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Related Music Theory Alchemy

“Dont Stop Me Now” by Queen has a key of F major. The song takes you on a journey of a unique blend of chords and progression. Freddie Mercury and the entire band are known for their diverse songwriting abilities, apparent in ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’. The chord progression in Verse 2 hints a story-telling stalwart of pop music production – the major-to-relative-minor movement (I to vi), with some interesting additions of minor seven, major seven and diminished seventh chords, giving it a more sophisticated feel.

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“Killer Queen” is a unique composition with a hybrid style. It manages to combine rock and pop structure with complex harmonic techniques often found in classical and jazz music. Queen’s unique sound can be attributed to Freddie Mercury’s diverse musical influences, hence creating such sophisticated progressions.

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The Rolling Stones’ “As Tears Go By” is primarily in the key of G major and follows a Verse-Verse-Verse-Outro structure. The harmony is relatively simple, incorporating primarily diatonic chords from the G major scale as well as a few borrowed chords and inversions.

Chord Progression Analysis (Outro):
G Major (I) – A Major (V/vi, borrowed from E minor) – C Major (IV) – D Major (V) – G Major (I)

“Someone to Love” by Queen exhibits a blend of rock and gospel music, showcasing their musical brilliance and theatrical elements. The chord progression forms a classic example of a departure from the typical I-IV-V root progression seen in much of popular western music, demonstrating Queen’s ingenious writing style.

“Hurt”, written by Nine Inch Nails, exudes melancholy and despair through a slow progression that weaves intricate melodies between the chords. The tonality is primarily in B minor, but introduces D, E, A, and G chords throughout, indicating some mode mixture or borrowed chord use.

Queen – Dont Stop Me Now – Outro

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Chord Progression

[‘F’, ‘F7’, ‘Bb’, ‘Gm7’]

Chord Progression Analysis

– F Major (I)
– F Dominant 7 (V7)
– Bb Major (IV)
– G Minor 7 (vi7)

Similar Chord Progressions

The Beach Boys’ ‘God Only Knows’ certain sections of the song follow a similar progression:

– A Major (I)
– A Dominant 7 (V7)
– D Major (IV)
– F# Minor 7 (vi7)

Radiohead’s ‘Paranoid Android’ also uses a similar progression:

– G Major (I)
– G Dominant 7 (V7)
– C Major (IV)
– E Minor 7 (vi7)

Musical Analysis

The chord progression for the outro combines a traditional I-V7-IV sequence – a common progression in many popular music genres, particularly rock. The usage of Gm7 brings a slight melodic melancholy to the end of the sequence. The movement from F7 to Bb works as a perfect 4th interval progression, resulting in the feeling of resolution; this is a key characteristic of blues and jazz progressions.

Overall Analysis

Queen’s ‘Don’t Stop Me Now’ contains a rich mixture of chord progressions, which is typical of the band’s complex songwriting. The outro of the song makes use of the F, F7, Bb, and Gm7 chords. This progression is in the key of F Major, with F being the tonic (I), F7 being the dominant 7th (V7), Bb being the subdominant (IV) and Gm7 being the submediant 7th (vi7). The Bb chord is a borrowed chord from the parallel minor key (F Minor) and the usage of F7 serves to add a level of tension before resolving to the Bb.

Style Analysis

This progression is indicative of Queen’s songwriting style, showcasing their traditional rock roots infused with elements of jazz and blues. This is evident in the F7 resolution to Bb, a common blues/jazz technique. Meanwhile, the usage of Gm7 is indicative of Brian May’s fondness for complex harmonies and unconventional chord choices.

Chords in the Outro section of Dont Stop Me Now by Queen are:

[‘F’, ‘F7’, ‘Bb’, ‘Gm7’]