tunes!
||: Gmaj7 (I) Am7 (II) | Bm7 (III) Am7 | Gmaj7 Am7 |
| 1. Bm7 (Cmaj7 Bm7 Am7) :|| 2. Bm7 |
The chorus is the same as the intro, just played without those 16th-note triplet arpeggios (check the TAB!), these are the chords:
| Cmaj7 (IV) | Bm7 (III) | Am7 (II) | Gmaj7 (I) |
| Cmaj7 | Bm7 | Am7 | Gmaj7 C/G |
The outro is the same as the intro.
If I Ain’t Got You’s chords are a master class in how to write an accessible Gospel Jazz/Blues in 6/8.
Apart from Alicia, I can only think of Al Green and Bill Withers who can pull this off. Most artists and bands would play too much and end up with no hit tune.
After you’ve listened to this amazing tune on repeat and studied all the TAB, a simple chord chart is all you need for the gig, here’s one I made for you.
If I Ain’t Got You Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
Should you want to download this chart, here’s a PDF: If I Ain’t Got You Chord Chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro, here’s a link to that file: If I Ain’t Got You iReal Pro. Using this and the iRealPro app, you can change the key.
If I Ain’t Got You was a perfect follow-up to Fallin’!
Alicia Keys’s first album, Songs in A Minor (2001) was an incredible success, selling over 12 million copies worldwide.
The success of the debut was largely down to lead single Fallin’ which made her a household name, and reached the top 10 in twenty countries, selling 3 million copies in the U.S. alone.
To follow up such an immense success can only be done with another hit, enter If I Ain’t Got You.
The album, The Diary of Alicia Keys (2003) did very well in the U.S. selling 5 million, the single even more with 6 million.
These two tunes, Fallin’ and If I Ain’t Got You were the only two hits from her first two albums, but it was all she needed to be recognised as one of the top American soul singers on this side of the millennium.
She did keep the trend of one new smash hit going with her next three albums, As I Am (2007) had No One, The Element of Freedom (2009) had the amazing Empire State Of Mind and the title track from her 2012 album was Girl on Fire.
If I Ain’t Got You Chords | Related Pages
If I Ain’t Got You | Guitar Lesson + TAB
With this guitar lesson, you can learn to play If I Ain’t Got You by Alicia Keys using TAB and chord analysis.
| G | Em7 | Am7 | D7sus2 C/G |
Some people live for the fortune. Some people live just for the fame…
Five similar tunes | Chords + Lyrics
Alicia Keys tunes
Alicia Keys had instant success with her debut album Songs In Am, mainly down to its single Fallin’.
Following this, she has firmly established herself with hits such as If I Ain’t Got You, This Girl Is On Fire, and Empire State Of Mind.
Alicia Keys on the web
About me | Dan Lundholm
This was a guitar lesson about If I Ain’t Got You chords, by Dan Lundholm. Discover more about him and how you can learn guitar with Spytunes.
Most importantly, find out why you should learn guitar through playing tunes, not practising scales, and studying theory in isolation.
