Beginner Guitar Chords - Part 3

For learning beginner guitar chords, after the basic major and minor chords, the next step to to learn some of the 7th chords. The major 7th chords shown in the chart below are some of the easier to play major 7th chords.

In contrast to the dominant 7th and minor 7th chords, the major 7th chords tend to have a brighter, jazzier feel to them. A good example is the opening of "Ventura Highway" by America. From a music theory standpoint, the major 7th chord is a major triad with a major seventh addition, occuring on the 1st and 4th degrees of the scale.

The chart below shows you how to play some fairly simple, open string major 7th chords, such as Amaj7, Cmaj7, Dmaj7, Fmaj7, and Gmaj7. Note that the Dmaj7 is really a simple Barre chord in which the first finger is laid across the 1st three strings on the second fret. For beginner guitar chords, these major 7ths sound pretty cool considering they are fairly simple to play.

Some Easy Major 7th Chords

Next set of Beginner Guitar Chords - Dominant 7ths

Learn Basic Guitar Chords and Chord Families

Download and Print Guitar Chord Charts

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