DESCRIPTION:
2 shots, no effects: Just a mic, real instruments and a loop recorder (a Boomerang III)..

For many years I've been intrigued by the 1564 progression (which, in the key of C, is C, G, Am, F). It has no perfect cadence: Only an imperfect cadence, an interrupted cadence, a minor to subdominant move and finally a plagal cadence... it's all questions and no sure answers. Perfect for heartfelt songs that delve into the human condition. Starting on another part of the progression (5641, 6541 or 4156) changes the vibe a little, but still begs to be taken seriously. Most songwriters use it at some point.
I've been doing a little medley of famous songs that use this progression since about 2005 and I was somewhat crushed when, in 2006, I was shown Rob Paravonian's brilliant Pachebel's canon routine, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdxkVQy7QLM ... damn funny! Pachabel's Canon is 15634145, by the way, but Rob drifts to 1564s as he gets into the routine. Then a few years later Axis of Awesome's four chord song turned up: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMshvUReunc . Unperturbed by their growing fame, I kept collecting 1564 songs and jigsawing the critical parts of each together, going roughly chronologically, yet keeping each fragment on the correct part of the progression and also trying to keep any cute links of melody, themes and artist... tricky! But I'm a fairly persistent chap. I should note that I'm rather pedantic about it being 1564 (and not 1524, 1345, etc. which SOME people include in such a "four chord" medley... pah!)

When people talk about a "Four Chord" song, they are usually referring to 1564, as this is the one that Axis of Awesome's routine is about. But these four chords have other sequences and in fact, the 1645 sequence was used in many a song from the 50s and 60s: Check out my vertical medley of all the songs from Grease over a 1625 progression (similar vibe to 1645): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OOJ4l9j0Hg . The 1564 sequence only really began to grow in popularity in the 70s. Another sequence of these four chords that gets used occasionally is 1465 (More Than a Feeling (Boston), Holy Grail (Hunters and Collectors) and What Makes You Beautiful (One Direction)).

This is my latest (and probably last) 1564 medley (123 songs) which, at a push, I can still do in about 2 minutes. If you're puzzled by what's included and what isn't. Remember, I'm from Australia and I've tried to stick to what I consider famous enough.

The song list and "lyrics" are on my website: http://malwebb.com/1564.html

I'm using a Boomerang III phrase sampler, which can be used as a four channel looper... brilliant! http://www.boomerangmusic.com/E156.shtml