Chords: On the 1st 3 Strings (2)

If you haven't seen part I of this series, take a look at it first!

Basic chords are made of three notes, for example the C chord is made of the notes C E G. In the previous lesson, we played chords with the root note, 'C' in the case of the C chord, at the bottom. However, the base note can be varied, with different results.

The following chord uses the 2nd note ('E' for the C, 'Eb' for Cm) as its base, and is known as the '1st inversion' (inversion as in 'invert'):
-8-8----------------
-8-8----------------
-9-8----------------
--------------------
--------------------
--------------------
C Cm

As with the previous example in part I, the middle note, E, is lowered by one fret as you move from the major chord to the minor chord.

The following chord uses the 3nd note ('G' for the C, 'G' for Cm) as its base, and is known as the '2nd inversion':
-12--11-------------
-13--13-------------
-12--12-------------
--------------------
--------------------
--------------------
C Cm

If you've watched the 'Follow the Son' DVD, Nigel uses the 2nd inversion chord extensively (which by the way has the same fingering as the D open chord) for Follow the Son's chorus.

Now, put on some light distortion, and strum every song using these, and the previous lesson's chords! You can stick to one pattern, as Nigel did for Follow the Son, or you can switch around. I like to keep the chords near one another. For example, Take it All's chorus can be done like this (the number next to the chord represents the inversion I'm using; 1=1st inversion, 2=2nd inversion, no number=no inversion):

-11-9---11--12------
-12-11--12--12------
-11-11--13--13------
--------------------
--------------------
--------------------
B2 F# G#m E1

Followed by B2, F# again, and
'take take take it all'
-12---
-14---
-13---
------
------
------
C#m2

This is especially useful if there is another guitar doing strong power chords, and you're on the lead guitar.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

i didnt quite get the inversion thing.. how is it done once again? all i know about inversion is that you will do the same chord in other fret and string???

user said...

Something like that.. but different inversions have differnet notes at the bottom of the chord.

Anonymous said...

ah ok i think im starting to get this ... so its like in part one the root note is on third string, first inversion - root note on first string, and second inversion - root note on second string - and then you go from there right? :D

Anonymous said...

hey how do you play 7th chords .. i.e. A7, b7, etc?

philip said...

hi,, i just trying to figure it out but it makes me a little confuse.. u sed in the previous theory dat in order to get the notes of the chord u just only nid to play the alternate notes.. but why does the chord b has the notes of b-d#-f#? why it is not b-d-f? please help so i could continue learning.. tnx..

Unknown said...

it's b-d#-f# because those notes are represent the root-3rd-5th intervals which make up a chord. Each chord is made up of the 1st(root), 3rd, and 5th. With the inversions, we are basically switching the order around..3rd, 1st, 5th and 5th, 1st, 3rd. It's all the same chord though, just inverted.

Unknown said...

oh, i mean 3rd, 5th, 1st..not 3rd, 1st, 5th

Teeb Yaaj said...

haha jsut for fun you said 3nd? like in the middle of the page..