four chord pop songs

hi everyone, you hear alot about most of today pop song being made up of four chords, so my question is.. what are those four chords, i would like has many replys as possible as i am sure there will be different chords in many answers. :o

Ummm; I, VI min, IV, V (V7)?

look no further:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pidokakU4I
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Axis_of_Awesome

Originally Posted by: hunter1801look no further:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pidokakU4I
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Axis_of_Awesome

hi hunter1801, yes i have seen those video's.. but they dont say what the four chords actually are do they, and thats what i am really after.

many thanks

alan.

Originally Posted by: john of MTUmmm; I, VI min, IV, V (V7)?

sorry i dont know what this means.

Originally Posted by: alanfromdarwenhi hunter1801, yes i have seen those video's.. but they dont say what the four chords actually are do they, and thats what i am really after.

many thanks

alan.[/QUOTE]


They do explain it in the wiki I linked:

The "Four Chords", in Roman numeral analysis, are written I - V - vi - IV.[6] Since these four chords are played as an ostinato, the band also uses a vi - IV - I - V, usually from the song "Save Tonight" to the song "Torn". The band plays the song in the key of E so the progression they use is E-B-C♯m-A. Many of the songs featured in the medley have been transposed from their original keys.

[QUOTE=alanfromdarwen]sorry i dont know what this means.

A little backwards, but he wrote: 1, minor 6th, 4, 5, (5 with a 7th)?
You would need to understand chord progression terminology.

I, VI min, IV, V (V7)?

Yup...that's what I meant. A *very* common chord progression is 1, 6min, 4, and 5. E.G., C - Am - F - G or G7. And many, many chord progressions use those chords (1, 6min, 4, 5) but not necessarily in that same order.

In the Axis of Awesome video, they're playing E (1), B(V), C#M (VI) and A (IV). In other words, they're playing the major chord built around the root note of the key (E Major), then its fifth, minor sixth, and fourth.

There are literally hundreds of songs built around those four chords:
In other keys, it's:
C G Am F
D A Bm G
A E F#M D
F C Dm Bb
G D Em C

Heart of Gold by Neil Young is one (G D Em C)
Let it Be by The Beatles (C G Am F)
Another Girl Another Planet by The Only Ones (E B C#M A)

etc; etc;