More Jazzy?

Hey guys, so I've been getting really into Jazz, and I was wondering how to make songs sound more Jazzier? [I probably totoally slaughtered the spelling of that xP]
I've heard you can add "7ths" but. . .how?
Is it just a matter of:
Original - G C Em D
Jazzy - G7 C7 Em7 D7

Or is it something more complex then that?

Any help would be appreciated, thanks guys ^__^

try playing
Gmajor7 instead of Gmajor. its different from G7

When u play G7 add this.
go from playing

2
1
2
0

to

2
1
2
1

usually the jazz chords i play are major7 chords minor7.

Also try sliding your chords.
For example
GMajor7 is played

2
2
2
0

try sliding it from

1
1
1

iggy524 said:

try playing
Gmajor7 instead of Gmajor. its different from G7

Click to expand...

Yup. The type of 7th you add is going to depend on the original chord's function within the song. It's actually a wee bit complex.

Minor chords are usually going to just get a "minor 7th" added. Examples:

A- = A-7
G- = G-7
etc.

(Oh, and I'm using a "-" to mean "minor", which is a kinda jazzy way of doing it too. )

Major chords (which is what chords are if they're just a single letter with nothing after them) are trickier. They're generally either going to get a "dominant 7th" (noted by just writing a "7" after the chord) or a "major 7th" added. Examples:

C = Cmaj7 or C7
F = Fmaj7 or F7
etc.

How do you know which one to use? In the end, you just have to go with what sounds best to you. But, if you had to pick a "rule of thumb", it would be:

"If the major chord is followed by a chord that is a perfect fifth lower, you can often make it a dominant 7th chord. Otherwise, try major 7th."

A perfect fifth is equivalent to seven frets. Here's the circle of fifths--each chord is a fifth higher than the one below it (and a fifth lower than the one above it). Learn it, live it, love it:

C
F
Bb/A#
Eb/D#
Ab/G#
Db/C#
Gb/F#
B
E
A
D
G
...and back to C (that's why it's a circle!)


So, to use your example of G C Em D, and assuming it repeats, you'd have:

Gmaj7, Cmaj7, E-7, D7

Since the D is moving back to a G when you repeat the chords, and since the G is a fifth lower, you'd make that D a dominant seventh.

The C is moving to an E-, which not a fifth lower, so it's a major seventh.

The G? I guess that's an exception to the rule. Oops. Sure, it is moving down a fifth to C. But your chords are actually in the key of G. A major chord that's the same as the key the song is in will more often get a major 7th.

Hope that makes sense, and hope it helps!

JJ


P.S. In case you were wondering, there are chords beyond sevenths too. Ninths. Thirteenths. Etc. All give that "jazzy" sound. But start with the sevenths first.

Just as an aside... learning that circle of fifths can make some songs easier to understand and memorize.

For example, here are the chords to "Five Foot Two", in the key of C:

C E7 A7 D7 G7 C

Notice that it starts on the chord that's the same as the key. Then we move to the E7. From there, it's just going around the circle until we get back to C!

(And since all that movement is down in fifths, those chords are dominant sevenths.)

So if you know your circle of fifths, you just have to memorize the movement from C to E. The rest is rote.

(Actually once you really know your circle, you don't even have to memorize the E. It's the only chord that will circle down to the C in four chords, so you can work backwards.)

The Hawaiian vamp is the same way. All down in fifths, winding up in the chord of the key:

Key of C: D7 G7 C
Key of G: A7 D7 G
Key of F: G7 C7 F

See? Once you know the circle, you know every Hawaiian vamp in every key!

JJ

<~/UkeDude\~> said:

Hey guys, so I've been getting really into Jazz, and I was wondering how to make songs sound more Jazzier?

Click to expand...

Finding a jazzy tune and figureing out what's so jazzy helps. You can then work that into your noodling.

Here's me playing the first bit of one that felt jazzy to me:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOYYkyZN6ns&feature=PlayList&p=835F52A29E5021C7&index=1

I can send the PDF of the tab if you email me (sorry, too big to upload even after optimizing): scottrule at gmail.com

Scott

You may also want to explore the Rhythm Changes, which come from Gershwin's I Got Rhythm.

