F add9 chordFadd9

Built from

• Froot
• Amajor 3rd
• C5th
• G9th

The 9th is the 2nd an octave up, a bright colour on top of a plain major chord.

Hear it in a progression

• The pop progression

  Behind countless hits. Hopeful, then bittersweet. In F major.

  Capo and transpose

  1. Fadd9I
  2. CV
  3. Dmvi
  4. B♭IV

• Three-chord song

  Folk, rock and roll, campfire. In F major.

  Capo and transpose

  1. Fadd9I
  2. B♭IV
  3. CV
  4. Fadd9I

• Doo-wop

  Fifties ballad, sweet and nostalgic. In F major.

  Capo and transpose

  1. Fadd9I
  2. Dmvi
  3. B♭IV
  4. CV

Where it goes next

Thinking in F major, where it is the I chord.

• B♭

  IV. Lifts away from home without leaving it.

• C

  V. Builds tension that wants to come back.

• Dm

  vi. Same key, sadder colour: the relative minor.

• Gm

  ii. A gentle step up that sets up the V chord.

Sounds close

• Dm7

  Shares 3 of its notes. Both have F, A and C.

• Am7

  Shares 3 of its notes. Both have A, C and G.

• C

  Shares 2 of its notes. Both have C and G.

• Cm

  Shares 2 of its notes. Both have C and G.

Scales that fit

Notes you can play over this chord, simplest first.

• F major
• F major pentatonic

Keys it lives in

• F majoras I
• B♭ majoras V
• C majoras IV
• A minoras VI
• D minoras III
• G minoras VII