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“In My Life” is a song by The Beatles from the 1965 album Rubber Soul. It is written in the key of A Major, beloved for its introspective lyrics and harmonic structure. The chord progression is complex and contains several borrowed chords and secondary dominants, displaying an impressive use of tonality that is characteristic of the band’s sophisticated songwriting.

“The Long And Winding Road” is in the key of D major. The chords are quite typical of pop music, however, The Beatles use of extensions and suspensions provide a unique complexity to the progression. The song dabbles in modal interchange as it borrows chords from parallel minor, a popular Beatles technique.

The Bridge 1 of “Stairway to Heaven” by Led Zeppelin is a beautiful and intriguing chord progression that combines diatonic chords, borrowed chords, and chromatic passing tones. This progression is part of a longer musical composition which has gained immense popularity since its release in 1971 as part of their fourth album, and has become one of the most iconic songs in rock music history.

The key of the song “Good Old Fashioned Lover Boy” by Queen is primarily in C Major. The song employs both diatonic chords (chords that naturally occur within the major scale key) and borrowed chords (chords from a parallel mode). There is a bit of modal mixture where the song borrows from an outside key, specifically the minor key, which is often used in pop music to add color and tension. You can see this in the use of some of the chords here like Fm and Eb7. The piece also utilizes secondary dominant chords and diminished chords. In the bridge, there is modulation to different keys, namely to Fm, which is a parallel minor of F, includes Eb7 (secondary dominant) and Ab (borrowed chord), and goes through sequence of V-I pattern (G7-C).

The Beatles – In My Life – Bridge 1

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Chord Progression

[‘F#m’, ‘D’, ‘G’, ‘A’, ‘F#m’, ‘B’, ‘Dm’, ‘A’]

Chord Progression Analysis

The chord progression of the bridge is as follows:

“`
F#m (‘vi’),
D (‘IV’),
G (‘bVII’) (Borrowed Chord – Mixolydian mode),
A (‘I’),
F#m (‘vi’),
B (‘II’),
Dm (‘iv’) (Borrowed Chord – Dorian mode),
A (‘I’)
“`

Similar Chord Progressions

1) “Creep” by “Radiohead” also uses a similar chord progression with borrowed chords:

“`
G (‘I’),
B (‘III’),
C (‘IV’),
Cm (‘iv’) (Borrowed Chord – Dorian mode)
“`

2) “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” by “The Beatles” itself has a similar progression:

“`
Am (‘vi’),
A (‘VI’) (Borrowed Chord – Dorian mode),
C#m (‘iii’),
C (‘bIII’) (Borrowed Chord – Mixolydian mode)
“`

Musical Analysis

The bridge begins with two bars of F# minor, the relative minor of A Major, then modulates to the IV (D). This is then followed by a borrowed chord, G, from the Mixolydian mode of A Major. The sequence then returns to the tonic (A) and follows the same pattern with an altered second half. The B chord acts as a secondary dominant leading to E, which is surprising when it is followed by Dm, a borrowed chord from Dorian mode. This Dorian modal interchange adds a dramatic touch before resolving back to the tonic, A.

Overall Analysis

The song is in the key of A Major and it makes some interesting use of borrowed chords and modulations. The arrangement of the song is fairly typical rock/pop with a verse-chorus-bridge structure. The bridge utilizes a modulation to the relative minor key, F# minor.

Style Analysis

“The Beatles” often make use of modal interchange, or borrowed chords, for color and variety in their arrangements, and “In My Life” is no exception. These borrowed chords, combined with more traditional harmony and arranging techniques, help create the unique “Beatles” sound.

Chords in the Bridge 1 section of In My Life by The Beatles are:

[‘F#m’, ‘D’, ‘G’, ‘A’, ‘F#m’, ‘B’, ‘Dm’, ‘A’]