Angel Eyes | Chords + Lyrics
Intro
|3/4 Am | Am/G | Am/F# | Am/F |
| Am | Am | Am | Am |
Verse 1
| Am | Am/G | Am/F# | Am/F | Am/E | Am/E | Am/Eb | Am/Eb |
Try to think that love’s not around,
| Am | Am/G | Am/F# | Am/F# | Bm7 | Bm7 | E7 | E7 |
but it’s uncomfortably near.
| Am | Am/G | Am/F# | Am/F | Am/E | Am/E | Am/Eb | Am/Eb |
My old heart ain’t gaining no ground,
| Dm | C | B7 | E | Am | Am | Am | Am |
because my angel eyes ain’t here.
Verse 2
Angel eyes, that old devil sent,
they glow unbearably bright.
Need I say that my love’s misspent,
misspent with angel eyes tonight
Bridge 1
| Gm | Gm | C7b9 | C7b9 | Fmaj7 | Fmaj7 | F#dim7 | F#dim7 |
So drink up all you people,
| Gm | Gm | C7b9 | C7b9 | Fmaj7 | Fmaj7 | Fmaj7 | Fmaj7 |
order anything you see.
| F#m | F#m | B7b9 | B7b9 | E6 | E6 | E6 | E6 |
Have fun, you happy people,
| Ebsus4 | Ebsus4 | Ebsus4 | Ebsus4 | Bm7 | Bm7 | Bb7 | Bb7 |
the drinks and the laughs are on me.
Verse 3
Pardon me, but I got to run,
the fact’s uncommonly clear.
Got to find who’s now number one,
and why my angel eyes ain’t here.
Bridge 2
So drink up all you people,
order anything you see.
Have fun, you happy people,
the drinks and the laughs, on me.
Verse 4
Pardon me, but I got to run,
the fact’s uncommonly clear.
Got to find who’s now number one,
and why my angel eyes ain’t here.
| Dm7 | C | B7 | E7 | E7 | E7 |
Excuse me while I disappear.
End
| Am | Am | Am | Am | Am | Ammaj7 |
Angel Eyes Chords: Learn the progressions
Angel Eyes verse chords use a chromatic descending bass line as it moves:
Am – Am/G – Am/F# – Am/F – Am/E – Am/Eb.
This is a very sad movement, only varied by what looks like a II – V but really, it’s a VII – IIIx, like this:
| Am (VI) | Am/G | Am/F# | Am/F# |
| Bm7 (VII) | Bm7 | E7 (IIIx) | E7 |
I’ve written TAB for verse this, exactly as I play it in the video, here’s a link to that part of the lesson: Angel Eyes Guitar Lesson with TAB.
After repeating the Am chords, we go to a descending movement starting on chord II, like this:
| Dm (II) | C (I) | B7 (VIIx) | E (IIIx) | Am (VI) |
All these descending movements really are very sad so when moving to the bridge’s II – V – I in the new key of F, we get a serious dose of harmonic release, like this:
| Gm (II) | Gm | C7b9 (V) | C7b9 |
| Fmaj7 (I) | Fmaj7 | F#dim7 (#Idim7) | F#dim7 |
After repeating that movement, we change the key to E and play a II – V – I, like this:
| F#m (II) B7b9 (V) | E6 (I) |
The last two bars modulate back to Am using an Ebsus4 (lots of tension!) Bm7 and a tritone substitution in Bb7, like this:
| Ebsus4 | Bm7 Bb7 |
Mainly being in the key of Am, it is certainly very tempting to stick with the open-position chords as you see first in the video. The bass line really shines this way, but staying down there for the whole song may become a bit boring if you have jazzier aspirations.
Therefore, the second time the verse appears, I play around fret five instead, using an Am chord in an Em shape. Still, applying the bass line.
This way, when you go back to the open position Am, it sounds even bigger!
By using different positions of the same chord progression like this, we can create natural dynamics in any song.
Speaking of chord progressions, compare the falling bass line of chord VI to the #9 spot on my top 10 chord progression spot (the VI – V – IV – IIIx).
After playing along with me, checking Frank’s “version” and perhaps a few more on the list further down this page, this chord chart is all you need.
Angel Eyes Chord Chart | PDF + iReal Pro
Should you want to download this chart, here’s a PDF: Angel Eyes Chord Chart PDF.
This chord chart was created using iReal Pro, here’s a link to that file: Angel Eyes iReal Pro. Using this and the iRealPro app, you can change the key.
Angel Eyes is a Jazz standard!
Composed and first released in the motion picture Jennifer back in 1953 by Matt Dennis and Earl Brent, Angel Eyes has become a jazz standard as it’s been recorded by a seemingly endless stream of artists.
Here’s an incomplete list of famous singers and instrumental artists that have recorded their versions since.
- Chet Baker
- Sherley Bassey
- Kenny Burrell
- Ray Charles
- Nat King Cole
- Ella Fitzgerald
- Roberta Flack
- Barry Manilow
- Willie Nelson
- Oscar Peterson
- Frank Sinatra
- Kandace Springs featuring Norah Jones
- Bruce Springsteen
- Sting
- Nancy Wilson
This collective effort is what earned Angel Eyes the title – A Jazz Standard.
Angel Eyes Chords | Related Pages
Angel Eyes | Guitar Lesson + TAB
Angel Eyes will soon be available as eight step-by-step guitar lessons. Until then, there’s the complete TAB for what I play in the video available.
| Am Am/G Am/F# Am/F | Am/E Am/Eb |
Try to think that love’s not around…
Five similar tunes | Chords + Lyrics
- All In Love Is Fair chords by Stevie Wonder
- Cry Me A River chords by Julie London
- My Funny Valentine chords by Chet Baker
- Summertime chords by Billie Holiday
- Why Don’t You Do Right? chords by Peggy Lee
Matt Dennis tunes
Exposed to music from an early age with his parents being professional musicians, Matt Dennis took to the piano, singing and arranging like a fish to water.
Performing with his family from an early age in the Vaudeville tradition, Matt got to know American showbiz before he even learned to read or write.
Matt Dennis on the web
Frank Sinatra tunes
Frank Sinatra‘s legacy might best be summed up by Stephen Holden who wrote for the 1983 Rolling Stone Record Guide:
“Frank Sinatra’s voice is pop music history. Like Presley and Dylan – Sinatra will last indefinitely. He virtually invented modern pop song phrasing.”
Frank Sinatra on the web
About me | Dan Lundholm
This was a guitar lesson about Angel Eyes chords, by Dan Lundholm. Discover more about him and how you can learn guitar with Spytunes.
Most importantly, find out why you should learn guitar through playing tunes, not practising scales, and studying theory in isolation.
