The story behind
Tears for Fears wrote Everybody Wants to Rule the World in 1984, in the studio The Wool Hall. The song was released in 1985 as part of the album Songs from the Big Chair, and was the group's first single to reach number one in the United States. It was also successful in the United Kingdom, reaching number two. The lyrics talk about a world where everyone wants power, but in the end it ends up being a reflection on what that means. The video shows Curt Smith driving an old car through a desert, while other characters appear in different scenes. The song remains popular, and has been used in movies like Gru 4 and Marty Supreme. ↓ Skip to chords
Tears for Fears — Everybody Wants to Rule the World
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Key
D major
Capo
0
Text
Auto
Intro 1
Verse 1
Chorus 1
Verse 2
Chorus 2
Bridge 1
Chorus 3
Interlude 1
Solo 1
Chorus 4
Chorus 5
Chorus 6
Outro 1
Fade out
Intro 1
E|--------------------------------------------------| B|-----10------12------10------10------12------10---| G|-11------11------11------11------11------11-------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|--------------------------------------------------| B|-----10------12------10------10------12------10---| G|-11------11------11------11------11------11-------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|--------------------------------------------------| B|-----10------12------10------10------12------10---| G|-11------11------11------11------11------11-------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|--------------------------------------------------| B|-----10------12------10------10------12------10---| G|-11------11------11------11------11------11-------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Verse 1
Chorus 1
Verse 2
Chorus 2
Bridge 1
Chorus 3
Interlude 1
Solo 1
E|--------------------------------------------------| B|-2---3---2-------3---3---2---3---2-------3---2----| G|-2---4---2-------4---4---2---4---2-------4---2----| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|-----2-----------------------------------2---2----| B|-2---3---3-------2-------2---2---3-------3---3----| G|-2-------4-------2-------2---2---4----------------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|-----10--10--10--7---7---7---5---5---5---7---7----| B|-----10--10--10--7---7---7---5---5---5---7---7----| G|--------------------------------------------------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|-----2-------2---2-----------2-------2---2--------| B|-----3-------3---3---3-------3-------3---3---3----| G|---------------------4-----------------------4----| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
Chorus 4
Chorus 5
Chorus 6
Outro 1
E|-----10-------------------------------------------| B|-------------------------7------------------------| G|---------9-------9--------------------------------| D|---------------------9----------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|--------------------------------------------------| B|--------------------------------------------------| G|-2-------4---4------(4)2-4-------2----------------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|--------------------------------------------------| B|-(5)----------------------------------------------| G|--------------------------------------------------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|--------------------------------------------------| B|-------------------------------------8-------10---| G|-7------------------------------------------------| D|-------------5-------7----------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|--------------------------------------------------| B|---------------------------------------------8----| G|-7-------------------9----------------------------| D|-------------7-----------------------7------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 E|--------------------------------------------------| B|-7-------------------8-------8--------------------| G|-------------0-----------0------------------------| D|--------------------------------------------------| A|--------------------------------------------------| E|--------------------------------------------------| 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12
