Standards · 1916

Poor Butterfly chords & key

Raymon Hubbell · Lyrics: John Lionel Golden

Key: A♭ major
Form: ABAC
Bars: 32
Groove: Ballad
Time signature: 4/4
Year: 1916

“Poor Butterfly” is a jazz standard by Raymon Hubbell from 1916. It is usually played in A♭ major as a ballad, and the 32-bar ABAC form has 4 sections. Harmonically it contains 1 major ii–V–I cadence and 4 minor ii–V–i, uses 22 different chords and moves between the key centres B♭ minor, F minor and A♭ major. In this atlas it appears on 3 album tracks.

Chord changes

to key

Showing in: Concert (C) — A♭ major

B♭^m7

E♭^7susE♭^7♭9

A♭^dim7

A♭^maj7

C^7♯5♯9

F⁷

C^m7F⁷

B♭^m7

E♭⁷

G^m7♭5C^7♭13

F^m7

B♭⁷

B♭^m7_/E♭

C^m7♭5F^7♭9

B♭^m7

E♭^7susE♭^7♭9

A♭^dim7

A♭^maj7

C^7♯5♯9

F⁷

C^m7F⁷

B♭^m7

D♭^m7G♭⁷

C^m7D♭^7♯11

C^m7B^dim7

B♭^m7

E♭⁷

A♭⁶D♭⁷

C^m7F⁷

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

Harmonic analysis

1Major ii–V–I

4Minor ii–V–i

11ii–V moves

2Tritone substitutions

2Dominant chains

22Different chords

Most used chords

B♭^m7×5
F⁷×5
C^m7×5
C^7♯5♯9×4
E♭^7sus×2
E♭^7♭9×2

Key centres reached by ii–V

B♭ minor, F minor and A♭ major

Characteristics

ABAC song form

History

"Poor Butterfly" is a popular song. It was inspired by Giacomo Puccini's opera Madame Butterfly and contains a brief musical quote from the Act two duet Tutti i fior in the verse. The music was written by Raymond Hubbell, the lyrics by John L. Golden. The song was published in 1916. It was introduced in the Broadway show The Big Show, which opened in August 1916 at the New York Hippodrome, and was sung in the show by Sophie Bernard. The song has become a jazz standard, recorded by many artists.

Read the full article on Wikipedia ↗ · From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Recorded on these albums

1952	This Is Oscar Peterson at the Piano Oscar Peterson
1960	Alone Together Tony Bennett
1967	Francis A. & Edward K. Frank Sinatra with Duke Ellington

Historic 78 rpm recordings

POOR BUTTERFLY ART TATUM · Golden · Hubbell · 1945 archive.org ↗
Poor Butterfly BUNK JOHNSON · 1946 archive.org ↗
Poor Butterfly BUNK JOHNSON · 1946 archive.org ↗
POOR BUTTERFLY JOHNNY LONG and His Orchestra · The Ensemble · Hubbell · Golden · 1947 archive.org ↗

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

Title	Composer	Key	Form	Groove
Easy To Love 39%	Cole Porter	G major	ABAC · 32	Medium swing
Manhattan 30%	Richard Rodgers	F major	ABAC · 32	Medium swing
I Should Care 28%	Cahn-Stordahl-Weston	C major	ABAC · 32	Medium swing
When You Wish Upon A Star 28%	Leigh Harline	C major	AABA · 32	Ballad
Shiny Stockings 27%	Frank Foster	F major	ABAC · 32	Medium swing
Day By Day 26%	Cahn-Stordahl-Weston	G major	ABAB · 32	Medium swing
Jeannie's Song 26%	Marchel Ivery	F major	ABB · 24	Medium swing
How About You 24%	Burton Lane	F major	AB · 32	Medium swing

Frequently asked questions

What key is Poor Butterfly in?

Poor Butterfly is usually played in A♭ major. For B♭ instruments that is B♭ major, for E♭ instruments F major.

Who wrote Poor Butterfly?

Poor Butterfly was written by Raymon Hubbell (1916).

What is the form of Poor Butterfly?

Poor Butterfly has 4 sections (ABAC) with 32 bars in total.

How fast is Poor Butterfly played?

The usual groove is Ballad.

What are the chord changes to Poor Butterfly?

The opening bars are Bbm7 | Eb7sus Eb7b9 | Abdim7 | Abmaj7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.