The Senior Center will reopen June 1. Details plus newest issue of "Senior Life" (June 2021) are available at the Senior Center website. https://www.seniorview.com/ (Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay. I wanted to call your attention to two articles by Jim D'Ville about "(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay." The first article is at his website, "Connect The Chords: The Dock of the Bay" https://www.playukulelebyear.com/connect-the-chords/connect-the-chords-the-dock-of-the-bay/ The second article is posted at Ukulele Magazine (ftom the Summer 2021 issue), "Jim D’Ville Teaches the Otis Redding Classic ‘(Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay’ for Ukulele" https://www.ukulelemag.com/lessons/jim-dville-teaches-sittin-on-the-dock-of-the-bay-for-ukulele Interesting reading if you'd like to get a better understanding of the structure of this song. = = = = = Jim D'Ville https://www.playukulelebyear.com/connect-the-chords/connect-the-chords-the-dock-of-the-bay/ CONNECT THE CHORDS: THE DOCK OF THE BAY Posted on: January 9th, 2012 by dville Welcome to another edition of Connect The Chords! In this episode, we’ll break down Otis Redding’s only number one hit Sittin’ On The Dock Of The Bay, written with Stax session guitarist Steve Cropper in 1967. First, listen to the song making mental notes of where in the lyrics you hear the chord changes. You’ll notice from the chord progression the verse starts at the I, moves to the III then the IV and then walks right back down to the II. The chorus is a simple I-VI-I-II-I-VI and the bridge is a basic I-V-IV-I for three times and finishes with a bVII-V. Once you have the chords under your fingers hum the melody and play through the song slowly listening to the changes. After you’ve done this you’ll be ready to play along with the video at tempo by ear. Good luck and have fun! Key: G: I-G II-A III-B IV-C V-D VI-E VII-F# Verse 1: I-III-IV-(walkdown: III-bIII-II) Sittin’ in the mornin’ sun I’ll be sittin’ when the evenin’ come I-III-IV-(walkdown: III-bIII-II) Watching the ships roll in And then I watch ’em roll away again Chorus: I-VI-I-VI I’m sittin’ on the dock of the bay Watching the tide roll away I-II-I-VI I’m just sittin’ on the dock of the bay Wastin’ time Verse 2: I-III-IV-(walkdown: III-bIII-II) I left my home in Georgia Headed for the ‘Frisco bay I-III-IV-(walkdown: III-bIII-II) ‘Cause I’ve had nothing to live for And looks like nothin’s gonna come my way Repeat Chorus Bridge: I-V-IV-I 3X bVII-V Look like nothing’s gonna change Everything still remains the same I can’t do what ten people tell me to do So I guess I’ll remain the same Verse 3: I-III-IV-(walkdown: III-bIII-II) Sittin’ here resting my bones And this loneliness won’t leave me alone I-III-IV-(walkdown: III-bIII-II) It’s two thousand miles I roamed Just to make this dock my home = = = = = = = = = = Ukulele Magazine Jim D’Ville Teaches the Otis Redding Classic ‘(Sittin’ on) the Dock of the Bay’ for Ukulele APRIL 3, 2021 https://www.ukulelemag.com/lessons/jim-dville-teaches-sittin-on-the-dock-of-the-bay-for-ukulele BY JIM D’VILLE | FROM THE SUMMER 2021 ISSUE OF UKULELE The great R&B singer Otis Redding had only one Billboard #1 pop hit: “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay.” Sadly, Redding was killed in a private plane crash just weeks after recording the song, in December 1967. Redding began writing “Dock of the Bay” while staying on a rented houseboat in Sausalito, California, on San Francisco Bay, in August of that year. Later, he finished the song, collaborating with Stax Records producer and session guitarist Steve Cropper in Memphis. “Dock of the Bay” is in the bright key of G major, a tonality that is somewhat at odds with its weary lyrics. The verse kicks off on the I chord, G. One of the most memorable aspects of the song is the second chord, the III (B). In a major key, the iii chord is minor, but in the case of “Dock of the Bay,” where it is stated as major, it seems to almost jump into your ears. Another interesting feature of the song’s progression is that all of the chords are major, rather than the usual mix of major and minor. After the I–III change, the progression moves up a half step, to the IV chord (C). The progression then slides neatly down to the III (B) and the bIII (Bb), before settling in on the II (A). That II is another interesting choice, as in a major key, the ii (in this case, Am) is usually expressed as minor. The chords go by quickly here—see the main strumming pattern for their exact placement. In the chorus, our ears are treated to more unexpected harmonic colors through a I–VI progression (G–E). As with the III and II chords, the VI (E) here is played as major, rather than minor, as it diatonically (within the key) occurs in the key of G major. It isn’t until the bridge that “Dock of the Bay” includes a common chord progression, the I–V–IV–I (G–D–C–G), played three times. The section ends with another chord from outside of the key of G, the bVII (F) and ends on the triumphant V chord (D). The outro to “Dock of the Bay” incorporates Redding’s famous whistled part, over the I and VI chords introduced in the chorus. Legend has it that Redding originally intended to do a spoken-word fadeout, but—having forgotten what he was going to say—chose to whistle instead. As shown in the notation here, this part translates quite nicely to the ukulele—try it for yourself! Due to copyright restrictions, we are unable to post notation or tablature for this musical work. If you have a digital or physical copy of the Summer 2021 issue of Ukulele magazine, you will find the music on page 43.