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Stretching by Division
Another way of putting turnarounds to different use is to split them in half and assign the first two chords to a verse
and the last two to a chorus. R.E.M did this in 'Everybody Hurts', where the verse is a repeated I-IV change and the
chorus is II-V.

Disguising Turnarounds
Turnarounds are less obvious if they are slow, displaced (not centered on I) or arranged in a less conventional
manner. If no instrument is playing the whole chord but several instruments are contributing to the overall sound of a
chord, then it will seem less solid and the turnaround less obvious. Two great examples are the harpsichord parts on
'Caught A Lite Sneeze' and the strings on 'Cloudbusting'.
This is also heard in one of U2's contributions to popular music, typified by a number such as 'With Or Without
You'. It's a simple four-chord sequence (I V VI IV: D A Bm G). Most bands would have had the guitar chugging out
those chords. U2's arrangement has the bass imply those changes whilst The Edge gets on with other ideas around
the chord of D. To try this technique, let the bass play the root notes but don't follow the chord sequence on guitar.

The Five-Chord Turnaround
It is possible to have a turnaround of five or even more chords. Consider the chord sequence bVI bIII bVII IV I: C G
D A E – which is 'Hey Joe' (and in the middle eight of 'A Day In The Life'). These chords cover only four bars,
which then repeat throughout the song. Another example would be 'Hard Day's Night', which is I IV I bVII I – only
three different chords but used in a fixed pattern of five.
A turnaround stops being a turnaround once the the rate of chord change is no longer fast enough for the ear to hear
it as a single unit of music repeated. 'Hey Joe' crams five chords into four bars, so we are aware of the fact that it is a
single unit. If those chords were spread out across eight bars at the same tempo, it is unlikely we would hear it as a
turnaround. The effect of the turnaround depends partly on tempo and number of bars. Quicker tempos emphasise it.
Here are some other examples of five-chord patterns (not necessarily five different chords):

I II V bIII II C Dm G Eb Dm 'A Design For Life'

I II III V I C Dm Em G C 'I Shall Be Released'

I bIII IV bVI bIII C Eb F Ab Eb 'Stardust' v.

I III IV I V C Em F C G 'Hymn To Her' ch.

I III IV II V C Em F Dm G 'Trash'

I III VI IV V C Em Am F G 'Till Death Us Do Part' ch.

I IV bIII bVII bVI C F Eb Bb Ab 'Free Man In Paris'

I IV III IV V I C F Em F G 'The Drugs Don't Work'

I IV V II III II C F G Em Dm 'Je T' Aime'

I IV bVII IV I C F Bb F C 'Fine Time'

I V II IV IIImaj C G Dm F E 'Country House'

I V II IV V C G Dm F G 'Live Forever' v (with VI V II IV V as a

variation), 'I Try'

I V II V IV C G Dm G F 'Where Did Our Love Go?'

I V VI V IV C G Am G F 'Might Be Stars'