Standards · 1932
It's Only a Paper Moon chords & key
- Key
- G major
- Form
- AABA
- Bars
- 32
- Groove
- Medium swing
- Time signature
- 4/4
- Year
- 1932
“It's Only a Paper Moon” is a jazz standard by Harold Arlen from 1932. It is usually played in G major as a medium swing, and the 32-bar AABA form has 4 sections. Harmonically it contains 9 major ii–V–I cadences and 4 minor ii–V–i, uses 13 different chords and moves between the key centres G major, C major, G minor and A minor. In this atlas it appears on 7 album tracks.
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
- D7×16
- Am7×13
- Gmaj7×6
- G7×5
- Cmaj7×5
- E7×4
Key centres reached by ii–V
G major, C major, G minor and A minor
Characteristics
- AABA song form
History
"It's Only a Paper Moon" is a popular song published in 1933 with music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by Yip Harburg and Billy Rose.
Read the full article on Wikipedia ↗ · From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Recorded on these albums
| 1950 | Sing and Dance With Frank Sinatra Frank Sinatra |
| 1951 | The New Sounds Miles Davis · “It’s Only a Paper Moon” |
| 1956 | Dig Miles Davis featuring Sonny Rollins · “It’s Only a Paper Moon” |
| 1957 | Ella and Her Fellas Ella Fitzgerald · “It’s Only a Paper Moon” |
| 1957 | Dizzy Gillespie and Stuff Smith Dizzy Gillespie & Stuff Smith · “It's Only A Paper Moon” |
| 1961 | Sinatra’s Swingin’ Session!!! Frank Sinatra · “It’s Only a Paper Moon” |
| 1961 | Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Harold Arlen Song Book Ella Fitzgerald · “It’s Only a Paper Moon” |
Historic 78 rpm recordings
- It's Only A Paper Moon Milt Page Trio · Oscar Pettiford · Rose · Harburg · Arlen · 1945 archive.org ↗
- It's Only a Paper Moon Milt Page Trio · Oscar Pettiford · Rose · Harburg · Arlen · 1945 archive.org ↗
- It's Only a Paper Moon Coleman Hawkins & His Orchestra · Coleman Hawkins · Hubert Fol · Nat… · 1950 archive.org ↗
Standards with similar changes
Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.
| Title | Key |
|---|---|
| If I Knew Then (What I Know Now) 41% | E♭ major |
| My Secret Love 37% | E♭ major |
| Mona Lisa 33% | E♭ major |
| Put On A Happy Face 33% | E♭ major |
| Big Nick 32% | G major |
| Just One More Chance 32% | G major |
| Fran Dance 30% | B♭ major |
| Bye Bye Blackbird 28% | F major |
Frequently asked questions
What key is It's Only a Paper Moon in?
It's Only a Paper Moon is usually played in G major. For B♭ instruments that is A major, for E♭ instruments E major.
Who wrote It's Only a Paper Moon?
It's Only a Paper Moon was written by Harold Arlen (1932).
What is the form of It's Only a Paper Moon?
It's Only a Paper Moon has 4 sections (AABA) with 32 bars in total.
How fast is It's Only a Paper Moon played?
The usual groove is Medium swing.
What are the chord changes to It's Only a Paper Moon?
The opening bars are Gmaj7 E7 | Am7 D7 | Am7 D7 | Gmaj7 Am7 D7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.