Songs to help you recognise Minor Key chord progressions

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Test your chord comprehension skills with this video on my 2nd channel: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eKicZKaHh82SqLM 😁

[@Anti.Reino.Infantil_Oficial]

First

[@bernardthedisappointedowl6938]

Great video as ever David - brilliant explanations, ^oo^

[@wombatbreath]

David - could you do some analysis videos on the music of Tame Impala. I know you're a fan so it shouldn't be too arduous :)

[@keshavleitan7800]

I have a question, why do you call moving from (Am - C) a (i - bIII) shouldn't it be just a (i - III) since C major occurs in the natural A minor scale?

[@realraven2000]

just an addendum - pretty sure that 'Mad World' is originally by Tears for Fears.

[@clemlvn9598]

For those that want to try some spicy two chord progressions, here is a subjective list : Imaj7 III - Epic I II - Protagonism I bV - Outer space I bVI - Fantastical I iii - Sadness I iv - Romantic i IV - Wonder i II - Mystery i bII - Spooky i VII - Dramatic i bV - Antagonism, danger i bvi - Evil

[@jaakkot5440]

I'm intrigued what you'd label i - V as

[@atzuras]

i - bII Italian Drama

[@thfump]

This is a fantastic game. What are your thoughts on I bIII?

[@MartinvonBargen]

I would like this, but it's at 69 thumbs up!

[@jaakkot5440]

@@thfump I've thought that sounds bluesy, because it's a borrowed chord from parallel minor

[@jrpipik]

The great thing about i-IV or i-ii chords is that great Dorian sound, lifting you every so delicately away from the somber Aeolian mode. See "Down by the River" by Neil Young, "Moondance" by Van Morrison for some classic rock examples.

[@fokmertek]

i-IV: "Earth Song" by Michael Jackson

[@albertbuzek5007]

I love it in my sweet lord. The whole song is based of that i-IV... also the pre-chorus in here there and everywhere is i-IV

[@gloryholetoanotherdimension]

i-IV is also great given the melodic minor context it can fill as well

[@nathangray4601]

BREATHE IN THE AIR

[@MrDooteronomy]

I love i-IV! My favorite example is OIngo Boingo's "Water" kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y5u3iaauZ9Kso6c

[@parsec3148]

I’m a simple man… I see Alex Turner, I click. Thanks for all your vids! Much easier to absorb musical ideas using music I love.

[@ericdaniels6168]

Anyone else loving how 'something in the way' by nirvana has the same chord progression as 'funeral march' by Chopin

[@cakemartyr5794]

Thank you once more in teaching me in ten minutes what would have taken me hours to learn otherwise. You're a legend!

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Thank you!

[@TheSenileFeline]

There's something truly magical about that i - IV progression. If I could live in a bed made entirely of alternating Bm - E chords, I would.

[@DavidBennettPiano]

It's that dorian sound! I love it too!!

[@east5871]

Fascinating! I mean that seriously. That’s a very unique way to describe something!

[@ajfalo-fi3721]

I always think about My Sweet Lord

[@wickharr]

Dorian is so cool, I always think it sounds autumnal and mysterious. i - ii implies Dorian too and feels great to play with as well.

[@noaswes]

Breeeeathe, breathe in the aaair

[@NBrixH]

As a Pink Floyd fan I am very glad that you included Comfortably Numb.

[@pedroaffonso82]

But he completely missed that the best example of a i - IV change is Breathe

[@olivarionline]

@@pedroaffonso82 Pink Floyd is full of i - IV ... Breathe, Any Colour You Like, Great Gig in the Sky, Shine on you Crazy Diamond, even Money and Another Brick in the Wall from verse to chorus... it's their signature chord progression almost

[@NBrixH]

@@pedroaffonso82 He has to limit the amount of examples. I’m sure he didn’t miss it, but chose comfortably numb instead.

[@NBrixH]

@@olivarionline I guess that works well for their style. Also, isn’t also something about them often being in the key of G? Or is it C? There is a key that many of their songs are in, I’m fairly sure all of Wish You Were Here (the album) is in G.

