JPF Home Page Forums Musician Gear and Techniques Music Theory and Education Chord Prgressions Verse vs. Chorus

Me with El Foot, mostly. As far as what progressions to use, I'd offer two Proverbs of Wisdom from two writers--and caution that you should not pay attention to them entirely. It was Harlan Howard (quoted a lot by Loretta Lynn) who said country music was "three chords and the truth." And Woody Guthrie: "If you're using more than two chords, you're showing off."

I write mostly country music, and I do tend to go for the simple--mostly because it makes it easy for a band that hasn't heard it before to follow along. The band I played with over in Eastern oregon got into the habit of referring to one of my songs as "the one with the A minor in it," because I do tend to complain that anything with more than two syllables is "fruity" and belongs in jazz.

As far as the chorus being different from the verses, no, it does not have to be. A lot of great songs--including the ones Mike cited--have chorus music that's identical to the verses. You'll find that a lot in country music, folk music, and rock 'n' roll. And in blues, the progression almost never changes.

I decide whether the chorus has to start differently mostly on a basis of whether I want the audience to sing along. If I do, I will often try to have the chorus start on the IVth or Vth (F or G if you're playing in C)--but then I'll keep the rest of the chorus music as close as possible to what's in the verses. That's one of the rules of writing congregational music--hymns that church "audiences" are going to sing along with: you want to make it easy for them to follow (and therefore as familiar as possible), but you also want to signal them when the chorus is coming, so they'll be ready.

As far as the specific progressions you mentioned, in the first, one definite option is to keep the chorus chords same as the verses. Like in the old standard "Honky Tonk Angel," or my "Dirty Deeds We Done to Sheep." Alternatively, when I musicated Betty Holt's "Our Own Little Stimulus Plan," which had that progression in the verses, I had the chorus go to a IV/I/V/I (repeated twice) instead.

For the second one, any time I've got a verse ending on a V-7th, I tend to start the chorus on the IV. Just feels right. There are obviously other ways to go. But again, I try to keep the rest of the progression as much the same as I can. You can get around that "unresolved" V-7th by throwing in a final line at the end that resolves to the I.

And for the third--do you really need those A minors?--that is, I believe, the same progression Ian Tyson used in "Four Strong Winds." And he used the same progression in the chorus.

You may no3w return to your regularly-scheduled thread.

Joe

_____________

Foot loose. --Pinocchio