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6.13.10 “Gimme Shelter" Chords: Parallel Keys, 3-Chord Wonder
"Gimme Shelter" has only 3 chords, but they are not the standard I, IV, and V chords of typical 3-chord songs. Not even close. This song is one of the musical wonders of the rock genre. It has but one chord in the verse (Figure 113 below), a major chord, C♯ major—but the melody clearly uses the parallel minor scale, C♯ minor.
Over and over, the melody emphasizes the minor third note (E), characteristic of the key of C♯ minor, while the harmony plays the major third chord of the parallel key, C♯ major. This sets up an incredibly powerful major-harmony/minor-melody clash that seizes the attention of the listener.
You can hear this same sound—a melody that emphasizes the minor third against a major triad—in a lot of blues and old-time country music. It’s also the same dissonant harmony you get when you play a major tonic triad and use the Dorian scale for melody. Scale degree 3 is in a minor third relationship with the tonic note in the Dorian mode.