Minor 7th chord · A root
Am7 chord
- A1
- C♭3
- E5
- G♭7
The A minor 7th chord is built from the notes A, C, E, G. It turns up 23 times in the 104 songs on this site, including Best Part and Blackbird.
By Chiye · Updated
What is the Am7 chord?
The Am7 chord (A minor 7th) is a minor 7th chord built from four notes: A, C, E, G — the 1–♭3–5–♭7 of the A scale, 3 semitones and 7 semitones and 10 semitones above the root. On guitar it is most often played in open position (x-0-2-0-1-0) with 2 fretted strings while 3 strings ring open and the low E string stays silent. It is rated beginner — most players learn it in their first weeks. The smooth workhorse of funk, R&B and lo-fi. Across the 104 song sheets in this site's library, Am7 appears 23 times in 6 songs, most often in the keys of C and G, and the chord it most often moves to is Dm7. Below you will find step-by-step fingering, 3 positions up the neck, audio of every shape, and the real progressions this chord lives inside.
How do you play the Am7 chord on guitar?
Open position — the easiest version of Am7 on the guitar.
- Press the D string at fret 2 with your middle finger.
- Press the B string at fret 1 with your index finger.
- Start your strum on the A string and do not play the low E string at all.
The x mark is part of the shape, not an accident: the chord only sounds right when low E stays silent. Instead of aiming your pick around that string, let the string next to it rest on it and damp it. x-0-2-0-1-0
How do you make Am7 sound clean?
Start from Am x-0-2-2-1-0 and lift the ring finger off the G string. That open G is the flat seventh; keep the D string at fret 2.
Am → Am7 → F → C: the descending line that runs through a hundred ballads.
In real songs
What songs use the Am7 chord?
- chord changes
- 23
- songs
- 6
- common keys
- C · G
Across the 104 chord sheets on this site, Am7 appears 23 times in 6 songs — most often in the keys of C and G.
Dmaj7Am7Gmaj7A#maj7
GAm7G/BC
GAm7G/BC
All 6 songs that use Am7— key, capo and a link to every sheet
| Song | Artist | Key | Capo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Part | Daniel Caesar feat. H.E.R. | D | — |
| Blackbird | The Beatles | G | — |
| Bye Bye Blackbird | Jazz Standard | F | — |
| Father and Son | Cat Stevens | G | — |
| Fly Me to the Moon | Bart Howard | C | — |
| Hallelujah | Jeff Buckley | C | — |
Chord flow
What chord comes after Am7?
Every number here is a count from the progressions in our song sheets, not a generalisation: 1879 chord changes are behind these figures.
Three-chord moves
Three-chord moves are where a chord really shows its character. These are the ones that actually happen in this library, counted from the sheets:
What other ways can you play Am7 up the neck?
2 more positions below. These are the same notes in a different part of the neck. Choosing the position closest to the chord you just played is what stops your hand jumping between changes.
Position 2 · Fret 5 barre
Every note here is fretted, which means the shape transposes anywhere on the neck without changing your fingers.
The barre is the only hard part of this shape. Keep the bar finger straight and use the weight of your arm rather than the grip of your thumb.
Position 3 · Fret 7 barre
No open strings, so this is a movable shape: slide it up or down and the same fingering gives you a different chord name.
One bar does most of the work. Roll that finger onto its bony edge and pull the elbow slightly in — a barre that buzzes is almost always a position problem, not a strength problem.
The theory behind Am7
Am7 is spelled A – C – E – G — the 1 – ♭3 – 5 – ♭7 of the A scale, which is the root plus 3 semitones, 7 semitones, 10 semitones. The smooth workhorse of funk, R&B and lo-fi.
The flat seventh softens the minor third, which is why m7 chords sit comfortably under a vocal. In practice you will use Am7 far more often than the plain minor triad in anything funky or jazzy.
Am7 on other instruments
A – C – E – G — all white keys, so you can find the shape by counting up from C.
Take it to the practice room
