Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered in B

Bewitched, Bothered And Bewildered in B

Bewitched in B — Rodgers & Hart's sophisticated ballad with chromatic voice leading and an expressive melodic arc. Bebop Major navigates the major tonic sections; Dorian and Mixolydian add texture through the ii-V moves. Changes: B – Cdim7 – C#m7 – Ddim7 – D#7 – EMaj7 – Fdim7 – C#7 – F#7 – G#7 – C#m – G#m – D#m7 – G#7#9.

Key of B

B major mixes barre and open elements. The B chord itself is a barre at fret 2, but E and A are comfortable open chords forming the IV and V. The open B string rings as the root, allowing creative drone-based arrangements. B is a intermediate-level key on guitar because the open B string rings as the root and the open E strings provide the 4th — useful for sus4 voicings and drone effects. This key mixes open and barre shapes, making it a good intermediate challenge that builds fretboard fluency.

Voice Leading

The bass line moves through B to C (ascending half step), C to C# (ascending half step), C# to D (ascending half step), D to D# (ascending half step), D# to E (ascending half step), E to F (ascending half step), F to C# (descending major third), C# to F# (ascending perfect fourth), F# to G# (ascending whole step), G# to C# (ascending perfect fourth), C# to G# (descending perfect fourth), G# to D# (descending perfect fourth), D# to G# (ascending perfect fourth). A half-step bass movement creates a strong leading-tone pull that demands resolution. The predominantly stepwise bass motion creates smooth, connected voice leading. When the progression loops, the bass returns from G# to B by minor third.

Scales for Improvisation

B major pentatonic works because every note is either a chord tone or a safe passing tone — there are no avoid notes. For soloing, this means you can play freely without clashing. Over dominant seventh chords, B Mixolydian adds the flat seventh for an authentic blues-rock edge.