E♭ seven chordE♭7

Built from

• E♭root
• Gmajor 3rd
• B♭5th
• D♭flat 7th

The flat 7th rubs against the major 3rd, and that tension wants to resolve.

Hear it in a progression

• ii–V–I

  The backbone of jazz. In A♭ major.

  Capo and transpose

  1. B♭m7ii7
  2. E♭7V7
  3. A♭maj7Imaj7
  4. A♭maj7Imaj7

• Blues opening

  The first four bars of a twelve-bar blues. In E♭ major.

  Capo and transpose

  1. E♭7I7
  2. A♭7IV7
  3. E♭7I7
  4. E♭7I7

Where it goes next

Thinking in A♭ major, where it is the V7 chord.

• A♭maj7

  Imaj7. The strongest pull in music: tension resolving home.

• Fm7

  vi7. The fake-out: you expect home, you get the relative minor.

Sounds close

• Cm7

  Shares 3 of its notes. Both have E♭, G and B♭.

• D♭dim7

  Shares 3 of its notes. Both have G, B♭ and D♭.

• A7

  Tritone substitute: swaps in for it in jazz. Both have G and D♭.

• Cm

  Shares 2 of its notes. Both have E♭ and G.

Scales that fit

Notes you can play over this chord, simplest first.

• E♭ major pentatonic
• E♭ minor pentatonic
• E♭ blues
• E♭ mixolydian

Keys it lives in

• A♭ majoras V7
• F minoras VII7