Intro i subV i subV V/bVI iv Gm (maj11) Ab7 Gm (maj7) Ab7 Bb7 Cm9 (#11) Gm Ab13#11 Gm Ab13#11 Bb13 Cm9 Verse i V/bVI bVI subV Gm Gm7 Bb13(11)/F Ebmaj7 Ab7 i Db: I v IV Bb: I bVII Gm Dbmaj7 Abm7 Gbmaj7 Bb Ab Bridge (Really starts on Fm9) f: i IV i Gm Bb13/F Fm9 Bb7 Fm9 I C Cmaj7 (C lydian melody: 1 2 3 #4 5 6 5) bV Gb7 (C altered melody: b7 1 b9 #9 3 #4 3) I bV E6 Emaj7 Bb7 I IV Db: I v IV g: subV i Bb: bVI I bVII Ebmaj7 Ab7 Gm Dbmaj7 Abm7 Gbmaj7 Bb Ab -> verse Outro bVI bVII I Bb Ab Bb Ab Bb Gb Ab Bb
Music Transcriptions
“God Only Knows” is less weird than it seems
This song’s strange chords become easier to make sense of if you keep in mind a few things:
- Brian leans hard on inversions to confuse us, and tricks learned from 40s jazz and classical.
- The key is E major, but the verses begin “in the ii key”.
- The whole instrumental vocal section is just transposed up to A major.
The intro ends with a taste of the chorus.
IV I ii IV A E/G# F#m7 A/E
Brian then slides this A/E up to D/A, which doesn’t make a whole lot of sense in E major; he’s heading to the ii key (F# minor).
He starts with b6, 2, 1 in F# minor, then he returns to the home key of E major with a more standard jazz ii – V – I, but with more inversions to make unusual bass voice leading:
f#: bVI ii i
E: ii V I
D/A G#ø7/B F#m B7/A E/B
Those inversions are key here to keeping up a bit of tension, and he won’t release that tension with a root-position chord until the chorus. Let’s carry on:
I vii I vi E/B D#dim7/C E/B C#m/A#
Almost everyone calls this second chord “Cdim7” but really this is the leading tone °7 chord of E with notes D# F# A C. Mostly diatonic to E major. Even though the bass rises, the harmony is really dipping down into the vii° and back to the tonic.
(Now consider “Cdim7”. It has the notes C Eb Gb Bbb because it’s the vii of the nasty key Db minor (Db Eb Fb Gb Ab Bbb Cb). All the flats alone should be a clue this doesn’t make sense in a sharps key like E major. I’ve found naming dim7 chords correctly has helped my understanding of them greatly. YMMV.)
That last chord is sometimes written “A#ø7”, but here it’s not really functioning as A# half-diminished, which would move to D#7 – G#m. This is really just a C#m chord with the bass on the 6th to give it extra flavor (hear C#m – A – E vs C#m/A# – A – E). This 6th-in-the-bass is done all the time on minor chords in 1940s standards to add tension that can then be released, just as Brian does when A# falls to A for the chorus.
The verse repeat is followed by a full transposition up a 4th, playing the whole verse and chorus in A:
B: bVI ii i
A: ii V I vii I
G/D C#ø7/E Bm E7/D A/E G#dim7/F A/E
A: vi IV I ii IV
F#: bVI ii
F#m/D# D A/C# Bm7 D/A G#ø7/B ...
Notice when Brian ends up at D/A, he seizes the opportunity to jump right back into the original F# minor bit of the verse. That’s how he manages to end the song in E major.
Crunchiest Steely Dan chord? “Fire in the Hole”
The pre-chorus is in, well, we can say 3 flats. First there’s an Ab Eb/G resolving to Bb (which sounds like the tonic), then a little Abmaj7/C Bb/C Cm build up that ends with Abmaj7 Ebmaj7/G Ab (the key sounds more like Eb here). Then things get weird.
Ab is followed by Ab7/Gb, but while it sounds like the bass is heading down toward a Db/F chord, at 0:42 the bass jumps back up into into this striking Ab13#11 with no 3rd.
The melody is also great here; just chord tones. It resolves to G7sus G7 Cm.
This Ab13 is basically a tritone sub for D7, but the 9th and #11 decorations also evoke the sound of a bVII dom7 “backdoor” chord in Bb. The key briefly sounded like Bb in the pre-chorus, so I think that resemblance isn’t accidental, but anyway… This was a tough one to figure out by ear. I could hear the embedded aug triad, but the recording is right in the cracks making playing along basically impossible. I had to retune an acoustic guitar with ancient, very dead strings.
Vera Lynn’s “I’ll Be Seeing You” preamble chords
Schubert’s Strange Path Home
Schubert’s Impromptu D.935, Op. posth. 142 – No. 2 is one of my favorite piano pieces. It has many delights, but what really caught my ear was the bombastic double forte section (m. 17-30 at 1:06). It takes us into the IV key and uses a clever trick to modulate back so that I barely noticed when we arrived back home.
