Any "easy" jazz chord progressions?

jonnyburgo

I like the idea of playing a bit of jazz but end up sounding rubbish,not used to putting my fingers into funny shapes so any simple chord progression suggestions welcome please:)

Jalapeno

Dm / G7 / C   or   Em / A7 / D     a Maj 251 sequence - 80%-90+% of jazz uses this progression like a lego brick.

Then use Dom7 chords cycling through the Cycle of 4ths/5ths (depends if you're going up or down) , say ....

E7 / A7 / D7 / G7 (then end with C)

Megii

Re easy jazz standards - Autumn Leaves is a good one - the chords do move around a bit, but in a natural way, and fairly easy to hear and anticipate the changes. Coltrane's "Impressions" is quite a good one, as it's "modal" jazz - only has 2 chords really - also maybe the sort of thing where some rock/shred chops could transfer nicely. I often hear All The Things You Are suggested as a tune to learn, and yes it's a great one to learn, but actually maybe not the easiest of jazz standards - I perhaps wouldn't go for that one first. Blue Bossa is another good one that's not hard though.

carlos

GM7, G#dim7, Am7, Dalt (2 versions w/ #9 and b9)

E|---------------

B|--3--3--5--7--4

G|--4--4--5--5--5

D|--4--3--5--4--4

A|-------------5--5

E|--3--4--5------

Jalapeno

Megii said:

Re easy jazz standards - Autumn Leaves is a good one - the chords do move around a bit, but in a natural way, and fairly easy to hear and anticipate the changes. Coltrane's "Impressions" is quite a good one, as it's "modal" jazz - only has 2 chords really - also maybe the sort of thing where some rock/shred chops could transfer nicely. I often hear All The Things You Are suggested as a tune to learn, and yes it's a great one to learn, but actually maybe not the easiest of jazz standards - I perhaps wouldn't go for that one first. Blue Bossa is another good one that's not hard though.

Satin Doll (aka Satan's Doll, bane of beginners) is perfect doesn't change key much, and then not for long and changes back.  This has Maj 251 sequences all over the place.

Blue Bossa is the 2nd learner tune (Blue Tosser) - introduces Min 251, far less common than Maj 251, but more interesting tonally.

If you want playalongs and theory - Jamey Aebersold's Maiden Voyage has both tunes. It's a common starter book.  If you're on Spotify the playalongs are on there too.

randomhandclaps

Agree with Autumn Leaves, Satin Doll & Blue Bossa.

Also worth checking are Misty and So What.  So What is a good stepping stone one based on the fact it's not too far removed from traditional blues and encompass a riff.  If you just wanna learn one piece to say to people "Yeah, I can play jazz" then So What is a good choice.

Jalapeno

Best to steer clear of anything Blues as a Jazz Blues is far more complex than Rock/Blues, and the temptation to blow Min Pentatonic over it all is very strong

bigjon

All Of Me is my perennial recommendation for a song with easy chords in an easy key (unlike Autumn Leaves) which move really SLOWLY (4x slower pace than Satin Doll)

Phil_aka_Pip

seeing Gmaj7 written as "GM7" made my hackles rise. It is far too easily confused with Gm7 (G-7) when handwritten. IMO it should be written Gmaj7 or G "little triangle" 7 (although I admit the latter is somewhat difficult on some PCs)

Megii

Jalapeno said:

Megii said:

Re easy jazz standards - Autumn Leaves is a good one - the chords do move around a bit, but in a natural way, and fairly easy to hear and anticipate the changes. Coltrane's "Impressions" is quite a good one, as it's "modal" jazz - only has 2 chords really - also maybe the sort of thing where some rock/shred chops could transfer nicely. I often hear All The Things You Are suggested as a tune to learn, and yes it's a great one to learn, but actually maybe not the easiest of jazz standards - I perhaps wouldn't go for that one first. Blue Bossa is another good one that's not hard though.

Satin Doll (aka Satan's Doll, bane of beginners) is perfect doesn't change key much, and then not for long and changes back.  This has Maj 251 sequences all over the place.

Blue Bossa is the 2nd learner tune (Blue Tosser) - introduces Min 251, far less common than Maj 251, but more interesting tonally.

If you want playalongs and theory - Jamey Aebersold's Maiden Voyage has both tunes. It's a common starter book.  If you're on Spotify the playalongs are on there too.

Don't you just hate Satin f-ing Doll though - I know it's Ellington, and sacrilege to say so, but I can't stand the bloody thing...

Megii

Thread goes quiet... obviously shouldn't have said that, bit of a faux pas there, oops...  Anyway, what was I thinking? - Satin Doll - amazing tune, doesn't send me to sleep at all, so interesting to play, really great, love it...

Branshen

http://www.jazzstudies.us/ has all the chord charts you will ever need. Pick a few easy ones that you already know. It's great fun.

