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I have a bit of a problem with a piece I am working on. My normal practice is a long session of scales and chord switching on various progressions (or aggression!). In the last week or so I have been trying to improve my ear by transcribing songs that I like. So far I have been reasonably successful, but now I have bamboozled myself. I deliberately avoided Hendrix as he may be too intricate (this is important as will become clear below). I thought that "Still Got the Blues" (Gary Moore) was a nice, simple blues piece. Heavy on the arpeggios, so it should be easy! I could not have been more wrong.
My first problem was the key. It might not start in Am but it certainly resolves to it, at least to my untrained ear. There are also more chords than I would expect in blues. When I wrote down all their names, I noticed that they followed the circle of 4ths. I thought I had mastered it. Naturally, I was wrong again. One of the 4ths was a sharp 4th! Well, I can live with that,I thought. But it seems to become Amaj at the bridge! To top it all off, one of the chords is the Hendrix chord!
So here are my conclusions: it's not blues in structure but it is in rhythm (not a blue note to be seen). It seems to be a jazz oriented ballad. It is in Am, but it does change key. Never avoid Hendrix or you will suffer.
Can anyone tell me if my conclusions are correct? I got to where I am with it by playing single notes against the progression and then experimenting with different arpeggios. Is that the best way to go? Last, in terms of rig, there seems to be a lot of reverb. Are there any disasters lurking in wait for me on that score?
Last thing, if I have everything wrong, I might try a new and less stressful pastime: tiger wrestling, chute-less sky diving, smearing myself with honey and sitting on an ants nest or swimming with the Great White sharks - all spring to mind!
Nigel
PS: I would send a file of where I am at, but I have neither the soft- or hardware to do it. I shall be upgrading my system before Xmas (a present to myself) and will get something out then.
Posted : May 3, 2021 13:38
Sorry for the late reply - almost missed this.
Let me know if I'm helping here. First of all, it is diatonic harmony in action here. So you are right, it is not blues. It's using the cycle of 4ths, and the chord progression is a very common in many styles of music. Europa and Parisienne Walkways are other examples. The chords are found in the C major scale (Ionian) but you can also think of it has A Aeolian, because that's the key center for this song.
Chord progression:
Dm7 Dm7/G Cmaj7 Fmaj7 Bm7b5 E7 Am
The key is A minor, it resolves there.
The chorus has a D7 so I think of it as A Dorian when it comes to what scale to use. The chorus finishes with the chords F9 and E7#9 (the Hendrix chord). That chord is great for resolving back to the "i" minor chord - A minor in this case.
The bridge has a 2-5-1 (Bm Bm/E Am) and the last chords are F, C/E, Dm then resolve on Am.
There is no A major in this song.
Am I helping?
I wouldn't say it changes key, but some chords do change. D7 vs Dm7 for example, but to me that is more a matter of A Aeolian vs A Dorian. The A minor is still there, so it's a different flavour.
Cheers!
Posted : May 11, 2021 16:08