On Broadway by The Drifters

Overview

Key: F♯ major · Chords used: 16 · Sections: 5

Form: Intro → Verse → Verse → Verse → Verse

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.

Key changes

• Verse 3 moves to A♭ major.

Section by section

Intro

• F♯ – F♯9sus4 (×4)
  I – I9sus4

Verse 1

• F♯ – F♯9sus4 (×8)
  I – I9sus4
• B – B9sus4 (×3)
  IV – IV9sus4
• B – C♯
  IV – V
• F♯ – F♯7 (×4)
  I – I7

Verse 2

• G – G9sus4 (×8)
  bII – bII9sus4
• C – C9sus4 (×3)
  bV – bV9sus4
• C – D
  bV – bVI
• G – G9sus4 (×4)
  bII – bII9sus4

Verse 3

• A♭ – A♭9sus4 (×8)
  I – I9sus4
• D♭ – D♭9sus4 (×3)
  IV – IV9sus4
• D♭ – E♭
  IV – V
• A♭ – A♭9sus4 (×4)
  I – I9sus4

Verse 4

• A♭ – A♭9sus4 (×8)
  I – I9sus4
• D♭ – D♭9sus4 (×3)
  IV – IV9sus4
• D♭ – E♭
  IV – V
• A♭ – A♭9sus4 (×17)
  I – I9sus4

Chord vocabulary

Harmonic highlights

• F♯9sus4 (I9sus4) is borrowed from the parallel key, F♯ minor.
• B9sus4 (IV9sus4) is borrowed from the parallel key, F♯ minor.
• D (bVI) is borrowed from the parallel key, F♯ minor.
• A♭9sus4 (I9sus4) is borrowed from the parallel key, A♭ minor.
• D♭9sus4 (IV9sus4) is borrowed from the parallel key, A♭ minor.

Sources & accuracy

• Chords and sections: the McGill Billboard Project (Burgoyne, Wild & Fujinaga, 2011). Expert transcription by trained musicians (song 0461, 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.