Abacab by Genesis

Overview

Key: C major · Chords used: 26 · Sections: 15

Form: Intro → Intro → Intro → Verse → Chorus → Verse → Chorus → Transition → Interlude → Transition → Verse → Chorus → Outro → Outro → Outro

Where these chords come from: an expert transcription of the original recording made for the McGill Billboard Project (Burgoyne, Wild & Fujinaga, 2011). This page shows that transcription as-is: the analysis below is generated directly from it by code, not written by AI. Consecutive repeats of a chord are shown once, and the piano voicings are our playable arrangement of each chord symbol, not a note-for-note transcription.

Section by section

Intro 1

• Cm7 – Cm (×4)
  i7 – i
• B♭5/C – C5 (×2)
  bVII5 (bass C) – I5
• C
  I

Intro 2

• Csus4 – Fm7 – G7sus4
  Isus4 – iv7 – V7sus4

Intro 3

• B♭/C – C – Csus4
  bVII (bass C) – I – Isus4
• C – B♭/C (×2)
  I – bVII (bass C)
• Fsus4/C
  IVsus4 (bass C)

Verse 1

• B♭/C – C – Csus4 – C – B♭/C – C – B♭/C – Fsus4/C (×2)
  bVII (bass C) – I – Isus4 – I – bVII (bass C) – I – bVII (bass C) – IVsus4 (bass C)
• B♭/C – C – Csus4 – C – B♭maj7/C – B♭/C – C – C7 – B♭/C – F/C – Dm/C
  bVII (bass C) – I – Isus4 – I – bVIImaj7 (bass C) – bVII (bass C) – I – I7 – bVII (bass C) – IV⁶₄ – ii (bass C)
• B♭/C – C – E♭/C – Cm – B♭/C – F/C (×2)
  bVII (bass C) – I – bIII (bass C) – i – bVII (bass C) – IV⁶₄

Chorus 1

• F/G – G (×4)
  IV (bass G) – V

Verse 2

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 2

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Transition 1

• Am
  vi

Interlude

• Em – Am – G – Bm – G – A5
  iii – vi – V – vii – V – VI5

Transition 2

• E
  III

Verse 3

• B♭/C – C – Csus4 – C – B♭/C – C – B♭/C – Fsus4/C (×2)
  bVII (bass C) – I – Isus4 – I – bVII (bass C) – I – bVII (bass C) – IVsus4 (bass C)
• B♭/C – C – Csus4 – C – B♭maj7/C – B♭/C – C – C7 – B♭/C – F/C – Dm/C
  bVII (bass C) – I – Isus4 – I – bVIImaj7 (bass C) – bVII (bass C) – I – I7 – bVII (bass C) – IV⁶₄ – ii (bass C)
• B♭/C – C – E♭/C – Cm – B♭/C – F/C (×4)
  bVII (bass C) – I – bIII (bass C) – i – bVII (bass C) – IV⁶₄

Chorus 3

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Outro 1

• Cm7
  i7

Outro 2

• Cm – Fm7/C (×5)
  i – iv⁴₃
• Cm – G7/C
  i – V7 (bass C)
• Fm7/C – Cm7 (×3)
  iv⁴₃ – i7
• Fm7/C – Cm – G7/C – Fm7/C
  iv⁴₃ – i – V7 (bass C) – iv⁴₃
• Cm9 – F9/C (×4)
  i9 – IV9 (bass C)

Outro 3

• Csus4 – Fm7 – G7sus4 – B♭/C – C
  Isus4 – iv7 – V7sus4 – bVII (bass C) – I

Chord vocabulary

Harmonic highlights

• Cm7 (i7) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• Cm (i) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• B♭5/C (bVII5 (bass C)) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• Fm7 (iv7) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• B♭/C (bVII (bass C)) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• Fsus4/C (IVsus4 (bass C)) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• E♭/C (bIII (bass C)) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• Fm7/C (iv⁴₃) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• Cm9 (i9) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.

Sources & accuracy

• Chords and sections: the McGill Billboard Project (Burgoyne, Wild & Fujinaga, 2011). Expert transcription by trained musicians (song 1256, CC0), via ChoCo.
• Not verified: only one expert transcription of this song is available so far.
• Rhythm and chord durations aren't shown; each step is one chord change.