Standards

I Want To Talk About You chords & key

Key
E♭ major
Form
AABA
Bars
32
Groove
Ballad
Time signature
4/4

“I Want To Talk About You” is a jazz standard by Billy Eckstine. Most bands play it in E♭ major, ballad; the tune runs 32 bars in AABA form. Harmonically it contains 7 major ii–V–I cadences and 3 minor ii–V–i, uses 19 different chords and moves between the key centres A♭ major, F minor, E♭ major and C major. In this atlas it appears on 24 album tracks.

Chord changes

Showing in: Concert (C) — E♭ major

A
E♭maj7
B♭m7E♭7
A♭maj7
A♭m7D♭7
Gm7C7
Fm7B♭7
D♭7C7
B7B♭7
A
E♭maj7
B♭m7E♭7
A♭maj7
A♭m7D♭7
Gm7C7
Fm7B♭7
E♭A♭E♭/GFm
E♭FmE♭/GA♭
B
B♭m7E♭7
B♭m7E♭7
B♭m7E♭7
A♭maj7
Dm7G7
Cmaj7Am7
Dm7G7
B♭7
A
E♭maj7
B♭m7E♭7
A♭maj7
A♭m7D♭7
Gm7C7
Fm7B♭7
E♭maj7Gm7
Fm7B♭7

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

Harmonic analysis

7Major ii–V–I
3Minor ii–V–i
18ii–V moves
0Tritone substitutions
0Dominant chains
19Different chords

Most used chords

  • B♭m7×6
  • E♭7×6
  • B♭7×6
  • E♭maj7×4
  • A♭maj7×4
  • D♭7×4

Key centres reached by ii–V

A♭ major, F minor, E♭ major and C major

Characteristics

  • AABA song form

Recorded on these albums

1958 Soultrane
John Coltrane · “I Want to Talk About You”
1962 Don’t Worry ’Bout Me
Billy Eckstine · “I Want to Talk About You”
1964 Jazz Long Playing
Jean‐Luc Ponty · “I Want to Talk About You”
1966 Tender Loving Care
Nancy Wilson · “I Want to Talk About You”
1968 Selflessness, Featuring My Favorite Things
John Coltrane
1969 The Way You Look Tonight
Jimmy McGriff · “I Want to Talk About You”
1973 Brooklyn Brothers
Cecil Payne & Duke Jordan · “I Want to Talk About You”
1974 Take Love Easy
Ella Fitzgerald & Joe Pass · “I Want to Talk About You”
1976 Paquito D'Rivera
Paquito D’Rivera · “I Want to Talk About You”
1980 Lunch In L.A.
Tete Montoliu
1980 Kabsha
Idris Muhammad · “I Want to Talk About You”
1985 Wise in Time
Howard McGhee & Teddy Edwards · “I Want to Talk About You”
1990 One on One
Stéphane Grappelli & McCoy Tyner · “I Want to Talk About You”
1991 Welcome to Love
Pharoah Sanders · “I Want to Talk About You”
1995 13# Steps on Glass
Sunny Murray · “I Want to Talk About You”
1998 Mr. B
Billy Eckstine · “I Want to Talk About You”
1999 True Blue
Archie Shepp
2000 The Cool Mr. B
Billy Eckstine · “I Want to Talk About You”
2001 McCoy Tyner plays John Coltrane: Live at the Village Vanguard
McCoy Tyner · “I Want to Talk About You”
2004 The Dynamic Duo Remember Trane and Bird
Rashied Ali & Arthur Rhames · “I Want to Talk About You”
2005 Underground Memoirs
Cedar Walton · “I Want to Talk About You”
2009 The Real Thing Happened to Me
Dexter Gordon · “I Want to Talk About You”
2011 A Moment's Peace
John Scofield
2013 Don’t Worry ’Bout Me & Broadway, Bongos and Mr. “B”
Billy Eckstine · “I Want to Talk About You”

Historic 78 rpm recordings

  • I Want To Talk About You Billy Eckstine and his Famous Orchestra · Eckstine · 1951 archive.org ↗

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

TitleComposerKeyFormGroove
I Remember You 22% Victor Schertzinger F major AABA · 36 Medium swing
Samba De Orfeu 22% Luiz Bonfa C major AAB · 40 Bossa nova

Frequently asked questions

What key is I Want To Talk About You in?

I Want To Talk About You is usually played in E♭ major. For B♭ instruments that is F major, for E♭ instruments C major.

Who wrote I Want To Talk About You?

I Want To Talk About You was written by Billy Eckstine.

What is the form of I Want To Talk About You?

I Want To Talk About You has 4 sections (AABA) with 32 bars in total.

How fast is I Want To Talk About You played?

The usual groove is Ballad.

What are the chord changes to I Want To Talk About You?

The opening bars are Ebmaj7 | Bbm7 Eb7 | Abmaj7 | Abm7 Db7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.