Standards
Peggy's Blue Skylight chords & key
- Key
- D♭ major
- Form
- AABC
- Bars
- 48
- Groove
- Medium swing
- Time signature
- 4/4
“Peggy's Blue Skylight” is a jazz standard by Charles Mingus. It is usually played in D♭ major as a medium swing, and the 48-bar AABC form has 4 sections. Harmonically it contains 6 major ii–V–I cadences and 3 minor ii–V–i, uses 23 different chords and moves between the key centres D♭ major, F minor, A♭ major, F major and E♭ minor. In this atlas it appears on 12 album tracks.
Chord changes
Showing in: Concert (C) — D♭ major
Changes as commonly played (concert pitch). Your band's version may differ.
Harmonic analysis
Most used chords
- D♭maj7×6
- Fmmaj7×4
- A♭maj7×3
- D♭7sus×3
- C7♯9×3
- B13×3
Key centres reached by ii–V
D♭ major, F minor, A♭ major, F major and E♭ minor
Recorded on these albums
| 1964 | Tonight at Noon Charles Mingus · “Peggy’s Blue Skylight” |
| 1987 | 1964-04-17: Revenge!, Salle Wagram, Paris, France Charles Mingus · “Peggy's Blues Skylights” |
| 1988 | Cross Currents Eliane Elias |
| 1990 | Epitaph Charles Mingus |
| 1992 | Spirit of Mingus Steve Lacy, Eric Watson |
| 1995 | Rush Hour Joe Lovano |
| 1997 | Communiqué Steve Lacy & Mal Waldron |
| 2000 | Peggy’s Blue Skylight Andy Summers · “Peggy’s Blue Skylight” |
| 2010 | Plays Live Eliane Elias |
| 2018 | Jazz in Detroit / Strata Concert Gallery / 46 Selden Charles Mingus · “Peggy’s Blue Skylight” |
| 2021 | Quartet (Standards) 2020 Anthony Braxton · “Peggy’s Blue Skylight” |
| 2024 | Charles Mingus: Epitaph Randy Brecker & Bigband der deutschen Oper Berlin · “Peggy’s Blue Skylight” |
Standards with similar changes
Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.
Frequently asked questions
What key is Peggy's Blue Skylight in?
Peggy's Blue Skylight is usually played in D♭ major. For B♭ instruments that is E♭ major, for E♭ instruments B♭ major.
Who wrote Peggy's Blue Skylight?
Peggy's Blue Skylight was written by Charles Mingus.
What is the form of Peggy's Blue Skylight?
Peggy's Blue Skylight has 4 sections (AABC) with 48 bars in total.
How fast is Peggy's Blue Skylight played?
The usual groove is Medium swing.
What are the chord changes to Peggy's Blue Skylight?
The opening bars are Gm7b5 | C7b13 | Fmmaj7 | Fmmaj7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.