Standards · 1927
Sometimes I'm Happy chords & key
- Key
- F major
- Form
- ABAB
- Bars
- 32
- Groove
- Medium swing
- Time signature
- 4/4
- Year
- 1927
“Sometimes I'm Happy” is a jazz standard by Vincent Youmans from 1927. It is usually played in F major as a medium swing, and the 32-bar ABAB form has 4 sections. Harmonically it contains 8 major ii–V–I cadences and 5 minor ii–V–i, uses 11 different chords and moves between the key centres F major, G minor and B♭ major. In this atlas it appears on 11 album tracks.
Chord changes
Showing in: Concert (C) — F major
Changes as commonly played (concert pitch). Your band's version may differ.
Harmonic analysis
Most used chords
- Gm7×11
- C7×11
- D7×10
- F6×7
- Am7×5
- Cm7×2
Key centres reached by ii–V
F major, G minor and B♭ major
Characteristics
- ABAB form
History
"Sometimes I'm Happy" is a popular song. The music was written by Vincent Youmans, the lyrics by Irving Caesar. The song was originally published in 1923 under the title "Come On And Pet Me" with lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II and William Cary Duncan.
Read the full article on Wikipedia ↗ · From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Recorded on these albums
| 1952 | Lena Sings Your Requests Lena Horne Orchestra Conducted By Marty Paich |
| 1953 | Swedish American All Stars Quincy Jones |
| 1957 | Dizzy Gillespie's Big Band Jazz Dizzy Gillespie |
| 1959 | Last Recording Billie Holiday with Ray Ellis and His Orchestra · “Sometimes I’m Happy” |
| 1962 | At Carnegie Hall Recorded Live June 9, 1962 Tony Bennett with Ralph Sharon and His Orchestra · “Sometimes I’m Happy” |
| 1967 | For Once in My Life Tony Bennett · “Sometimes I’m Happy” |
| 1969 | Exclusively for my Friends – Vol. V: Mellow Mood Oscar Peterson · “Sometimes I’m Happy” |
| 2000 | Both Sides Now Joni Mitchell |
| 2006 | Quincy Jones + Harry Arnold + Big Band = Jazz! Quincy Jones |
| 2007 | Stockholm Sweetnin' Quincy Jones · “Sometimes I’m Happy” |
| 2014 | Some Fine Old Chestnuts Bing Crosby with Buddy Cole & His Trio |
Historic 78 rpm recordings
- SOMETIMES I'M HAPPY The Raymond Scott Quintet · Dorothy Collins · Vincent Youmans · R. S. archive.org ↗
- Sometimes I'm Happy Lester Young Quartet · Lester Young · John Guarnieri · Sidney… · 1943 archive.org ↗
Standards with similar changes
Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.
| Title | Key |
|---|---|
| Tadd's Delight 48% | A♭ major |
| Dancing On The Ceiling 43% | F major |
| Donna Lee 43% | A♭ major |
| I May Be Wrong 41% | E♭ major |
| The Joker 41% | E♭ major |
| New York, New York 40% | F major |
| Ceora 38% | A♭ major |
| If I Knew Then (What I Know Now) 38% | E♭ major |
Frequently asked questions
What key is Sometimes I'm Happy in?
Sometimes I'm Happy is usually played in F major. For B♭ instruments that is G major, for E♭ instruments D major.
Who wrote Sometimes I'm Happy?
Sometimes I'm Happy was written by Vincent Youmans (1927).
What is the form of Sometimes I'm Happy?
Sometimes I'm Happy has 4 sections (ABAB) with 32 bars in total.
How fast is Sometimes I'm Happy played?
The usual groove is Medium swing.
What are the chord changes to Sometimes I'm Happy?
The opening bars are F6 D7 | Gm7 C7 | Am7 D7 | Gm7 C7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.