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E A D G B E
Capo

Diagrams

Chords shown as
Chord numbers
Shape difficulty
Fret numbers counted
Strings on the neck
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Chords sound as

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Progression

The 12-bar blues in Bb major

12-bar blues in Bb major plays Bb7, Eb7 and F7 — I, IV and V — across 12 chords. The foundation of blues, rock and roll, and a huge share of popular music since the 1950s: three dominant seventh chords, one per scale degree, played in a fixed twelve-bar form.

The chords, in order

Bar 1Bb7I
Bar 2Eb7IV
Bar 3Bb7I
Bar 4Bb7I
Bar 5Eb7IV
Bar 6Eb7IV
Bar 7Bb7I
Bar 8Bb7I
Bar 9F7V
Bar 10Eb7IV
Bar 11Bb7I
Bar 12F7V

The shapes

IBb7
Bb dominant seventh, open position, capo 0. Strings from lowest to highest: muted, fret 1, fret 3, fret 1, fret 3, fret 1. Frets are relative to the capo. Barre at relative fret 1, strings 2 to 6.
x13131IVEb7
Eb dominant seventh, open position, capo 0. Strings from lowest to highest: muted, muted, fret 1, fret 3, fret 2, fret 3. Frets are relative to the capo.
xx1323VF7
F dominant seventh, open position, capo 0. Strings from lowest to highest: fret 1, fret 3, fret 1, fret 2, fret 1, fret 1. Frets are relative to the capo. Barre at relative fret 1, strings 1 to 6.
131211

The same progression in a nearby key

Open 12-bar blues in Bb major in the explorer →All seven chords in Bb major →