Standards · 1948
It's Magic chords & key
“It's Magic” is a jazz standard by Jule Styne from 1948. It is usually played in B♭ major as a ballad, and the 32-bar ABCD form has 4 sections. Harmonically it contains 3 major ii–V–I cadences and 1 minor ii–V–i, uses 17 different chords and moves between the key centres B♭ major and C minor. In this atlas it appears on 2 album tracks.
Chord changes
Showing in: Concert (C) — B♭ major
Changes as commonly played (concert pitch). Your band's version may differ.
Harmonic analysis
Most used chords
- Cm7×12
- F7×11
- Gm7×5
- B♭maj7×4
- D♭dim7×3
- E♭maj7×2
Key centres reached by ii–V
B♭ major and C minor
History
"It's Magic" is a popular song written by Jule Styne, with lyrics by Sammy Cahn, published in 1947. They wrote the song for Doris Day in her Warner Brothers film debut, Romance on the High Seas (retitled It's Magic in the United Kingdom, after the song). In the autumn of 1948 Vic Damone, Tony Martin, Dick Haymes, Gordon MacRae and Sarah Vaughan all charted on Billboard magazine charts with versions of the song, but none as successfully as Day's recording. "It's Magic" received an Academy Award nomination for Best Song, but in March 1949 lost to "Buttons and Bows" by Jay Livingston and Ray Evans. In 1952, Day made the song the theme of her Hollywood radio series, The Doris Day Show.
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Recorded on these albums
| 1960 | Alone Together Tony Bennett · “It’s Magic” |
| 1978 | Once in a While Dean Martin · “It’s Magic” |
Standards with similar changes
Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.
| Title | Key |
|---|---|
| Manhattan 35% | F major |
| The Blue Room 34% | F major |
| For All We Know 32% | E♭ major |
| The One I Love (Belongs To Somebody Else) 31% | G major |
| I Guess I'll Have To Change My Plan 30% | C major |
| Dinah 29% | G major |
| Fools Rush In 29% | C major |
| I'm In The Mood For Love 28% | C major |
Frequently asked questions
What key is It's Magic in?
It's Magic is usually played in B♭ major. For B♭ instruments that is C major, for E♭ instruments G major.
Who wrote It's Magic?
It's Magic was written by Jule Styne (1948).
What is the form of It's Magic?
It's Magic has 4 sections (ABCD) with 32 bars in total.
How fast is It's Magic played?
The usual groove is Ballad.
What are the chord changes to It's Magic?
The opening bars are Bbmaj7 Ebmaj7 | Bb/D Dbdim7 | Cm7 F7 | Cm7 F7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.