Overused chord progression

I think in rock music, the following chord progression is used too much:

C Bflat F (or the equivelant in any key). It sounds very good in some songs, but it gets old. Are there any musicians who undestand what I'm talking about and agree?

 

yeah

but the problem these days is that songs arnt as melodic. in the old days most songs had the same couple of chord progressions and it didnt matter coz it was the tunes themselves not the chords that were important.

 

I tend to get bored with hearing the same chord progressions... but in my opinion, some can pull them off quite nicely by adding on a great melody or perhaps a catchy little riff... something that makes it their own. Over-production will never sell me a typical chord pattern... it's very rare I hear tunes that use them that I enjoy. I tend to lean towards more obscure, innovative ones. But again, it can be pulled off if the band or artist applies the important aspect of melody nicely to it and attaches elements that make it unique.

 

Precisely. Unfortunately, melody doesn't appear to be as important now as it has been in the past, and in my opinion, it's one of, if not the most important aspect of a good song. It determines the catchiness of a song. Back it up with clever harmonies, good lyrics and structured musicianship and you're in business.

 

What song for example? Can't "hear" it

For me - it's A - A - A - F - G (repeat). Iron Maiden did that a bunch.

 

I generally don't like the IIm-V-I progression, that country one that toby keith likes to use a lot.

 

The 1-4-5 progression gets pretty old sometimes.

 

I can't stand I-IV-V, but the rest of the progressions you mentioned can be pretty ok... You can make good songs with those, but I-IV-V just always sounds annoying.

edit: except in blues, that is

 

most progressions are just variations on the ii V I or I IV V

substitution those chords for others can hide this a bit, and make it more interesting though i guess.

but the simplest things are often the most catchiest.

 

All I can say is...

power chords

 

no one knows proper chrod progressions......you have youre 7 chords I ii iii IV V vi and diminished vii.....now if you start with a I chord it can go to any other chord...vii can go to V and I. V can go to I or vi...IV can go to ii, vii, I or V....ii can go to vii or V, vi can go to IV or ii....and iii can go to IV.....this is for any major key....inbetween chords of course you can throw in NCT's but if you follow that chord progression.....you have limitless possiblilties.

if you have any more questions hit me up on AIM or somethin....im more of a music theory guy than a performer.

 

cotter builds obviously there are 7 chords based on the major scale. But in terms of a chord progression, its only the I, ii, and V that are the important ones. The other chords are just substitions for them.

Its all about I ii V, cycle of 5ths, tritone substitutions, and coltrane changes...

isnt it?

 

i shouldve explained more....the upper case roman numerals are major chords, then the lower would be your minor chords.....in a major key those are the chords and the progression you would follow...its about following rules to break from simplicity.like parrallel 3rds 5ths and 8vas are awful to put in and creates minor dissonence

 

Yes, those are quite irritating and eliminate so many possibilities.

 

I've always been into varying the phrasing of chords during a progression to break the monotony..or maybe hitting the root notes for a while, then kicking in with the entire chord again

 

I wish people backed up their initial knowledge of music theory and continued on, so that there wouldn't be many of the statements made, as above on this page.
(Magical Mystery Girl's excluded, though playing just the Root and the 5th can sometimes actually open up possibilities if done well in a non-heavy-metal style. Because you are in neither major or minor and can play around that, teasing a bit with the ambiguity. Some sitar drones and such things use this effect. You can then play major scales on top of that, or minor ones, or any mixture you like...I find it can be interesting anyhow.)

 

I don't claim to know much about music theory, been figuring things out on my own for almost 20 years now, and I'm happy about it

 

In my opinion, it's about doing something well and in your own fashion, not necessarily what you do. The most simple songs are some of the most timeless.

 

Some of my favorites have been one chord songs actually. Not all though, of course.

 

I do love my 6ths and 7ths but at the end of the day, if I want a song that's nice and solid I generally use 1sts 3rds and 5ths. With the odd 4ths thrown in there.

It works well depending on how you use it.

You know what they say, you can't create an original melody anymore using the standard western music thoery.

Blessings

Sebbi