ENDEIT

Standards

But Not For Me chords & key

George Gershwin

Key
E♭ major
Form
ABAC
Bars
32
Groove
Medium-up swing
Time signature
4/4

“But Not For Me” is a jazz standard by George Gershwin. It is usually played in E♭ major as a medium-up swing, and the 32-bar ABAC form has 4 sections. Harmonically it contains 3 major ii–V–I cadences and 1 minor ii–V–i, uses 13 different chords and moves between the key centres A♭ major, F minor and E♭ major. In this atlas it appears on 12 album tracks.

Chord changes

Showing in: Concert (C) — E♭ major

A
F7Cm7
B♭7B♭7
E♭maj7A♭7
Gm7C7
F7
B♭7
E♭maj7
B♭m7E♭7
B
A♭maj7
D♭7
E♭maj7
Cm7
Fm7
Fm7
Fm7
B♭7
A
F7Cm7
B♭7B♭7
E♭maj7A♭7
Gm7C7
F7
B♭7
E♭maj7
B♭m7E♭7
C
A♭maj7
D♭7
E♭maj7A♭7
Gm7C7
Fm7
B♭7
E♭6
E♭6

Changes as commonly played (concert pitch). Your band's version may differ.

Harmonic analysis

3Major ii–V–I
1Minor ii–V–i
7ii–V moves
3Tritone substitutions
4Dominant chains
13Different chords

Most used chords

  • B♭7×8
  • E♭maj7×6
  • F7×4
  • Fm7×4
  • Cm7×3
  • A♭7×3

Key centres reached by ii–V

A♭ major, F minor and E♭ major

Characteristics

  • ABAC song form

Recorded on these albums

1950 Ella Sings Gershwin
Ella Fitzgerald with Ellis Larkins at the Piano · “But Not for Me”
1954 Miles Davis With Sonny Rollins
Miles Davis · “But Not for Me”
1957 Bags’ Groove
Miles Davis · “But Not for Me (take 2)”
1959 Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Song Book
Ella Fitzgerald · “But Not for Me”
1959 Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Gershwin Song Book, Volume 1
Ella Fitzgerald · “But Not for Me”
1959 All or Nothing at All
Billie Holiday
1961 My Favorite Things
John Coltrane · “But Not for Me”
1978 The George And Ira Gershwin Songbook
Ella Fitzgerald · “But Not for Me”
1980 Trilogy: Past Present Future
Frank Sinatra · “But Not for Me”
1981 Barbara Hendricks Sings Gershwin
Gershwin; Barbara Hendricks, Katia & Marielle Labèque · “But Not for Me”
1983 Nice Work If You Can Get It
Ella Fitzgerald & André Previn · “But Not for Me”
2026 Shine (Live at Teatro Estense, Ferrara, 1987)
Chet Baker · “But Not For Me (Live)”

Historic 78 rpm recordings

  • But Not for Me Pat Flowers · Gershwin · 1944 archive.org ↗
  • But Not for Me Pat Flowers · Gershwin · 1944 archive.org ↗
  • BUT NOT FOR ME LEE WILEY · JESS STACY and his ORCHESTRA · George and Ira Gershwin · 1947 archive.org ↗

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

TitleComposerKeyFormGroove
I Want To Be Happy 56% Vincent Youmans C major AABA · 32 Medium-up swing
Oh, Lady Be Good 33% George Gershwin G major AABA · 32 Medium-up swing
I've Never Been In Love Before 30% Frank Loesser B♭ major AABA · 32 Medium swing
Again 29% Lionel Newman G major AABC · 32 Ballad
Rockin' Chair 29% Hoagy Carmichael E♭ major ABA · 32 Medium swing
You Are Too Beautiful 29% Richard Rodgers C major AABA · 32 Ballad
A Foggy Day 28% George Gershwin F major ABB · 26 Medium swing
Confirmation 28% Charlie Parker F major AABA · 32 Up-tempo swing

Frequently asked questions

What key is But Not For Me in?

But Not For Me is usually played in E♭ major. For B♭ instruments that is F major, for E♭ instruments C major.

Who wrote But Not For Me?

But Not For Me was written by George Gershwin.

What is the form of But Not For Me?

But Not For Me has 4 sections (ABAC) with 32 bars in total.

How fast is But Not For Me played?

The usual groove is Medium-up swing.

What are the chord changes to But Not For Me?

The opening bars are F7 Cm7 | Bb7 Bb7 | Ebmaj7 Ab7 | Gm7 C7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.