🕯 About the Song
“Somebody” is one of Depeche Mode’s most intimate and human moments — a tender plea for real connection in a world obsessed with surfaces.
Written and sung by Martin Gore, it stripped away the synths and cynicism for a moment of raw vulnerability: just a piano, a breathy vocal, and a heart on the table.
Gore once called it “a love song for people who don’t believe in love songs,” and that’s exactly what it feels like.
It’s simple, confessional, and devastatingly sincere — and on ukulele, it becomes even more personal.
Four strings, one voice, no disguise.
🎸 Ukulele Playing Tips
We’ll play it in C major, a natural key for uke and voice.
You’ll need C, Am, F, G, and Dm.
Verse progression: [C] – [Am] – [F] – [G]
Bridge (“Though my views may be wrong…”): [Am] – [Dm] – [F] – [G]
Tempo: 65 bpm — unhurried and heartfelt.
Strumming pattern: soft down–down–up–up–down–up or just single downstrokes to let the chords breathe.
If you fingerpick, use thumb (4th), index (3rd), middle (2nd), ring (1st) — a slow heartbeat rhythm works best.
This song thrives on dynamics — whisper the verses, open slightly on the bridge, then fall back to stillness.
If you record it, add subtle reverb or play near the uke’s 12th fret to get that bell-like tone.
Singing tip:
Martin Gore sings like someone confessing a secret to one person.
Keep it conversational — fragile, almost spoken in places.
Let the words lead the rhythm rather than forcing strict timing.
💡 Trivia You Can Drop Casually
- Recorded live in one take at Hansa Studios in Berlin — the same building where Bowie made “Heroes.”
- Gore wanted a “naked” sound — so it’s just piano and breath. No synth layers, no production tricks.
- The background noise at the end is actually a field recording of outside ambience — birds and all.
- It’s become a popular wedding song despite being one of the saddest love songs ever written.
- Dave Gahan called it “the truest Martin song — completely vulnerable but quietly defiant.”
🌈 Final Word
“Somebody” is proof that simplicity can be devastating.
It’s not about virtuosity — it’s about honesty.
On ukulele, it feels like a letter you never meant to send.
Play it quietly, with the lights low.
The beauty is in the restraint.
