Hi Folks,
I'm trying to work out what key this song is in. The song is called Potters Hand, and the version I play is more or less like this one: http://www.911tabs.com/link/?1617608
Another version is here: http://www.kennycarter.net/Chords/PottersHands.htm
Actually, there are a couple of versions on the net with different but similar interpretations of chords, quite possibly because they were chorded by ear rather than from sheet music. The sheet music I copied my version off of used Cm6/Eb above the "...All of my days..." on the second line, which is the same as Am7b5/Eb (or perhaps it would be more correct to say that they're the same combination of notes, not that they're necessarily the same in the context of a specific key).
Were I to hazard a guess, I would say the song is in the key of G. But the Cm6/Eb or maybe Am7b5/Eb is giving me problems. Without it, the song fits quite merrily in the key of G. (Or does it...?)
Let me also just admit up front that I don't actually play the Cm6/Eb…I just play a straight Cm and I still think it sounds good. Being the only guitarist, and of average talent at that, I can't afford to lose my timing over tricky fingerings yet. But I'll get there.
Thanks upfront.
It's in G.
Here's how I know:
The first tab (911) says at the top "Key G"
The other tab shows (G) at the end of the song and chorus.
But to be completely sure, I listened to it on Youtube and the key is unmistakeably G.
The key of a song is something that's heard, rather than seen. Trying to work out the key by looking at which chords are used can be a bit 'hit and miss', especially if it contains 'out of key' chords such as this one does (Cm6, F,) etc. To know the key 100%, you have to listen for the key centre. If you can hear the key, then it doesn't matter how many weird and exotic chords it contains.
Here's how I know:
The first tab (911) says at the top "Key G"
The other tab shows (G) at the end of the song and chorus.
Egg on MY face...haha. :D Thanks - I looked for the key, somewhere, but I missed it on both.
That still leaves me with a couple of questions, though. How do you learn to idendify the key by ear like that? Experience? Compared to other songs in that key? Because I've played the song often enough, and I just never thought, "ooh, that's in G". Also, what's with the Cm6/EB or Am7b5/Eb? Which one is more correct in this context, given that's it's out-of-key anyway?
That still leaves me with a couple of questions, though. How do you learn to idendify the key by ear like that? Experience? Compared to other songs in that key? Because I've played the song often enough, and I just never thought, "ooh, that's in G". Also, what's with the Cm6/EB or Am7b5/Eb? Which one is more correct in this context, given that's it's out-of-key anyway?
Play it again and listen to how the chord G sounds the most stable throughout, and at the end of the song and chorus, it imparts a sense of completeness or finality that no other chord could manage in that context. It's the tonal centre (or tonic) to which all the other chords relate in various ways. That's the key.
As I don't know the song, I don't know whether Cm6/Eb is a more accurate name than Am7b5/Eb. It would need more than one listen and even then both names might still be equally valid.
