All Dominant 7th Chord Progressions "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out"

The music for "Nobody Knows You When Your Down and Out" by Eric Clapton is written in the key of C but most of the chords are played as major and/or dominant sevens.

C E A Dm A7 Dm F F#dim7 C/G A7 D7 G7 C

Please help me understand how that fits into the basic harmonized major scale, I ii iii IV V vi vii.

This song is based on an advanced concept that stems from the chord progression number system I teach in my guitar theory method. Just be sure to master the basic concepts before venturing into advanced areas like this. Music theory is a process, you know.

Jazz players like to play over dominant seven chords. Now, there's only one seventh chord in a key (see Fretboard Theory chapter 10). But, who says you can't change keys and play over the V7 chord each time? Well, which keys go good together? What if you take the intervals from the major scale and play each of them as a dominant seven chord? The key of C would become:

C7 D7 E7 F7 G7 A7 B7
1 2 3 4 5 6 7

So this chord sequence is actually a series of key changes. Each seventh chord is a V chord from a different key. But we used the C major scale structure as a guide to determine which keys to combine. If you want to solo over these chords, you'll have to switch the parent major scale for every chord. Yikes, that's a lot to keep track of! But jazz players love it.

Progressions in this new sequence are the same as the diatonic scale but now everything is a 7th chord. For example:

I IV V
I7 IV7 V7 (Most blues songs are based on this.)

I vi ii V
I7 VI7 II7 V7 (A foundational jazz progression.)

You can hop around however you want. You can even switch back and forth between 7th chords and the diatonic chords (I ii ii, etc.).

The F#diminished chord is basically an F7 chord with the root raised. This chromatic passing tone bridges the gap between the F7's root and the C7's fifth (hence the C7/G).

Play Until Yer Fingers Bleed!
Desi Serna (Google me!)
http://www.Guitar-Music-Theory.com
Scales, Chords, Progressions, and More

Pentatonic Scale Patterns With Blues Notes

You've done a great book, but when I was working through the blues section I noticed something which might be improved upon. You show the blues notes in the first pentatonic shape in the Em, Fm, Gm and Am positions (on page 16). I thought that in future editions you might be willing to show the blues notes in all of the pentatonic shapes, i.e. the diagrams on page 9 but with the blues notes added to them.

This brings up a good point. In Fretboard Theory I purposely didn't illustrate all of the possible blues scale pentatonic patterns for a reason. It's possible to focus too much on technical things and miss the practical applications.

As stated in the book, the blues scale is really just a musical idea that stems from adding chromatic passing tones to bridge the gaps between the scale intervals. So if you really want to cover all your bases, I guess you should memorize the pentatonic patterns with every possible gap filled. In case you haven't already drawn this conclusion, that would be every note on the whole fretboard! This is not going to help you.

Instead, focus on memorizing the core five pentatonic scale patterns. Then learn how to play melodies, riffs, lead solos and bass lines that are based in the scale. Finally, consider the addition of extra notes and study songs that incorporate the technique. You'll learn how the patterns change as you go. And most importantly, you'll understand the practical application of the blues scale which is worth far more than more patterns!

Play Until Yer Fingers Bleed!
Mr. Desi Serna (Google me!)
http://www.Guitar-Music-Theory.com
Pentatonic/CAGED/Progressions/Modes

Diminished Guitar Chord Theory and the Major Scale

I'm way past there now, but when I was back in chapter 6 of Fretboard Theory I was curious as to why you didn't mention diminished chords as the 7th instead of "minor-flat-5"? At least that's the way I learned in back in school.

The seventh degree of the major scale does not produce a complete diminished chord. Instead you get a root, b3rd, b5th, and b7th. You'd need a bb7th (double flat) interval in order to complete a diminished chord.

One way to think of a full diminished chord is as all minor third intervals. Start on a root, go up a minor third (three frets), then up a minor third again, then up a minor third again, etc.

The chord building lessons in my book, Fretboard Theory, focus solely on the major scale. This foundational guitar theory information should be learned before you venture into more advanced topics.

Play Until Yer Fingers Bleed!
Mr. Desi Serna (Google me!)
http://www.Guitar-Music-Theory.com
Pentatonic/CAGED/Progressions/Modes

Tri Tone Substituting Guitar Theory

I have been studying Music seriously for about 3 1/2 years and the study of modes really escaped me! Your approach of tying the theory and chord progression aspects together made perfect sense to me, and the added blues section really clarified the the blues changes. The concept of each chord being a different key center was a epiphany.

I have a request. A concept that I have had trouble with (and others guitar players)I'm sure, is Tri-Tone Subs,. If you have any advice I would appreciate it.

I appreciate your comments about my DVD, Guitar Modes - The Modal Scales of Popular Music. I'm glad that the information is working well for you. It's amazing how the right guitar theory instruction can make such a big difference in how players view and understand music.

Tri Tone Substitutions
This topic is beyond the scope of my guitar theory materials, and ventures into a pretty heavy jazz concept. But, I'll try to give you one example anyway.

Play a 1 6 2 5 chord progression in the key of G (any key will work) using all dominant seven chords. Play two beats of each chord, or strum each chord twice. For chords 6 2 and 5, substitute a tri-tone dominant seventh chord on beat two, or the second strum. So the progression will look like this:

G7 G7, E7 Bb7, A7 Eb7, D7 Ab7

Reduce this to the chord roots only and you'll have a typical jazz bass line. Many times just the bass player does the flat fifth substituting.

