Without You | Chords + Lyrics (Harry Nilsson)
Intro
| Esus2 E | Esus2 E |
Verse 1
| Esus2 E | G#sus4 G#m |
No, I can’t forget this evening or your face as you were leaving.
| F#m | G#sus4 G# G#7 |
But I guess that’s just the way the story goes.
| C#m C#m7/B | F# F#7 |
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows.
| E | B7 |
Yes, it shows.
Verse 2
No, I can’t forget tomorrow when I think of all my sorrows.
When I had you there but then I let you go.
And now it’s only fair that I should let you know.
What you should know.
Chorus 1
| E | C#m |
I can’t live, if living is without you.
| F#m | B7 |
I can’t live, I can’t give any more.
| E | C#m |
Can’t live, if living is without you.
| F#m | B7 | B7 |
I can’t give, I can’t give any more.
Verse 3
Well, I can’t forget this evening or your face as you were leaving.
But I guess that’s just the way the story goes.
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows.
Yes, it shows.
Chorus 2
I can’t live, if living is without you.
I can’t live, I can’t give any more.
Can’t live, if living is without you.
I can’t give, I can’t give any more.
Outro
||: E | C#m | F#m | B7 :||
(Living is without you)
Without You Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning Harry Nilson’s version of Without You. I’ve used stem separation to extract the guitar while keeping the drums, bass, keys, strings, and vocals intact.
After studying the chords and TAB, use my backing tracks to prepare for playing this tune with a band, as Harry did it.
Should you want to play along with either of the original recording instead, you need to tune your guitar sharp to 442Hz. In the backing tracks, I’ve done this job for you by tuning it to 440Hz.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
Playing the chords for Without You, whether in the key of Harry Nilsson or Mariah Carey, is surprisingly easy.
So easy, in fact, that I recommend you try both versions. This way, if the singer wants to change the key, you’ll be ready to adapt.
Let’s start with Harry’s version, without a capo, thinking in the key of E.
Intro
The intro features a sus2 – major chord progression. Instead of moving from the 2nd to the 3rd, we descend almost an octave.
Using TAB, I came up with a fun way to play the intro (which also serves as the start of the verse). You’ll find said TAB further down this guitar lesson.
Verse
The verse follows a similar approach with two chords per bar, like this:
| Esus2 (I) E | G#sus4 (III) G#m |
| F#m (II) | G#sus4 G# (IIIx) G#7 |
| C#m (VI) C#m7/B | F# (IIx) F#7 |
| E (I) | B7 (V) |
In Roman numerals, the verse progression is I – III – II – IIIx, VI – IIx – I – V. The IIIx (G#) leads to VI (C#m).
There’s TAB for how to play the verse too, it’s similar to the intro.
Chorus
The chorus is simple, following the I – VI – II – V pattern:
||: E (I) | C#m (VI) | F#m (II) | B7 (V) :||
Again, there’s TAB for how to play this, all without a pick.
After the TAB lesson, this chord chart will be all you need to play Harry’s version of Without You.
Without You Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro Download
Should you want to download this chart, here’s a PDF: Without You chord chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro, here’s a link to that file: Without You iReal Pro.
Using this and the iRealPro app, you can change the key, which is a great idea if you want to play Mariah Carey’s version, let’s check it out!
Without You | Chords + Lyrics (Mariah Carey, capo 4)
Intro
| Dsus2 D/F# | Dsus2 D/F# |
Verse 1
| Dsus2 D/F# | F#sus4 F#m |
No, I can’t forget this evening or your face as you were leaving.
| Em | F#sus4 F# F#7 |
But I guess that’s just the way the story goes.
| Bm Bm7/A | E E7 |
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows.
| D | A7 |
Yes, it shows.
Verse 2
No, I can’t forget tomorrow when I think of all my sorrows.
When I had you there but then I let you go.
And now it’s only fair that I should let you know.
What you should know.
Chorus 1
| D | Bm |
I can’t live, if living is without you.
| Em | A7 |
I can’t live, I can’t give any more.
| D | Bm |
Can’t live, if living is without you.
| Em | A7 | A7 |
I can’t give, I can’t give any more.
