Six Four One Five - vi IV I V - Ami F C G
4 simple chords, and a
world of new repertoire.
Once you think your students can play a song with four chords... check out this repertoire:
This chord progression is the new
"Heart and Soul." In fact, it's the same four chords - just
in a different order. But nobody uses them in the sequence they
occurred in "Heart and Soul" or "Blue Moon" or
"Stand by Me." It's hard to explain why the slight
re-ordering of the components is now hip, and the old order is
terribly, terribly un-hip. So I won't even try. Here's a list of
really useful repertoire to know. Your students will be happy just playing the accompaniment to these songs, or just the bass note if they're complete beginners. And these songs - because the chord progression is completely diatonic - are perfect for IMPROVISATION practice. Happy listening!
"Love the Way You Lie" by
Eminem and Rihanna
and
"Apologize" by
Timbaland and OneRepublic... are in the same key
Gmi Eb Bb F
or
Emi C G D (with capo III)
"If I Were a Boy" by Beyonce
D#mi B F# C#
or
Ami F C G (with capo on VI)
"Numb" by Jay-Z and
Linkin Park (intro and verses)
F#mi D A E
or
Emi C G D (with capo II)
and here's a list with SOMETHING FOR
EVERYONE. Believe me, the list is ten times this size! Check out this
other blog at
http://sixfouronefive.blogspot.com/2009/01/song-list.html
The following songs were HUGE hits in
their various genres. Your students WILL know some of them.
Pink - "Here Comes The Weekend"
Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris - "We
Found Love"
The Offspring - "You're Gonna Go
Far, Kid"
Lady GaGa - "Poker Face"
Akon - "Beautiful"
Red Hot Chili Peppers - "Snow"
Demi Lovato - "Unbroken"
Green Day - "Holiday" (intro
and verses)
Bruno Mars - "Grenade"
(chorus)
Miley Cyrus - "Stay" (chorus)
Kelly Clarkson - "Stronger"
(chorus)
===============================
Sarah McLachlan's "Building a
Mystery"
Joan Osborne's "One of Us",
Jewel's "Hands."
Melissa Etheridge's "Angels Would
Fall."
Nina Gordon's "Tonight and the
Rest of My Life."
Beyoncé's "If I Were a Boy"
Aimee Mann ("Borrowing Time"),
Secondhand Serenade ("Fall for You"),
Katy Perry ("Fingerprints"),
Moby ("Every Day It's 1989"),
Sugarland ("Take Me As I Am"),
Carolina Liar ("I'm Not Over"),
T.I. ("Whatever You Like"),
Smashing Pumpkins "Disarm,"
Bon Jovi "It's My Life,"
-----------------------------------------------------
on the Axis of Awesome video, they start with
the same 4 chords: I V vi IV (same sequence, different starting point)
Here's the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pidokakU4I
Journey - Don't Stop Believing 1981
James Blunt - You're Beautiful
Alphaville - Forever Young
Jason Mraz - I'm Yours
Mika - Happy Ending
Alex Lloyd - Amazing
The Calling - Wherever You Will Go
Elton John - Can You Feel The Love Tonight
Maroon 5 - She Will Be Loved
The Last Goodnight - Pictures Of You
U2 - With Or Without You
Crowded House - Fall At Your Feet
Kasey Chambers - Not Pretty Enough
now "double time" (only two beats per chord)
The Beatles - Let it Be
Red Hot Chili Peppers - Under the Bridge
Daryl Braithwaite - The Horses
Bob Marley - No Woman No Cry
Marcy Playground - Sex and Candy
Men At Work - Land Down Under
Banjo Patterson's Waltzing Matilda
A Ha - Take On Me
Green Day - When I Come Around
Eagle Eye Cherry - Save Tonight
Toto - Africa
and right here, they shift the order of measures, so that
the progression becomes vi IV I V (same order, different starting point)
Beyonce - If I Were A Boy (D#mi) 2008
The Offspring - Self Esteem (Ami) 1994
The Offspring - You're Gonna Go Far Kid (Ami) 2008
Pink - You and Your Hand (Emi) 2006 16,000,000 views
Lady Gaga - Poker Face (G#mi) 2008, 144,000,000 views
The Fray - You Found Me (G#mi) 2008, 36,000,000 views
30h!3 - Don't Trust Me (Gmi) 2008 22,000,000 views
MGMT - Kids (F#mi) 2009 20,000,000 views
Natalie Imbruglia - Torn 1997
Five For Fighting - Superman 2001