vi–IV–I–V chord progression
The pop progression started on its minor chord, which makes the same four chords sound more wistful.01
In every key
Roman numerals name each chord by its place in the key: I is home, IV and V are the major chords around it, ii, iii and vi the minor ones. The same pattern works in any key.
| Key | Chords | How to play it | Practise |
|---|---|---|---|
| C | Am F C G | Open chords | Play along |
| G | Em C G D | Open chords | Play along |
| D | Bm G D A | Barre chords, or capo 2 with C shapes | Play along |
| A | F♯m D A E | Barre chords, or capo 2 with G shapes | Play along |
| E | C♯m A E B | Barre chords, or capo 4 with C shapes | Play along |
| F | Dm B♭ F C | Barre chords, or capo 5 with C shapes | Play along |
| B♭ | Gm E♭ B♭ F | Barre chords, or capo 3 with G shapes | Play along |
| E♭ | Cm A♭ E♭ B♭ | Barre chords, or capo 3 with C shapes | Play along |
02
Songs that use it
- “Zombie” – The Cranberries
- “Despacito” – Luis Fonsi
Chords only, as usually played. The songs themselves aren’t included.
03
The change to practise
In C the slowest change is C → G: nothing stays down, so land all fingers as one shape.
Play along in time
Chordbyte plays the progression with a metronome and a one-bar count-in, shows each chord as it comes, and has four strumming patterns from one strum per chord to “old faithful”. Pick a key in the table above, or start in C.
Play vi–IV–I–V in C04