Standards · 1910

Shine chords & key

Key: E♭ major
Form: ABCD
Bars: 32
Groove: Up-tempo swing
Time signature: 4/4
Year: 1910

“Shine” is a jazz standard by Dabney-Mack-Brown from 1910. Most bands play it in E♭ major, up-tempo swing; the tune runs 32 bars in ABCD form. Harmonically it contains 2 major ii–V–I cadences, uses 10 different chords. In this atlas it appears on 2 album tracks.

Chord changes

to key

Showing in: Concert (C) — E♭ major

E♭^maj7

F^m7

B♭⁷

E♭^maj7

F^m7

B♭⁷

G⁷

C^m7

F⁷

B♭⁷

E♭^maj7

F^m7

B♭⁷

G⁷

C^m7

A♭^maj7♯11

A♭^maj7♯11D♭⁷

E♭⁶

C⁷

F^m7

B♭⁷

E♭⁶

F^m7B♭⁷

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

Harmonic analysis

2Major ii–V–I

0Minor ii–V–i

6ii–V moves

0Tritone substitutions

1Dominant chains

10Different chords

Most used chords

B♭⁷×7
E♭^maj7×6
F^m7×5
G⁷×4
C^m7×4
F⁷×2

History

Shine is a popular song with lyrics by Cecil Mack and Tin Pan Alley songwriter Lew Brown and music by Ford Dabney. The song was first published as That's Why They Call Me Shine in 1910, with Mack and Dabney credited as the only writers. At the time of the initial publication, Mack was already established in the world of African-American popular songwriting, having worked on hits with Chris Smith, while Dabney had not written a hit song. The 1910 version of the song was published by African-American owned firm Gotham-Attucks Music Publishing Company, and used by Aida Overton Walker in His Honor the Barber, an African-American road show. According to Perry Bradford, himself a songster and publisher, the original version of the song was written about an actual man named Shine who was with George Walker when they were badly beaten during the New York City race riot of 1900.

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

Recorded on these albums

2007	Shine Joni Mitchell
2026	Black Mozart Jon Batiste

Historic 78 rpm recordings

Shine Alice "Babs" Nilson · Erik Franks Kvintet · Dabney Ford · Lew Brown… archive.org ↗
SHINE Louis Armstrong and his orchestra archive.org ↗
SHINE BEN LIGHT · Lloyd Sloop · Pete Di Maggio · Bill Markas · Jack Smith… archive.org ↗
SHINE LOUIS BACON et son ORCHESTRE · L. Bacon · E. Brunner · Al. Ferreri ·… · 1939 archive.org ↗
SHINE BUNK JOHNSON'S JAZZ BAND · Willie "Bunk" Johnson · Albert Warner ·… · 1942 archive.org ↗
SHINE BUNK JOHNSON'S JAZZ BAND · Willie "Bunk" Johnson · Albert Warner ·… · 1942 archive.org ↗
SHINE PUNCH MILLER AND HIS ORCHESTRA · Punch Miller · Edmund Hall · James… · 1948 archive.org ↗
SHINE Sharkey's Dixieland Band · Sharkey Bonano · Santo Pecora · Lester… · 1950 archive.org ↗

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

Title	Composer	Key	Form	Groove
Sometimes I'm Happy 29%	Vincent Youmans	F major	ABAB · 32	Medium swing
Among My Souvenirs 28%	Horatio Nicholls	E♭ major	AABA · 33	Ballad
The Good Life 28%	Sacha Distel	A♭ major	AB · 32	Ballad
Just You, Just Me 27%	Jesse Greer	C major	AABA · 32	Medium swing
In Walked Bud 26%	Thelonious Monk	A♭ major	AABA · 32	Medium-up swing
If I Knew Then (What I Know Now) 25%	Jurgens-Howard	E♭ major	AB · 32	Medium swing
All At Once You Love Her 24%	Rodgers-Hammerstein	F major	AABC · 40	Medium swing
There Is No Greater Love 24%	Isham Jones	B♭ major	AABA · 32	Medium swing

Frequently asked questions

What key is Shine in?

Shine is usually played in E♭ major. For B♭ instruments that is F major, for E♭ instruments C major.

Who wrote Shine?

Shine was written by Dabney-Mack-Brown (1910).

What is the form of Shine?

Shine has 4 sections (ABCD) with 32 bars in total.

How fast is Shine played?

The usual groove is Up-tempo swing.

What are the chord changes to Shine?

The opening bars are Ebmaj7 | Ebmaj7 | Fm7 | Bb7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.