Guitar chords · Minor 7th
Cm7 chord on guitar
Cm7 (C minor 7th) has four notes: C, E♭, G and B♭, the The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7., ♭3, 5 and ♭7.
Shapes
How to play Cm7
Strum a shape to hear it, or pick it one string at a time. R marks the The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7.; the other numbers are the chord tones.
Cm7 has no common A chord played near the nut that uses some unfretted strings, such as the open G, C or Em.. Play it as the A shape at The metal strips across the neck, and the spaces between them. Each fret raises a string by one half step. 3 or the E shape at fret 8. A A chord or scale fingering with no open strings. Slide it up or down the neck and it changes its root but not its type: a major shape stays major. keeps its fingering anywhere on the neck: slide it up or down and the The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7., on the lowest played string, names the chord.
A shape · fret 3
E shape · fret 8
Notes and formula
What makes Cm7 minor 7th
A minor A triad with one more 3rd on top, the 7th, which makes four notes: G7, Cmaj7 and Am7 are seventh chords. is a minor chord with a minor 7th added. It is mellower than a plain minor chord, and it is the ii chord of the ii–V–I in jazz and soul.
- 1Root: the note the chord is named after. Keep it.
- 3Essential: makes the chord what it is. Never drop it.
- 5Optional: drop it first when you run out of fingers.
The ♭3rd and the ♭7th make Cm7 a minor A triad with one more 3rd on top, the 7th, which makes four notes: G7, Cmaj7 and Am7 are seventh chords.; you can leave out the 5th.
- CRroot
- E♭♭3essential
- G5optional
- B♭♭7essential
- C, the root
- Other chord tones
Cm7 often leads to F7 and then B♭: the ii7–V7–I of B♭ major.
Keys
Keys with Cm7
Cm7 belongs to six keys: A♭ major (iii7), E♭ major (vi7), B♭ major (ii7), F minor (v7), C minor (i7) and G minor (iv7).
Numerals follow the key's own scale, so III, VI and VII in a minor key are its own major chords. A ♭ or ♯ in front marks a chord from outside the key. How Roman numerals work
Progressions
Progressions with Cm7
Common progressions that use Cm7, each in a key that spells it Cm7. The outlined chord is Cm7.
Jazz ii–V–I in B♭ major
ii7 – V7 – Imaj7
- Cm7
- F7
- B♭maj7
Each chord falls a fifth to the next — a walk anticlockwise around the circle.
Heard in Autumn Leaves, Fly Me to the Moon
Minor ii–V–i in C minor
iiø7 – V7 – i7
- Dm7♭5
- G7
- Cm7
Half-diminished ii, dominant V7 and back to the minor tonic.
Heard in Blue Bossa, Autumn Leaves
Slash chords
Cm7 over another bass note
A A chord with a different note in the bass, written after a slash: C/E is a C chord with E as its lowest note. The letter after the slash is the bass. keeps Cm7 on top and puts another note in the bass: the letter after the slash is the lowest note you play.
- Cm7/E♭
Cm7 with its ♭3rd, E♭, in the bass: the first inversion.
- Cm7/G
Cm7 with its 5th, G, in the bass: the second inversion.
- Cm7/B♭
Cm7 with its ♭7th, B♭, in the bass: the third inversion.
Same root
Other chords on C
Change one or two notes and the same The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7. gives a different colour. Compare them by ear.
- C major
- Cm minor
- C7 dominant 7th
- Cmaj7 major 7th
- Csus2 suspended 2nd
- Csus4 suspended 4th
- C6 major 6th
- Cm6 minor 6th
- Cadd9 add 9
- C9 dominant 9th
- Cmaj9 major 9th
- Cm9 minor 9th
- C13 dominant 13th
- Cmaj13 major 13th
- Cm11 minor 11th
- C° diminished
- Cm7♭5 half-diminished 7th
- C°7 diminished 7th
- C+ augmented
- C5 power chord
- C7sus4 dominant 7th suspended 4th
- Cm(maj7) minor major 7th
- C6/9 six-nine
- Cm(add9) minor add 9
- C7♯9 dominant 7th sharp 9th
Questions
Cm7, in short
- What notes are in the Cm7 chord?
- Cm7 (C minor 7th) has four notes: C, E♭, G and B♭, the The note a chord is named after and built up from. C is the root of C, Cm and C7., ♭3, 5 and ♭7.
- How do you play Cm7 on guitar?
- Cm7 has no common A chord played near the nut that uses some unfretted strings, such as the open G, C or Em.. Play it as the A shape at The metal strips across the neck, and the spaces between them. Each fret raises a string by one half step. 3 or the E shape at fret 8.
- What key is Cm7 in?
- Cm7 belongs to six keys: A♭ major (iii7), E♭ major (vi7), B♭ major (ii7), F minor (v7), C minor (i7) and G minor (iv7).