'Beautifully Complex Chord' Songs

[emu!]

(so far, no one has mentioned Stairway to Heaven)

keeping fingers crossed...

 

[sultan59]

Blue in Green

and

Flamenco Sketches

 

[Rick J]

Girl From Ipanema is a great song to get to learn major 7th and 9th chords, and also how effective a key change can be going into (and even during!) the middle 8. And, hey, its a just a great song!

The chord structures of almost any mainstream standards of the 30s' and 40's are much more complex than most modern rock blues or country material, - Gershwin, Berlin, Cole Porter, Johnny Mercer, they and many others will give you a real break-out on the "1-4-5" chords we all know and love. "One for my Baby" (.. its quarter to three....) sounds almost like a simple blues on first hearing, but just listen again, then go for the sheet music, - you'll see what I mean.

The Beatles were no slouch at "odd" chords, - how about the crafty little E minor between the F and the A in the first lines of "Yesterday" or the way McCartney made a whole tone key change "down" sound like a key change "up" in Penny Lane. And although not particularly unusual by modern standards, the chord structure of "I Wanna Hold Your Hand" was very off the wall back in 1963.

Rick J

 

[Rick J]

Oh, and I forgot, - "Midnight at the Oasis" !

Rick J

 

[fezz parka]

I like songs with a lot of chords. I've found that most that have a lot of "complex" chords were more than likely written on a piano which kinda puts a guitar player with only one hand and six strings at a slight disadvantage. Stevie Wonder and Steely Dan suggestions are great examples of that.

Bingo. Think Jimmy Webb and Leon Russell.

 

[Bozo Bus]

Crazy Fingers by the Grateful Dead. Diss them if you will, then go and try to figure this one out. A very well thought out chord progression.

Dindi by Jobim. the day I figured this one out I felt like I could figure anything out.

And yes, Crazy is a good one to know.
-Mr. Natural

+1
Bob Weir, having to color things behind Garcia (IMO) can knock out some pretty complex chord structures with simple melody lines.
As Mr. Natural said, it may not be everyones cup 'o tea, but the man could string together some complex chording for simple tunes....

PEACE,
Phil

 

[jazztele]

Blue in Green

and

Flamenco Sketches

Irony!

(it's ironic because kind of blue was miles reaction to bop tunes having too many chords in them! And possibly ironic because "flamenco sketches" theoretically doesn't actually have a chord progression)

 

[davidge1]

• Wichita Lineman by Glen Campbell... someone showed me the chords a few years ago, but I've since forgotten it.

• Someone mentioned Brian Wilson... Don't Worry Baby by the Beach Boys is a very cool chord progression.

• Night Life by Ray Price (actually written by Willie Nelson).

 

[HenryAdams]

Here's my current favorite. Fairly simple, then lots of cool substitutions. It's whipping me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YA3lTf-lh6E

 

[koen]

Tears In Heaven

 

[Robsocal]

+1
Bob Weir, having to color things behind Garcia (IMO) can knock out some pretty complex chord structures with simple melody lines.
As Mr. Natural said, it may not be everyones cup 'o tea, but the man could string together some complex chording for simple tunes....

PEACE,
Phil

+1. That's all true, plus he can play very interesting (and intricate) rhythms and time signatures while singing. He's way, way, underrated.

 

[sultan59]

Irony!

(it's ironic because kind of blue was miles reaction to bop tunes having too many chords in them! And possibly ironic because "flamenco sketches" theoretically doesn't actually have a chord progression)

It may not have a "chord progression" per se, but it does fit the thread title; maybe not complex, but definitely beautiful.

'Beautifully Complex Chord' Songs

 

[Skully]

Pretty much the entire Who catalog. Try playing Pinball Wizard and then drop to your knees and worship at the Altar of Pete!

Really? In my limited (as a guitar player, not a listener) exploration of The Who catalog, I've found his stuff to be relatively simple once you figured out a few of his signature compositional tendencies.

 

[fezz parka]

I love it: "Compositional Tendencies"...

 

[BigDaddyLH]

Really? In my limited (as a guitar player, not a listener) exploration of The Who catalog, I've found his stuff to be relatively simple once you figured out a few of his signature compositional tendencies.

In the songs on Tommy, he tends to do the following over and over and over:

Dsus4 D Dsus4 D ...

xx0344 xx0343 xx0344 xx0343 ...

Meh.

 

[Skully]

In the songs on Tommy, he tends to do the following over and over and over:

Dsus4 D Dsus4 D ...

Exactly. A lot of dropping of the pinky.

I love it: "Compositional Tendencies"...

I've named your next project. I'll have my lawyer contact you to work out our profit sharing arrangement.

 

[mr natural]

Nature Boy. Don't know who did it originally, but I've got the Nat King Cole version. Man, I love that song.
-Mr. N.

 

[JimmyJam]

Not sure if it's a complex chord song. I just know it sounds intimidating to me to try to play it:
CLASSICAL GAS

 

[castpolymer]

Really? In my limited (as a guitar player, not a listener) exploration of The Who catalog, I've found his stuff to be relatively simple once you figured out a few of his signature compositional tendencies.

I think that perhaps that can be explained by my being a hack guitarist.

 

[Skully]

I think that perhaps that can be explained by my being a hack guitarist.

Hey... I'm right there with you. Actually, "hack" is something to which I aspire.