I recommend "all of me" or "blue bossa" as a good starting point. 

Branshen

@megii I'd recognise satin doll when I hear it, but I don't listen to it very much, let alone play it, so I can't recall the melody. Do I consider myself lucky?

ArchtopDave

Start with Giant Steps. After that everything else becomes easier!!

carlos

http://guitarteacher.com/2010/07/29/jazz-blues-jam-track-ala-footprints/

Megii

Branshen said:

@megii I'd recognise satin doll when I hear it, but I don't listen to it very much, let alone play it, so I can't recall the melody. Do I consider myself lucky?

Don't let my bias put you off @Branshen I guess I was once one of those beginners @Jalapeno mentions, who had SD rammed down my throat. The funny thing is I do still have to play Satin Doll sometimes with a band, and pretend I'm enjoying it... 

viz

Try jazz blues. Instead of A D A A / D D A A / E D A E, it's:

A7+13
D9
A7+13
Em9 ->A alt (that's actually the 2 and 5 of a 251 in a temporary key of D)

D9 (this is the 1 of the previous 251 in D)
D9
A
F# hendrix

Bm
E hendrix
A -> F#
Bm ->E ....... A

The 2 runs of F# B E A (one slow, the other twice as fast) are examples of a 6251 - very common in jazz. The 6251 is actually a series of dominant chords, as each chord is a 4th higher than the previous one)

Here I dun a video on a VERY small guitar.

Jalapeno

This stuff ought to go into the big Jazz thread and leave this one for simple progressions - unless anyone objects  I'll move the more general theory chat to there ....

DJW

As has been said the ii-V-I is the most common progression in jazz. An easy way to spice that up is to use a tritone substition for the V. Tritone just being three tones or six frets on your guitar. So if you were playing a ii-V-I in G you would have Am-D-G. Put the tritone substitute in for the D and you get A flat. An easier way to remember it is that it's one fret above the root chord or G.

So now your progression putting a few chord alterations in would be without the substitution Gmaj7-Am7-D7#9-Gmaj7. Try playing that and get the sound of it. Then put your substitution in so now you have Gmaj7-Am7-Ab13-Gmaj7. You'll notice ('cos you're dead clever) that the only difference between the D7#9 and the Ab13 is the root note but it gives the progression a whole different flavour. Tritone subs=good things.

In fact just the ability to throw 'tritone substitution' into a conversation will elevate you several degrees up in the jazz world...

GuyBoden

DJW said:

As has been said the ii-V-I is the most common progression in jazz. An easy way to spice that up is to use a tritone substition for the V. Tritone just being three tones or six frets on your guitar. So if you were playing a ii-V-I in G you would have Am-D-G. Put the tritone substitute in for the D and you get A flat. An easier way to remember it is that it's one fret above the root chord or G.

So now your progression putting a few chord alterations in would be without the substitution Gmaj7-Am7-D7#9-Gmaj7. Try playing that and get the sound of it. Then put your substitution in so now you have Gmaj7-Am7-Ab13-Gmaj7. You'll notice ('cos you're dead clever) that the only difference between the D7#9 and the Ab13 is the root note but it gives the progression a whole different flavour. Tritone subs=good things.

In fact just the ability to throw 'tritone substitution' into a conversation will elevate you several degrees up in the jazz world...

The trouble I've found with using a Tritone sub is when the soloist plays the Dom7's 5th note in their well practice ii-V-I "improvisation", they're expecting the Dom7 and you have subbed the Tritone, which has the Dom7's b5, it then can sound terrible.

In your example progression, Am-D-G, You're playing "Ab", the soloist is playing the Dom's 5th "A".

A work round can be to play a Tritone sub, which includes a Dom7b9, because this has the Dom7's 5th.  

viz

The Dom V7 should be based around the super locrian which has a dim 5 and minor 6 but no perfect 5th; the tritone starts on this dim 5th note so shouldn't clash. Furthermore, the tritone sub chord should be based on the overtone scale (commensurate with the domV superlocrian), ie with an augmented 4th, which is the root of the domV. So nothing should clash (unless the bassist is indeed playing perfect 5ths off the domV, or the guitarist is doing some sort of sus4 on the tritone (unlikely)).

Quick point on the definition of the tritone substitution. It's not only because the Ab is a tritone away from the D that it's called a tritone sub, though that's certainly true. It's really because of the fact that the major 3rd and the natural 7th of the D dominant 7 chord are a tritone apart. As two tritones make an octave, it stands that those two notes, which, in the case of D7, are F# and C, can therefore be 'swapped' to become ....... the natural 7th and major 3rd of another 7 chord! And that chord is thus a tritone away from the original V chord, in this case the Ab. Ab7 has C as its 3rd and Gb as its 7!

That's really what the tritone sub is and why it works. Isn't that nice?