[@olivarionline]

@@NBrixH true Roger Waters most probably writes on acoustic and a lot of his songs are on G major. Shine On is on Gm though with a very different mood from the rest of the album.

[@Daaako]

This channel is such a blessing. You couldn't imagine how helpful these videos are to me

[@titanicsinclair]

David, please never stop making these. You are helping us understand complex ideas with your simplistic approach. My new single was inspired by watching your videos and trying my best to make a perfect chord progression. I hope I can buy you a pint someday.

[@ThePepush]

Ew, it's you. Please don't break my wine glasses.

[@TheVolginator]

Gross

[@gerardobecher9404]

A progression that I believe it's missing there is i to II, that means, minor one to major two. It's a very strong progression being II the secondary dominant of V grade. There's an example by a famous composer of my country, Argentina, the great Astor Piazzolla, in one of his most known songs "Libertango".

[@marysiastrulak124]

7:55 i absolutely adore it in songs, as well as going from a major chord to a minor one. it adds some ✨spice✨

[@canonwright8397]

Another good show, David Bennett Piano! I always find myself watching your channel over the old man's stuff ( Rick Beato) more times than not. Have a great day.

[@Pianet]

I asked and you delivered!!! BLESS YOU!!

[@composer7325]

Excellent, I always learn something from your videos. Thank you, David.

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Thanks Peter! 😀😀

[@zackkotzias3304]

You should make a video on hearing progressions that don’t start on the 1 chord! I always have a hard time with those

[@RandyBakkelund]

I agree, and besides a 2-5-1 progression, because that is so typical in jazz.

[@cobb_thedrummer]

Something In The Way (4:30) is one of the most haunting and beautiful songs to me. Brings me to tears sometimes... Even though it’s only two chords, Kurt’s voice and gift for melody, gives me chills every time I hear that song.

[@avedic]

Agreed. Interestingly.....I've always thought of it as.... iii - I But that's just me. Maybe I'm wrong? Or not?

[@chrisSo91]

Yooo, something in the way has been my reference for i-bVI for a long time! Great video!

[@JosephMensman]

Just in case some of these might also help y’all- i - V Smooth (verse) i - iv Moondance (pre chorus, although it technically is iv - i repeated) i - IV Moondance (chorus) i - ii Moondance (verse) i - VI Californication (verse and pre chorus)

[@DG-ph8gp]

I like the way the colors in your attire match the guitars hanging in the background.

[@Geotubest]

I learn more about music from your channel than any other. Thank you so much.

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Thanks!

[@gabe_s_videos]

One of my favorite examples of i-vi progression is in the theme from Being John Malkovich. It's utterly haunting.

[@johannlothe]

I don't have perfect pitch or anything, but I think it's fascinating how I'm able to sing a random song, and it's always the right pitch, or how I can guess a note by comparing the distance/interval between said note and the note of a song in my head. It's weird, but it works!

[@awesomeyoutubehandlewowitslong]

I don't even play piano but your content is just really watchable and understandable to people who have never learned anything about music.

[@vvilliam5677]

Really loving these videos, I’d love to see more examples from hip hop (eg a lot of contemporary songs in this genre use i-bvi i-v i-V, etc)

[@Arycke]

Can you suggest the examples from contemporary songs you speak of please?

[@vvilliam5677]

@@Arycke eg i-VI bandit by juice wrld

[@Arycke]

@William C thank you for sharing. I just checked it out. However, it isn't a i-VI. It is a i-bVI then a melodic run from bVI yo bVII to i in Fminor (you can hear the Db and Eb leading back to the F tonic in the last bar of the loop). It's diatonic. i-VI (one minor to natural six major as you have it listed) isn't strictly in any one key, which this song is; also, i-VI isn't native to major, melodic minor, nor harmonic minor minimally (I'm not familiar with harmonic major nor double harmonic major so I can't say for certain there). I appreciate you sharing an example nonetheless.

[@vvilliam5677]

@@Arycke I misspoke I meant bVI which I realize is native to melodic minor. My apologies. Glad you got the chance to check out the song and do some analysis on it though!

