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Related Music Theory Alchemy

“Sometimes It Snows In April” is commonly recognised as a hauntingly beautiful ballad that features gentle, intricate piano work and tender vocals. Musically, it explores a slightly complex harmonic structure that creates a profound emotive sound spectrum.

“When Doves Cry” by Prince shows the artist’s flair for the unusual. While the song is primarily in A minor, Prince takes liberties with creating unexpected shifts in harmony, which gives the song its unique character. The song revolves around five chords: Am, G, Em, F, and G, repeated throughout the verse. This circular progression offers a sense of continuity, yet Prince’s interpretation and arrangement create a sense of unpredictability.

“Goodbye Blue Sky” is a song by Pink Floyd from their 1979 album, “The Wall.” It is known for its haunting, ethereal quality, achieved through the use of predominantly minor chords, lush harmonies, and a slow, atmospheric tempo. The song’s lyrics and melancholic mood reflect feelings of loss and desolation.

The chorus of Weezer’s song “Say It Ain’t So” can be analyzed as a simple and memorable chord progression in the key of C major. The progression features a repeating pattern of four chords: Am, E, F, and C.

The chord progression of the chorus in Beck’s “Girl Acoustic” is relatively simple and straightforward, yet effective in creating a memorable and catchy tune. The song is in the key of A major, and the progression maintains a predominantly diatonic harmony.

Prince – Sometimes It Snows In April – Chorus

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Chord Progression

[‘Aadd9’, ‘E/G#’, ‘Aadd9’, ‘E/G#’, ‘Aadd9’, ‘G#7’, ‘F#7sus4’, ‘F#7’, ‘Aadd9’, ‘Bbsus2’, ‘Bsus2’, ‘F#7add11’, ‘Aadd9’, ‘E’]

Chord Progression Analysis

The chords for the chorus are as follows:

– ‘Aadd9’ (‘I add9’)
– ‘E/G#’ (‘V6’)
– ‘Aadd9’ (‘I add9’)
– ‘E/G#’ (‘V6’)
– ‘Aadd9’ (‘I add9’)
– ‘G#7’ (‘V/V7’)
– ‘F#7sus4’ (‘VI7sus4’)
– ‘F#7’ (‘VI7’)
– ‘Aadd9’ (‘I add9’)
– ‘Bbsus2’ (‘bII sus2’, borrowed from Phrygian)
– ‘Bsus2’ (‘II sus2’)
– ‘F#7add11’ (‘VI7 add11’)
– ‘Aadd9’ (‘I add9’)
– ‘E’ (‘V’)

Similar Chord Progressions

Stairway to Heaven’ by Led Zeppelin contains a similar use of added tone chords and modal mixture:
– ‘Am’ (‘i’)
– ‘G#dim’ (‘vii dim’)
– ‘C’ (‘III’)
– ‘D’ (‘IV’)
– ‘F’ (‘VI’)
– ‘G’ (‘VII’)
– ‘Am’ (‘i’)

‘Hey You’ by Pink Floyd has a comparable chromatic mediant move and usage of sevenths and suspended chords:
– ‘Em7’ (‘i7’)
– ‘D/E’ (‘IVadd9/1st inv’)
– ‘Em’ (‘i’)
– ‘A/C#’ (‘IV/1st inv’)
– ‘D7’ (‘V7’)

Musical Analysis

Prince uses a combination of standard I-V chords (Aadd9, E) along with inversions (E/G#), seventh chords (F#7sus4, F#7, G#7), and suspended chords (Bbsus2, Bsus2) which provide tension and variety while maintaining a strong sense of tonality. The use of the bII sus2 (Bbsus2) chord, which is borrowed from the Phrygian mode, is a particularly interesting choice that further creates harmonic tension and ambiguity.

Overall Analysis

The progression for the chorus of “Sometimes It Snows In April” by Prince exhibits a rich mixture of non- diatonic chords and borrowed chords. The tonal center of the song is A, but it doesn’t strictly follow a specific major or minor scale, creating an interesting blend of light and dark tonalities. This characteristic is a common feature in Prince’s works, showing his notable talent for blending the traditional with the unconventional.

Style Analysis

Prince’s harmonic language in ‘Sometimes It Snows In April’ is a good example of his soulful and complex writing style. His use of add9 and sus2 chords give the piece very lush and open sonorities, while the IV7 and V7 chords provide bluesy and jazzy tensions. The flattened II from the Phrygian mode offers an exotic twist characteristic of Prince’s innovative songwriting.

Chords in the Chorus section of Sometimes It Snows In April by Prince are:

[‘Aadd9’, ‘E/G#’, ‘Aadd9’, ‘E/G#’, ‘Aadd9’, ‘G#7’, ‘F#7sus4’, ‘F#7’, ‘Aadd9’, ‘Bbsus2’, ‘Bsus2’, ‘F#7add11’, ‘Aadd9’, ‘E’]