RE: [Harp-L] Doo-Wop Changes

["Stephen Jennings" <harpfixer@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks for this, Phil, and others who have contributed. As I suspected,
we're not looking at anything particularly complex here. If I need to play
all the chords, all the time, I reach for a Chordomonica II -  they still
come up on eBay from time to time, limited solos  are also available.
There's always the option to switch to a diatonic/chromatic or whatever for
solos. I've never tried using a chord harmonica for this job (too unwieldy
to switch, for me at any rate!!) Nor have I tried using a Chordet 20 or
Rhythm & Blues, both of which should be viable in certain keys IIRC. 

I guess what I'm saying that there's more than one way of skinning a cat,
and I've got a vague recollection that some harmonica groups retuned
chromatics for chord playing, before the chord harmonica came on the scene.

 

Enough from me

 

Happy whatever you're celebrating today, guys.

 

Hoping to make it to SPAH sometime (preferably before my demise J

 

 

Kind regards,

 

Steve Jennings

 

 

 

 

 

From: philharpn@xxxxxxx [mailto:philharpn@xxxxxxx] 
Sent: 16 April 2014 4:10 AM
To: harpfixer@xxxxxxxxxxxx; jr_parker_jr@xxxxxxxxxxx; harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Doo-Wop Changes

 

First of all you have to understand what doo-wop chord changes are. Doo-wop
is a format like the 12 bar blues., with its 3 chords: I, IV, V. 

 

The chords used in doo-wop ( I, vi, IV, V) are plain vanilla -- or like ice
cream changes -- since they are simple triads (simple 3-note major chords
and one minor chord) without 7ths, flatted 3rds, 5ths 6ths, 9ths, 11ths,
13ths et al. 

 

Ice cream changes and doo-wop were popular in American soda shops  and ice
cream parlors of the 50s where teenagers gathered after school to get a soda
(pop/Coke/Pepsi) or ice cream sundae. All these shops and parlors were
equipped with juke boxes -- coin operated automatic record playing machines
where you could listen to all these songs of the 50s. The kids would gather
like shown in the TV program Happy Days. 

 

Doo-wop chards are NOT chord substitutions. If you change the chords, you
don't have doo-wop -- you have something else. Yes, you can play doo-wop in
any of the 12 major keys. but they have to be the one, six, four and five
chords

 

 

Since doo-wop depends on the relationship of the chords to each other.
Doo-wop is different than the blues because it is based on tin pan alley
songs from the American songbook. (Even tho everybody claims that EVERYTHING
is based on the blues)

 

 

"Doo-Wop changes" refers to the chords (changes) of I, vi, IV, V in a given
key. C/, Aminor, F, G in the key of C. The pattern of these chords started
out in the songs Blue Moon (1934) and Heart and Soul (1938). The idea of
doo-wop was to make a bass line and background with nonsense (or vocal horn
imitations similar to scat singing), hence the name doo-wop, one of the
background refrains.. 

 

If you play those chords repeatedly on a  piano or guitar or uke, you will
soon recognize that these sound like the doo-wop sings of the 1950s.

 

If you check out YouTube, you will be overwhelmed with doo-wop selections.

 

The problem with most harmonicas is that you cannot get these 4 chords on
one harmonica. That is why you might need a Seydel Schaman  ($159). 

 

<http://rockinronsmusic4less.com/content/harps/seydel/schaman.php>


The standard diationic (blues harp) has only two chords -- for all practical
purposes. Like the C and G/G7 chord   s on a C harp. 

I didn't mean to write a treatise on doo-wop but yesterdays trivia turns out
to be today's obscurity. 

 

Hope this clears everything up,

Phil