[@vvilliam5677]

melodic rap tends to lean pretty heavily on the bVI because of its generally emotional sound

[@althealligator1467]

I would argue that relative major and minor keys are actually the same key, because they're not really the key of the root notes, but more so a system of notes consisting of a dissonant tritone resolving to a consonant major third which is shared by both chords, making them tonic. This would mean that the same chord function would have a different name depending on the chord used as reference for the key, basically whether you're "in the relative major" or "in the relative minor," even though they're the same key. For example, the first chord function you talk about, V in minor, would be the same as III in major; so in C major or A minor, it would be the E chord; and you can really hear it too, it's the same sound.

[@aagevaksdal]

So clairifying. Thanks! Great video yet again!

[@hfuhruhurr]

Dude! Another 10-minute video that took me an hour to digest and explore...thanks a million!!! Plus, an unexpected Simon & Garfunkel nod and a "penultimate" usage...keep it the great work!

[@jonathanplatt6559]

Morning Bell (Radiohead) also goes from minor tonic to major tonic.

[@robster7316]

Wonderfully helpful, as always. Thanks, David! 👍😊

[@Natalija_Saar]

Another brilliant video man! I appreciate you so much!

[@thomaskaasi4225]

Great, David :-) cool examples, many I didn't know :-)

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Thanks!

[@yadinmichaeli12]

Thank you very much for this series lessons :)

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Thanks 😊

[@avnertishby]

Good video! Another example of the major to minor progression (I - i - I) is Strauss' Thus Spoke Zarathustra (aka the opening to 2001). It may be less familiar but personally I find it clearer.

[@andrewbird233]

These vids are great thanks keep up the good work! And I love all the radiohead references!

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Thanks!

[@andrewfield]

THANKS for these excellent breakdowns of common chord progressions, very useful for teaching basic songwriting. Great examples too, although I think the last one “Comfortably Numb” is a bit of a stretch, since that movement at the beginning could be interpreted in so many ways. Ah, the greatness of the Floyd!

[@michaelkoegel8027]

Thank you saying penultimate. I use it when I can too. Thank you for the content too, I learned quite a bit in a short amount of time.

[@jjfloyd618]

Nice lesson. I also particularly enjoyed your pronunciation of garFUNKel.

[@Skyoats]

hah he started playing the 1 to 2 progression from 505 and that organey sound on his keyboard was so perfectly accurate I got the song instantly

[@kentinspacetime5378]

You are the best music teacher ever!

[@robertzillman1738]

You're a very good explainer.

[@snookerwither9955]

An interesting version of the flat second chord one is First It Giveth by Queens Of The Stone Age. The first two chords of the verses are Bb (power chord) and B major, but the vocal melody starts on an F on the B major chord and gives it an unusual sound.

[@benev0508]

Seriously one of the best music related videos I’ve seen. Keep it up!!

[@DeKevers]

I've watched all your videos over the past 3 years 😅 all still great

[@SocksWithSandals]

Very well illustrated concept.

[@aaronclift]

I would love to see you do videos about chromatic and non-functional harmony. There are a lot of great songs that don’t neatly fit into the chord progressions that you described in your last two videos.

[@AdrianGeorges]

Always a highlight to follow your explanations. Thanks for sharing your huge knowledge.

[@GrotrianSeiler]

David, your videos are more interesting than you realize. Terrific.

[@--thatbih]

I'm a simple man I see the album "Nevermind" I click 5:05 I recognized it immediately!

[@bobbymcloughlin3452]

E Major Scale 3:19 Sub-Mediant (vii) 3:23 Leading Tone (viii°)

[@YariAzQuran]

Ok. The songs used in this video as examples would make a fantastic playlist.

