Most Common Bluegrass Chord Progressions
I think it’s good for beginners to have a good idea of what the most common chord progressions are in the genres they want to learn. Bluegrass has certain ones that occur more than others.
If you were learning jazz, these might be different. For example, you don’t see a lot of iiminor going to V in bluegrass, at least not like jazz. A lot of modern church music uses the E minor to C chord progression; this exists in bluegrass, but not nearly as much.
In this article I want to present the most common chord progressions in bluegrass. This is meant to assist you in knowing what patterns to concentrate your hands and ears on doing. All of the examples below are presented in the key of G. However, they can and should be transposed to your other standard bluegrass keys (D, C, A, E, and so forth).
Common Bluegrass Chord Progressions
- V-I
- II-V
- I-vi minor
- I-I7
- I-bVII
- I-bIII
V-I
This isn’t the most common chord progression in only bluegrass but also in all other common genres as well (Jazz, Classical, and Popular music). In the key of G, this is D to G. Sometimes people will put a 7th on it, and it becomes:
D7 to G
Some hints on learning to hear this chord progression:
Listen for the LEADING TONE moving into the TONIC of the key.
A D major chord contains the notes: D F# A. G major contains the notes G B D.
You want to hear the F# moving UP into the G of the next chord. I suggest holding the D chord and humming/singing the F# and then holding the G chord while singing the G note. Do this enough times and your ear will get in tune to the V to I.
V to I chord progressions generally come at the end of a phrase or even at the end of a song. Check out the songs you already know and see how many times you run into a V-I chord progression.
II-V
In the key of G, this is an A major (or A7) going into D.
I always joke that you can’t have a bluegrass-gospel song without a II-V. Notice that this isn’t A minor like you get out of the primary chords (G, Amin, Bm, C, and so forth).
This chord is part of what’s called a SECONDARY DOMINANT chord. Statistically speaking, II chords usually go to the V.
Similarly to the V-I, the II to V has its on leading tone.
An A major chord has the notes A C# E and a D major has D F# A. What is occurring here is the C# of the A chord is moving into the D note of the D chord. What makes this a SECONDARY chord as opposed to a PRIMARY one is that A major contains a C# (A note not found in the original home key). G major has a C natural, not a C#. Once again, practice holding the A major chord while singing C# and hold the D major chord while singing the D. Start a progression like this:
G-A-D-G
and practice singing those notes within the context of a chord progression to help you hear this.
Another way that’s less complicated is to just practice singing the bassline G-A-D-G (the root notes of the progression). This works but you still have to be able to hear whether the A chord is major or minor. Hence, why I think it’s good to practice both exercises.
Examples of Songs that use this chord progression include:
Salty Dog Blues, Old Home Place (chorus), East TN Blues, Jesus Hold My Hand, Unclouded Day, and many more!
I-vi
In the key of G, this is G to Eminor. Eminor is sometimes called the relative minor of G. If you look at these two chords, they almost contain the same notes. G has G-B-D and E minor has E-G-B. They share two out of three notes. Therefore, it would make sense that these chords often follow one another.
Hints on hearing this chord progression: Pay attention to the bass or guitar bass runs. Very often it will do a walk down, G F#to E. I might suggest singing that bass line a few times (G-F#-E).
Song examples include:
Foggy Mountain breakdown
Big Spike Hammer
You also see this chord change in the key of E minor (Red Rocking Chair).
I recently did an article on finding your vi minor on banjo.
I to I7
This is really more of an embellishment than a chord change. You are simply adding the 7th to the I chord as it moves into the IV chord. In other words, G-G7-C.. You can put the I7 in any time you have a couple measures of I going to the IV chord.
Hints for training your ear to hear this: Practice holding the G chord while singing G, holding the G7 chord while singing an F note and then finally holdiing a C major chord while singing an E note. In summary, G-F-E is a melody that helps bring awareness to this chord progression.
Song Examples Include: Nine Pound Hammer, Lonesome Road Blues, and Shucking the Corn.
I to bVII
In the key of G, this is a G to F chord progression. You might say, but the G major scale doesn’t even have an F note in it (It’s G A B C D E F#). Where does the F chord come from? It occurs in songs that are modal or when you have a major key song that’s borrowing from a mode.
In this case, this is USUALLY borrowed from G mixolydian (G A B C D E F). There are a TON of bluegrass songs that use this progression. Here are a few:
Wheel Hoss
Red Haired Boy
Old Joe Clark
I to bIII
This progression is common in more modern bluegrass. In this case, G to Bb. This is another chord progression that is BORROWING from a mode. In this case, it’s usually the Dorian mode (G A Bb C D E F). We know it’s not the Mixolydian mode because it contains a B, not a Bb.
A popular tune that does this chord change is “I know you Rider.” A song I play with the Chuck Nation band is called “If you’re ever in Oklahoma.” It features this chord progression.
Wrap Up
This list isn’t meant to be exhaustive or comprehensive. It’s meant to get you started knowing the most common chord progressions in bluegrass music. If you master these, you’re well on your way to playing accompaniment to most bluegrass songs. The more of these progressions you can recognize by ear, the quicker you’ll be able to pick up songs as well.
Lastly, if you would like one-on-one lessons please contact me. I can assist with both bluegrass banjo and guitar. I also work with songwriters to create more interesting arrangements of their songs. Happy picking!
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