"The Hawaiian D7"

John Colter

It ain't what you've got, it's what you do with it
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In a conversation recently I referred to the chord 2020 (gCEA tuning) as "The Hawaiian D7". Someone asked me to justify calling it that, but I couldn't. I just remember that I've heard of it from several different sources, in the past.

Can anyone confirm that 2020 IS called the Hawaiian D7, please? Is it a historical thing, or perhaps that chord inversion just sounds better in Hawaiian music?

I hope I'm not spreading some kind of urban myth!

Ukantor.
 
I've heard it called the Hawaiian D7 more than a few times.
 
Same here.

I remember seeing it referred to as such on AlligatorBoogaloo, for example...

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JJ
 
Thanks for the replies, guys. I feel vindicated ( I love to feel vindicated in the morning). I knew I'd seen it somewhere, and heard the term used by others, but when challenged, I couldn't back it up with any convincing argument.

Now I only have to say I've had confirmation from Ukulele Underground - that should do it.

It would be interesting to know the origin of the name. My guess is that it goes back a long way, and that 2020 blends well with typical Hawaiian chord sequences. There certainly are places where it sounds really pleasing.

Ukantor.
 
Weird I was always taught that 2023 taking the 3 off and on when strumming was the Hawaiian D7. Just like the hawiian G which is 0232 taking the 2 on the forth string off and on.
 
The normal D7 (2223) sounds okay when playing with a bunch of 'ukuleles, but as soon as you throw a slack key guitar in the mix it sounds super corny. So I always use 2020 when jamming with slack key players. It isn't really a D7, but it sounds good and I can't remember what it really is supposed to be called.
 
Y'know, I've had more than one person say that it sounds really "Hawaiian" when I play that chord (or 2023).
 
It isn't really a D7, but it sounds good and I can't remember what it really is supposed to be called.

It's nearly a real D7. Oddly enough, the only thing it's missing is the 'D' itself.

Which would make it an F#dim triad (second inversion, if you want to get picky).

JJ
 
I also play 2020 as Aminor6, but it all depends on the context, I guess.

Ukantor.
 
I also play 2020 as Aminor6, but it all depends on the context, I guess.

Good call! That works too. You'd be missing the 'E', but that's the least-essential note in the chord.

For those keeping score at home, yes this does mean that a "real" D7 and a "real" Am6 share three of the same notes. And those shared notes, by themselves, make an F#dim triad. Cool, eh? :cool:

JJ
 
I've done it by accident on a baritone. When playing A7 on a bari, a A7 is 2223 on a guitar its 002020. So I did it by accident from playing the guitar. Then I started thinking that on a C tuned uke that would be a D7 so sometimes I'll play that instead of a 2223. It sounds better on slower songs.

I'll have to figure out why it's not a real D7..... A 7th consist of a 1, 3, 5, 7b of the scale it is in. So when you play a D7 with 2020 you are playing A- C- F#- A instead of A - D - F# - C of the D7

The scale for D is:
D E F# G A B C#

The notes that make up a D7 chord are:
D F# A C

So the 2020 only has the A, F#and C needed to make up the D7. It;s missing the root note D.

So I poked around, a 2020 is actually a F# dimished. A dimished is made up of a 1, 3b, 5b the scale its inl

A F# scale is: F# G# A# B C# D# E#

1, b3, b5 are F#, A, C

So a 2020 has those notes. A- C- F# - A

I hope I did this right. :)
 
Unless it doesn't sound right I always play 2223 for D7 if anything 2223 is the actual "hawaiian" sound imo. Growing up listening to that particular genre that's just what it sounds like to me.
 
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