[@kpdelaney6460]

Good timing for this video! I just discovered “Something in the way” in the new Batman movie soundtrack

[@keshavleitan7800]

The intro and verses of hotel california is also a good example of a i - V sound (bm - F#)

[@ganglians]

Underrated, this is mad helpful

[@1scrubjay]

Question on practical value/limitations on Nashville Numbering system....Can you do a video on the pros/cons of using Nashville Number system? I'm a relative newbie to theory, but find a practical value in referencing everything to the diatonic scale & just presuming any number could serve as the root (depending on the mode)...that would make the Billie Eilish tune a "vi-III", simply rooted on the "vi" of the diatonic... I don't know the cons to this, but definitely find it orienting when non-diatomic chords are used....it helps me more easily remember the quality of the movement between chords, especially when non-diatonic chords or less common modes are used (again, presuming the root chord is contingent on the relative mode, not the names #). I have not found many videos that explore this.

[@adrianhepton9362]

Just a small point; In The Beatles bumper songbook Because is in the key of C sharp minor but the second chord is is described as F sharp minor 6 which I think is to make it easier to play on the guitar however if you look at the notes that are played in the bass in the sheet music the chord is d sharp half diminished. Apparently the 2 half diminished chord is diatonic in minor keys.

[@dancinglady73]

Yay! Thank you! I have been so excited to learn more about chord function thanks to your channel. Super grateful and inspired by your offerings.

[@laremare]

I think a great example of the i - bII progression is For the Love of God by Steve Vai, as the song spends a good amount of time shifting between Em and F.

[@SziontificMystic]

probablly one of the most helpful videos any amateur pianist or musician could find! golden bro edit: golden bruv* lol cheers

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Cheers!

[@SziontificMystic]

@@DavidBennettPiano and may I add,: Lifelong musicians as well. Good work

[@eduardoaguileraneicun5876]

even for not so amateur musicians it's good

[@panagiotisexplorer213]

Congratulations for your lessons!

[@oxy8821]

Great video as always much love❤️

[@avedic]

I don't know WHAT you would call this. But I've always loved this move..... Going from a minor chord....to the major chord a semitone below. So.... F minor to E major, for example. It's jarring, yet they share the same note for each of their thirds. "Identify" by Natalie Imbruglia(written by Billy Corgan) begins with that. It just sounds....cool. :} Eerie in a way. But I _never_ see it discussed. I'd love a deep dive on what's going on....

[@rasmusn.e.m1064]

i - I blew my mind; didn't know you could have variance in the tonic, but I guess that's what determines if it's a minor or major key and why that's the main division we work with in Western music even though major and minor are only two of the modes.....Damn, that just taught me a whole damn lot

[@vadakim]

Tremendously helpful to me! Big thx :)

[@arnauorengoguardiola1616]

Three very unique chord progressions: bVIm - Octavarium by Dream Theater VIm - Light my fire by The Doors VII - Shine on You Crazy Diamond by Pink Floyd

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Nice examples!

[@noyabentsrooya6397]

I never thought I'd see Alex on one of your videos.... an instant click

[@paulamarina04]

that comfortably numb thing never sounded to me like a im-i. the major third sounds like an uncanny tension over the minor chord, not like part of a major chord. i dont get the sense of brightness youd get from briefly stepping into major, its rather pretty dark sounding. its very interesting to hear you experience it differently though!

[@SomniRespiratoryFlux]

I feel like Comfortably Numb is a weird case where the example is more memorable and noteworthy because it's so tenuous and ambiguous. Because it's a slide guitar gradually changing the third degree from minor to major, the rest of the chord being held separately from that change, it keeps the minor sound. The result is that even the major chord tones sound eerie and kind of fake (assuming the slide even goes to the major third - I'm not entirely sure it even does, at least not for more than a brief moment). And especially given the lyrical themes of the song, that fits perfectly - a hollow version of the major tonic that is pretty transparently a façade for the true minor tonic beneath it.

[@byeo9001]

Agree, sounds like a minor 3rd sliding up to the 5th to me lol

[@tonybates7870]

It touches, very briefly, on the B major, but I wouldn't say it's a i - I. More like a slide guitar that happens to suggest that chord for a second.

[@a.c.5429]

yes!! a new vid from David! ❤️

[@DavidBennettPiano]

😀😀

[@a.c.5429]

precious job mate!