Below are lead sheet-style chords under their functions, with simple inversion notation. I’ve transposed from Ab to G to get rid of the double-flats (I’m terrible playing/thinking in Ab).
Perry Como “No Other Love” chords
Intro)
SubV I
Gb7b5 F C(no3)/G F/A C7(no3)/G
Verses)
I VII
F C9(no3) Fmaj7 F6/C F C7(no3)/G F E7
1. No other love have I. Only my love for you.
2. Watching the night go by wishing that you could be
3. Into your arms I'll fly. Locked in your arms I'll stay
ii V/ii V/V SubV I
Gm/Bb D7/A G/B Gb7b5 F
1. Only the dream we knew. No other love.
2. watching the night with me into the night I cry
3. waiting to hear you say no other love have I.
Bridge)
Eb: I Vsus V V/ii
C: I Vsus V
F Eb/G Bb7sus/F Bb7/F C/E G7sus/D G7/D
Hurry home, come home to me. Set me free.
C: V/ii
D: V I IV
F: V/V V Vsus V
A/C# D G7 C C9sus C7
Free from doubt and free from longing.
End)
ii SubV I
Gm7 Gm9 Gb7b5#9 F
No other love. No other love.
Wonderful bits:
- The early D7/A – G/B (a secondary dominant with no 7th) sounds like a key change to G, and rather than the bass rising to C it falls to the tritone sub root Gb7b5.
- The bridge walks us through the keys Eb, C, D, and back to the home key F using mostly inversions.
- The voice leading in the choir’s final cadence:
G Bb D F A Gb Bb C E A F A C F A
Stereolab “Italian Shoes Continuum” chords
A)
(2 bars each)
Emaj7 Bb7(11) A7 G9sus Fmaj7 F#7
B)
(1 bar each)
Emaj7 D7 Emaj7 D7 F7 Emaj7 F#7
A and B repeat until 2:14
C)
Gm9 Am7
Louis Cole “You’ll Believe Me” chords
Modulations are noted with ().
I)
A E7/A | A :||
V1)
A | E7sus E7
I saw the world but didn't like it.
(E)
A B7/A | G#m7 C#m7
Without you there I couldn't fight for
(A) (D)
F#m7 | E7sus/B E7 | Amaj9 A6/9 | Amaj9 A7 A7sus
our survival. If you need me you'll believe me.
D | A7sus A7sus/G
Throw out your doubt that time is over.
(A)
D/F# Bm7 | C6/9 E7 /F# | (repeat intro)
Just cry your fears into my shoulder.
V2)
A | E7sus E7
Grow tired as as the days burn.
A B7/A | G#m7 C#m7
Sit down with me and watch the world turn.
F#m7 | E7sus/C E13 /F# | Amaj9 A6/9 | A (bass G)
I think you will learn if you need me you'll believe me.
B)
(F)
F /C /F /G | /A /C | C7sus /G /A | /Bb /G C7
(Db)
Db /Ab /Db /Eb | /F /Ab | Ab7sus /Eb /F | /Gb /Eb Ab7
(A) (Bb) (B) (C) (C#)
A /E /F F+/A | Bb /F /F# F#+/A# | B /F# /G G+/B | C /G /G# G#+/B#
(C#m) (B) (Bbm)
C#m Em | Bsus D#m | Bbm/F F+ F/C | Bbm(9) Bbm
(D)
D+/F Gm/F# Gm | Dsus/G D/F# | Bm Bm7/A | Em7/B A7sus A7
V3)
D | A7sus A7sus/G
Don't start to cry it's far from over.
D/F# Bm7 | C6/9 E7 /F# | (repeat intro)
Look at who I am I'm coming closer.
A | E7sus E7
Look on your face doesn't ...
A B7/A | G#m7 C#m7
The big disguise joy is painful.
F#m7 | E7sus/C E13 /F# | Amaj9 A6/9
I just hope if you need me you'll believe me.
Outro)
A Amaj7 | Am9 :||
Notes
This is a well done Pet Sounds tribute in harmony and arrangement. 3rd inversion dom7 chords; using them to modulate to nearby keys; bass solos centered around the 5th; lush V7sus chords.
There are several instances of what sounds like C6/9 or E7sus/C. My guess is these were originally E7sus/B as in the first verse, but the C bass (muted just before the vocal hits C#) made a nice trick for the ears, making the modulations back to A a little less cliche.
The bridge section at 1:30 has a clever modulation from C# minor to Bb minor: After C#m, the Em suggests the iv of B and indeed we follow with I – iii in B. However D#m is used to pivot again to Bb minor as Ebm is the iv. He uses a cadential 6/4 to really settle us in Bb minor. The following a capella part comes in sounding like Bbmaj with a flat 6 due to the low voice’s start on F (maybe an accident), but these two bars I think are really a fancy plagal cadence in D major: V+/iv – iv – Isus – I.
The E13s are voiced as E7 with the 13 only in the vocal. The Amaj9 to A6/9: I’m including the vocal in the maj7 – 6th harmonies.
