G add9 chordGadd9

Built from

• Groot
• Bmajor 3rd
• D5th
• A9th

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 G major.

  Capo and transpose

  1. Gadd9I
  2. DV
  3. Emvi
  4. CIV

• Three-chord song

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

  Capo and transpose

  1. Gadd9I
  2. CIV
  3. DV
  4. Gadd9I

• Doo-wop

  Fifties ballad, sweet and nostalgic. In G major.

  Capo and transpose

  1. Gadd9I
  2. Emvi
  3. CIV
  4. DV

Where it goes next

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

• C

  IV. Lifts away from home without leaving it.

• D

  V. Builds tension that wants to come back.

• Em

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

• Am

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

Sounds close

• Em7

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

• Bm7

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

• D

  Shares 2 of its notes. Both have D and A.

• Dm

  Shares 2 of its notes. Both have D and A.

Scales that fit

Notes you can play over this chord, simplest first.

• G major
• G major pentatonic

Keys it lives in

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