Satin Doll in A

Satin Doll in A

A Satin Doll: Ellington's chain of ii-V pairs moving through multiple key areas in a single phrase. Dorian over the iim7 chords, Mixolydian over the dominants — textbook bebop vocabulary. Changes: Bm7 – E7 – C#m7 – F#7 – F#m9 – B9 – Fm9 – A#9 – A – D7 – Em7 – A7 – A7b9 – DMaj7 – F#m7 – Gm7 – B7 – B7b9.

Satin Doll in A

A major is a rock and blues cornerstone. The open A string delivers a strong root, while both E strings ring as the fifth. Classic A-D-E progressions practically play themselves with open cowboy chords. The open high E is the fifth, reinforcing power. A is a beginner-level key on guitar because the open A string is the root and the open E strings provide the fifth above and below, creating a massive low-end anchor. Beginners will find this key approachable since most chords use open voicings with minimal stretching.

Voice Leading

The bass line moves through B to E (ascending perfect fourth), E to C# (descending minor third), C# to F# (ascending perfect fourth), F# to F# (ascending unison), F# to B (ascending perfect fourth), B to F (ascending tritone), F to A# (ascending perfect fourth), A# to A (descending half step), A to D (ascending perfect fourth), D to E (ascending whole step), E to A (ascending perfect fourth), A to A (ascending unison), A to D (ascending perfect fourth), D to F# (ascending major third), F# to G (ascending half step), G to B (ascending major third), B to B (ascending unison). A half-step bass movement creates a strong leading-tone pull that demands resolution. The root motion by larger intervals (fourths and fifths) gives each chord change a strong, decisive character. When the progression loops, the bass returns from B to B by unison.

Scales for Improvisation

A 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, A Mixolydian adds the flat seventh for an authentic blues-rock edge.