[@wyattkline341]

Really great stuff bro. Keep up that good work

[@MikeS29]

Usually your examples strike a chord (pun acknowleged!) with me, but I must be really old today, as none of the examples in the first 3+ minutes are familiar to me. Love your channel, by the way!

[@MikeS29]

Glad I stuck it out! Thanks again!

[@J-W_Grimbeek]

Ngl the IV in the minor key sounds just as good as iv in Major. When you played that chord i instantly thought of Eric Whitacre - Seal Lullaby, it was my favourite choir song when i sang in high school

[@J-W_Grimbeek]

Also the bII reminded me of Nightmare before Christmas. Can't remember which song exactly, think it was one Sally sung

[@wellurban]

Entertaining and informative as ever, thanks! I wonder though whether some of the examples that seemed to be borrowing chords might be more usefully thought of as being in a different mode: for instance, i-IV and i-II in Dorian and i-bII as Phrygian? It depends upon how the rest of the song goes, of course, but if other chords or melodies also use the alternative note, that might seem a more natural way of working.

[@starfishsystems]

I agree that it's a more coherent treatment of the diatonic scale to expose the mode in these examples. It's also a great way to illustrate how modes really are a thing, which is not so intuitive when illustrated with a melody line. Coming at it by introducing accidentals to the key, when what we hear is not at all dissonant, seems needlessly confusing. There's no coherent way to account for it, so we're left wondering if this whole key signature thing is kind of arcane and arbitrary. (Some notation does seem arbitrary, such as assigning the key of C to name the chromatic scale, when it would be logical to choose A. These oddities get in the way of exposing the real theory.) So yeah, at the cost of introducing modes early, we get a coherent account of diatonic chord scales and harmony pretty much for free. This is also an argument, I think, for not representing chords in the minor scale as degrees of the major scale. It's not i - bIII for example, but much more naturally i - III provided that we're aware that we're in a minor key. (We could even, in principle, dispense with this minor key notation and instead treat it as the Aeolian mode. Either way, we're able to refer to the natural notes of the scale when naming the chord degrees. Sooner or later we do have to introduce the natural minor scale, because it's in such common use that we'll be constantly tripping over it if we don't. Yet I would rather build it onto existing theory than try to build the theory around it.)

[@SullenMorbius]

another awesome lesson. your channel is so good.

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Thank you!

[@psomers5842]

Fantastic content

[@DavidBennettPiano]

Excellent! Thanks!

[@keishicatalan2385]

I just found your channel. This is epic stuff. Thanks!

[@vvilliam5677]

The second he played that minor ii I heard 505 instantly

[@paulkyle]

Yeah right

[@paulkyle]

Arctic Fockin' Monkeys

[@RandyBakkelund]

I definitely learned something new with this. Very interesting topic!

[@ScottJamesHicks]

Bm to F# (or the same up and down the neck) is just something you do if you play barre chords on guitar . Lol. U know a lot more about music than most songwriters.

[@mooseyard]

Thanks for doing the minor-key version! Looking forward to videos for the other five modes, esp. Locrian 😜

[@fortunefavorsthebold3459]

great examples!!

[@fokmertek]

2:11 : The Hives - Well All Right!

[@markandoyo7575]

Generally; as though this video gives me more intruiging thorough the chord scale perspectiveness, As though to announced from myself, I've got previously taking with multiple-spectrum failures to guess this aligned notes with comparing from my overratio chord acquisitions into the entries of my multiple dilemma even though I've got properly aligned those 6 modes of melodic music not basically counted for melodic minor and the Harmonic Minor Scales as though the i IV I've also apprehended the intro of the hits named "Estranged" by Guns N' Roses

[@boomerboi9642]

When he played the flat sixth one and played it multiple times I was like “play something in the way already bro” anyway amazing video!!

[@zachary963]

Okay Exit music for a film is an amazing song. It’s really what got me into RH originally.

[@nicolasforfant484]

Great video, David, as usual. Thanks! However I am a bit at a loss: You illustrate the i - V, but not the i - v, although in "regular" (Aeolian) minor key, the fifth degree should be minor as well? Did I get it wrong or is there no example?