Learn Gershwin's tune, and then go to that page and start exploring ways that jazz musicians have added substitutions. The basic form hasn't changed (32-bar, AABA), and the general harmonic motion has stayed the same, but different spices have added though time. That page has them in Bb, which is a fairly common key, but you should try to transpose them to keys that suit the singer's voice.

Many musicians are familiar with the blues changes, but aren't too aware of the rhythm changes. In order to really get familiar with your uke (and with great songwriting), learn these changes, which were especially popular during the era of the Great American Songbook (Gershwin, Porter, Kern, Berlin, etc). You'll notice that songs either use the whole thing or just sections of the RC in them.

Rhythm Changes Rule!

Well I know how I'm going to be spending my weekend...

Good stuff.

Stackabones said:

You may also want to explore the Rhythm Changes, which come from Gershwin's I Got Rhythm.

Learn Gershwin's tune, and then go to that page and start exploring ways that jazz musicians have added substitutions. The basic form hasn't changed (32-bar, AABA), and the general harmonic motion has stayed the same, but different spices have added though time. That page has them in Bb, which is a fairly common key, but you should try to transpose them to keys that suit the singer's voice.

Many musicians are familiar with the blues changes, but aren't too aware of the rhythm changes. In order to really get familiar with your uke (and with great songwriting), learn these changes, which were especially popular during the era of the Great American Songbook (Gershwin, Porter, Kern, Berlin, etc). You'll notice that songs either use the whole thing or just sections of the RC in them.

Click to expand...

Very helpful - thanks for that link!

GrumpyCoyote said:

Very helpful - thanks for that link!

Click to expand...

No problem! Glad it helps.

I was considering putting up a thread about moveable grips for ii-V-I and I-vi-ii-V and whatnot. I couldn't find anything in search, so perhaps a thread is due?

Stackabones said:

I was considering putting up a thread about moveable grips for ii-V-I and I-vi-ii-V and whatnot.

Click to expand...

Don't have info on the movable forms but my little ukulele exercises document has 6 different progressions (including the I vi ii V) in 7 common keys.

Download the pdf from the Ukulele page on my site.

There's a baritone version as well.

Yeah, it depends on the function of the chord. For example, if a G chord is in a song that's in G major, then make it a GMaj7. If a G chord is in a song in C major, make it G7. I love playing jazz, and I did my graduate work in theory, so feel free to e-mail me anytime if you have a question.

Howlin Hobbit said:

Don't have info on the movable forms but my little ukulele exercises document has 6 different progressions (including the I vi ii V) in 7 common keys.

Download the pdf from the Ukulele page on my site.

There's a baritone version as well.

Click to expand...

That's awesome, HH! You've got great info there! As far as moveable shapes, you have them: I IV V7 in Bb; I VI7 II7 V7 in E; i iv V7 in Bm; I vi ii V in E.

Since I often transpose songs to suit my voice, I like knowing my moveable shapes, especially for songs from the Great American Songbook.

Wow guys, thanks for all the help!
It's still a bit confusing for me but think I'll get it eventually xP

If you don't mind my asking, since were on the subject of Jazz, what would be a good scale to use with a jazz progression?

I'm guessing a minor of some sort?

<~/UkeDude\~> said:

Wow guys, thanks for all the help!
It's still a bit confusing for me but think I'll get it eventually xP

If you don't mind my asking, since were on the subject of Jazz, what would be a good scale to use with a jazz progression?

I'm guessing a minor of some sort?

Click to expand...

It really depends on the progression and the chords in the progession (and the jazz era). If it is diatonic, then you can use a major scale over a major progression & a minor over a minor one. That's a bit of a simplification, but it can work.

Start by learning the melody, for it will tell you what works over the progression. Once you get the melody learned, you can use it to base your improvisations: vary the rhythms; take short motifs out of the melody and add or subtract you own ideas.

Then learn the arpeggios for the chords. For example, if you have Dm7-G7-Cmaj7 learn the arps for Dm7 (D F C A), G7 (G B D F) and Cmaj7 (C E G B).

Most importantly, use your ears and trust your instincts. If it sounds good, it is good; if it sounds bad, it is bad.

Also, start listening to great soloists and see if you can cop some of their licks ... Louis Armstrong, Django Rheinhardt, Johnny Hodges, Paul Desmond. Long list. Find the ones that move you. As far as jazz uke, Lyle Ritz has some really great lines on How About Uke?