Blues Guitar Chords: 5 Levels From Three Chords to Jazz Blues

A basic blues uses three dominant 7 chords. In the key of A, that’s A7, D7 and E7. To make those three chords sound like many more, add small moves around them: passing chords, inversions and a diminished chord here and there. A jazz blues in F takes the same moves further.

In the video I go through five levels. The first three are one simple device each, for a dominant chord, a minor chord and a major chord. Level 4 puts them on a three-chord blues in A, and Level 5 is a jazz version of the F blues, broken down bar by bar.

What chords are in a basic blues?

Three dominant 7 chords, built on the 1st, 4th and 5th degrees of the key. In A that’s A7, D7 and E7, and in F it’s F7, B flat 7 and C7.

Take F major. F major sounds great, don’t get me wrong. I love the sound of that chord. But sometimes you want some motion, especially if you have four bars of F. And you’ve probably heard players comp over F7 with all these other shapes that seem random. That’s exactly what I want to talk about. It’s actually super simple devices, and once you know them, it’s like “ah, amazing, easy, got it.”

When I used to think about guitar, all I thought about was the solo. But when you play music with people and for people, you comp a lot. You play with singers, you play and sing. It’s not only about the lines, it’s also about the chords, so I started being really aware of that.

Level 1: walk up to a dominant chord

Whenever you see a dominant chord, you can add a short walking movement to it. Here’s the move on F7, starting from a shell chord:

1. F7. Played as a shell chord.
2. E flat over G. An E flat triad in first inversion: G, E flat and B flat.
3. E in first inversion. A chromatic passing chord.
4. F in first inversion. A, F and C, so you land on the F sound with A in the bass.

Why does this work? First and foremost, and that’s the most important rule, it sounds good. The same motion works on B flat 7, and on any dominant chord you see walking down the street. If you’re not sure about shell chords yet, the shell chords lesson covers the shapes.

At the end of the day, you just want the music to sound good. Whatever sounds good to you is valid. You don’t need to explain it.

Rotem Sivan

Level 2: move a minor chord through a diminished chord

To add motion to a minor chord, go from the root position chord, through a diminished chord, to the same minor chord in first inversion.

In the video I start with G minor. Honestly, I love the sound of just the root and the 3rd on guitar, so you can try that first and add the 7th later. The goal is G minor in first inversion: B flat, G and D. That’s literally 1, 3 and 5, just with B flat in the bass instead of G. In between, I add A diminished. So it’s G minor, A diminished, G minor first inversion, and to me that sounds beautiful.

That middle chord is really the chord built on the 7th of G minor, F sharp diminished, in first inversion. You can think of it as A diminished, and that’s totally fine. This is something all classical composers did, Baroque composers too. It’s a very sustainable way to establish the key center: the one chord, the seventh chord, then the one chord in first inversion. It’s almost like playing chess, where you have specific openings.

Level 3: expand a major chord with the third degree

For a major chord, walk up from the 2nd degree, through a passing chord on the flat 3, to the 3rd degree. The 3rd degree can stand in for the one chord.

Take G major. In the key of G, the one chord is called the tonic. That’s the center of gravity. The chord on the 3rd degree, B minor, can work as a tonic substitution. You can hear it as G major in first inversion, or really as B minor. It’s not the same sound, but they share that kind of function of feeling home. You can play it with just the 1 and 3, or as a minor 7.

It’s important to hear this and understand it, because you can use it when you have a C major 7 chord. Instead of just playing C, you can play the same idea there: D minor, the passing chord, then E minor. You already know D minor and E minor. Learning the concept is how you find so many more chords and ideas.

Level 4: put the devices on a three-chord blues in A

Take a blues in A with only A7, D7 and E7, and use the same devices, ascending and descending. You don’t have to use them all the time.

So what happened? We took a blues that had literally three chords, played many more chords, and used only one device, and it already sounds cool. It could be more jazzy or more shuffley, and once you put a little distortion on it, it has a different flavor and vibe. These devices are being used all the time, whether it’s Stevie Ray or other blues artists. They don’t only comp with them, either. They grab these ideas and improvise with them, expanding their A7 into different chords.

If you’d rather spend more of your time on the lead side, Simple Blues Soloing gives you a framework for hearing, feeling and creating over the blues, so solos come from your ears instead of muscle memory.

Level 5: how do you play a jazz blues in F?

Take the jazz version of the F blues and dress up the changes with the same devices, plus a couple of substitutions. Here’s what I play in the video, in order:

1. F7. The Level 1 device, ascending with that shape.
2. B flat 7. Copy and paste, very chill and easy.
3. F7 again. Ascending and descending, with a B7 as a substitution to lead into B flat.
4. B flat 7, then B diminished. The same shape on B flat, then I just hang on B diminished, which is basically B flat 7 flat 9, a little bit of color.
5. F over C. F major in second inversion for two beats, then descending dominant chords on E and E flat that lead to D7.
6. G minor to C7. The Level 2 move (G minor, A diminished, G minor first inversion), then a B diminished leading to C7, where I use the same device again.
7. The turnaround. F major, F over E flat (third inversion), D7, D7 over C, G minor first inversion, A diminished, C7 over G, then F sharp 7 as a tritone sub leading back to the top.

There are many options for the top line. I just played the changes with inversions and tried to find some motion that makes sense, and you get a bit of bass motion that’s kind of cool too. If the inversions are the hard part for you, Jazz Chord Essentials rebuilds your chords from the ground up: how a 7th chord is built, the four main colors and every inversion on the 4th, 5th and 6th string sets.

A blues chord exercise for today

Take a dominant chord you’d normally hold for a whole bar or more and give it motion with the Level 1 device.

1. Start on F7. Play the shell chord.
2. Walk it up. E flat over G, E in first inversion, F in first inversion.
3. Move it to B flat 7. The same motion works there too.
4. Try it in A. Put the move on A7, D7 and E7 in a three-chord blues, with or without distortion.

Frequently asked questions

What are the three chords in a blues?

A basic blues uses dominant 7 chords on the 1st, 4th and 5th degrees of the key. In A, that’s A7, D7 and E7. In F, it’s F7, B flat 7 and C7. A jazz blues adds more changes, like D7, G minor and diminished chords.

What is a passing chord on guitar?

A chord you play on the way between two others to create motion. In Level 1, the E chord in first inversion sits between E flat over G and F in first inversion. It’s a chromatic chord, a passing chord, and it creates motion on the way up to F.

Do I need to know jazz to play these blues chords?

No. These are super simple devices built from shell chords and triads in their inversions. They work on a shuffle, with distortion, and even on a pop song with one chord, where you just look for an inversion or some motion in between.

Can I use these chord ideas when I solo?

Yes. Blues players don’t only use these devices for comping. Whether it’s Stevie Ray or other blues artists, they grab the same ideas and improvise with them, expanding an A7 into different chords.

Pick a blues you already know and give just the first chord some motion today. For the lead side of the same form, the blues scale lesson is next.