Analyzing The Chords of John Lennon's "Imagine" - Perfect Progressions #4

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This video deeply analyzes John Lennon's Imagine, specifically the chord progressions used to make up the song. In addition, we take a look at the arrangement, production, and other musical choices that all sum up this iconic composition.
Music theory is simply a way to describe what songwriter's have done. All of the composing tricks used in this song were clearly in John Lennon's vocabulary, whether he used their proper academic name (secondary dominant / pedal tone / etc.) is not relevent. What matters is understanding why this composition feels the way it does, and use that knowledge to our own benefit as composers!
Take note- this song was written on piano. Even if you're a lousy key player, you should be able to take these chords to the piano and see how simple of a song it really is. You'll also see how the geometry of the piano itself probably played a giant part in why the song was written the way it was. It falls very easly on the hands.
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In This Video:
00:00 Intro
00:35 Verse Chords
03:00 Why Voicings Matter
04:15 Creating Melody Within Chords
06:25 Mystery Ninth
07:34 Double Tracking
08:16 Chorus Chords
10:44 Refrain
13:31 Summary

[@euphoriamusic6153]

This guy is way better than my music theory teacher.

[@godfather3357]

Lmao lol Rolf

[@davidkless9131]

My college music professor doesn’t hold a candle to Jake. Mr. Mumbles was phoning it in for his paycheck.

[@roberthbennett]

Jake is the best!

[@littlemateyfilmsltd]

Yeah, Jake is the Don.

[@user-rr8hc8ls5n]

Same lmao

[@evalonious]

Wow! I finally found a KZbin music teacher who doesn't make you sit through 10 minutes talking cats, stories of last weekends BBQ, or Magic Biscuits and Sunglasses that make you a better songwriter. Direct and to the point! Well done video series! Thanks!

[@irrefudiate]

I appreciated the way the teacher started with 'basic' and gradually progressed to 'refined', while defining the reason for the refinement all along the way. It was so controlled and smooth.

[@itsmikk2043]

This is a very nice breakdown of 'Don't look back in Anger' by Oasis

[@ieuanphillips4963]

Lol

[@CaseKhz]

@@ieuanphillips4963 Underrated comment.

[@geraldfriend256]

Noice

[@sebastiansilva962]

I feel like the E chord in this situation (as in many other uses of the III chord) does, in fact, work as a secondary dominant, in the way that the resolution from E to F is kind of like a deceptive cadence. This works because F is a very similar chord to Am (F is Am's submediant) so it has much in common with, say, a V - vi.

[@briansullivan3424]

Totally agree! And since Lennon never sings a F note over the F Chord he plays, his melody basically functions like a chord change from E7 to Am w/ a raised 5th, and in second inversion... although, I do like your explanation of thinking of it like a deceptive cadence of a V-VI (as opposed to the more common classical V - vi progression). I can dig it

[@sebastiansilva962]

@@briansullivan3424 yeah, i think we're onto the same thing here! i do feel like calling it a raised fifth implies an E#, which feels kind of weird in this context, but yeah :) this III - IV movement seems to be pretty common, like in Creep (G - *B - C* - Cm) where I think the same thing is going on

[@songfulmusicofsongs]

I also think so. Another example is G to Am in Hello Goodbye and similar songs, instead of G to C.

[@vinicius.manhaes.23]

@@briansullivan3424 I agree with both of you, except for the raised 5th. It'd make much more sense to think about the F as an F and not a E#.

[@briansullivan3424]

@@vinicius.manhaes.23 I would agree with that. I meant it more in an enharmonic way, because you're right - a minor vi chord with a sharp 5th has a very different harmonic use than playing a IV chord, even if the two sound the same. I totally agree with that. Now, all that being said, most guitar players I know, when they play this song, often play that as E7 to Fmaj7, which drives that secondary dominant feel even more, since Fmaj7 has all the notes as Am, and you throw an F in the bass. I don't think any of them think of that bass note as E#, but the way Lennon's melody floats over E7 to F feels like a melody that would also be appropriate (and much more conventional) over E7 to Am, but subbing it out for Fmaj7 gives it the best of both worlds. Cheers from Maryland, US!

[@robingahan1234]

"Slip inside the eye of your mind!" ...oops, wrong song

[@seamusbrowne4909]

Beatles also referenced their hero's. Little Richard, Chuck Berry, Elvis, Dylan, The Beach Boys, I could go on and o........get my drift.😎😎😎

[@elijahdomingo3222]

Dont you know you might find!

[@vibe6750]

@@elijahdomingo3222 a better plaxe to stay

[@dafriendlyghost]

@@vibe6750 you said that you never been

[@badgasaurus4211]

Oh look a better song

[@ericathlan3518]

On the chromatic passage, I thought you were off your rockers. I could have sworn he did play a C and remembering it in my head, I've always heard it as a 4 note passage. I was shocked when I listened to it again and realised there was an empty beat with no note there, a serious (and disturbing) case of auditory hallucination ;-) Great analysis, thanx Jake.

