Doo-wop Changes

I–vi–IV–V · Fifties progression · Ice cream changes · C major · I–vi–IV–V

Doo-wop Changes is a chord pattern you can play in any key. The degrees are I–vi–IV–V.

Four classic chords with a round, nostalgic ring. They come into their own on an unhurried eight-beat feel.

Patterns are common chord moves. They are not the chart of a recorded hit.

Patterns are named by theory. Play them in any key that fits your voice.

Each song page has a chord chart, fingerings, and the same song in every key.

The pattern

I – vi – IV – V

C · Am · F · G

Chord chart
1	C	Am	F	G

Many songs give each chord two unhurried bars and use the last two chords to set up the next line. At 60–80 BPM, stretch the beats and sing softly.

Stand by Me · Ben E. King. So typical that one nickname of the pattern comes from this song. The original is in A, and what defines it is the bass line more than the chords.
Heart and Soul · Hoagy Carmichael · Frank Loesser. A 1938 standard, so the song itself rather than one recording is the reference. Some versions use ii instead of IV in the third slot, which changes one chord.

These songs use this pattern. This is not their chord chart: real recordings differ in key, rhythm and the chords they add.