ENDEIT

Standards

I Want To Be Happy chords & key

Vincent Youmans

Key
C major
Form
AABA
Bars
32
Groove
Medium-up swing
Time signature
4/4

“I Want To Be Happy” is a jazz standard by Vincent Youmans. Most bands play it in C major, medium-up swing; the tune runs 32 bars in AABA form. Harmonically it contains 5 major ii–V–I cadences and 3 minor ii–V–i, uses 13 different chords and moves between the key centres C major, D minor and F major. In this atlas it appears on 4 album tracks.

Chord changes

Showing in: Concert (C) — C major

A
Cmaj7F7
Em7A7
Dm7
G7
Dm7
G7
1.
C6Am7
Dm7G7
2.
C6
C6
B
Gm7
C7
Fmaj7
B♭7
Em7
A7
D7
G7
A
Cmaj7F7
Em7A7
Dm7
G7
Dm7
G7
C6Am7
Dm7G7

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

Harmonic analysis

5Major ii–V–I
3Minor ii–V–i
13ii–V moves
3Tritone substitutions
2Dominant chains
13Different chords

Most used chords

  • G7×9
  • Dm7×8
  • Em7×4
  • A7×4
  • C6×4
  • Cmaj7×3

Key centres reached by ii–V

C major, D minor and F major

Characteristics

  • AABA song form

Recorded on these albums

1962 Lovely & Alive
Lena Horne · “I Want to Be Happy”
1968 The Piano Soul of Nat King Cole
Nat King Cole
1971 Love Story
Tony Bennett · “I Want to Be Happy”
2002 I Want To Be Happy
Ella Fitzgerald

Historic 78 rpm recordings

  • I Want to be Happy "Little Jazz" and his Trumpet Ensemble · "Little Jazz" · Emmett… · 1944 archive.org ↗
  • I Want to Be Happy "Little Jazz" and his Trumpet Ensemble · "Little Jazz" · Emmett… · 1944 archive.org ↗
  • I Want to Be Happy Teddy Wilson Octet · Youmans · Caesar · T. Wilson · B. Clayton · D… · 1946 archive.org ↗

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

TitleComposerKeyFormGroove
But Not For Me 56% George Gershwin E♭ major ABAC · 32 Medium-up swing
Deed I Do 43% Hirsch-Rose C major AABA · 32 Medium swing
Rockin' Chair 42% Hoagy Carmichael E♭ major ABA · 32 Medium swing
Again 40% Lionel Newman G major AABC · 32 Ballad
Oh, Lady Be Good 40% George Gershwin G major AABA · 32 Medium-up swing
Samba De Orfeu 39% Luiz Bonfa C major AAB · 40 Bossa nova
Diane 37% Rapee-pollack E♭ major ABAB · 32 Medium swing
Strollin' 37% Horace Silver D♭ major AA · 32 Medium swing

Frequently asked questions

What key is I Want To Be Happy in?

I Want To Be Happy is usually played in C major. For B♭ instruments that is D major, for E♭ instruments A major.

Who wrote I Want To Be Happy?

I Want To Be Happy was written by Vincent Youmans.

What is the form of I Want To Be Happy?

I Want To Be Happy has 4 sections (AABA) with 32 bars in total.

How fast is I Want To Be Happy played?

The usual groove is Medium-up swing.

What are the chord changes to I Want To Be Happy?

The opening bars are Cmaj7 F7 | Em7 A7 | Dm7 | G7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.