G chord is one of the most frequently used guitar chords and an essential staple for beginner guitarists. G is often used as the key of songs, and also contains numerous open chords which are easy to play.
Without much movement from your fingers, you can switch from playing a G chord to C without changing its shape much – thanks to octaves – which are simply notes with different pitches.
Open G Shape
From a fingering perspective, major chords are relatively straightforward to play in Open G tuning, since their lowest string (the fifth) serves as the fifth in any major chord structure (x-2-2-2-1-X). By shifting into this tuning you simply line up all your frets into an ideal moveable Major shape (x-2-2-2-1-X).
Minor chords can be more difficult, and guitarists who perform Blues typically need to know how to create dominant seventh chords. Luckily, open G makes this process relatively straightforward as moving your ring and pinky fingers up one fret can create these chords easily.
As an easy example, consider AC/DC’s G5 powerchord. To go even more minimalistic and create a version that sounds similar to Oasis’ Wonderwall song Wonderwall by taking away one finger and creating the classic G6sus4 chord that often appears in Keith Richards songs.
G6 Shape
G6 chord is an extension of the basic G chord with an extra sixth interval added on top. To play it easily, just angle your hand to one side while using your thumb to muted out strings 1st and 6th strings with mutes on their first and sixth strings respectively. A true sixth chord would technically include A note, but this voicing still produces pleasing results.
This chord can be an asset to your repertoire as it can be found in many songs such as ‘Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door’ by Bob Dylan or Guns N Roses or even Don McLean’s American Pie. Additionally, its versatility also works well when combined with D7 or even D9 chords so you can change up the sound and feel of each song by switching between variations of this same chord to keep things interesting for both yourself and your audience. Try switching back and forth between both versions to find which you prefer
G7 Shape
G7 shapes offer beginners a good alternative to barre chords for learning to play guitar, as it is based on an open D7 chord shape and easy to move up the neck. Beginners should first work on developing their fretting hand dexterity before trying this voicing; as it requires barring an index finger across G (bottom string), B (2nd string), and D (3rd string), leaving only Low E (Low E string).
This chord’s high placement on the neck creates a bright and crisp tone color, making it easy to play and adaptable to various musical styles. One example would be Earth, Wind & Fire’s “Shining Star”, with its use of G7 chord shapes at 3rd fret to add that funky edge; Diana Ross and the Supremes used similar chords when writing “Baby Love”, creating its catchy melody and pitch-perfect harmonies with it as well.
G9 Shape
G9 chords are an ideal choice for funk and jazz music as they don’t require the 3rd or 5th note to play them. Here, the chord is voiced with a common movable barring shape using your thumb fretting the low root note; you could also omitting fifth altogether to form a G6 chord voicing.
This lesson’s chord shapes are designed to be flexible; meaning, they can be altered by moving them up or down the fretboard until they fit within the key signature of their new key signature. Simply move one chord shape until it looks identical in all key signatures.
Add extra flavor to these movable shapes by including accidentals in their design. For instance, adding 4 to Dmin7 creates exotic Led Zeppelin-esque voicings like Csus2add#4 and G5add#4, known as augmented chords as they contain both major and minor tones. Furthermore, adding #5 can yield the exotic Cmaj7#11 chord shown in figure 5, known as diminished chords.