Standards · 1927
Why Do I Love You? chords & key
- Key
- A♭ major
- Form
- AA
- Bars
- 32
- Groove
- Medium swing
- Time signature
- 4/4
- Year
- 1927
“Why Do I Love You?” is a jazz standard by Jerome Kern from 1927. Most bands play it in A♭ major, medium swing; the tune runs 32 bars in AA form. Harmonically it contains 5 major ii–V–I cadences and 1 minor ii–V–i, uses 14 different chords and moves between the key centres A♭ major, F minor and D♭ major. In this atlas it appears on 3 album tracks.
Chord changes
Showing in: Concert (C) — A♭ major
Changes as commonly played (concert pitch). Your band's version may differ.
Harmonic analysis
Most used chords
- B♭m7×8
- E♭7×7
- A♭maj7×5
- Fm7×4
- F7×2
- Cm7×1
Key centres reached by ii–V
A♭ major, F minor and D♭ major
Recorded on these albums
Historic 78 rpm recordings
- Why Do I Love You Sonny Stitt · Jo Jones · John Simmons · Fletcher Peck · Hammerstein… · 1952 archive.org ↗
Standards with similar changes
Similarity of the chord progression, independent of key.
| Title | Key |
|---|---|
| The Blue Room 54% | F major |
| If I Knew Then (What I Know Now) 43% | E♭ major |
| Eclypso 39% | E♭ major |
| Too Young To Go Steady 39% | F major |
| The Lady is a Tramp 38% | C major |
| Look For The Silver Lining 38% | E♭ major |
| My Shining Hour 36% | C major |
| Love Is The Sweetest Thing 35% | D major |
Frequently asked questions
What key is Why Do I Love You? in?
Why Do I Love You? is usually played in A♭ major. For B♭ instruments that is B♭ major, for E♭ instruments F major.
Who wrote Why Do I Love You??
Why Do I Love You? was written by Jerome Kern (1927).
What is the form of Why Do I Love You??
Why Do I Love You? has 2 sections (AA) with 32 bars in total.
How fast is Why Do I Love You? played?
The usual groove is Medium swing.
What are the chord changes to Why Do I Love You??
The opening bars are Abmaj7 | Fm7 | Bbm7 | Eb7. The full chart above can be transposed to any key.