Parklife | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
||: E | E Dmaj7sus2 Asus2 :|| x6
Oi!
Verse 1
||: E | E Dmaj7sus2 Asus2 :||
Confidence is a preference for the habitual voyeur of
what is known as (Parklife).
And morning soup can be avoided if you take a route straight
through what is known as (Parklife).
John’s got brewer’s droop he gets intimidated by the dirty
pigeons. They love a bit of him (Parklife).
Who’s that gut lord marching, you should cut down on your
pork life mate, get some exercise.
Chorus 1
| E Bb5 B5 | B | E C5 B5 | B |
All the people. So many people. And they
| G D/F# | E D |
all go hand-in-hand.
| C G/B | A Bb | B | (B A G F#) |
Hand-in-hand through their Parklife. Know what I mean?
Instrumental 1
|| E | E Dmaj7sus2 Asus2 | E | E A E N.C |
Verse 2
||: E | E Dmaj7sus2 Asus2 :||
I get up when I want, except on Wednesdays when I get
rudely awakened by the dustmen (Parklife).
I put my trousers on, have a cup of tea, and I
think about leaving the house (Parklife).
I feed the pigeons, I sometimes feed the sparrows too,
it gives me a sense of enormous well-being (Parklife).
And then I’m happy for the rest of the day, safe in the knowledge
there will always be a bit of my heart devoted to it.
Chorus 2
| E Bb5 B5 | B | E C5 B5 | B |
All the people. So many people. And they
| G D/F# | E D |
all go hand-in-hand.
| C G/B | A Bb | B | (B A G F#) |
Hand-in-hand through their, Parklife.
Chorus tag
||: E A E | E Dmaj7sus2 Asus2 :||
Parklife (Parklife).
Parklife (Parklife).
Verse 3
||: E A E | E Dmaj7sus2 Asus2 :||
It’s got nothing to do with your Vorsprung Durch Technik
you know? Parklife (Parklife).
And it’s not about you joggers who go round and
round and round and round Parklife (Parklife).
Chorus 3
| E Bb5 B5 | B | E C5 B5 | B |
All the people. So many people. And they
| G D/F# | E D |
all go hand-in-hand.
| C G/B | A Bb | B | (B A G F#) |
Hand-in-hand through their Parklife.
Chorus 4
| E Bb5 B5 | B | E C5 B5 | B |
All the people. So many people. And they
| G D/F# | E D |
all go hand-in-hand.
| C G/B | A Bb | B | (B A G F#) | E |
Hand-in-hand through their Parklife.
Parklife’s chords and progressions
Blur‘s Parklife is a perfect example of how the quirky London-based Britpop outfit was different from Manchester’s Oasis and their Wonderwall.
The chords are seemingly simple until you start digging into it and realize that there is much more to Parklife than one may first assume.
What stands out the most to me is how much they blend E Ionian, with E Aeolian. Usually, a modal interchange is just one chord, in Parklife’s chorus, it’s a constant blend!
The Dmaj7sus2 found in the main riff could be seen as having this strange name or perhaps as the chord that follows it, an “Asus2 moved up a string”.
Clearly, this was written by moving fingers, not opening the theory book!
For the chorus, as we go past Bb to B we signal the E minor blues scale. Coming the other way, C – B, we flirt with Aeolian again but there is never an Em chord, it’s always major, like this:
| E Bb5 B5 | B | E C5 B5 | B |
This blend of minor and major is what creates the tension and attitude of the progression, perfectly matching the band’s image.
Members get a full chord analysis as well as TAB for how they most likely wrote the main riff by experimenting with “moving the fingers” rather than playing recognized chords and then turning that into a part.
Here’s a link to the complete lesson (members only): Parklife chord analysis + 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.
Parklife was Blur’s first big album!
Released in 1994, Parklife was Blur’s third album but the first that sold well and spread the news of the band beyond the borders of the U.K.
Selling over a million copies in the U.K., it did almost as well in Europe, enabling the band to start touring on a bigger scale.
Apart from the title track, another big single can be found on this album in Girls & Boys.
When they released their fourth album the following year and matched sales, Blur had positioned themselves right in between Radiohead (super credible) and outrageous party animals Oasis.
Parklife chords | Related pages
Intermediate Acoustic
Most intermediate acoustic tunes can’t be played using just basic open-position chords. We have to move up the fretboard and play CAGED barre chords as well.
We incorporate bass lines, add licks, extend chords, and play vocal melodies. Most importantly, we’ll invent second guitar parts and play these songs together.
Five similar tunes with chords and lyrics
Blur
As an integral part of 90s Britpop, Blur was adored by the fans and press hailed as the more sophisticated alternative to Manchester’s Oasis.
The band is best known for the tunes Parklife, Girls & Boys, Country House, Song 2, Tender, as well as Coffee & TV.
Blur 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.
