Open String Major Chord Variations

One of the most common questions my students ask is how to make a 3 or 4 chord song interesting.

The trick is to play variations of the chords using different notes than just the ones the standard major or minor chord shapes use. Here we will look at some common open string chord variations that can be used to make any song sound more interesting.

https://youtu.be/fw98I3D9Mr4

D Major
First off we’ll look at one of the 2 most common chord variations on guitar based around the D major chord.

d_chorddsus2_chord

dsus4_chordDsus2 or D suspended 2nd is a chord that replaces the 3rd (or in this case the major 3rd F#) with the 2nd note of the scale which for a D chord is the E note. So here you play the open 1st E string which means that you only need 2 fingers to play this chord.

The partner to this chord is Dsus4 (D suspended 4th) which uses the note G instead of F#. Here the 4th finger is used to play this note on the 3rd fret of the 1st string.

Guns n Roses - Patience uses the Dsus2 Dsus4 chords.

The Dsus2 and Dsus4 are often used together with the regular D major chord. A good example of this is Patience by Guns n Roses. Other songs that use this include Happy Xmas (War Is Over) by John Lennon and Desolation Row by Bob Dylan.

D major 7 is relatively easy chord to play as it only requires 1 finger to play 3 strings in a row across the 2nds fret of 3 strings. This is a jazzy/loungy chord that works only in some songs so be careful where you use it as it can be too light and breezy for some rock songs. Bossa Nova tunes like Girl form Impanema often use major 7 chords.

A Major
Very similar to the variations for D are the 2 common chord variations for A, Asus2 and Asus4.

a_chordasus2_chord

Asus2 has a B note replacing the major 3rd (C#) while Asus4 has a D note replacing the major 3rd.

asus4_chorda6_chord

A6 is relatively easy chord to play as it only requires 1 finger to play 4 strings in a row across the 2nds fret of 3 strings. Very similar in shape to Dmajor7 While not as light and breezy as a major 7 chord again it only in some songs so be careful where you use it. The Beatles use 6 chords often in their songs and they can sound good as the last chord of a 50s rock tune.

E Major

e_chordesus4_chord
E Major also has an easy sus4 chord with the A note replacing the major 3rd (G#). Here it is recommended to use your 4th finger to play the A note making it easy to switch back and for the from Esus4 to E major.

While it is possible to play Esus2 using an open string chord it is easier and more common to play Eadd2 where the G# note (fret 1 on the 3rd string) still rings out. Here the add2 note is the F# played by finger 4 on the 4th fret of 4th string. This is bit of a stretch so make sure that you’re thumb is behind the neck and pointing upwards to make it easier to play.

eadd2_chordeadd2v2_chord

e6_chordThe Esus4 and Eadd2 can be used in combination with an E major chord just like D and its sus2 sus4 chords. Another variation of Eadd2 is to play the F# with finger 4 on fret 2 of the 1st string.

E6 is and E major chord with a C# added by placing finger 4 on fret 2 of the 2nd string.

G Major
Good old G major has some variations too.

g_chordgv2_chord

First off is what I like to call “rock G” which is G with a D note on the 2nd string. This is still just G major but it tends to ring out more clearly than the traditional G with the open B string. Songs that use this chord include More Than Words by Extreme, Wonderwall by Oasis, 3am by Matchbox 20 and many more.

Gadd2 is G with an A note added by moving finger 1 to fret 2 on the 3rd string. Here the 5th string is muted with the edge of finger 2 leaning over. The most famous example of this chord is the first chord of Every Breath You Take by The Police.

gadd2_chordEvery Breath You Take by The Police uses the Gadd2 chord.

Gmajor7 is played by placing finger 1 on fret 2 of the 1st string and again muting the 5th string with the edge of finger 2.

gmajor7_chordgsus4_chord

Finally for G there is Gsus4 which is the C note replacing the major 3rd note of B. This chord is played by flipping the fingers around so that finger 1 can play the C note on fret 1 of the 2nd string. 2 songs that use this chord are Why Georgia by John Mayer and Riptide by Vance Joy.

https://youtu.be/vqRC1vKYmp4

C Major

c_chordcv2_chord

For C major the first example is again just C major but with a G note played on fret 3 of the 1st string with the little finger. This creates C chord that rings out more clearly. Check out the arpeggio intro to Paradise City to hear this chord in action.

Wonderwall by Oasis uses the Cadd2 chord.In rock music a variation of this shape is Cadd2 which is adding a D note to the chord. The cool thing with this version is that its easy to change from “rock G” to this “rock C” as fingers 3 & 4 don’t have to move. This chord is in Wonderwall by Oasis, Wagon Wheel by Old Crow Medicine Show and Wanted Dead or Alive by Bon Jovi. Cadd2 can also be played with an open 1st E string.

cadd2v2_chordcadd2_chord

cmajor7_chordCmajor7 is super easy chord as it only requires 2 fingers. Again this chord works well for jazzy/loungy sounding songs.

So as you can see there are heaps of variations for the standard open string chords on the guitar. So how you can use them in the songs that you play. Next time we will look at variations for open string minor chords to mix up your playing further.