Deerhoof “Cast Off Crown” Chords
I1)
This guitar part is loosely in E major, with a borrowed II chord, and a brief
modulation to D major.
ii V IV II iv of D I of D
F#m/C# B A F#/C# Gm/D D
This section is roughly E mixolydian. I believe the guitar is playing power chords
but it may just be octaves sometimes. The bass and guitars here sound a bit
improvised, moving independently but transforming these simple power chords into
more complex harmonies (right):
E D5/G E5/A A5/B => (Gadd9 Aadd9 B7sus)
E D5/B E5/C F5/D => (Bm7 CM7 Dm7)
C/G Bb5/C C/F F5/Eb => (C7sus F F7)
C Bb5/G C5/F D5 => (Gm7 FM7 D)
E D5/G E5/A A5/B => (Gadd9 Aadd9 B7sus)
I2)
At 0:22 a blast of bluesy 7th chords in E, with a temporary dissonant C7#9 chord
(distortion makes this chord hard to identify). These bar lengths are ad-libbed
(31 beats total) and sometimes the chord changes on an eight note:
8 6 7 10
E7 A7 C7#9 F#m7
The guitar falls out and some simple melodies outline E and A chords.
V)
This section is in D dorian, but playfully borrows A and D from mixolydian. The
Cm7 is a bit like a Neapolitan Eb chord (there's a real one later). These "add13"
and "add11" are just B notes. Probably played as 5th fret of the G string and
open B string.
Dm7add13 Cm7 A7 D7add13 Dm7add13 G7add11
Hey mister hey mister out of this picture. I'm only the sister.
Now a long string of secondary dominant resolutions. This section lacks a strong
tonal center, but roughly starts out in E dorian:
V/V V i
F#11 B11 Em7
Royal- ty I learned I will become
Now shifts to G major, though it doesn't fully resolve:
V/V v/V V7
A7 Am7 D13
queen of the cast-offs. I will thrice refuse.
This D13 is a real 13th [D F# A C E G B] (across multiple guitars), not just a D7
with added 13th. I think the F# is only in the vocal.
V2) (same progression)
At 1:27 the bass plays out of sync with the guitars in a wonderful way. Following
a bar of Dm, the guitars play Cm7 and A7 over a full bar, but the bass seems to
hold the Dm and cram the last two chords into the last 2 beats:
guitars: Dm7 Cm7 A7
bass: D D D Eb E C A
Oh lover oh lover, where is the thun- der?
So the bass ends up playing D and E natural under Cm7, and C natural under A7.
Maybe a mistake (?), but sounds amazing, as if those last 3 bass notes are 3
different chords.
B) (1:56)
F#m/C# B A F#/C# Gm/D D
Here the verse progression transposed up a whole step with some small
variations. Before the B chord we have a real F Neapolitan.
Em7 FM7 B E7 Em7 A7
G#11 C#11 F#m B7 Bm7 E7
E)
To end we get the intro guitar, not tuned up, but rather *down* a whole step.
I think this is done for two reasons: So the bridge's E7 can lead into the Em
(this major to minor change is almost thematic to the song), and so that we're
spit out in the key of the verses.:
Em/B A G E/B Fm/C C Dm
Deerhoof “Criminals of the Dream” Chords
I)
See B2 section below. Starts in Eb major, ends in E major.
A vocal melody is interrupted by a A-G-G bassline, making it sound like
A7 harmony, but this is a trick. As the bass continues alone we start to
hear this as what it is: 2-1-1 in G major. The guitars come in with G
chords to confirm.
V)
The verses starts in G mixolydian, with bass as a pedal. You can see the
pattern they're building in the progression:
G C/G
G F/G C/G
G C/G F/G C/G
G C/G F/G C/G
G
A bit of the pattern is then repeated in Eb mixolydian:
Eb Db Ab
Eb
V2) (with vocals)
B1)
A lot happens in these 4 chords. The Bb is the V of Eb (shifting from
mixolydian to ionian). The Db teases that we're back in Eb mixo, but
instead of leading to Ab, we get harmonic planing down to a C major. The
melody still has Eb, giving it a jazzy sharp 9 sound, and makes the
following F chord sound like it functions as the V of Bb. So really the
C is the V/V of Bb.
V VIIb V/V (of Bb) V
Bb Db/Ab C F
A full resolution to Bb is skipped in favor of 2 thrilling modulations:
I I
Db Eb (We get a couple nice pentatonic lines here)
B2)
We start in Eb major, slipping in a borrowed iv chord:
I iv I
Eb Abm/Cb /Ab Eb/Bb
The borrowed Abm is used to modulate to Gb major:
ii V IV V V7 I
Abm7 Dbadd9 Cbadd9/Eb Db Db7/Cb Gb/Bb
A i (Gbm) is used to modulate to E major:
ii I ii I V7 I iv I
Gbm/A E/G# E/F# E B7sus/E E Am6/E E
End)
The G#m chords are dotted with brief A chords then we resolve to E:
iii V I
G#m7 A x4 B E
v/II II
C#m7 F#7add11