Learn to Play the Guitar Part 20

Now that we have learned the Major and Minor chords as well as chords we can move up and down the neck of the guitar, it is time to learn about “seven chords”.

No, I do not mean there are seven more chords we will be learning, though A through G does equal seven. When I say “seven chords” I mean a variation of the chords you have already learned with the seventh note of the scale added to the chord. A chord is at minimum three notes but a chord can also be more than three notes. A seven chord is the three notes of the chord plus the seventh note of the scale added.

If you are interested in the guitar, chances are you might like the blues. If you are looking to add a bluesy or jazzy sound to your playing, using seven chords is where it is at!

We’ll start with the F Major 7 chord.

Notice it is the same as the F Major chord except that the fourth finger is lifted from the fourth string and placed instead on the fourth fret of the second string.

Practice putting your fingers into position for the F7 chord. Then practice going back and forth between F and F7.