[@waltz251]

yes you are right, and I'm sure as hell there are examples. but the major V gives more tension and it helps to reassure the tonal center. maybe he will upload a new video later on? there are some chord changes left, although not so common

[@OnyxSkiesXIX]

I thought the same thing. i-v is totally acceptable and I see it songs for sure. Not sure why he left it out.

[@liquidsolids9415]

Great video, as usual. Thanks! But what about the minor five chord? The major five chord isn't diatonic to a natural minor key (which led to the invention of harmonic minor, as I understand it from several other KZbin videos.) Thanks, David!

[@DavidBennettPiano]

With the minor key it becomes less clear what “diatonic” does and doesn’t mean. In practice, in the minor key you will see the major version of the five chord more often than the minor version. The major version is drawn from the harmonic minor and and minor version from the natural minor. I hope that helps 😀

[@liquidsolids9415]

@@DavidBennettPiano Totally agree. Sorry if I wasn't clear: I was wondering why you didn't discuss the minor 5 chord - I guess because it's not as common. Thanks!

[@DavidBennettPiano]

@@liquidsolids9415 that’s true, I probably should have! I guess I skipped over it!

[@slidenaway]

@@liquidsolids9415 I was wondering the same, thanks for asking this! Whoops, David's not perfect, everyone get your pitchforks out, it's cancelling time!!

[@liquidsolids9415]

@@DavidBennettPiano Hey, no worries! Thanks!

[@jebajaj3704]

The number 1 music guru on youtube!

[@fokmertek]

In "The Shock of the Lightning" by Oasis, the verse goes back and forth between the i-I chords.

[@avedic]

Excellent example! I love that song..... The chords throughout are fascinating. So simple....yet eerie and odd and dreamy and powerful. And yeah, that major/minor vamp is super cool. It's almost confrontational in a way..

[@kane6529]

When you played Dm to Em i immediately heard 505 🤩

[@dylanhargus2609]

another one for the bVI chord could be iridescent by linkin park which in the beginning as well as in a couple other places goes between am and f

[@jeremiahlyleseditor437]

Another Great Video Dave

[@EmeraldMinotaur]

I'm a massive sucker for the i - bVI. The album Owari wa Kanai by 1000 Travels of Jawaharlal is like all i - bVI progressions and it's amazing

[@Chadner]

Maybe 505 isn't a i - ii progression but a iv - v progression and the key would be Am? Makes more sense to me, the loop between Dm and Em generates tension that gets released when you arrive at Am

[@somerandomnification]

Cool - Until now, the only song I knew of that used a i-I progression was Earl Scruggs' Nashville Blues (From the album "Will the Circle Be unbroken" by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band). A very different sound than "Comfortably Numb".

[@dorsey7832]

A good example of minor to major is ending of Astronomy Domine by Pink Floyd.

[@aptudo]

To my brain, the roman numeral tells me what note number in the scale is the root note of the chord. For songs in a major key (your previous video), seeing a flat or sharp symbol before the roman numeral means “heads up! this is one note lower or higher than the note in the scale.” The notation shown here for minor key chords, where you put a flat symbol before, say, the III chord, has me playing the wrong chord. This way of notating minor key songs requires me to mentally overlay the notes of the major scale (that I’m not playing in) for counting and then apply a flat (move down a semitone) to arrive at a note that I naturally know already as the third note in the minor scale. Maybe that’s helpful in some way I’ll eventually understand, but for now it just breaks my brain.

[@gregoryhaddock5395]

Awesome stuff!!! 🙏🏼

[@djsandy303]

on guitar I to V is really easy if youre playing a chord on the A string the the same fret on the E string is the V.

[@Knight9Rider]

Another exemple of a song with I-i is The Shock of the Lightning by Oasis, alternating between B to Bm

[@MelanieBush1989]

"I'm aware that not all of my viewers are familiar with Billie Eilish" -not her song being one of the only ones I recognized in this video lol (alongside the Tears for Fears one and the Simon and Garfunkel one)