By Shawn Leonhardt for Guitar Tricks and 30-Day Singer
Videos by American Songwriter
The ii-V-I has been referred to as a chord progression, a turnaround, and a cadence depending on the circumstances it is used. It is most known as the jazz progression as it is the backbone of many jazz pieces, this sequence is repeated over various keys and used as a background for improvisation. In this guitar lesson, we’ll show you some tips and pointers on how the ii-V-I chord progression can be useful to your guitar playing.
What is the ii-V-I?
A chord progression is part of the foundation of most Western music and you may have come across a few already. The I-IV-V is a staple of blues, folk, and pop while the I-V-vi-IV is common in modern rock, and the I-bVII-VI is another hard rock staple. Of course, these chord sequences have no exact rules on where they can be used, just as the well-known jazz progression of the ii-V-I is not only used in jazz.
| Tonic | SuperTonic | Mediant | Sub-Dominant | Dominant | Sub-Mediant | Leading ToneSub-Tonic |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | vii(dim) |
| C | Dm | Em | F | G | Am | B |
| G | Am | Bm | C | D | Em | F# |
| D | Em | F#m | G | A | Bm | C# |
| A | Bm | C#m | D | E | F#m | G# |
| E | F#m | G#m | A | B | C#m | D# |
| B | C#m | D#m | E | F# | G#m | A# |
| F# | G#m | A#m | B | C# | D#m | E# |
| F | Gm | Am | Bb | C | Dm | E |
| Bb | Cm | Dm | Eb | F | Gm | A |
| Eb | Fm | Gm | Ab | Bb | Cm | D |
The reason this progression is so common is because of its stability. If you start at the tonic (I) in the key of C you go from C-G-D which fits right into the movement of the Circle of Fifths. When reversed we get a great order of chords that always sounds good and resolves well. During the Tin Pan Alley days and vaudeville, the ii-V-I or the Dm-G-C was used as a background “vamp” in between songs, as it is fine when played repetitively.
Of course, it would get boring to just play the basic ii-V-I. We need to add more notes to our guitar chords and change keys as we repeat this progression. Some of the best songs to get you in ii-V-I thinking are “Satin Doll,” “Autumn Leaves,” “Afternoon in Paris,” “Tune Up,” and many other classic jazz compositions. Notice these are all songs that provide a nice mellow background for various instruments to be featured over.
How to Utilize the ii-V-I?
At first sight, it may seem like a simple progression like those associated with pop and rock, but there are so many extensions and substitutions to make. The more common way you see this progression is as Dm7-G7-Cmaj7—this sounds jazzier than the regular Dm-G-C because it uses better voice leading. This is a process where we make each of our chords flow in a smooth fashion. The better you understand music theory the deeper you will be able to analyze the musical notes of your chords.
Besides chord extensions, we can also use substitutions. One common one is replacing the V with its tritone. So, in this case, we have G-D as a fifth, and a lowered half step to get a tritone is Db, thus the new phrase is Dm7-Db7-Cmaj7. Or we could label that as ii7-bII7-Imaj7. Another common substitution for the V is a 7b9 or many other variations. You can always check out a guitar chord chart for help with these chords.
The extensions and substitutions can get confusing for first-time users, that’s normal, just reverse engineer the chord and make sure to check if it is major or minor. Another common substitution is II-V-I instead of the minor ii. Many jazz and even rock songs will move back and forth on the II and V before resolving to the tonic.
Start as simple as you have to with your ii-V-I, and any variations you can create. Experiment with what has nice voice leading and what sounds bad if you do not have the theory knowledge. There are so many variations across many songs of this very simple three-chord structure, here are a few more.
iim7-V7-Imaj7
bvim7-bII7-Imaj7
iim7-V7-bvim7-Imaj7
ii-V-I-IV
II7-V7
Iim7-#Vdim7-Imaj7
IVmaj9-V13-vim9
Substitutions can get complicated fast, just make sure to follow the symbols and fill in the right notes for each key. If you notice most substitutions are made with similar notes, for example, a C maj can be replaced with an Em and Am as they both share two similar notes. If a chord for substitution seems to be difficult just take a closer look and you will see it has some aspects in common with the original progression.
Using the ii-V-I with Your Guitar Playing
The most important way to get better at the ii-V-I chord progression is to look up as many songs as you can that use it and try playing them. This is a great technique to use while learning to play guitar. Start with the ones you know the best and look for the aspects that use the sequence. Of course not all songs will use it constantly, they will throw other chords and scales degrees in like the iii or the IV. First, get an idea of how others use this progression before you attempt to compose or improvise.
Next, use a backing jazz drum track to practice your rhythm comping of this simple chord progression. Try the different variations you have found and pretend like you are just the accompaniment part of the band, learn the backing feel before attempting to improvise. Also, practice modulating keys by moving your ii-V-I around the Circle of Fifths. If you practiced popular songs you will already have a good idea of what other popular modulations and key changes are made. While this might be a bit advanced if you are just learning guitar, even knowing what “2-5 motion” sounds like is important.
After you have the basics of the backing progressions down, now is the time to start expanding on improvising across this chord progression. Follow the ideas of other popular solos and compositions and try your hand at different jazz scales that suit your key. Stick to the known notes of each chord at first and then start to extend and expand into other notes.
And while there are no wrong notes for jazz guitar, there are notes that sound better than others. If you have a good working knowledge of your underlying chords and the reasons behind their movements, the smoother your transitions will be. Keep your ii-V-I’s as simple as you need and build your chords as you get a proper grip on how the chord extensions change the flow and vibe.
There are many ways to play the ii-V-I jazz chord progression, and even if you do not play jazz guitar it is still an essential part of music. Anytime you need a pleasant and stable repetitive background, that progression will always be provided with its consonant movement. And when necessary, we can make the right extensions and substitutions to give or take away from this stability. For only being three chords, 2-5-1 is used in a variety of ways across all musical styles.
Photo: Gettyimages.com
