ENDEIT

Standards · 1959

Freddie Freeloader chords & key

Miles Davis

Key
B♭ major
Form
AA
Bars
24
Groove
Medium swing
Time signature
4/4
Year
1959

“Freddie Freeloader” is a jazz standard by Miles Davis from 1959. Most bands play it in B♭ major, medium swing; the tune runs 24 bars in AA form. In this atlas it appears on 1 album track.

Chord changes

Showing in: Concert (C) — B♭ major

A
B♭7
B♭7
B♭7
B♭7
E♭7
E♭7
B♭7
B♭7
F7
E♭7
1.
A♭7
A♭7
2.
B♭7
B♭7

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

Harmonic analysis

0Major ii–V–I
0Minor ii–V–i
0ii–V moves
0Tritone substitutions
3Dominant chains
4Different chords

Most used chords

  • B♭7×14
  • E♭7×6
  • F7×2
  • A♭7×2

History

"Freddie Freeloader" is a composition by Miles Davis and is the second track on his 1959 album Kind of Blue. The piece takes the form of a twelve-bar blues in B♭, but the chord over the final two bars of each chorus is an A♭7, not the traditional B♭7 followed by either F7 for a turnaround or some variation of B♭7 for an ending. Davis employed Wynton Kelly as the pianist for this track in place of Bill Evans, as Kelly was something of a blues specialist. The solos are by Kelly, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Cannonball Adderley and Paul Chambers. The origin of the title is disputed. Jon Hendricks and Kind of Blue chronicler Ashley Kahn claim that Fred Tolbert was a Philadelphia bartender whose business card read "Freddie the Freeloader".

Read the full article on Wikipedia ↗ · From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Recorded on these albums

2026 A Supreme Blue
Nicholas Payton & Butcher Brown

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

TitleComposerKeyFormGroove
Jumpin With Symphony Sid 57% Lester Young B♭ major A · 12 Medium swing
Bessie's Blues 50% John Coltrane E♭ major A · 12 Up-tempo swing
Eighty One 50% Ron Carter F major A · 12 Even eighths
St. Louis Blues 50% W.C. Handy G major A · 12 Medium swing
Watermelon Man 44% Herbie Hancock F major A · 16 Even eighths
C-Jam Blues 25% Duke Ellington C major A · 12 Medium swing
Blue Monk 22% Thelonious Monk B♭ major A · 12 Medium swing
Blue Sphere 22% Thelonious Monk B♭ major A · 12 Medium swing

Frequently asked questions

What key is Freddie Freeloader in?

Freddie Freeloader is usually played in B♭ major. For B♭ instruments that is C major, for E♭ instruments G major.

Who wrote Freddie Freeloader?

Freddie Freeloader was written by Miles Davis (1959).

What is the form of Freddie Freeloader?

Freddie Freeloader has 2 sections (AA) with 24 bars in total.

How fast is Freddie Freeloader played?

The usual groove is Medium swing.

What are the chord changes to Freddie Freeloader?

The opening bars are Bb7 | Bb7 | Bb7 | Bb7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.