Standards · 1928

Honeysuckle Rose chords & key

Fats Waller · Lyrics: Andy Razaf

Key: F major
Form: AABA
Bars: 32
Groove: Up-tempo swing
Time signature: 4/4
Year: 1928

“Honeysuckle Rose” is a jazz standard by Fats Waller from 1928. It is usually played in F major as a up-tempo swing, and the 32-bar AABA form has 4 sections. Harmonically it contains 3 major ii–V–I cadences and 1 minor ii–V–i, uses 10 different chords and moves between the key centres F major and G minor. In this atlas it appears on 7 album tracks and in 1 transcribed solo.

Chord changes

to key

Showing in: Concert (C) — F major

G^m7C⁷

F⁶F⁷_/A

B♭⁶C⁷

F⁶B♭⁷

A^m7D⁷

F⁶

F⁷

B♭⁶

G⁷

C⁷

G^m7C⁷

F⁶F⁷_/A

B♭⁶C⁷

F⁶B♭⁷

A^m7D⁷

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

Harmonic analysis

3Major ii–V–I

1Minor ii–V–i

14ii–V moves

2Tritone substitutions

1Dominant chains

10Different chords

Most used chords

C⁷×17
G^m7×12
F⁶×7
B♭⁶×5
F⁷_/A×3
B♭⁷×2

Key centres reached by ii–V

F major and G minor

Characteristics

AABA song form

History

"Honeysuckle Rose" is a 1929 song composed by Thomas "Fats" Waller with lyrics by Andy Razaf. It was introduced in the 1929 Off-Broadway revue "Load of Coal" at Connie's Inn as a soft-shoe dance number. Waller's 1934 recording was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. During a visit to the West Side of Asbury Park, New Jersey in 1928, Waller wrote the song with Razaf at 119 Atkins Avenue in a home that still stands today.

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

Recorded on these albums

1955	Satch Plays Fats: A Tribute to the Immortal Fats Waller Louis Armstrong
1963	Ella and Basie! Ella Fitzgerald & The Count Basie Orchestra
1970	Tracks Oscar Peterson
1982	A Classy Pair Ella Fitzgerald & The Count Basie Orchestra
1990	Satchmo Louis Armstrong
2002	Bunk & Louis Bunk & Louis
2014	Some Fine Old Chestnuts Bing Crosby with Buddy Cole & His Trio

Transcribed solos on Honeysuckle Rose

Phil Woods alto saxophone

233 BPM

F-maj

1961-11-15

Historic 78 rpm recordings

Honeysuckle Rose Teddy Wilson's Quartet · Teddy Wilson · Harry James · Red Norvo ·… archive.org ↗
Honeysuckle Rose The Four Esquires · Waller · Razaf archive.org ↗
HONEYSUCKLE ROSE THE PLAINSMEN · Razaf · Waller archive.org ↗
HONEYSUCKLE ROSE PETER RASMUSSEN'S KVINTET · Waller · Razaf archive.org ↗
HONEYSUCKLE ROSE MILDRED BAILEY & HER ALLEY CATS · Razaf · Waller · 1936 archive.org ↗
Honeysuckle Rose Joe Sullivan · Waller · Razaf · 1938 archive.org ↗
HONEYSUCKLE ROSE JOE SULLIVAN · Waller · Razaf · 1938 archive.org ↗
HONEYSUCKLE ROSE H. Parry · A. Franks · D. Wilkens · A. Thompson · J. Deniz · Bobby… · 1942 archive.org ↗

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

Title	Composer	Key	Form	Groove
St. Thomas 38%	Sonny Rollins	C major	A · 16	Latin
The Cool One 32%	Benny Golson	G major	AABA · 32	Medium swing
Samba De Orfeu 31%	Luiz Bonfa	C major	AAB · 40	Bossa nova
Scrapple From The Apple 31%	Charlie Parker	F major	AABA · 32	Up-tempo swing
Shiny Stockings 31%	Frank Foster	F major	ABAC · 32	Medium swing
I Want To Be Happy 30%	Vincent Youmans	C major	AABA · 32	Medium-up swing
Diane 29%	Rapee-pollack	E♭ major	ABAB · 32	Medium swing
A Tisket A Tasket 28%	Traditional	E♭ major	AABA · 32	Medium swing

Frequently asked questions

What key is Honeysuckle Rose in?

Honeysuckle Rose is usually played in F major. For B♭ instruments that is G major, for E♭ instruments D major.

Who wrote Honeysuckle Rose?

Honeysuckle Rose was written by Fats Waller (1928).

What is the form of Honeysuckle Rose?

Honeysuckle Rose has 4 sections (AABA) with 32 bars in total.

How fast is Honeysuckle Rose played?

The usual groove is Up-tempo swing. Transcribed solos in our data were played at 233 BPM.

What are the chord changes to Honeysuckle Rose?

The opening bars are Gm7 C7 | Gm7 C7 | Gm7 C7 | Gm7 C7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.