The_Complete_Idiot%27s_Guide_To_Music_Theory

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Part 3: Tunes
I-ii-IV-V
This progression has a constant upward movement, resolved with a perfect
cadence on the repeat back to I. In the key of C, it looks like this:
C / / / Dm / / / F / / / G / / /
I-ii-IV
This is a variation on the previous progression, with a soft plagal cadence at the end
(the IV going directly to the I, no V involved). In the key of C, it looks like this:
C / / / Dm / / / F / / /
As with all progressions that end with a plagal cadence (IV-I), this progression
has a rolling feel, and sounds as if it could go on and on and on, like a giant circle.
I-vi-ii-V
This was a very popular progression in the 1950s, the basis of a lot of doo-wop
and jazz songs. It’s also the chord progression behind the song “I’ve Got Rhythm,”
and sometimes is referred to (especially in jazz circles) as the “I’ve Got Rhythm”
progression.
In the key of C, it looks like this:
C / / / Am / / / Dm / / / G / / /
I-vi-IV-V
This is a variation on the “I’ve Got Rhythm” progression, with a stronger lead
to the V chord (IV instead of ii). It looks like this, in the key of C:
C / / / Am / / / F / / / G / / /
This progression was also popular in the doo-wop era and in the early days of
rock-and-roll. The defining factor of this progression is the descending bass line;
it drops in thirds until it moves up a step for the dominant chord, like this: C-A-
F-G. You’ve heard this progression (and that descending bass line) hundreds of
times; it’s a very serviceable progression.
I-vi-ii-V7-ii
This is another variation on the “I’ve Got Rhythm” progression, with an extra ii
chord squeezed in between the final V and the return to I, and with the V chord
played as a dominant seventh. In the key of C, it looks like this:
C / / / Am / / / Dm / / / G7 / Dm /
By adding the ii chord between the V7 and the I, almost in passing, it takes the
edge off the perfect cadence and makes the progression a little smoother.