Mar102022

Cheap Trick – Borderline Chords on Piano & Ukulele

Updated January 8, 2026

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These are the chords for Borderline by Cheap Trick on Piano, Ukulele, Guitar, and Keyboard

[Intro]
E   A E   A

[Verse 1]
E
Run out of money and
               B
runnin' out of luck
A
Run into problem I never,
      E
never thought of
   E
It seems like I didn't
              B
run out of my dreams
    A
But we've got each other and
                    E
tonight we're gonna leave

[Chorus]
       C#m   B
To the borderline
A                        E
Leave all our troubles behind
       C#m   G#
At the borderline
   A                      B
Forget all our troubles tonight
E    A

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[Verse 2]
E                            B
A broken promise is a broken dream
      A
We've all had so many,
             E
too many for me
  E
Impossible to have freedom
                   B
when things aren't free
    A
But we've got each other and
                    E
tonight we're gonna leave

[Chorus]
       C#m   B
To the borderline
A                        E
Leave all our troubles behind
       C#m   G#
At the borderline
   A                        B
Forget all our troubles and hide
       C#m   B
To the borderline
A                    E
Leave our troubles tonight
       C#m   F#
At the borderline
   A
Forget all our troubles
A
Leavin' all our troubles
       B
At the borderline
B
I wanna go, I wanna go
           A       G#m
Oh I'll go anywhere
G#m
I wanna go,
I wanna go away from here
         A
Is all I really care

Feel free to use our free Chord Shape Generator to see every chord in this song on guitar, ukulele and piano.

[Guitar Solo]
C#m  B  A  E  C#m  G#7  A  B

[Bridge]
E
Runnin' away from the girl
      B
of my dreams
A
Runnin' away from a life
          E
of broken dreams

[Chorus]
       C#m   B
To the borderline
A                        E
Leave all our troubles behind
       C#m   G#
At the borderline
   A                      B
Forget all our troubles tonight
       C#m   B
To the borderline
A                        E
Leave all our troubles behind
       C#m   F#
At the borderline
   A
Forget all our troubles
A
Leavin' all our troubles
       B
At the borderline
             E
At the borderline

[Outro]
E    A E
A E    A E

How to play Borderline: key, chords and progression

Borderline by Cheap Trick is in the key of E major (four sharps: F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯). The song uses 8 chords: E, A, B, C#m, G#, F#, G#m and G#7.

The progression the song keeps returning to is B – A – E – C#m (V – IV – I – vi in E major). In solfa, that is soh – fah – doh – lah. Learn these 4 changes first and most of the song falls into place.

Easier on guitar: put a capo on the 4th fret and play the shapes C, F, G, Am, E, D, Em, E7 (88% of the chords become easy open shapes, against 25% without a capo). It sounds exactly the same.

Chord diagrams

C#m chord on guitar (x46654) — C♯mC♯ E G♯

G# chord on guitar (466544) — G♯G♯ B♯ D♯

F# chord on guitar (244322) — F♯F♯ A♯ C♯

G#m chord on guitar (466444) — G♯mG♯ B D♯

G#7 chord on guitar (464544) — G♯7G♯ B♯ D♯ F♯

Borderline chords: questions

What key is Borderline in?

Borderline by Cheap Trick is in the key of E major (four sharps: F♯, C♯, G♯, D♯).

What chords are in Borderline?

Borderline uses 8 chords: E, A, B, C#m, G#, F#, G#m, G#7.

What is the chord progression of Borderline?

The main progression is B – A – E – C#m (V – IV – I – vi).

Is Borderline easy to play on guitar?

Yes, with a capo: put a capo on the 4th fret and play the shapes C, F, G, Am, E, D, Em, E7 (88% of the chords become easy open shapes, against 25% without a capo).

How to play Borderline: key, chords and progression

Chord diagrams

Borderline chords: questions

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