You NEED to Know the MAGIC CHORDS That Transform Your Playing

You NEED to Know the MAGIC CHORDS That Transform Your Playing

Hey guys, Brad Litton from SimpleGuitar.com. This blog post transcribes my YouTube lesson on what I call magic chords — open, lush shapes that instantly make your playing sound less like a campfire singalong and more like the music you actually hear in your head.

They're in the key of E major / C# minor. They use the open first and second strings. They work on acoustic and electric. You can capo them to change keys. They're movable. They're great for arranging songs, writing, or improvising on the spot. And they strengthen your hand for barre chords down the line.

We're not going deep on theory today. I'll give you the fancy names once so you know, then we'll just call them by the simple names.

Chord 1: E Major (With Fingers 2, 3, and 4)

Regular E is: first finger first fret of the third string, third finger second fret of the fourth string, second finger second fret of the fifth string. Other three strings open.

For these shapes, take the first finger out. Make E with:

• Second finger on the first fret of the third string
• Pinky on the second fret of the fourth string
• Third finger on the second fret of the fifth string

Trust me — this is going to be handy.

Chord 2: F# Minor (Technically F#m11)

From that E, slide your hand up two frets. Third and fourth fingers land on the fourth fret of the fifth and fourth strings. Put your first finger on the second fret of the third string. Strum all six, or just five. Either works.

That's the second chord in the key. Full fancy name is F# minor 11. All you need: it's F# minor.

Chord 3: G# Minor (Technically G#m♭6)

Same shape as F# minor, slide up two more frets:

• Third finger: sixth fret, fifth string
• Pinky: sixth fret, fourth string
• First finger: fourth fret, third string
• First and second strings open; you can play the sixth string open too

That's the third chord in the key. Play around with E, F#m, and this G#m. They sound cool together.

Chord 4: A (Technically Aadd9)

From G# minor, slide up one fret so third and fourth fingers are on the seventh fret of the fifth and fourth strings. Put your second finger on the sixth fret of the third string. Bring your first finger over to play only the fifth fret of the sixth string — not a barre. Curl it so you're not touching strings you don't want. First and second strings still open.

Beautiful A without a full barre. Hardest part of all of these (especially this one) is keeping fingers curled so every string you want actually rings.

Chord 5: B (Technically Badd11)

Exact same shape as that A: 5, 7, 6 on the sixth / fifth+fourth / third. Slide up two frets to 7, 9, and 8. That's B major.

Pause and try combinations of these five: E, F#m, G#m, A, B. You could go E to B, down to F#m, up to A, G#m, B — whatever. They belong together.

Chord 6: C# Minor 7

From B, go up two more frets, but switch to the minor shape we used for F#m and G#m:

• Third and fourth fingers on the 11th fret of the fifth and fourth strings
• First finger on the ninth fret of the third string

That's C# minor 7. Even with just these six, you can start playing some awesome stuff. Use them for songs already in E, or transpose a song into E so you can use these.

Try combining all six in any order, with any strumming or picking.

Alternate C#m7: Power-Chord Shape

This one's awesome. Like a power chord:

• First finger: fourth fret, fifth string
• Third finger: sixth fret, fourth string
• Pinky: sixth fret, third string
• Play five strings, first two open

Make sure those first two strings stay open.

A Major 9 (From That Shape)

From that C#m7 power-chord shape, lift your first finger. Leave third and fourth on the sixth fret of the third and fourth strings, and play the fifth string open. That's A major 9.

The change from C#m7 to Amaj9 is a super cool sounding change. I even wrote a song where the verse is just those two chords alternating. You can do the same — sit on those two and mess around.

Extra B: Bsus4

From that C#m7 power-chord shape, scoot it down two frets so you're on 2 and 4. That's a Bsus4. Different kind of B.

Extra E: Same Power-Chord Shape at 7 and 9

Slide that power-chord shape all the way up to 7 and 9 and play all six strings. That's an E.

Because these are all in the same key, they're going to sound good together. You can also try moving the power-chord shape around (there's a D sitting on 5 and 7, for example). And that A major 9 shape moves too: down to the fourth fret it's still an A, second fret is an Asus2, up to nine is still an A.

Example from the lesson: E power-chord shape, lift the first finger (A), down to C#m7, lift the first finger again. Easy to stumble into cool stuff.

What to Do With These

Once the shapes are comfortable:

• Write your own progressions (E – C#m – A – B is a classic place to start)
• Rearrange songs you wouldn't normally hear this way — especially solo acoustic, singing with yourself. These sound rich and full.
• Improvise. Know the chords well enough to change, then make it up. Different picking, different strumming. Your imagination is the only limit.
• Capo: the capo is your new zero. Same shapes, different keys.

If you want a simple place to start, grab my free Top 10 Things to Learn on Guitar First at http://simpleguitar.com/top10.

And hang out with other adult guitar players in the Simple Guitar Facebook group: http://facebook.com/groups/simpleguitar.

About the Author
Brad from Simple Guitar helps adult learners play the songs they love without the frustration. Visit simpleguitar.com for more free resources and lessons.