We have talked before about dominant seventh chords that are not functionally V7 chords.Iin other words they are chords which masquerade as dominant seventh chords.In the tune "I Remember You", the most common modern
chord changes for that tune would start off as:
C6 | F#m7 B7 | C6 ....
So what is this all about? How does that chord progression which looks like a ii/V in the key of E all of a sudden go back to C?
In the original sheet music for the tune we see something like
C 6 | B7/C | C6 .
Well what we really have here harmonically is:
C6 | Cdim7 | C6
Now we are really got ourselves in a fix.
We have a diminished seventh chord which is not functioning as diminished seventh chord.
Normally a diminished seventh chord will resolve to a chord a half step up. I.e. it functions as a viio7 chord.
In this case
it is really just a double appoggiatura. So it's just a voice leading trick where the notes of a C6 chord are approached by half steps.
[C Eb Gb A] -> [C E G A].
Ok, but back to our original problem. So we have C6 -> Cdim7 -> C6. How do we get to F#m7 B7.
Well the melody note played on top of the Cdim7 chord is a B. So now what do we have for chord tones? C Eb Gb A B or
C D# F# A B or B7/C which is just B7b9. Putting a ii chord in front of a dominant 7th as is common in jazz we get F#m7 B7.
Copyright © 1999 Reed Kotler