[@realcygnus]

Funny, me too. I always heard & played it as a 4 note chromatic run. But noticed many others didn't long ago.

[@SignalsMusicStudio]

I had to fix several of my assumptions about this song after listening to the isolated tracks. It's very deceptive despite it's simplicty!

[@TanmaiKhanna]

I thought the same thing!

[@TanmaiKhanna]

Ok I just went back and heard it, and maybe it's the two pianos that he talks about in the video because I definitely hear a note there, it's not empty.

[@TanmaiKhanna]

Maybe a delay reverb thing who knows

[@RC32Smiths01]

Imagine is one of the best of all time indeed. John Lennon surely wrote great tunes, whether Solo or with The Beatles.

[@fandyus4125]

Shame he was a huge asshole and a hypocrite. He wrote a song that basically encourages anarcho-communism and he wrote it out of a multi-million dollar penthouse lol.

[@fandyus4125]

@@PaulGoldstein1000 "Imagine there's no countries" "Imagine no possessions"

[@fandyus4125]

@@PaulGoldstein1000 Also to add, yes, it would be an ok song for me has he given his money away. This song is more of a "do as I say not as I do".

[@idontwant2beasoldiermama241]

@@fandyus4125 That's so fuckin stupid, that's why it's called imagine In a world where no one has possessions, We all could live fine, but we aren't living in a world like that, so throwing away your possessions would be stupid.

[@argh01hass]

@@idontwant2beasoldiermama241 thank goodness someone here can appreciate the difference between imagining (clue is in the title) a socialist utopia and encouraging actual anarchy.

[@-JohnGalt-]

What a great presentation Jake. I find it hard to learn songs via tabs or other videos, because this is what I truly crave; an informed and in-depth analysis of not just how to mechanically play the song, but how all the elements fit together. I always want to learn something from a song, something I can take away and use in my own music. You meet these expectations beautifully--not many do. Keep up the fantastic work!

[@jimwarner8071]

John Galt’s morality would entail that he be a Patreon subscriber for these lessons, right?

[@gatoryak7332]

@@jimwarner8071 Today's John Galt disciples would say that it is unreasonable, and therefore immoral to pay for something that can be had for free.

[@raystaar]

Thanks Jake, for such a clear exposition of this deceptively masterful song. If we could only find a way to realize what John imagined for us, we might have a chance to survive.

[@markkington423]

brother, love ya work mate. not often you find such an engaging teacher of the craft of writing music. thanking you for your consistency in delivery of this information.. cheers mate

[@jajlertil]

This channel is constantly putting out pure quality content and joy for music, loving it!

[@donkeyfacekilla1]

Excellent video. These are so helpful. Your explanations really help demystify the theory but also highlight the beauty of the songs and the depth of quality songwritingn

[@ikozbari]

I have to lose this: this channel is just brilliant, the presentation, the topics, the explanations and just your delivery makes a complete package that i really enjoy. One of the few rare channels that actually teaches something. Keep it up and thanks alot.

[@kasiaitomekfotografia5621]

Man, your videos are so great! Thank you for sharing knowledge!

[@johnpatowary]

This is brilliant...you seriously do the most amazing dissection of classics! This was sheer perfection! Absolutely loved it👍

[@dandamerville]

I've been hacking around music since the day after The Beatles (a band from Liverpool, England) first appeared on tv (short for television, a popular medium for broadcasting sounds and images in the last century). Every time I take the time to view/listen to one of Jake's offerings, I learn so much about topics I thought I knew pretty much everything about. Thank you, Jake, for reminding me (once again) that musicianship is an endless journey, always more to learn.

[@troybrennan]

love your idea of analyzing chord progressions and their respective feelings they elicit. I was just looking yesterday on how to elicit certain feelings via chord progressions so I hope you do some more of these!

[@joedoherty1062]

Man every time I watch a Jake Lizzio video I have to go sit at the piano and fuck around with chord progressions. Somehow your videos are the most reliable music inspiration for me. Your practical approach makes it so easy to understand and use concepts instantly

[@JeffMountainPicker]

Excellent video with the very talented Jake Lizzio guiding us gently through a beautifully simple song with tons of clever subtleties. Thank you for that, Jake!

[@aaronanten8707]

Very precise and polished lesson - like examining the brushstrokes of a Monet. As such, one gains a new appreciation and never looks at the Monet the same way again.

[@leoshirley-smith1560]

Wonderful, thank you! I really enjoyed your beautiful analysis of this iconic song.

[@tango1niner-766]

Always learn something from your videos.. thank you Jake!

