Where Is Love Now
Written by Sam Phillips, arranged and performed by Nickel Creek.
Charted by Richard J.M. Fry for Courtney Lawton
*Notes and Notation* Looks there for fun things! Short things, tall things, things that
ride on bikes! And, above all, things to help you interpret the song.
Capo 4:
Key Signature: E major/C relative to Capo
Time Signature: 4/4
Tempo: 69-74 Adagietto con dolcezza
Chords used in order (relative to the Capo):
Also, kids, seriously, check out notes and notations. Everything there is meant to help
you to…a lot.
C: X32010
D/C: X3X232
Em: 022000
Am: X02210
Am7/G: 3X2010 *
F: 133211 or 13321X
F/E: 03321X*
Dm: XX0231
Dm/E: 0XX231*
D: XX0232
Intro:
C D/C C D/C
C Em
If I could wait here for you,
Am Am7/G F
Without hope or knowing what to do.
C Em
Watch the light fade away,
Am Am7/G F F/E
Without fear or knowing what to say.
Dm Dm/E F F/E
Cry the tears from my eyes.
Dm Dm/E F
Leave me here long enough to realize.
C Em
Where is love now?
C Em
Where is love now;
Am D
Out here in the dark?
C D/C
C Em
If I should hold all my dreams,
Am Am7/G F
Through the night of the way life sometimes seems.
C Em
And if I can't see which way to go,
Am Am7/G F F/E
I'll stay lost in silence 'til I know.
Dm Dm/E F F/E
Cry the tears from my eyes.
Dm Dm/E F
And leave me here long enough to realize.
C Em
Where is love now?
C Em
Where is love now;
Am D Em D
Out here in the dark?
Instrumental Solo:
C Em Am F
C Em Am F
Dm Dm/E F F/E
Cry the tears from my eyes.
Dm Dm/E F
Leave me here long enough to realize.
C Em
Where is love now?
C Em
Where is love now?
C Em
Where is love now?
C Em
Where is love now;
Am D
Out here in the dark?
Em D
Am D
Out here in the dark?
Outro:
Em D
Em D
C D/C
*Notes and Notations*
1. Adagietto con dolcezza: Slow, but not drudging. Don’t linger on chords too long or
else the sound will quickly get stale. As well, don’t heavy hand any of the
chords--delicate, like a somber lament.
2. In regards to picking, Sean Watkins (the guitarist for Nickel Creek) is fond of
mimicking finger picking with his style. Think of a hideous amalgamation of Travis picking,
flatpicking, alternating bass picking, and crosspicking. As such, there’s really no
RIGHT way to play this song. You can do delicate picking or finger style; it’s really
up to
you. I’m biased, as I learned finger style first, but that is just me.
3. Any chord that is marked with an asterisk is something that is PURELY OPTIONAL. As I
mentioned, Mr. Watkins is keen on alternating bass, considering Nickel Creek very seldom
runs with a double bassist, something odd for a bluegrass ensemble. As such, it is up to
the guitarist to provide the stepping motion between chords. When you see a chord that
is marked with a slash, it is a compound chord and is used as a stepping chord or a
neighboring chord between tones.
4. This part is theory babble, so feel free to disregard it. The only exception to the
optional choice is the D/C chord, which is actually a tonic chord with a neighboring step
up to the supertonic (D), while still holding the C. It’s not quite a suspended chord,
as the D/C eventually resolves back to the tonic. As such, the C to D/C to C motion is
an incomplete neighboring chord. As well, you’re probably wondering why there is an Em
present. Well, A minor is the relative minor of C major, and the song does occasionally
insinuate a modulation. However, seeing as it does not stay in A minor very long, this
is simply a borrowing of chords from the relative minor rather than a full blown key change.
That being said, you seldom (and I mean, very seldom), find a usage of a minor V chord
(Em) in a minor key. The V7 is much more enticing, as it allows a very quick segue into a
major IV chord in the original key and eventually back to tonic. In the context of this
song, however, a minor V chord does work as a pivot chord from Am to C, cutting out the
need for a bridge between a V7/vi to I. As well, it could be a vi/V chord, as Em is borrowed from the dominant of C. Then again, it could be as simple as a iii chord. It's really in the eye of the beholder. Again, just theory babble.
5. I added a second way to play the F major chord. This is because in the recording, you
never hear the octave F on the high E string in the recording, so it is, in my opinion,
unnecessary to play it. I’m fond of leaving things out to preserve a good sound rather
than a complete chord that doesn’t inherently do anything to enhance the harmony.
Again, feel free to disregard this if you aren’t interested.
6. Adh mor! (Good luck)