Your favorite jazz chord progressions

**Gibson0918** · 05-30-2009, 09:07 PM

Anybody care to tell me some of their favorite jazz progressions? I'm looking for some new ideas

**Banksia** · 05-30-2009, 10:47 PM

My favourite for years has been the ii-V with tritone - Am7 Ab7 Gm7 Gb7 etc. You can start anywhere, resolve anywhere or anything.

One that always sounds good on guitar if you keep the top G constant is C Eb Ab G7 or on acoustic "You stepped out of a dream" can sound good even with basic (non-jazz altered) chords. Basically it's a song in in Ab that starts and ends on C Major.

**JohnW400** · 05-30-2009, 11:23 PM

i mi7 VI 7 V7 in the minor so, Fmi Db7 C7

**gravitas** · 05-31-2009, 10:00 AM

**wizard3739** · 05-31-2009, 11:44 AM

I like a turn-a-round I VI II V with tritone subs and a common tone on top.

example: BbMaj7 Db13 GbMaj7 B7b5 (#11)

6x776x 9x986x x9866x 7x675x

I use this a lot when I don't have a special ending.

wiz

**ZzaJMarc** · 05-31-2009, 03:10 PM

Yea, i agree with gravitas for nardis, resolving a altered chord an half step above to a maj7 sound so good to me (B7alt Cmaj7)

**Jake Hanlon** · 06-01-2009, 01:17 AM

I like chromatic ii V's that make sense like in Milestones or Eternal Triangle. They're interesting to work around.

Giant Steps never gets borring

Nardis has it's charms. Do the Kenny Wheeler Reharm and make the Am7 chords on the bridge Maj7 chords... it's hip.

**m78w** · 06-01-2009, 08:53 AM

I like turning around from I to iim7 so in C

Cmaj7 Fmaj7/Em7b5 A7alt/Dm7...

MW

**BigDaddyLoveHandles** · 06-07-2009, 01:22 AM

Originally Posted by Banksia

My favourite for years has been the ii-V with tritone - Am7 Ab7 Gm7 Gb7 etc. You can start anywhere, resolve anywhere or anything.

Oh yeah! As an exercise, I took a standard turn-around (say in F):

F / D7b9 / | Gmi7 / C7 /|

and was writing down licks over this in straight eighth notes. For one, I thought of the progression as

Ami7 / Ab7 / | Gmi7 / F#7 /|

And just had some rising and falling arpeggios:

A C E G : Gb Eb C Ab | G Bb D F : E C# A# F# |

A little corny, but I like it! I also pushed the notes ahead a half a beat and accented the bold notes:

A | C E G Gb : Eb C Ab G | Bb D F E : C# A# F# Fnat |

lately, I find myself walking around, thinking of chord substitutions, inversions, lines, etc... humming and generally looking like a crazy person.

**ZzaJMarc** · 06-07-2009, 01:58 PM

Originally Posted by Jake Hanlon

I like chromatic ii V's that make sense like in Milestones or Eternal Triangle. They're interesting to work around.

Giant Steps never gets borring

Nardis has it's charms. Do the Kenny Wheeler Reharm and make the Am7 chords on the bridge Maj7 chords... it's hip.

Sounds Cool

Would you do that in a jam situation, where nobody knows about that reharm and use it as a sub in you impro + comping ?

What is the name of Kenny's album where he plays Nardis ?

**Marques** · 06-10-2009, 10:54 AM

I love Giant Steps, Moaning, 500 Miles High and Blue in Green chord progressions.

Jazzarian · 06-10-2009, 07:19 PM

Originally Posted by Banksia

My favourite for years has been the ii-V with tritone - Am7 Ab7 Gm7 Gb7 etc. You can start anywhere, resolve anywhere or anything.
.

Ever add a diminished in between? Like Am7 Adim Ab7

Also fun to do a iii7 iiidim ii7, like Ami7 Adim Gmi7, like Deodato's Super Strut, for instance.

**Gerard45** · 06-27-2011, 09:40 AM

I like this turnaround:

Cmaj7 - Ebmaj7 - Abmaj7 - Dbmaj7 - Cmaj7

**Gerard45** · 08-24-2011, 06:50 AM

Originally Posted by Gibson0918

Anybody care to tell me some of their favorite jazz progressions? I'm looking for some new ideas

Mainly in Bossa's I play the chord Em7b5 (in the progression Em7b5 - A7#5 - Dm9) this way:

Em7b5: 6x575x (b5, x, b3, b7, root, x)
A7#5: 5x566x (root, x, b7, 3, #5, x)
Dm9: x5355x (x, root, b3, b7, 9, x)

**whatswisdom** · 08-24-2011, 09:25 AM

Along Came Betty (a Benny Golson masterpiece; gorgeous changes)
You've Changed (Keith Jarrett Trio "The Out of Towners.")
Question & Answer (Metheny)
Relaxin' At Camarillo (a bop symphony)
Stella
Body and Soul
ATTYA

**oldane** · 08-24-2011, 10:03 AM

There's so many, but Duke Ellingtons "Warm Valley" is a long time favorite of mine.

**jtizzle** · 08-24-2011, 12:57 PM

The chord progression on Jonathan Kreisbergs Strange Resolutions is really cool. Especially with the voicings he plays.

**fep** · 08-24-2011, 01:07 PM

I like borrowed chords.

Like the first two chords of 'A Child is Born' with it's borrowed iv chord. For that matter I really like the whole progression and melody for that song...

||: Bbmaj7 | Ebm/Bb :||

I could jam to just those two chords and be pretty happy.

Or add the #11

||: Bbmaj7 | Ebm#11/Bb :||

Code:

Bbmaj7
||--1|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|--4|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|--2|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|--3|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||--1|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|

Code:

Ebm#11/Bb
||--1|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|---|--4|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|--2|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|---|--3|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||--1|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
||---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|

**cosmic gumbo** · 08-25-2011, 01:26 PM

If your favorite progression isn't some variant of the 2-5-1, you probably don't really know jazz. Good to see that it's magic still has mojo with everyone.