Guitar chords · Dominant 7th
C7 chord on guitar
C7 (C A major chord with a minor 7th added, such as G7. It is the V7 of a key and pulls strongly to the I chord.) has four notes: C, E, G and B♭, the The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7., 3, 5 and ♭7.
Shapes
How to play C7
Strum a shape to hear it, or pick it one string at a time. R marks the The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7.; the other numbers are the chord tones.
C7 has an A chord played near the nut that uses some unfretted strings, such as the open G, C or Em., and two A chord or scale fingering with no open strings. Slide it up or down the neck and it changes its root but not its type: a major shape stays major.: the A shape at The metal strips across the neck, and the spaces between them. Each fret raises a string by one half step. 3 and the E shape at fret 8. A movable shape keeps its fingering anywhere on the neck: slide it up or down and the The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7., on the lowest played string, names the chord.
Open
A shape · fret 3
E shape · fret 8
Notes and formula
What makes C7 dominant 7th
A A major chord with a minor 7th added, such as G7. It is the V7 of a key and pulls strongly to the I chord. chord is a major chord with a minor 7th added. Its 3rd and 7th are a The interval of six half steps, exactly half an octave, such as B to F. It is the tense heart of a dominant 7th chord. apart, and that tension pulls it to the chord a 5th below: the V7–I move that ends so many phrases. It is also the sound of the blues.
- 1Root: the note the chord is named after. Keep it.
- 3Essential: makes the chord what it is. Never drop it.
- 5Optional: drop it first when you run out of fingers.
The 3rd and the ♭7th make C7 a A major chord with a minor 7th added, such as G7. It is the V7 of a key and pulls strongly to the I chord. chord; you can leave out the 5th.
- CRroot
- E3essential
- G5optional
- B♭♭7essential
- C, the root
- Other chord tones
C7 usually resolves to F or Fm, the chord a 5th below: the V7–I move.
Keys
Keys with C7
C7 belongs to three keys: F major (V7), F minor (V7, The natural minor scale with its 7th raised a half step, which makes the V chord major and gives it a strong pull home.) and D minor (VII7).
Numerals follow the key's own scale, so III, VI and VII in a minor key are its own major chords. A ♭ or ♯ in front marks a chord from outside the key. How Roman numerals work
Progressions
Progressions with C7
Common progressions that use C7, each in a key that spells it C7. The outlined chord is C7.
Jazz ii–V–I in F major
ii7 – V7 – Imaj7
- Gm7
- C7
- Fmaj7
Each chord falls a fifth to the next — a walk anticlockwise around the circle.
Heard in Autumn Leaves, Fly Me to the Moon
12-bar blues in C major
I7 – I7 – I7 – I7 – IV7 – IV7 – I7 – I7 – V7 – IV7 – I7 – V7
- C7
- C7
- C7
- C7
- F7
- F7
- C7
- C7
- G7
- F7
- C7
- G7
Dominant 7th chords on I, IV and V across twelve bars. The foundation of blues and early rock 'n' roll.
Heard in Johnny B. Goode, Pride and Joy, Hound Dog
Minor ii–V–i in F minor
iiø7 – V7 – i7
- Gm7♭5
- C7
- Fm7
Half-diminished ii, dominant V7 and back to the minor tonic.
Heard in Blue Bossa, Autumn Leaves
Slash chords
C7 over another bass note
A A chord with a different note in the bass, written after a slash: C/E is a C chord with E as its lowest note. The letter after the slash is the bass. keeps C7 on top and puts another note in the bass: the letter after the slash is the lowest note you play.
- C7/E
C7 with its 3rd, E, in the bass: the first inversion.
- C7/G
C7 with its 5th, G, in the bass: the second inversion.
- C7/B♭
C7 with its ♭7th, B♭, in the bass: the third inversion.
Same root
Other chords on C
Change one or two notes and the same The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7. gives a different colour. Compare them by ear.
- C major
- Cm minor
- Cmaj7 major 7th
- Cm7 minor 7th
- Csus2 suspended 2nd
- Csus4 suspended 4th
- C6 major 6th
- Cm6 minor 6th
- Cadd9 add 9
- C9 dominant 9th
- Cmaj9 major 9th
- Cm9 minor 9th
- C13 dominant 13th
- Cmaj13 major 13th
- Cm11 minor 11th
- C° diminished
- Cm7♭5 half-diminished 7th
- C°7 diminished 7th
- C+ augmented
- C5 power chord
- C7sus4 dominant 7th suspended 4th
- Cm(maj7) minor major 7th
- C6/9 six-nine
- Cm(add9) minor add 9
- C7♯9 dominant 7th sharp 9th
Questions
C7, in short
- What notes are in the C7 chord?
- C7 (C A major chord with a minor 7th added, such as G7. It is the V7 of a key and pulls strongly to the I chord.) has four notes: C, E, G and B♭, the The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7., 3, 5 and ♭7.
- How do you play C7 on guitar?
- C7 has an A chord played near the nut that uses some unfretted strings, such as the open G, C or Em., and two A chord or scale fingering with no open strings. Slide it up or down the neck and it changes its root but not its type: a major shape stays major.: the A shape at The metal strips across the neck, and the spaces between them. Each fret raises a string by one half step. 3 and the E shape at fret 8.
- What key is C7 in?
- C7 belongs to three keys: F major (V7), F minor (V7, The natural minor scale with its 7th raised a half step, which makes the V chord major and gives it a strong pull home.) and D minor (VII7).