Mad World is the third single for the British band Tears for Fears, released in 1982. Two decades later, the song made a popular resurgence when it was covered in a much slower, ballad-like style by composers Michael Andrews and Gary Jules for the soundtrack to the movie Donnie Darko. This version reached #1 in the UK in December 2003.

The range for this song is less than one octave: F4 to D5.

The vocals for this song are in F Melodic Minor Scale (F G Ab Bb C D E)

Guitars/Vocals uses Standard tuning

VERSE 1

|------------------------------------------------------------|
|------------------------------------1-----1-----1-----------|
|---------------1-----1---------------------------------1----|
|--3------3---------------3----3-----------------------------|
|------------------------------------------------------------|
|------------------------------------------------------------|
   All    a-    round me  are  fa-   mil-  iar   fa-    ces
   Bright and   ear-  ly  for  their dai-  ly    ra-    ces
          Their tears are fil- ling  up    their glass- es
   Hide   my    head  I   want to    drown my    sor-   row

|------------------------------------------------|
|------------------------------------------------|
|--3----3---3-----0------3----3---3-------1-0----|
|---------------------------------------------3--|
|------------------------------------------------|
|------------------------------------------------|
   Worn out pla-  ces,   worn out fa-    ces
   Go-  ing no-   where, go-  ing no-    where
   No   ex- pres- sion,  no   ex- press- ion
   No   to- mor-  row,   no   to- mor-   row

CHORUS

|---------------------------------|
|----------------1----1--3--------|
|--------1----1---------------3---|
|--3---3--------------------------|
|---------------------------------|
|---------------------------------|
   And I find it kind of fun- ny
       I find it hard to tell you

|---------------------------|
|-----3----3----------------|
|--3----------3----3--------|
|---------------------3-----|
|---------------------------|
|---------------------------|
   I  find it kind of sad
   I  find it hard to take

|-----------------------------------------|
|------------------1-----1---3------------|
|-------1------1------------------3-------|
|--3--------------------------------------|
|-----------------------------------------|
|-----------------------------------------|
   The  dreams in  which I'm dy-  ing
   When peo-   ple run   in  cir- cles

|-------------------------------|
|-----------3----3--------------|
|--3----3-------------3----3----|
|-------------------------------|
|-------------------------------|
|-------------------------------|
   Are  the best I've ever had
   It's a   ve-  ry,  ve-  ry

|-------------|
|-------------|
|--1----------|
|------3------|
|-------------|
|-------------|
   Mad world

VERSE 2

|-------------------------------------------------------------|
|-----------------------------------1------1----1-------------|
|-------------1------1--------------------------------1-------|
|--3-----3----------------3----3------------------------------|
|-------------------------------------------------------------|
|-------------------------------------------------------------|
   Chil- dren wai-   ting for  the  day    they feel  good
   And   I    feel   the  way  that eve-   ry   child should
   Went  to   school and  I    was  ve-    ry   ner-  vous
   Hel-  lo   tea-   cher tell me   what's my   les-  son

|----------------------------------------------------|
|----------------------------------------------------|
|--3----3-----3-------0----3----3-----3-------1-0----|
|-------------------------------------------------3--|
|----------------------------------------------------|
|----------------------------------------------------|
   Hap- py    Birth-  day, Hap- py    Birth-  day
   Sit  and   list-   en,  sit  and   list-   en
   No   one   knew    me,  no   one   knew    me
   Look right through me,  look right through me

CHORUS

Tabbed by Andrew Marks <admin@voxtabs.com> - questions, suggestions, comments welcome