Freedom by Jimi Hendrix

Overview

Key: C major · Chords used: 16 · Sections: 12

Form: Intro → Verse → Chorus → Solo → Verse → Chorus → Transition → Bridge → Solo → Verse → Chorus → 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

• C7♯9
  I7#9

Verse 1

• C7♯9
  I7#9

Chorus 1

• E♭5 – C5 (×8)
  bIII5 – I5

Solo 1

• C7♯9
  I7#9

Verse 2

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 2

Same chords as Chorus 1.

Transition

• E♭5 – F5 – G5 – B♭5 – C5 – F♯5
  bIII5 – IV5 – V5 – bVII5 – I5 – #IV5

Bridge

• F7
  IV7

Solo 2

• F7
  IV7
• B♭7 – E♭5 – D5 – C5 – B♭5 – A♭5 – G5 – F5 – E♭5 (×2)
  bVII7 – bIII5 – II5 – I5 – bVII5 – bVI5 – V5 – IV5 – bIII5
• F5 – G5 – A♭5 – C5 – D♭5 – B♭5 – A♭7 – A5 – B♭5 – B5 – C5 – C7♯9 – C5
  IV5 – V5 – bVI5 – I5 – bII5 – bVII5 – bVI7 – VI5 – bVII5 – VII5 – I5 – I7#9 – I5

Verse 3

Same chords as Verse 1.

Chorus 3

• C7♯9
  I7#9

Outro

• C7♯9 – C5 – F5 – B♭5 – E♭5 – A♭5 – D♭5 – G5 – C5 – E♭5 – F♯5 – A5 – C7
  I7#9 – I5 – IV5 – bVII5 – bIII5 – bVI5 – bII5 – V5 – I5 – bIII5 – #IV5 – VI5 – I7

Chord vocabulary

Harmonic highlights

• E♭5 (bIII5) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• B♭5 (bVII5) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• B♭7 (bVII7) is borrowed from the parallel key, C minor.
• A♭5 (bVI5) 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 0035, 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.