All Blues
by Miles Davis

“ All Blues ” is a jazz composition by Miles Davis first appearing on the influential 1959 album Kind of Blue. It is a twelve-bar blues in 64; the chord sequence is that of a basic blues and made up entirely of seventh chords, with a ♭VI in the turnaround instead of just the usual V chord. In the composition’s original key of G this chord is an E♭7. “All Blues” is an example of modal blues in G mixolydian.
A particularly distinctive feature of the piece is the bass line that repeats through the whole piece, except when a V or ♭VI chord is reached (the 9th and 10th bars of a chorus). Further, there is a harmonically similar vamp that is played by the horns (the two saxophones in the case of Kind of Blue) at the beginning and then (usually) continued by the piano under any solos that take place. Each chorus is usually separated by a four-bar vamp which acts as an introduction to the next solo/chorus.
While originally an instrumental piece, lyrics were later added by Oscar Brown Jr.

Lyrics

All Blues
The sea, the sky, the you and I
The sea, the sky, for you and I
I’ll know we’re all blues
All Shades, all hues, all blues

Some blues are sad
But some are glad,
Dark-sad or bright-gald
They’re all blues
All shades, all hues, all blues

The color of colors
The blues are more than a color
They’re a moan of pain
A Taste of strife
And a sad refrain

A game which lif is pplayin’
Blues can be the livin’ dues
We’re all a-payin’
Yeah, Oh Lord

In a rainbow
A summer day that’s fair
A parayer is prayed
A lament that’s made

Some shade of blues is there;
Blue heaven’s hue,
They’re all blues

Talkin’ ’bout the sea and the sky
Andi’m talkin’ ’bout you and I
The sea, the sky
For you and I

And I know we’re all blues
All shades,
All hues,
All blues

Sea, sky, you and I
See the sky, you and I
All Blues
All shades, all hues, all blues

Songwriters: Miles Davis / Oscar Brown Jr.