How John Mayer Modulates from Major to Minor WITHOUT a Minor Chord

John Mayer expresses the emotional difference between major and minor in "City Love" off his 2001 album Room for Squares. It's done so in a subtle manner that most won't notice.
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[@samme79]

I haven't heard someone analyze City Love and I have to say that was a very good breakdown. Short but very understandable and direct to the point

[@leonwaves]

Thanks!

[@svensvensson6705]

I wonder if Mayer thought like this guy does, or that he just thought - aa this sound good

[@RespectEdits]

I’m pretty sure he just has a great ear and great at mapping songs out and even though he knows some theory, he’s said in a few interviews that it’s not really important to him as long as it sounds the way he wants it.

[@svensvensson6705]

@@RespectEdits I wonder however where he has gotten his chords from. Especially in Room for Squares.

[@lpodema]

Two semesters at berklee

[@alexfvcruz]

@@svensvensson6705 probably just messing around like everyone else? as long as you know which chords are available on a minor and major key you can go on to explore new ways to express yourself (as long as it sounds good) that's where the ears help.

[@svensvensson6705]

@@alexfvcruz but sometimes it feels like he don't think of chords. Just notes and what sounds good.

[@EpreTroll]

I would've understood this if I knew what all these terms mean.

[@bananatime342]

“And it works” 🙌🏼💯

[@leonwaves]

Bananatime yes it does!

[@eric6504]

Your explanations are so well articulated, earned my sub!

[@andro866]

Your content is good. Keep at it, you'll make it.

[@leonwaves]

Thanks!

[@bartondisplay]

+1!

[@elianmusic7452]

totally agree

[@aesopvann3553]

Love this channel man!

[@GuitarReviver]

Did anyone else automatically sing "I still feel like your man" when he played that Gmaj9 at 0:13?

[@leonwaves]

👏🏻

[@bjrnthorness1151]

i thought of the opening chord of Erik Satie’s Gymnopedie No. 1.

[@garailac]

I would've if it wasn't a completely different chord xd

[@GuitarReviver]

@@garailac Oh well I guess me and the 58 other people who liked my comment are wrong

[@garailac]

@@GuitarReviver in fact yes, but it doesn't really matter, it was a good comment

[@raghavsrivastava4280]

This is my favorite song by John mayer actually. This was a very interesting video to watch. Nice job!

[@kolbyatkins2588]

Love videos like these! A great example of a current musician who makes musically complex songs that we love listening to. Great analysis!

[@jorisdaniel1566]

Always thought of this song as a constant IV-I progression with key changes as a way to differentiate sections. Yours is a way cooler analysis on the song! Love the short form breakdown and train of thought! Keep it up!

[@leonwaves]

Thanks! You’re still right though! IV - I across different key centers.

[@Izryel_loves_jesus]

dude, your amazing. i have indeed discovered the next music theory youtuber.

[@Tylervrooman]

Great video!!

[@elianmusic7452]

Hey leon. excellent video. I hope you continue because as Andro said, youll definitely 'get there' -- lovely video :)

[@thaabstrakt]

This is wonderful

[@leonwaves]

Thanks!!

[@bagsbrickerman3168]

Good video Keep them coming please. Peace

[@gzzsarre]

Love this 🙌🏻

[@mrborismachado]

Muchas gracias por el video! Es de mucha utilidad. Saludos desde Argentina.

[@paulies5407]

Love the channel. I learned all this theory in college, at least I was supposed to. But I was an arrogant little fuck who thought he could wing it with "feel" and "emotion". I soon realised that approach will only take you so far. Thanks for helping me make up for lost time.

[@dylanjones3497]

This just sounds like the ocarina of time opening

[@infinitefretboard]

I actually thought it sounded like Satie Gymnopedie No. 1, which is what the oot opening is based on.

[@corystajduhar]

@@infinitefretboard I heard it too, especially because of the Major 7 quality.

[@Tylervrooman]

Good stuff!

[@012jacob012]

Wow. I love seeing it with the circle of fifths pictured

[@jonathanadu-yirenkyi2995]

amazing please do more explanations

[@enterrupt]

Wonderful content and teaching! How do you illustrate/animate your examples?

[@leonwaves]

enterrupt I use Adobe Premiere Pro for video and animation!

[@wesleyjazz87]

This song is a masterpiece

[@Capillus]

Grant Green’s “Cease The Bombing (written by Neal Creque) does this using only two chords, Cmaj7 and Bb7sus4. He switches from C major scale to C mixolydian but one can easily use G mixolydian to G dorian over these two chords.

[@andersonchang4450]

wow leon you're super smart

[@jonathanbolger6173]

He does sweet in the solo, playing B Aeolian then going D mixolydian for that maj/ min sound.

