Nice Variation on the G7 Chord

Bill Sheehan

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Quite by accident the other day, I stumbled onto a nice variation on the G7 chord. It won't necessarily "fit" in every situation, but it's fun to "sneak it in there" occasionally for a pleasant sonic effect, in a spot where the normal first-position form of the G7 chord would otherwise be played. I'm sure this variation has a formal name, but I have to confess I don't have a clue what it would be; to my ear it sounds nice, though, perhaps because there's a feeling of "unresolved tension" to it.
It's a two-finger chord, created by putting one finger on the 1st string, second fret, and another finger on the 3rd string, fifth fret. The 2nd and 4th strings should ring "open". -Bill
 
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I'm not sure that I would call that a G7. I'm reading it as A-C-A-A as the notes being sounded. That's closer to an Am without the E note. The tension could be altered by going to the E and resolving it. Or go to the F... so on and so on. The problem with a two note chord is that its not so much a chord but an interval.
 
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Thanks for your observations, guys! Very informative indeed! And yes, SandChannel, just to make sure we're on the same page, I'm fingering the A string on the second fret, and the C string on the fifth fret. The G and E strings remain open.

Ubulele, I hadn't yet come to discover that this chord could also be executed with the fingering you mention, and will contain the exact same pitches as mine; I guess it's a matter of settling on which version you prefer! To my ear, the "sonority" is darn near identical as between the two, so I may opt for the two-finger version if for no other reason than the fact that it requires only two fingers!

SailingUke, I like your variation as well, although I notice that two of the notes within that chord are the same. I may be a little weird on this, but I'm not a big fan of chords that utilize the same note twice (a conventional G chord, for instance). This isn't a criticism, to be sure, but I guess I just feel that if we only have four strings to work with, we get more out of it if we construct each chord with four different notes. I know that many folks will not see it that way, however! Everyone have a good Friday night!
 
I would call 0202 a G6 chord. GDEB As Ubulele said, it could be used as a partial G13 chord, missing the F or flatted 7 note.
0232 or GDGB is a GMa chord.
If we drop the extra G half a tone, we get 0222 or GDF#B which is a GMa7 chord.
If we drop it another half tone, we get 0212 or GDFB which is a Gdom7, commonly called G7.
If we drop it another half tone, we get 0202 or GDEB, a G6 chord.

Similarly, 0231 or GDGA# is a Gmi chord.
Drop the extra G one fret and get 0221 or GDF#A#, a GmiMA7 chord
Drop it one more fret to get 0211 or GDFA#, a Gmi7 chord.
Drop it one more fret and get 0201 or GDEA#, a Gmi6 chord.

For some reason, when we add an E to a GMa chord it becomes a G6 chord, but when we add an E to a G7 chord, it becomes a G13 chord. Can anyone explain why?

1/G 2/A 3/B 4/C 5/D 6/E 7/F# 8/G 9/A 10/B 11/C 12/D 13/E . . .
 
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Personally I prefer the 4535 formation for the G7. Different strokes etc.
 
Thank you, Jim, Ubulele, Sand, Sailing, and JJ for taking the time to offer your thoughts and observations, as they have really shed some light on how all of this "stuff" works! I especially like the way you guys express how you're fingering a chord, by the use of a simple four-digit number. And just to clarify, using that presentation for the "G7 variation with the unresolved feel" that I initially wrote about, it would be 0502. THANKS, and I hope everyone has a good weekend!
 
0502 (GFEB) This one would be a G13. Ubulele was right. (It would need a D to be a full G13, but as we know, a ukulele has its limits - four note chords.)
 
Thanks, Jim! Being a non-reader (of music, that is!), the technical part of things is a little beyond me, and I tend to live by "shapes" when it comes to playing the uke. Either way, I think we can all agree that a big part of the fun is the never-ending process of discovery and, accordingly, refinement that takes place every day of the journey. Thanks again to all of you for taking the time to discuss. -Bill
 
Hey, no problem, Sand, as I have a feeling many of us get the 4-3-2-1 vs. 1-2-3-4 sequence crossed up a little from time to time. I know I'm certainly one of those people, perhaps in part due to the fact that I'm a lefty who uses a regular-strung uke, just flipped the other direction and played basically upside down.
 
Personally I prefer the 4535 formation for the G7. Different strokes etc.

It really depends on what note I want on top. I like 0212 if the melody note is B, 4535 if the melody note is D, 7778 if the melody note is F, 10,11, 10,10 if the melody note is a high G.
If I need a G7 chord with a lower G on top, I'll play 453X.
 
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