Mr. Brightside chords by The Killers

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Mr. Brightside | Chords + Lyrics

Intro

||: Dbadd9 | Dbadd9/C | Dbadd9/Gb | Dbadd9/Gb :||

Verse 1

Bridge 1

| Bbm | Bbm | Ab | Ab ||: Dbadd9/Gb | Dbadd9/Gb :||
Chest now. He takes off her dress now, letting me go.
| Bbm | Bbm | Ab | Ab ||: Dbadd9/Gb | Dbadd9/Gb :||
And I just can’t look, it’s killing me and taking control.

Chorus 1

| Db5 | Gb | Bbm | Ab |
Jealousy, turning saints into the sea. Swimming through sick
| Db5 | Gb | Bbm | Ab |
lullabies. Choking on your alibis. But it’s just the
| Db5 | Gb | Bbm | Ab |
price I pay. Destiny is calling me, open up my eager eyes.
| Db5 | Gb | Bbm | Ab |
‘Cause I’m Mr. Brightside.

Instrumental

||: Db5 | Gb | Bbm | Ab :||

Verse 2

Bridge 2

Chorus 2

Instrumental 2

||: Db5 | Gb | Bbm | Ab :||

Outro

||: Db5 | Gb | Bbm | Ab :|| x4
I never, I never, I never, I never.

Mr. Brightside’s chords and progression

There’s a lot of production on the original recording, making it difficult to define a simple part that works when you play Mr. Brightside‘s chords with a band, as the only guitarist.

Using the chords and lyrics above to find something that works for you for the bridge and chorus is perhaps not difficult, it is the intro and instrumental sections that present the challenge.

Clearly recorded on a guitar tuned down a semitone, playing in the key of Db is perhaps the biggest challenge, I think there’s an argument to be made for learning it in D instead and then applying the Digitech drop pedal to get to the key of Db.

Although, I’ve never seen anyone do this so let’s stick with Db for now. That mental verse riff is simply a Dbadd9 chord with different bass notes, like this:

||: Dbadd9 | Dbadd9/C | Dbadd9/Gb | Dbadd9/Gb :||

The bridge recycles that last chord but before it, we play chords VI and V, like this:

| Bbm | Bbm | Ab | Ab ||: Dbadd9/Gb | Dbadd9/Gb :||

The chorus is a classic chord progression: I – IV – VI – V.

| Db5 | Gb | Bbm | Ab |

Just take a moment and imagine how much easier all this would be in the key of D using a tuned-down guitar. Or why not just transpose it all to C?

Members get a full chord analysis as well as TAB for that intro and a developed part for the instrumental section which will work even if nobody else is playing the chords.

Here’s a link to the complete lesson (members only): Mr. Brightside chord analysis and TAB.

Become a member today and get unlimited access to all step-by-step guitar courses, TAB for the songbook, the Self-Eliminating Practice Routine, and the eBook Spytunes Method.

Mr. Brightside – Song of the decade!

The Killers‘ biggest tune, Mr. Brightside was released as the lead single from their debut album Hot Fuss in 2004.

An enormous success, it would go on to be crowned song of the decade by U.K. radio stations, selling 10 million copies worldwide.

Working bands instantly adopted Mr. Brightside and are still playing it, often as the final encore, almost two decades later.

It sits perfectly around other classics like Sex On Fire, Summer Of ’69, and Seven Nation Army, tunes you pull out when it’s time to make sure the night is a success.

Mr. Brightside chords | Related pages

Five similar tunes with chords and lyrics

When you can play Mr. Brightside's chords, try these five tunes from the song book.

The Killers

Formed in Las Vegas in early 2001, The Killers released a debut single that would become every cover band’s encore for years to come.

The band is best known for the tunes Mr. Brightside, Somebody Told Me, When You Were Young, Bones, and Human.

The Killers on the web

Pop & Rock

Whenever a tune doesn’t fit into a specific genre, it tends to end up here, in the Pop & Rock section.

Learn tunes from Tom Petty, Eagles, Toto, Oasis, Elvis, Clapton, John Mayer, Kings Of Leon, R.E.M., Radiohead, Bruno Mars, and more.