Watermelon Man 1962

16 bars · 1 changes per bar · Originally associated with the song Watermelon Man by Herbie Hancock · Often played in F

Usage

Summary

This 16-bar blues progression is a fairly accessible dominant-7th form with a clear, traditional character and an extended layout compared with a standard 12-bar. The opening four bars remain on the I7, giving singers and soloists plenty of room to establish the melody or settle into a phrase before the move to IV7 in bars 5–6, which is a familiar blues gesture. Bars 7–8 return to I7, and from bar 9 onward the harmony becomes more active, alternating between V7 and IV7 through bars 9–14 before resolving back to I7 in the final two bars. That back-and-forth in the second half gives improvisers more harmonic movement to outline, while the long opening stretch keeps the overall form easy to follow for players of all levels.