Standards
Indian Summer chords & key
- Key
- G major
- Form
- BACA
- Bars
- 32
- Groove
- Medium swing
- Time signature
- 4/4
“Indian Summer” is a jazz standard by Victor-Aldubin-Herbert. Most bands play it in G major, medium swing; the tune runs 32 bars in BACA form. Harmonically it contains 3 major ii–V–I cadences and 1 minor ii–V–i, uses 15 different chords and moves between the key centres G major and E minor. In this atlas it appears on 1 album track.
Chord changes
Showing in: Concert (C) — G major
Changes as commonly played (concert pitch). Your band's version may differ.
Harmonic analysis
Most used chords
- Gmaj7×7
- Am7×6
- D7×5
- D7♯5×4
- Bm7×4
- Em7×3
Key centres reached by ii–V
G major and E minor
History
"Indian Summer" is an American standard originally written as a piano piece by the prolific composer Victor Herbert. Al Dubin wrote lyrics for the tune in 1939, twenty years after Herbert wrote the tune. Herbert composed the tune in 1919, but it did not become a standard until much later, after the lyrics were added. Sheet music exists for Everett Hoagland and Don Reid versions, dating to 1934 and 1939 respectively, but the provenance of the second of these, at least, is doubtful, as Reid may not even have formed an orchestra until 1944. Dubin wrote his lyrics for the song in 1939, and in the same year Tommy Dorsey's orchestra had a number one hit with it on the Billboard singles chart.
Read the full article on Wikipedia ↗ · From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Recorded on these albums
Historic 78 rpm recordings
- Indian Summer The Coronets · Dubin · Herbert · Jazz-Disques archive.org ↗
Standards with similar changes
Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.
Frequently asked questions
What key is Indian Summer in?
Indian Summer is usually played in G major. For B♭ instruments that is A major, for E♭ instruments E major.
Who wrote Indian Summer?
Indian Summer was written by Victor-Aldubin-Herbert.
What is the form of Indian Summer?
Indian Summer has 4 sections (BACA) with 32 bars in total.
How fast is Indian Summer played?
The usual groove is Medium swing.
What are the chord changes to Indian Summer?
The opening bars are Gmaj7 | D7#5 | Gmaj7 | D7#5. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.