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6.10.13 "Danny Boy" Chords ("Londonderry Air"): How the Chord Progression Works
The chords of "Danny Boy" (also known as "Londonderry Air") integrate the major and relative minor tonalities to great effect. First, the words and chords:
This time, the chord map is broken into two parts. The first one maps the verse, the second maps the chorus (Figure 86).
FIGURE 86: Chord Map of “Danny Boy” (Words by Fred Weatherly, 1913; Music Possibly by Rory Dall O’Cahan, ca. 1600)
The above chord maps of “Danny Boy” reveal a good mixture of fifths and thirds, with a brief second progression in the last phrase.
The notable thing about this progression is the smoothness (thanks to the third progressions) with which it integrates chords from the relative minor. The minor chord influence suitably matches the melancholy mood of the lyric.
This song goes back to Shakespearean times. The blind Irish harper Rory Dall O’Cahan may have written the tune that became known as “Londonderry Aire.” We'll never know for sure. Fred Weatherly, an English lawyer and lyricist, arranged his already-written lyric, “Danny Boy,” to fit the tune. The match became one of the world’s greatest songs.