Belle and Sebastian - Poor Boy: Guitar Chords

Learn to play "Poor Boy" on your guitar with our chord guide. This page provides everything you need to perform this song on the guitar, including lyrics integrated with chords, chord diagrams, and a key transposer to match your vocal range.

For easier playing, use our Simplify Chords feature to remove difficult chords like barre.

G#      Cm                               D#
Poor boy, I could never live up to your imagination
G#      Cm                    D#
Poor boy, I was a crush that killed
G#      Cm
Poor boy, I could never live up to your
   D#
hallucination
G#      Cm                    D#
Poor boy, I was a crush that killed

G#       Cm                        D#
I had a dream that trouble always starts
              G#
in someone's head
                Cm                           D#
And dreams are real, when you're asleep you may
            G#
as well be dead
        Cm                        D#             G#
I predicate the last ten years on figuring we’d meet
           Cm                       D#
After the war, in some strange city on
a stranger shore

E                D#m               C#
So you think I'd waste my life on this
(to be your comfort when you needed me)
E        D#m
Lady everlasting friendship

Chorus:
C#                           Cm7         D#
Poor boy, I could never live up to your imagination
C#                 Cm7        D#
Poor boy, I was a crush that killed
C#                           Cm7
Poor boy, I could never live up to your
   D#
hallucination
C#                 Cm7        D#
Poor boy, I was a crush that killed

We had a time
If we could have it back over again
I'd be a force
Not so polite and not so delicate
I'd trot around
On velvet socks so I could not be felt
I was your fan
Waiting for the day when this God will start to

Talk to me, don't venerate me now
I'm not a golden calf to be adored
See my heart beat, smell my sweet skin

Chorus

      C#              D#
If I carry you in my heart
          C#                       D#
Will you ease the pain or make it harder
           A#m7                       Cm7
I know you like to let me know you're there
(poor boy, I could never live up to your
imagination)
              A#m7                      Cm7
If the black clouds come, will you disappear
(poor boy, I was a crush)
          G#                   D#
Is there space in my life for you
        C#m7      G#               D#
Will I see you tomorrow or will I ride on

Chorus

I could never live up
(Crush)
(Crush)
(Crush)
(Crush)


You can simplify chords by removing barre

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Simplify chords by removing barre

Guitar Chord Diagrams

A#m7

Guitar chord A#m7

C#

Guitar chord C#

C#m7

Guitar chord C#m7

Cm

Guitar chord Cm

Cm7

Guitar chord Cm7

D#

Guitar chord D#

D#m

Guitar chord D#m

E

Guitar chord E

G#

Guitar chord G#

Here you can see detailed diagrams for each guitar chord used in the song. Utilize our key transposer to adjust the chords to a key that better fits your singing range. Simply select the desired key, and the chords throughout this page will update automatically, ensuring you can play and sing comfortably.

If you are also interested in learning how to play "Poor Boy" on the ukulele, check out the chords on our sister site: Ukulele Chords for "Poor Boy" by Belle and Sebastian.

Belle and Sebastian Song List