[@startdreaming]

good one ty :D

[@juanblithe]

Cuando vez acordes nada es difícil, la cosa es hacer los arreglos los arpegios la forma de hacer hablar de la guitarra y encima cantar eso es lo difícil y lo excelente de John Mayer. Neón es una delicia de Virtusismo

[@YanniZiangos]

That's Erik Satie's modulation shift found in the series of the Gymnopédie, in a way

[@pulykamell]

This video just showed up in my recs (even though I don't listen to John Mayer) and the first thing I thought was, huh, reminds me a hell of a lot of Gymnopedie -- wonder if anyone else noticed it.

[@chervenaroza]

Wow!

[@mavtzak1853]

Seems to me like it’s more in G than D. Starts in G major then uses Bb and F from G minor, back to G major in the verse and then the Eb in the bridge is from G minor also

[@ryanteacher8134]

That's what I think, as well.

[@Paulusfe9]

I was thinking the same thing! Cause when you play that D (V)in the verse, it asks for a resolution on the G (I) witch makes me thinks that’s in the key of G. And when it goes to the chorus, I think it modulates to F Major, cause when I play the chords, it feels the same way that the verse, that Bb (IV) asks for the resolution of that F Major chord (I), and on the bridge when he uses that Eb (VIIb) it feels like a flat VII, still on the key of F major, at least that’s how I feel the harmony, and the chords functions when I play them! But also the melody on that solo it definitively feels modal!

[@matthewray5343]

Can you do an analysis of "83" by john mayer?

[@fairusetv2953]

Great job again. Btw Think I hear bad cable* making it sound a bit more digital than usual

[@juwonnnnn]

👍

[@waynegram8907]

Leon Waves, I'm confused what you're saying is that if you go down a 4th interval from the key center root note its modulating to a minor key?What Is a Phrygian cadence? you mean a 2-5-1?

[@dzinypinydoroviny]

From the perspective of a classical musician, I've been taught it's preferable to analyse the music as if staying in one key (where possible) when no key-establishing chords (7, dim7 and m7-5) are leading to a new tonic. Instead I would think of the Bbmaj7 as being an altered submediant (Bm7 with two accidentals) and the Fmaj7 as being an altered mediant (F#m7 with two accidentals). The bridge then seems to be in the key of g-minor (first as an excursion and then established by the dominant seventh chord of D7).

[@goobagooba831]

Square peg into a circular hole.

[@dzinypinydoroviny]

@@goobagooba831 No.

[@goobagooba831]

Just the sort of intelligent response you'd expect from a classical musician.

[@dzinypinydoroviny]

@@goobagooba831 I explained my point in detail in the original comment. You explained yours by a childish metaphor and an insult.

[@goobagooba831]

You thinking that a metaphor can be childish just further proves my point.

[@MrUmandMrEr]

Ooh, clever!

[@JMcKaySV]

I literally know absolutely nothing about music theory why am I on this video

[@bassesatta9235]

you can still learn

[@matisboualam5583]

It reminds me the chord progression of "Make me cry" from Jacob Collier. Am I wrong if I say that it's the same thing?

[@leonwaves]

Not at all!

[@lafera310]

Those effect are like 3blue1brown.

[@ivanyorio6100]

2:42 is Covered in Rain?

[@leonwaves]

Yessss!

[@corystajduhar]

I don't know the melody of this song, but it seems to me that he merely goes from G major to G minor. Both Bb and F are in G minor. He just doesn't play the one chord, but he doesn't have to. I have songs where that happens too. In reality, scales and chords can have many different ways to be described.

[@giothemath]

Mixing major and minor is pretty standard for people from blues guitar background

[@0510962013]

It is simple "Direct modulation". And.. I think Non-functional harmony then cadence (second one).

[@dominicmason3637]

Mich

[@essamguitars]

im a new artist starting out, and if you like John Mayer, you might like my stuff. cool video Leon, thanks for sharing

[@adammartinelli8274]

I'm no theory expert, but wouldn't that bridge be in B flat, not E flat? The first half of the bridge is pretty clearly functioning as IV7 to I7 to IV7 to I7, and it being in B flat would make the second half vi7 to II7 to IV7 to the modulation back into D. If it were in E flat, that E♭maj7 would sound resolved, and the B♭maj7 would sound like a V7, which definitely doesn't sit right with me. Further, that would make the Gm7 a iii7, the C7 a VI7, and the following E♭7 a I, which doesn't really make sense. The chords in that section are nothing revolutionary if it's B flat, but if it's in E flat they're really wonky. I hope you can make sense of my self-taught chord jargon, and thanks for reading this

[@leonwaves]

Thanks for your comment. You are correct. I remember that I misspoke when I recorded this. I meant to say, “and the bridge starts with Eb”, not “and the bridge is in Eb”. The bridge is IV and I in the key of Bb indeed.

[@davidgg8318]

MiCh norord

[@hazabaijan]

Luck?

[@sinnisyt]

I see a like/dislike 33x's the ratio, I insta-like. Simple.