"God Only Knows" contains a weak tonal center that is closest to E major and, in other sections, A major. Adding to this, almost all of the chords are inverted. An E major triad with its bass note in the root position is never invoked, and instead, the position is favored. Of the tracks on "Pet Sounds", it is the only one that lacks a strongly established primary key center (others employ key ambiguity to a lesser degree), and the only one that modulates its key up a fourth interval (others descend by a third).