The “iiii–VV–II” progression can be found in many pieces of music in all styles—classical, popular, but especially jazz, since the Great American Songbook (popular songs from the 1930s, 40’s, and 50’s) on which jazz repertoire is built contains many examples of this progression.
Here are examples of the II–vivi–iiii–VV progression, sometimes called the
1950s progression
because of its prevalence during that decade, although this progression was also widely used in the 1930s and '40s.
Below is an example of the iiii–VV–II–vivi progression. In this example, the vivi chord acts as a link between the VV–II cadence in the middle of the phrase and the iiiichord at the beginning of the next phrase. This harmonic activity after the arrival on the II chord is like a “turnaround” in jazz. We
discuss turnarounds more in a later chapter on jazz harmony
.