I – I – I – I | IV – IV – I – I | V – IV – I – V12-Bar Blues
The defining 12-bar harmonic form. Foundation of blues, rock & roll, jazz, and most popular music in the 20th century.
Other progressionsI–V–vi–IV ("Axis of Awesome")vi–IV–I–V (Sensitive Female Progression)I–IV–V (Three-Chord Classic)ii–V–I (Jazz Cadence)12-Bar BluesI–vi–IV–V (Doo-Wop / "50s Progression")Canon Progression (Pachelbel)Andalusian CadenceRoyal Road Progression (IV–V–iii–vi)i–III–IV–VI ("House of the Rising Sun")I–vi–ii–V (Jazz "Rhythm Changes" Turnaround)I–IV–I–V (Country Two-Step)
HEAVEN, HEARTACHE
AND THE POWER OF LOVE, Trisha Yearwood
E
HEAVEN, HEARTACHE
AND THE POWER OF LOVE
Trisha Yearwood
Medium E · ♩=100· 7 chords
YOU DON'T MESS AROUND WITH JIM, Jim Croce
E
YOU DON'T MESS AROUND WITH JIM
Jim Croce
Medium E · ♩=145· 6 chords
THEN YOU CAN TELL ME GOODBYE, The Casinos
F
THEN YOU CAN TELL ME GOODBYE
The Casinos
Easy F · ♩=72· 7 chords
Voicings in common keys
C blues:C7F7G7
G blues:G7C7D7
A blues:A7D7E7
E blues:E7A7B7
When you hear this
Every chord is a dominant 7th — that's what gives blues its tension. Examples: "Hound Dog", "Johnny B. Goode", most early rock & roll.
Songs above are from our catalog whose chord set contains all chords from one of the key realizations. Sorted by popularity.