Bei dir war es immer so schön — chords & grille (gypsy jazz)
Bei dir war es immer so schön by Théo Mackeben & Hans Beckmann — key of G (manouche), form A. Below is the full chord grid; on Haute Gitanerie you can play along with a scrolling chord ribbon, transpose to any key, set the tempo, and switch on a rhythm backing (la pompe) to practise your solos over the changes.
About
Bei dir war es immer so schön ("With you it was always so lovely") is a German song by Theo Mackeben and lyricist Hans Fritz Beckmann, drawn from the 1938 operetta Anita und der Teufel and first recorded in 1941. It found a home among manouche players.
The sound — a warm, singable piece in G major that leans on classic ii–V motion, minor colours and diminished passing chords to keep the line moving toward each cadence.
Practising it — sing the melody first, then harmonise it. Drill your major and dominant arpeggios through the ii–V turns and target the guide tones (3rds and 7ths) as the chords change.
Bei dir war es immer so schön chords — the grille
A : | C | Cm | G | B♭° | Am | D7 | G | G7 | C | Cm | G | B♭° | Am | D7 | Bø | E7 | Am | D7 | G | G7 | Am | B7 | Em EmΔ | Em7 G7 | C | Cm | G | B♭° | Am | D7 | G | G |
Chords used
C · Cm · G · B♭° · Am · D7 · G7 · Bø · E7 · B7 · Em · EmΔ · Em7
Play along
Open the interactive grille for Bei dir war es immer so schön: loop any section, transpose to any key, set the tempo, and play over a rhythm accompaniment — with a real recorded pompe on featured tunes. In the browser, free.