Standards · 1928
Sweet Lorraine chords & key
- Key
- G major
- Form
- AABA
- Bars
- 32
- Groove
- Medium swing
- Time signature
- 4/4
- Year
- 1928
“Sweet Lorraine” is a jazz standard by Cliff Burwell from 1928. Most bands play it in G major, medium swing; the tune runs 32 bars in AABA form. Harmonically it contains 6 major ii–V–I cadences and 1 minor ii–V–i, uses 22 different chords and moves between the key centres G major, F major, A minor and C major. In this atlas it appears on 11 album tracks and in 1 transcribed solo.
Chord changes
Showing in: Concert (C) — G major
Changes as commonly played (concert pitch). Your band's version may differ.
Harmonic analysis
Most used chords
- E7×11
- Am7×9
- D7×9
- C7×7
- G6×5
- Dm7×4
Key centres reached by ii–V
G major, F major, A minor and C major
Characteristics
- AABA song form
History
"Sweet Lorraine" is a popular song with music by Cliff Burwell and words by Mitchell Parish that was published in 1928 and has become a jazz standard. It is written in F major and has an AABA structure. A version by Teddy Wilson charted in October 1935, peaking at #17. Nat King Cole recorded "Sweet Lorraine" in 1940 as the King Cole Trio and it became his first hit. Frank Sinatra recorded the song on December 17, 1946 as part of the Metronome All Stars, with a number of other all stars, including Johnny Hodges, Charlie Shavers, and Coleman Hawkins. Nat King Cole was on piano. His version was released as a single on Columbia Records (#37293) but did not chart. The Nat "King" Cole Trio rerecorded the song in 1956 and released it on the Capitol album After Midnight. Sinatra recorded it again on March 14, 1977 for a proposed album of songs about women on Reprise.
Read the full article on Wikipedia ↗ · From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Recorded on these albums
Transcribed solos on Sweet Lorraine
| Benny Carter alto saxophone | 92 BPM |
Historic 78 rpm recordings
- Sweet Lorraine Rhythmaires · Aaron Smith · Ben Roberson · George Duvivier archive.org ↗
- Sweet Lorraine Frank Froeba · Parish · Burwell archive.org ↗
- SWEET LORRAINE RHYTHMAIRES · Aaron Smith · Ben Roberson · George Duvivier archive.org ↗
- SWEET LORRAINE KENNY KERSEY TRIO · Kenny Kersey · Buddy Rich · Benny Fonville ·… archive.org ↗
- SWEET LORRAINE The 38th Special Service Co. Orchestra · BUD FREEMAN archive.org ↗
- SWEET LORRAINE COOTIE WILLIAMS and His Sextette · Parish · Burwell · 1944 archive.org ↗
- SWEET LORRAINE COOTIE WILLIAMS and his SEXTETTE · Parish · Burwell · 1944 archive.org ↗
- Sweet Lorraine Errol Garner · Burwell · Parish · 1945 archive.org ↗
Frequently asked questions
What key is Sweet Lorraine in?
Sweet Lorraine is usually played in G major. For B♭ instruments that is A major, for E♭ instruments E major.
Who wrote Sweet Lorraine?
Sweet Lorraine was written by Cliff Burwell (1928).
What is the form of Sweet Lorraine?
Sweet Lorraine has 4 sections (AABA) with 32 bars in total.
How fast is Sweet Lorraine played?
The usual groove is Medium swing. Transcribed solos in our data were played at 92 BPM.
What are the chord changes to Sweet Lorraine?
The opening bars are G6 F7 E7 | Am7 D7 B7/D# | Em7 D#7 Dm7 G7 | C7 B7b9. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.