Verse 3
Well, I can’t forget this evening or your face as you were leaving.
But I guess that’s just the way the story goes.
You always smile but in your eyes your sorrow shows.
Yes, it shows.
Chorus 2
I can’t live, if living is without you.
I can’t live, I can’t give any more.
Can’t live, yeah, if living is without you.
I can’t give, I can’t give any more.
Outro
| D | Bm |
Ooh, oh, ooh (no, I can’t live, no I can’t live)
| Em | A7 |
Oh, no, no, no, no.
| D | Bm |
I can’t live (no, I can’t live), If living is without you (no, I can’t live).
| Em | A7 |
I can’t live, I can’t give anymore.
| D | Bm |
Can’t live (No, I can’t live, no I can’t live).
| Em | A7 |
Oh…
Without You Backing Tracks | Chord Analysis
Above, you’ll find backing tracks to use when learning Mariah Carey’s version of Without You. I’ve used stem separation to extract the guitar while keeping the drums, bass, keys, strings, and vocals intact.
After studying the chords and TAB, use my backing tracks to prepare for playing this tune with a band, as Mariah did it.
Should you want to play along with either of the original recording instead, you need to (again!) tune your guitar sharp to 442Hz. In the backing tracks, I’ve done this job for you by tuning it to 440Hz.
Chord Progressions – What’s Going On?
Now, let’s explore how to play the chords for Without You in the key that Mariah Carey uses.
One option is to place a capo on the second fret and think in the key of E, which will give you the key of F#. You can refer to Harry Nilsson’s version for the corresponding chords.
However, for a different approach, let’s try playing in the key of D by placing the capo on the fourth fret. This gives you a bit more flexibility if the singer wants to lower the key, with options all the way down below Harry’s key.
Intro
By using different chord shapes to play Without You, some of the chords change, giving the song a slightly different sound. Here’s how to play the intro:
| Dsus2 D/F# | Dsus2 D/F# |
Though it’s slightly misleading to call this a D/F#, it’s helpful to note how the third is below the sus2, which forms the riff. Due to the compact nature of the D-shaped chord, we can’t play a lower root.
Verse
As the verse starts, it looks like this in the key of D:
| Dsus2 (I) D/F# | F#sus4 (III) F#m |
| Em (II) | F#sus4 F# F#7 |
| Bm (VI) Bm7/A | E (IIx) E7 |
| D (I) | A7 (V) |
There’s TAB available for this version too, which differs from how the song is arranged in Harry’s key.
Chorus
Now, here are the chorus chords for Mariah’s version of Without You:
||: D (I) | Bm (VI) | Em (II) | A7 (V) :||
Notice how an E chord is the lowest we go on the guitar, and a D is the highest open-position chord. These two ways of playing the chorus chords give the song a distinct sound.
I recommend practising in both keys, as it will deepen your understanding and improve your playing technique.
Without You | TAB (Harry)
Let’s go through how to play Without You on the acoustic, first as Harry does it, then Mariah.
For Harry’s version, we are in the key of E, we don’t use a capo, here’s the intro:
Notice how the sus2 is above the 3rd, this is the chord riff. E is chord I.
Here’s the verse:
I really like how it is small in bars 2–4, then builds on the second line as we go deeper.
The progression is I – III – II – IIIx. Then VI – IIx – I – V.
Here’s the chorus:
I’ve started in a C shape here for the E chord, you could also try an open E chord. Feel free to develop this part!
Let’s now fit a capo on fret 4 and think in the key of D, we are then a tone above the original key (F# not E).
Remember, if you don’t like this, you could fit a capo on fret 2 and play Harry’s chords in Mariah’s key.
Without You | TAB (Mariah)
Thinking in D changes some of the chords, here’s the intro:
D/F# is new, we have to play this in order to get that 3rd below the sus2.
Here’s the verse:
This is definitely easier to play than in Harry’s key. Let’s now look at the chorus:
Play along with the backing tracks, find yourself an ambitious singer and try to stick to the basics as they belt it out. It takes a true professional to not complicate things when someone else in the band goes all out.
Should you play this power ballad in a band, can you adjust all these TAB ideas to the electric guitar?
Without You Chords: Continue Learning
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