We Don’t Need Another Hero | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
| B | F# (F#sus2) | B | F# (F#sus2) |
| B/E | F# (F#sus2) | C#5 (riff) | C#5 (riff) |
Verse 1
| B | F# (F#sus2) | B | F# (F#sus2) |
Out of the ruins, out from the wreckage.
| B/E | F# (F#sus2) | C#5 | C#5 |
Can’t make the same mistake this time.
| B/G# | F# (F#sus2) | B/G# | F# (F#sus2) |
We are the children, the last generation (the last generation, generation).
| B/E | F# (F#sus2) | C#5 (riff) | C#5 (riff) |
We are the ones they left behind.
Bridge 1
| E | F# C#madd9 | C#madd9 |
And I wonder when we are ever gonna change, change.
| C#madd9 E | E F# | C#madd9 |
Living under the fear, ’til nothing else remains.
Chorus 1
| F# E/G# F# | E F# |
We don’t need another hero.
| F# E/G# F# | E F# |
We don’t need to know the way home.
| F# E/G# F# | E F# | C#m | C#m |
All we want is life beyond, the Thunderdome.
Verse 2
Looking for something, we can rely on.
There’s gotta be something better out there.
Oh, love and compassion. Their day is coming (coming).
All else are castles built in the air.
Bridge 2
| E | F# C#madd9 | C#madd9 |
And I wonder when we, are ever gonna change, change.
| C#madd9 E | E F# | C#madd9 | C#madd9 |
Living under the fear, ’til nothing else remains. All the children say:
Chorus 2
We don’t need another hero.
We don’t need to know the way home.
| F# E/G# F# | E F# | C#m B |
All we want is life beyond, the Thunderdome.
Middle 8
| A | F# |
So, what do we do with our lives?
| A | C#m |
We leave only a mark.
| D | E | D | E N.C |
Will our story shine like a light, or end in the dark? Give it all or nothing!
Solo
||: F# E/G# F# | E F# :|| x4
Chorus 3 (as chorus 1)
We don’t need another hero (hero, hero).
We don’t need to know the way home.
All we want is life beyond, the Thunderdome. All the children say:
Chorus 4
(We don’t need another hero). We don’t need another hero.
(We don’t need to know the way home) Ooh.
All we want is life beyond, the Thunderdome.
End
||: C#m :|| (hold)
We Don’t Need Another Hero Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning We Don’t Need Another Hero. I’ve used stem separation to extract the guitar while keeping the drums, bass, keys, horns, and vocals intact.
After studying the chords and TAB, use my backing tracks to prepare for playing this tune with a band.
Should you want to play along with the original recording instead, you need to tune your guitar sharp to 445Hz. In the backing tracks, I’ve done this job for you by tuning it to 440Hz.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
Intro
Packed with slash chords, We Don’t Need Another Hero reveals its key trick right from the intro, as it alternates between chords I and V, but changes the bass note the third time:
||: B (I) | F# (V) :||
| B/E | F# | C#5 (II) | C#5 |
The B/E is often described as an Emaj7, but that’s not entirely accurate. Try it yourself and you’ll hear the difference.
The C#5 is chord II, where we get that iconic bass line riff.
Verse
When the verse starts, we see the same progression again, but with another twist on the bass note — now B/G#.
This could be seen as a G#m7 (which would be the more accurate label), but writing it as B/G# helps highlight that we’re playing the same chord with a changed bass note.
The F# features a small motif, which I like to describe as F#sus2. I’ve marked it in brackets in the chords and lyrics where it appears briefly. In the chord chart below, I’ve written it as a smaller chord to reflect that it’s not a full, sustained sound.
You can find TAB for the guitar version of this keyboard riff here by scrolling further down this guitar lesson.
Bridge
The bridge has some unusual timing. Over six bars, the C#m chord takes up eight beats, but it starts halfway through bar 2 — a strange placement. I nearly added two 2/4 bars before realising it works better as follows:
| E | F# C#madd9 | C#madd9 |
| C#madd9 E | E F# | C#madd9 |
When we play the bridge again, there’s an extra bar of C#m at the end.
Chorus
The chorus is equally unusual, starting on beat 2 — just like Miley Cyrus’ Flowers do almost 40 years later.
We move through this progression: V – I/3 – V – IV – V, which is a pretty unique pattern. It looks like this:
| F# E/G# F# | E F# |
Middle 8
Lastly, the middle 8 changes the key down a tone to A, and follows this progression:
| A (I) | F# (VIx) | A (I) | C#m (VI) |
| D (IV) | E (V) | D | E N.C |
Here’s the chord chart I made for you, it’s the same as you find in the backing tracks above.
We Don’t Need Another Hero Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
It took me all day to work out all the chords and create a chart that would fit Tina Turner‘s We Don’t Need Another Hero‘s chords onto one page.
Should you want to download my chord chart, here’s a PDF: We Don’t Need Another Hero chord chart PDF.
This chart was created using iRealPro. Here’s a link to that file: We Don’t Need Another Hero iReal Pro. Using this and the iRealPro app, you can change the key.
We Don’t Need Another Hero | TAB
Let’s find a way to play We Don’t Need Another Hero in a band setting. I’ve created an acoustic arrangement as well, so it’s definitely possible—but for now, let’s focus on playing it with a band.
Starting with the intro, I’ve gone for playing the pan flute riff here, hoping the keyboards will cover all the B slash chords. If that’s not the case, use the chords and lyrics lesson as a guide to play long, sweeping chords instead.
Notice how the first C# is just a root note—not a power chord. The pull-off triplet is a nice touch but perhaps a bit much.
Here’s an alternative way to play that C#5 riff. I feel this works better, even though it’s not exactly like the record.
Here’s the bridge section in TAB. You could vary that little C# minor pentatonic lick over time.
I’ve labelled the chord as C#sus2 rather than C#madd9, as that’s how it appears in the TAB.
Now for the chorus—the riff is played without the triplet here.
Finally, here’s the middle 8. I’ve invented most of these parts. The chords are correct, so if you’d like to develop this section further, go for it!
We Don’t Need Another Hero Chords: Continue Learning
Step-by-step Guitar Courses
Master guitar by studying real tunes. Build your skills with video lessons, eBooks and practice routines that connect theory with the music you love!
Explore SpyTunes step-by-step Guitar Courses.
Five similar tunes | Chords + Lyrics
