Chord Progressions S&D

hope I'm not out of my depth here but it sounds like on that particular chord they're raising the third to make a major chord rather than the minor chord that it's supposed to be within that key

I think Josefa is right. To me that sounds like a major III chord, which would normally be minor. Typically this would be followed by a vi or IV chord, but in this case it sounds like it is followed by the V chord and then goes back to I after that.

a typical example that I always think of of a major III chord being used in a song is the second chord in "Georgia On My Mind"

Yep. And Otis Redding uses a major III chord in "I've Been Loving You Too Long" also (he wrote "Good to Me").

I was looking at a chord chart for that one online. So it's in the key of A, goes between the A and E a bit, and then goes to a C#. So that would be the major III?

It seems like it's providing a preface or buildup to the D (IV) right? (I know just enough about this stuff to be dangerous...)

i think in this case it leads into the V, but i'd need a piano to be certain

I to Major III is a common move in the gospel playbook, lots of hymns start with this basic movement (also seen in georgia on my mind): I - III - vi - IV

Goes to the IV in this version, but lord knows the internet is often wrong:

https://www.e-chords.com/chords/otis-redding/i-ve-been-loving-you-too-long

xp

oh i was still thinking about that mavis staples song

I'm pretty much a "cowboy chords" musician, so I,IV, and V, with the occasional II, are about the extent of my playbook. Everything else is kind of an aha! moment.

There's a modulation that shows up in a bunch of deep soul songs that always moves me. It's here at :37 when Mavis hits the lyric "...will to try."

I actually think this IS a modulation and not just a borrowed chord. The song is in E (not A) and the chord is G#. VC says, "it leads into the V," but I don't think it does. The V chord that follows is the start of the next verse. I don't think the G# has a function at all and I believe the song is actually in the key of G# there momentarily.

That's not the case with "Georgia on My Mind," where the chord is clearly a secondary dominant, or "I've Been Loving You Too Long" where it's...a passing chord on the way to III?

A passing chord on the way to IV - I meant to say in that last part

george's "beware of darkness" is a weird and beautiful one, isn't it?

Yes. I put it on now and followed it along and it's uncanny.

I was thinking about the song Rumble. Obviously it's just a blues, except for the fact that it has that flat VII sus chord that resolves to the I, and then resolves to the IV, and then resolves to the V. Did Link invent that? It's so weird and awesome.

Oh is that what that is, cool. That song rules.

"memories fade" by tears for fears, tonal center is e minor. i absolutely love the chorus progression.

b minor to b major(!) to c major to a minor

Just a side question: does anyone see chords as particular shapes or colors? Major-major7th chrods (like Cmaj7) always strike as very round and soft, and of a light shade, such as a pastel. Contrarily, major-minor7th chords (like C7) strike me as angular and harder, and a brighter color, such as red.

For the record, I generally don't hold too many biases with chords, and use them as I see fit (which basically means, I play what sounds good to me, or in rare cases, use them for particular effects) -- but I will say that I don't generally like major-major 7th chords. To me, they seem *too* passive. Debussy used them, and for that, I must grant them credence, for he somehow made them sound credible, but he also did wonders with flatted 7ths, and using 9ths, and making chords that sounded heavenly (and just a bit erotic).

― dleone, Monday, June 10, 2002 8:00 PM (twenty years ago) bookmarkflaglink

I find this really interesting because I also get soft pastel vibes from major 7ths, but rather than passivity I hear wistful beauty; they're my favorite kind of chord