The general Chord Substitution Rule holds that chords that share two or more notes in common can be readily substituted for each other. Below are several well-known songs created by using chord substitutions and inversions which use notes other than the Root as the bass note.

E-D-A/B = Tell Her About It verse (1983)
E-D-A/C# = Tuesday Afternoon (Forver Afternoon) bridge (1968)
E-D/B-A = Nowhere To Run chorus (1965)
E-Dmaj7-A-Aadd9 = The Way It Is chorus (1986)
E-Dadd9-A = Signs chorus (1971)
E-Esus4-E-Dadd9-A/C#-A = More Than A Feeling verse (1976)
E5-D-A = Back In Black verse (1981) E7-D-A = She Said She Said verse (1966) and Born On The Bayou (Hear Song - RealPlayer / See Tab) chorus (1968)

Below is an example of a Classic Rock Progression chord substitution used on Martha & The Vandelas' 1965 hit Nowhere To Run (Hear Song - RealPlayer) chorus. Note that a "D/B" chord is the same as a "Bm7" chord.

E         D/B  A 
/ / / /   / /  / /

This progression is similar to the I-bVII-IV Progression except that the "I" chord is tagged on to the end in order to complete a musical thought or phrase. Examples of the I-bVII-IV-I progression are I Can't Explain verse (1965), Gloria verse (1966), If I Were A Carpenter verse (1966), Dear Mr. Fantasy verse (1968), Hey Jude outro (1968), Take A Letter Maria chorus (1969), No Sugar Tonight chorus (1970), All Right Now chorus (1970), Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting) verse (1973), Casey Jones chorus (1973), Takin' Care Of Business verse (1974), Rock 'N Me verse (1976), Take The Money And Run verse (1976), Take Me To The River verse (1978), Sweet Child O' Mine verse (1988), and You Got It verse (1989).

The verse to The Who's I Can't Explain (Hear Song - RealPlayer / See Tab) was created using the I-bVII-IV-I progression below.

E    D     A    E
/ /  / /   / /  / /

Below are several well-known songs created by applying chord substitutions and inversions to the "I-bVII-IV-I" progression.

E-D-F#m-E = All Night Long (All Night) verse (1983)
E-D-A/C#-A-E = China Grove (Hear Song - RealPlayer / See Tab) verse (1973)
E-D5-A5-E = Peace Of Mind (Hear Song -RealPlayer / See Tab) verse (1977)
E5-D-A-E5 = Good Times, Bad Times verse (1969)
E5-D5-A5-E5 = Addicted To Love verse (1986)

Below is the four bar verse progression for The Doobie Brothers' 1973 hit China Groove, which features a "IV/3" inversion.

E                     D    A/C#       A      E
/ / / /    / / / /    /    /    /     /    / / / / 

E                   D5  A5    E
/ / / /   / / / /   / / / /   / / / /

The Communications Breakdown verse (1969) was written using this progression. Simple Minds' chorus to their 1985 hit Don't You (Forget About Me) (Hear Song - RealPlayer / See Tab) takes the I-bVII-IV progression and adds an additional "bVII" chord after the ""IV" chord, creating the chord progression below.

A further variation is the "I-bVII-IV-bVII-IV" Progression used to write the Centerfold (Hear Song - RealPlayer / See Tab) verse (1982). Another variation is the "I-bVII-IV-bVII-I" Progression used to write the Closer To The Heart verse (1977).

E         D         A         D
/ / / /   / / / /   / / / /   / / / /

Below are two great songs created by applying chord substitutions and inversions to the "I-bVII-IV-bVII" Progression.

E-D-A-F#m = Main Street verse (1977)
E-D-A/E-D = Night Moves (Hear Song - RealPlayer / See Tab) verse (1977)
E7-Dadd9-A-D11 = We Are Family (Hear Song - RealPlayer) chorus (1979)

Bob Seger created the verse to his 1977 hit Main Street by substituting the "ii" chord for the last "bVII" chord, creating the chord progression below.

E         D         A         F#m
/ / / /   / / / /   / / / /   / / / /

This variation, which tags a "V" chord after the "IV" chord, was used to write such songs as The Night Before verse (1965), Just Like Me verse (1966), Windy verse (1967), Rock And Roll Part 2 verse (1972), and Carefree Highway chorus (1974).

The Beatles' 1965 verse to The Night Before (See Tab) was written with the "I-bVII-IV-V" progression shown below.

E         D         A         B
/ / / /   / / / /   / / / /   / / / /

The I-IV-bVII progression reverses the last two chords of the I-bVII-IV" progression.

I-IV-bVII-I Variations:

Examples of this variation include 49 Bye-Byes verse (1969), Lola verse (1970), and Good Lovin' Gone Bad verse (1975).

Chord Substitutions:

E-Amaj7-Dmaj7-E = This Guy's In Love With You verse (1968)

Static Bass Lines/Pedal Points:

E5-A/E-D/E-E5 = Hollywood Nights verse (1978)

E         Amaj7     Dmaj7     E 
/ / / /   / / / /   / / / /   / / / /

The I-IV-bVII-IV progression inserts an additional "IV" chord between the "I" and "bVII" chord in the I-bVII-IV" progression. Neil Diamond wrote numerous songs early in his career based on this progression such as Cherry, Cherry verse (1966), I Got The Feelin' (Oh No No) verse (1966), and Thank The Lord For The Night Time verse (1967). Other examples include Note Fade Away verse (1957), Dirty Water verse (1966), What I Like About You (1979), and Crazy Little Thing Called Love verse (1980).