[@Telcontarnz]

Fantastic analysis. You make theory, practical!

[@picknngrinn]

Jake!...I really appreciate the depth of your understanding and enthusiasm in sharing your insights! Thank you

[@thruwaycircus2532]

This channel is a treasure. This video is gold.

[@Corey_G]

Great Analysis!!! Love these types of videos, can’t get enough of them! I would love to see hundreds of great songs broken down how you explain them. Great explanations, and video visuals. Thanks for Sharing. 😁👍👍👍

[@cherrysunburst828]

Woah I never realized the piano part was double tracked. I've always thought that the way the piano sounds in the song was unlike any Piano I know.. Now I know why it sounds that way.

[@georgiagalaxy]

Yeah I know, it all makes sense now

[@GRJ-uz7kf]

Very valuable discussion, unexpected with a song that seems so wonderfully simple.

[@ChrisMuellerMusic]

Jake, you are the best educator in youtube. Every video of yours is better than the last. Thank you so much!

[@DJSnoopadelic]

Missed these videos. Keep it up man. Cheers from Montreal!

[@mbrownie22]

Love these type of lessons, keep up the good work

[@diegodelorenzi7984]

Great teaching skills and music analysis. Thanks!

[@sagig72]

What an uplifting video! You're doing justice to this great song and Lennon would be smiling if he watched this lesson. Great stuff. Please make more song analysis videos like this, perhaps even more from the Beatles.

[@Adamido]

Hey Jake, thank you so much! These videos are a lot of help. Keep on rocking!

[@drdavid62]

Love your analysis of chords! Great job!

[@aziz8]

please more of these. that was so eye-opening! loved it.

[@arielkars6150]

This is great dude. I know most of that stuff but you make it even more interesting with great observations

[@fonzireyes]

I have absolutely no music education, but I love music, from jazz to classical to classic rock and other stuff in between. Your videos have opened a completely new way to see (hear) that music. The way you explain chords and why not (again no music education) makes it even more interesting to listen to my favorites in a different way. Subscribed.

[@Kunduz1]

Great analysis and very helpful.

[@preciousezeobi5770]

Hi Jake... How in the world do you have this much wisdom of the elderly in music... You amaze me.... You don't just have theory, but hands down practicals too... I just want to say thank you for all of these things you put out here... Love from Nigeria...🇳🇬

[@titmusspaultpaul5]

Such an interesting and informative video. I really enjoyed it and learnt quite a lot. Thankyou.... cheers mate.

[@aslansarcasmia]

I really wish there were more of these videos. They're amazing! Hope to see more in the future.

[@ArchieDuke.]

What an excellent channel you have. Love watching it and your enthusiasm.

[@michaelthomas567]

Such great videos - learning so much. thank you!!

[@sylvainh7101]

I really like this Perfect Progressions series. Thanks

[@samiya1506]

this seriesis my favorite pls make more... its a great way of learning n u r a great teacher

[@jonathanneville7105]

Your videos have been very helpful Jake. I can't believe they are all free. I am going to buy a poster and a couple tracks to support the channel, as your theory lessons helped things click in my brain finally. I'm sure I'll buy more stuff in the future too. Thanks for all these free lessons and backing tracks!

[@MrTomb789]

this is explained beautifully....well done

[@rome8180]

The chromaticism is one of the things that makes this song. You end up having that B briefly played over the F, which has a really cool Lydian sort of sound, before it quickly resolves.

[@rome8180]

@@sunkintree you apparently have no idea what I'm talking about. The main piano lick has a climbing chromatic line that goes A-Bb-B. Those notes are played over the F chord. In other words, you get the 3rd of the F, the 4th of the F, the #4 of the F, all leading into the root of the C chord. It's the most defining lick of the song, so I'm not sure where your confusion comes from.

[@colinreynolds01]

These Chord analysis videos are absolutely my favourite content on all of youtube, and I've been here since 2006!

[@martynspooner5822]

Thanks, brilliant analysis as always and very helpful.

[@kimapink]

Thank you for this inspiring way of explaining things

[@stevenb.9839]

Thx Mr.Lizzio, great teaching as every time 👍👏

[@rcollosi]

Finally, the video we've all been waiting for BTW, nice shirt!

[@jasonbourne488]

Brilliant video, Jake. I particularly enjoy your videos, like this one, where you provide music theory and chord progression analysis. It would be great if you could analyze chord progressions that emerge in classical pieces.

[@sewmelo]

That video is so inspiring to me! Your analysis gave me a lot of insights, thank you very much!

[@sabretooth9830534552]

Beautifully broken down... Thanks so much

[@splode7414]

This is an absolutely superb video, thank you so much for the insights and the brilliantly clear explanation!

