ENDEIT

Standards · 1963

Seven Steps To Heaven chords & key

Victor Feldman

Key
F major
Form
AABA
Bars
32
Groove
Up-tempo swing
Time signature
4/4
Year
1963

“Seven Steps To Heaven” is a jazz standard by Victor Feldman from 1963. Most bands play it in F major, up-tempo swing; the tune runs 32 bars in AABA form. Harmonically it contains 3 major ii–V–I cadences and 3 minor ii–V–i, uses 21 different chords and moves between the key centres D minor, E♭ major, F♯ major and F major. In this atlas it appears on 13 album tracks.

Chord changes

Showing in: Concert (C) — F major

In
F13
E♭13
F13
E♭13
F13
E♭13
F13
F13
A
×2
Fmaj7B♭7
Em7♭5A7
Dm7A♭7
G7
Gm7
C7
E♭6E6
F6
B
Cmaj7
Dm7
Em7
Fm7B♭7
E♭maj7
A♭m7D♭7
G♭maj7
Gm7C7
A
Fmaj7B♭7
Em7♭5A7
Dm7A♭7
G7
Gm7
C7
E♭6E6
F6

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

Harmonic analysis

3Major ii–V–I
3Minor ii–V–i
9ii–V moves
0Tritone substitutions
0Dominant chains
21Different chords

Most used chords

  • F13×5
  • B♭7×4
  • Dm7×4
  • Gm7×4
  • C7×4
  • E♭13×3

Key centres reached by ii–V

D minor, E♭ major, F♯ major and F major

Characteristics

  • AABA song form

History

"Seven Steps to Heaven" is a 1963 jazz composition by Victor Feldman and Miles Davis. Different lyrics to it were written much later by Cassandra Wilson and Jon Hendricks. This iconic jazz standard was introduced in 1963 by the Miles Davis Quintet. Although Feldman played and recorded with Davis in Los Angeles on Seven Steps to Heaven, and he appears on half of the tracks of the album, the West Coast-based pianist did not want to follow Davis to New York, where the album version of the composition was finally recorded with Herbie Hancock on piano.

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

Recorded on these albums

1963 Seven Steps to Heaven
Miles Davis · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
1966 Of Love and Peace
Larry Young · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
1970 Drives
Dr. Lonnie Smith · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
1979 The Cat and the Hat
Ben Sidran · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
1980 Just the Way You Are
Rune Gustafsson / Niels‐Henning Ørsted Pedersen · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
1981 TLC and Friends
Terri Lyne Carrington · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
1985 High Visibility
Victor Feldman's Generation Band · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
1993 Going Home
George Mraz & Karel Růžička · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
1996 The Emissary
Chico Freeman · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
2007 Dear Miles,
Ron Carter · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
2009 Seven Steps to Heaven
Victor Feldman & Tom Scott · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
2015 Live at Yoshi's
Arturo Sandoval · “Seven Steps to Heaven”
2020 Foursight – Stockholm, Vol. 2
Ron Carter with Renee Rosnes / Jimmy Greene / Payton Crossley · “Seven Steps to Heaven”

Frequently asked questions

What key is Seven Steps To Heaven in?

Seven Steps To Heaven is usually played in F major. For B♭ instruments that is G major, for E♭ instruments D major.

Who wrote Seven Steps To Heaven?

Seven Steps To Heaven was written by Victor Feldman (1963).

What is the form of Seven Steps To Heaven?

Seven Steps To Heaven has 4 sections (AABA) with 32 bars in total.

How fast is Seven Steps To Heaven played?

The usual groove is Up-tempo swing.

What are the chord changes to Seven Steps To Heaven?

The opening bars are F13 | Eb13 | F13 | Eb13. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.