Standards

Stairway To The Stars chords & key

Key: C major
Form: AABA
Bars: 32
Groove: Ballad
Time signature: 4/4

“Stairway To The Stars” is a jazz standard by Matt Maineck. It is usually played in C major as a ballad, and the 32-bar AABA form has 4 sections. Harmonically it contains 7 major ii–V–I cadences and 2 minor ii–V–i, uses 23 different chords and moves between the key centres C major, F major, E minor and D minor. In this atlas it appears on 3 album tracks.

Chord changes

to key

Showing in: Concert (C) — C major

C⁶G^7♯5

G^m7C⁷

F^maj7

B♭^7♯11

A^m7D⁷

D^m7G⁷

E⁷A⁷

D^m7G⁷

C⁶F⁷

G♭^m7♭5B^7♭9

E^m7F^7♯11

E^m7B^7sus

E^m7B^7♭9

E^m7♭5A^7♭9

D^m7E♭^7♯11

D^m7A^7sus

D^m7D⁷

D^m7_/GG⁷

C⁶G^7♯5

G^m7C⁷

F^maj7

B♭^7♯11

A^m7D⁷

D^m7G⁷

C⁶A^m7

D⁷G⁷

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

Harmonic analysis

7Major ii–V–I

2Minor ii–V–i

14ii–V moves

5Tritone substitutions

2Dominant chains

23Different chords

Most used chords

D^m7×7
G⁷×6
C⁶×5
D⁷×5
A^m7×4
G^7♯5×3

Key centres reached by ii–V

C major, F major, E minor and D minor

Characteristics

AABA song form

Recorded on these albums

1960	Hello Love Ella Fitzgerald · “Stairway to the Stars”
1998	That Old Black Magic Ella Fitzgerald · “Stairway to the Stars”
2025	Jukebox Ella: The Complete Verve Singles, Volume 2 Ella Fitzgerald · “Stairway to the Stars”

Historic 78 rpm recordings

Stairway to the Stars Errol Garner · Malneck · Signorelli · Parish archive.org ↗
Stairway to the Stars Arnold Ross Quartet · Parish · Malneck · Signorelli · Harry Lim archive.org ↗
STAIRWAY TO THE STARS archive.org ↗
Stairway to the Stars Schoolboy Porter and The Chanceteers · J. Porter · Dungy · Vacirco ·… · 1951 archive.org ↗

Standards with similar changes

Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.

Title	Composer	Key	Form	Groove
Mountain Greenery 28%	Richard Rodgers	C major	AABA · 32	Medium-up swing
Look For The Silver Lining 21%	Jerome Kern	E♭ major	ABA · 32	Medium swing
The Blue Room 20%	Richard Rodgers	F major	AABC · 32	Medium swing
Where Are You? 20%	Jimmy McHugh	G major	AABA · 32	Ballad

Frequently asked questions

What key is Stairway To The Stars in?

Stairway To The Stars is usually played in C major. For B♭ instruments that is D major, for E♭ instruments A major.

Who wrote Stairway To The Stars?

Stairway To The Stars was written by Matt Maineck.

What is the form of Stairway To The Stars?

Stairway To The Stars has 4 sections (AABA) with 32 bars in total.

How fast is Stairway To The Stars played?

The usual groove is Ballad.

What are the chord changes to Stairway To The Stars?

The opening bars are C6 G7#5 | Gm7 C7 | Fmaj7 | Bb7#11. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.