A further variation is the "I-IV-bVII-IV-I" Progression used to write the verse to Like A Rock (1986). Another variation is the "I-IV-bVII-IV-bVII-IV-I" Progression found in the verse to Yes's 1972 Roundabout.

The verse to Neil Diamond's 1966 hit Cherry, Cherry was written using the I-IV-bVII-IV progression shown below.

E    A     D    A
/ /  / /   / /  / /

Below are several well-known songs created by applying chord substitutions and inversions to the I-IV-bVII-IV progression.

E-A-   Dadd9-A-   E = Paradise City chorus (1989)
E-A/C#-D-    A/C#   = (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction verse (1965)

This progression plays the first chord of the "I-bVII-IV" progression last, creating a Circle Of Fifths movement. Examples of the bVII-IV-I progression include Magical Mystery Tour intro (1968), With A Little Help From My Friends chorus (1968) and Hurdy Gurdy Man chorus (1968).

Chord Substitutions:

D/E-A-E = Polythene Pam verse (1969)
D-Aadd9-E = Rikki Don't Lose That Number verse (1974)

The I-bVII-bIII Progression

These progressions come in two flavors. The first is the "I-bVII-bIII-IV" Progression used to write Cat's In The Craddle chorus (1974). The other is the "I-bVII-bIII-I" Progression used for All Day And All Of The Night verse (1965) and Hello, I Love You chorus (1968). A further variation of the last progression is the "I-bVII-I-bIII" Progression on the You Better Run verse (1966).

The I-V-bVII Progression

There are two popular variations of the "I-V-bVII" Progression.

I-V-bVII-I Variations:

Examples of songs written around the "I-V-bVII-I" progression include You've Got To Hide Your Love Away verse (1965), I'm A Believer verse (1966), and Lay Down (Candles In The Rain) chorus (1970).

Chord Substitutions:

E-B-Dadd9-E = I'm A Loser verse (1964)
E-Bm-D-E = Good Morning Good Morning verse (1967)

I-V-bVII-IV Variations:

Examples of songs written around the "I-V-bVII-IV" progression include Build Me Up Buttercup verse (1969) and It's Still Rock And Roll To Me verse (1980).

Chord Substitutions:

E-Bm-D-A-E = Let It Rain verse (1970), It Don't Come Easy verse (1971), and Baker Street verse (1978)
E-Bm7-D-A-E = Cinnamon Girl verse (1969)

Descending Bass Lines:

Descending Bass Line Progressions are a type of Moving Bass Line Progression where the bass notes of each chord in the progression move lower generally in half or whole steps typically following the "8-7-6-4", "8-7-6-5", "8-7-b7-6", "6-5-4-3", and "6-5-#4-4" bass note patterns. Descednding Bass Line Progressions are popular with songwriters to create a romantic mood. Below are several examples of songs that created Descending Bass Line Progressions by using chord substitutions and inversions.

E-B/D#-D-A/C# = Walk Away Renee verse (1966)
E-B/D#-D6-A = Give Me Just A Little More Time verse (1966)
E-B7/D#-D-Am/C-E/B = It Don't Matter To Me verse (1970)

The I-bVII Progression

This progression drops the "IV" chord from the I-bVII-IV progression. The I-bVII progression dates back to the late 1950s and probably is the origin of the I-bVII-I and I-bVII-IV progressions that followed. Examples of th I-bVII progression include Tequila verse (1958), I Only Have Eyes For You verse (1959), Only In America verse (1963), Five O'Clock World verse (1965), Psychotic Reation verse (1966), Talk Talk verse (1967), Soul Man chorus (1967), L.A. Woman verse (1967), Hello I Love You verse (1968), Let's Get Together verse (1969), Here Comes That Rainy Day Feeling Again verse (1971), and Cocaine verse (1980), All Night Long (All Night) chorus (1983).

Chord Substitutions:

Below are several well-known songs created by applying chord substitutions and inversions to the "I-bVII" progression.

E- D/B = Uptight (Everything's Alright) verse (1966) and Shapes Of Things verse (1966)
E- Dadd9 = Tired Of Waiting verse (1965) and I'm Your Captain/Closer To Home verse (1970)
E- Dadd9/E = Helplessly Hoping chorus (1969)
E- Esus4 (5x) E-D = Monday, Monday verse (1966)
E- Esus4 (2x) Dadd9-E = We Can Work It Out verse (1966)
E-E/D#-D-D/C# = Hold On Loosely chorus (1981)
E5-D = Whole Lotta Love chorus (1969)
E5-D5 = Magic Man verse (1976)

Below is the chord substitution used on Stevie Wonder's 1966 hit Uptight (Everything's Alright) (Hear Song - RealPlayer) verse. Note that a "D/B" chord is the same as a "Bm7" chord.

E    D/B   E    D/B
/ /  / /   / /  / /

E-D/E... include On Broadway verse (1963), Got To Get You Into My Life verse (1976)
Emaj7-D/E... Never Can Say Goodbye

I-bVII-I Variations:

You Really Got Me verse (1964), Time Won't Let Me verse (1966), Sunshine Of Your Love verse (1968), and Ramblin' Man chorus (1973)

Chord Substitutions:

E-D-E-[B-D] = American Woman verse (1970)
E5-D5-[G5-D5]-E5 = Paranoid verse (19--)