Play Until Yer Fingers Bleed!
Mr. Desi Serna (Google me!)
http://www.Guitar-Music-Theory.com
Pentatonic/CAGED/Progressions/Modes

Do I Need to Memorize Guitar Major Scale Pattern Shapes?

I have worked thorough the guitar pentatonic scale patterns and have them down pretty well. I seem to find the guitar major scale patterns more difficult to remember. Do I need to learn them by shape or can I just build a scale as I go by knowing the scale degrees and steps? Also, do I need to have the major scales down "pat" before I can move on to other music theory topics?

The key to understanding how music works on the guitar fretboard is visualizing shapes and patterns and how they connect. Since everything in music stems from the major scale, knowing guitar major scale patterns is foundational to guitar theory.

I recommend you follow the instruction laid out in Fretboard Theory Chapter 5: The Major Scale. Memorize the 5 patterns on the guitar neck, and then practice connecting them forward and backward in order to complete the whole scale template. Once you can accomplish this in the original key I illustrate the patterns in, transpose the scale to new keys by shifting the template to new fretboard positions. Use the songs listed on page 73-74 to practice with. This way, you can hear the melodic characteristics of the major scale as you review the patterns (this will make practicing a lot more enjoyable).

After you can complete the scale template forward and backward in various keys, the next step is to learn lots of major scale songs. Melodies, riffs, lead guitar solos, and even bass lines will all demonstrate how to apply the patterns in musical context. And listeners will appreciate hearing something familiar too!

Play Until Yer Fingers Bleed!
Mr. Desi Serna (Google me!)
http://www.Guitar-Music-Theory.com
Pentatonic/CAGED/Progressions/Modes

Connecting Pentatonic Scale Patterns For Guitar

I want to move through all the notes in succession all the way through the neck for a particular key. When you move from pattern 1 all the way through to pattern 5 using the major or minor pentatonic scales, how do I ensure I move to the next note for the next pattern?

This is a common music theory question about learning pentatonic scales for guitar that basically asks whether or not there is a "correct" way to finish one pattern and then start the next. In addition, some guitarists wonder if they should connect the patterns in a continuous manner so that they don't skip or repeat any notes.

The answer to both questions is no. Players should just play up and down a pattern in one position and then move up the guitar neck to the next, restart, and play up and down the new pattern in the new position. At this stage you're just trying to train yourself to access the scale notes in any position, or "map out" the guitar fretboard.

After you have memorized and can play all five pentatonic scale patterns ascending and descending you need to transpose to new keys and practice connecting the patterns again.

The final step is to put the patterns to use by learning lots of pentatonic scale songs. Pentatonic melodies, riffs, lead guitar solos, and bass lines will be in various keys and move through the patterns in various ways including starting and stopping, reversing direction, skipping and repeating notes, and shifting positions. Through this song learning process you'll develop a practical understanding of the guitar theory behind applying the pentatonic scale, both major and minor, to different music styles.

Play Until Yer Fingers Bleed!
Mr. Desi Serna (Google me!)
http://www.Guitar-Music-Theory.com
Pentatonic/CAGED/Progressions/Modes

Playing Minor Pentatonic Scales Over Seventh Chords and Blues Progressions

On page 115 you allude to a concept that I hadn't considered before which is that in a major blues when the I-IV-V are all Dom7s, that we are really using three different keys.

In the case of a blues in C, C7 would be the V of G, F7 is the V of Bb, and G7 is the V of C.

You use this to allude to the fact that a blues solo can be complex by changing major scales to match the chord changes.

My question is why will a single Pentatonic scale in one key work. I have played it that way for years, but now that you have opened my eyes to the fact that the key is actually changing I am questioning what I know. I understand why it works over all of the chords in a single key, but why does it still work when the keys are changing?

This is a great question about applying guitar pentatonic and major scale patterns to songs in a blues music style. Playing the minor pentatonic scale over a chord with a major third interval in it, is actually breaking the rules. As a result, some of the scale and chord tones clash. This dissonance gives blues and blues-based rock music an edgy sound that most guitar players find pleasing to the ear (your grandparents, not so much).

Although this is more music theory information than most guitarists want or need to know, here's how the scale works over what appears to be a typical I IV V (1 4 5) blues chord progression in the key of G. Remember, as I explain in my book Fretboard Theory, each dominant seven chord is actually the V chord of another key.

G7 (V chord C) with G minor pentatonic scale
You get a root, flat third, fourth, fifth, and flat seventh. All the notes relate perfectly to the chord, and the parent C major scale, except for the Bb which is a minor third. This interval contributes to the sour but cool "blues" sound.

C7 (V chord F) with G minor pentatonic scale
You get a root, second, fourth, fifth and flat seventh. All the notes relate perfectly to the chord, and the parent F major scale.

D7 (V chord G) with G minor pentatonic scale
You get a root, flat third, fourth, augmented (or sharp) fifth and flat seventh. You already know that a flat third, or minor third, interval contributes to the bluesy sound. The sharp fifth interval creates an augmented chord which increases the tension and leads to and resolves back to the tonic, G7. D7 augmented, which can be heard at the beginning of "Stormy Monday" by The Allman Brothers Band, can be played like this:

Root D - string 5, fret 5, ring finger
Major 3rd - string 4, fret 4, middle finger
Sharp 5th - string 3, fret 3, index finger
Root D - string 2, fret 3, barre with index finger

Isn't it amazing that a concept that is so easy to play on the guitar fretboard ends up being based on rather complicated guitar theory? I guess some things are easier done than said. This certainly applies to using minor pentatonic scale patterns in blues guitar music.