[@jackcranmer4904]

This video is amazing and John Lennon is my biggest musical inspiration and I’d love to see you dissect more of his music especially his Beatles Tunes! (I want you she’s so heavy is one of my fav Lennon tunes)

[@thebeamerdreamer]

After watching the whole series almost 5 times I am eagerly waiting for more episodes.

[@gettingkilt]

Very enlightening! When the small touches add up. BTW Jake your bass voice is amazing.

[@andocobo]

Great video! Thanks for making it 🤗

[@jantonisito]

Excellent job - it takes real knowledge to pace the teaching right and not overload the student. You also know exactly where to put accents on the material in a way that helps in memorization.

[@neilxify]

Excellent analysis. Loved it. Thanks.

[@souradeepbiswas7604]

Perfect indeed. Best guitar lesson thingy ever.

[@briancraig1684]

This is awesome I really like this kind of music Analysis

[@tandybare]

what an outstanding video!!

[@tomwtsn1]

Brilliant analysis. Thank you!

[@matildastanford7019]

Love this song, but I love this analysis/lesson much more. Thanks Jake and thank you patreons.

[@Gregdsilva915]

Great delineation of music and theory I have come across.

[@causmogroov3764]

Jake...how you make these so damn interesting blows my mind! Great content!! Thank you!!!

[@calmthefire581]

Wonderful breakdown of a great song. I enjoyed this very much, thank you!

[@orchestrain88keys]

Great analysis!

[@helenesoubrie3623]

you are amazing !!! thank you for these explanations

[@sionmichel]

Incredible breakdown of this Iconic anthem especailly close to John's birthday... Peace and Love and you are one special incredible teacher. Wow.

[@mikemetz4300]

Great explanation! Thanks!!

[@motioninmind6015]

That was amazing, thank you soooo much!

[@simongross3122]

Excellent video. Thank you.

[@fanyafeng7094]

Thank you. Such a good teacher

[@navreenkaur1305]

Absolutely loved this, thank you, you are amazing!!🙌❤️

[@stuartbarker9373]

Excellent analysis with some great learning points.

[@sparshjain1066]

You explain stuff so nicely

[@reuuuuueel]

This guy can really express feelings. Great stuff!

[@delphinekirkland1757]

Wow! This is great! And your speaking voice is amazing!

[@glorioskiola]

Wonderful discussion!

[@RoryAherne]

Fantastic video!

[@corinasucre]

Thank you! This is awesome!

[@kares9009]

You are brilliant! Thank you for your work with Perfect Progressions. UR amazing!

[@DeepspaceHorizon]

Great lesson, I actually understand the composition now, many thanks 😃😄

[@georgemcauley9819]

Even though I already know everything you're saying I feel like I'm learning something new. Always great videos with the right amount of depth.

[@robinmartini7968]

Another brilliantly lucid analysis, fitting reverence to a brilliant song.

[@Virtual-Media]

Thanks for teaching us the magical subtleties of this masterpiece.

[@stefan1024]

Great analysis, thank you a lot! As pianist I wanted to capture the magic of that song for a long time but never got it quite right. Now knowing that the piano is doubled, made me realize that I had no chance to begin with. Since it didn't come up explicitly in the video: the chords in the verse feel to me like C (or Cmaj7) and Csus (voiced with a 6 and with the 5 left out, which is something a pianist totally would do). These chords actually remind me of "Without You" (originally by Badfinger, but I have the '90s version by Mariah Carey in mind, please don't feel triggered guys, notes are free and all music is connected), which also starts with a change between a major chord and its sus4 equivalent, but there it's he other way around, more like sus chords were used traditionally. Anyway, Csus6 without a 5 and C/F have the exact same notes, so both interpretations are legit. I just find it interesting to point out the suspended aspect here, since the verse has this soft "time stands still" tension, with that chromatic ornament (a #a b) at the end of each round not even leading back to our tonic we've never really left. There's a feeling of resignation or stagnation to it, it's like we're not anywhere at all, but also we can't move, which matches beautifully with the song's over all subject. Because it turns out that we actually can move, many dreamers could build a new world if they could imagine doing it ("You may say I'm a dreamer - but I'm not the only one - I hope someday you'll join us - and the world will be as one"). So, no wonder, that when F comes around for the first time without C in bass, the song harmonically opens up so much and it feels like "a brand new chord" to us. It sort of is, it was hidden in Csus before, not even imagening it could be a real change.

[@starcraftguy2]

Love this series

[@empirelight5477]

Great stuff!

[@glenking]

Such a help in my songwriting. Thanks, Jake.

[@kotMekong]

Thanks, a clear explanation, lots of ideas for song writing and how to be different.

[@adrianokury]

Beautiful analysis and interesting lesson.

[@arcanemuses]

You, sir, are the Bob Ross of music instruction. I am so grateful for what you do.