Rock (I-IV-V) Progressions

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Rich Scott (693) · [archive]
Style: Rock/Pop · Level: Beginner · Tempo: 140

Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

The I-IV-V Progression

Whereas the I-vi-IV-V7 Rock Ballad (Doo-Wop) Progression substituted the harder sounding IV chord for the softer ii chord of the I-vi-ii-V7 Standard Changes, the Rock Progression also omitted the softer sounding vi chord to create an even harder rock sound.

Examples of the classic I-IV-V Rock Progression include La Bamba (Hear Song -RealPlayer / See Tab) verse (1959), Twist And Shout (Hear Song -RealPlayer / See Tab) verse (1964), Come And Get It (Hear Song -RealPlayer / See Tab) verse (1970), Born To Run (Hear Song -RealPlayer / See Tab) verse (1975), Rock And Roll All Nite (Hear Song - RealPlayer / See Tab) chorus (1976), and Mr. Jones (Hear Song -RealPlayer / See Tab) chorus (1993)

Below is the openning verse progression to Bruce Springsteen's 1975 hit Born To Run.