Standards · 1964

Song For My Father chords & key

Key
F minor
Form
AAB
Bars
24
Groove
Latin
Time signature
4/4
Year
1964

“Song For My Father” is a jazz standard by Horace Silver from 1964. Most bands play it in F minor, latin; the tune runs 24 bars in AAB form. In this atlas it appears on 19 album tracks.

Chord changes

Showing in: Concert (C) — F minor

A
×2
Fm7
Fm7
E♭7
E♭7
D♭7
C7sus
Fm7
Fm7
B
E♭7
E♭7
Fm7
Fm7
E♭7D♭7
C7
Fm7
Fm7

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

Harmonic analysis

0Major ii–V–I
0Minor ii–V–i
0ii–V moves
0Tritone substitutions
0Dominant chains
5Different chords

Most used chords

  • Fm7×12
  • E♭7×7
  • D♭7×3
  • C7sus×2
  • C7×1

History

"Song for My Father" is a composition by jazz pianist Horace Silver. The original version, on the album of the same name by Silver's quintet, was recorded on October 26, 1964. It has become a jazz standard and is probably Silver's best-known composition. According to Silver, the song was "in part inspired by our Brazilian trip. We got the Brazilian rhythm for this tune from that trip, and the melodic line was inspired by some very old Cape Verdean Portuguese folk music."

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

Recorded on these albums

1969 Goodies
George Benson
1969 Sound Ray
Ray Bryant · “A Song for My Father”
1975 "Live" In Tokyo
Ramsey Lewis · “Song for My Father”
1982 The Larry Coryell, Michal Urbaniak Duo
Larry Coryell, Michał Urbaniak Duo · “Song for My Father”
1982 The Groover
Jimmy McGriff · “Song for My Father”
1990 The Natives Are Restless Tonight
Horace Silver
1993 It's Got to Be Funky
Horace Silver · “Song for My Father”
1994 Love Within the Universe
Ryo Kawasaki · “Song for My Father”
1995 Love and Peace: A Tribute to Horace Silver
Dee Dee Bridgewater · “Song for My Father”
1996 Re-Entry
Horace Silver
1997 Thru My Eyes
Michel Camilo
2001 As Blue as They Can Be
Jimmy Witherspoon, Richard “Groove” Holmes, Odetta · “Song for My Father”
2006 Blue Note Sessions
Nigel Kennedy · “Song for My Father”
2008 Palmystery
Victor Wooten · “Song for My Father”
2008 State of Nature
Stanley Jordan · “Song for My Father”
2008 Heroes
David Benoit · “Song for My Father”
2014 Great Voices of Harlem
Gregory Porter, Donald Smith, Mansur Scott, Paul Zauner’s Blue Brass · “Song for My Father”
2017 Serenade For Horace
Louis Hayes
2025 Silver in Seattle: Live at the Penthouse
Horace Silver · “Song for My Father (live)”

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

TitleComposerKeyFormGroove
Alfie's Theme 25% Sonny Rollins B♭ minor AABA · 32 Medium swing

Frequently asked questions

What key is Song For My Father in?

Song For My Father is usually played in F minor. For B♭ instruments that is G minor, for E♭ instruments D minor.

Who wrote Song For My Father?

Song For My Father was written by Horace Silver (1964).

What is the form of Song For My Father?

Song For My Father has 3 sections (AAB) with 24 bars in total.

How fast is Song For My Father played?

The usual groove is Latin.

What are the chord changes to Song For My Father?

The opening bars are Fm7 | Fm7 | Eb7 | Eb7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.