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Key Takeaways
- A guitar, a tuner, a capo, and a DAW cover the gear side.
- Roman numerals let you move any progression to a new key.
- The pop loop sounds settled in one order and restless in another.
- Doo-wop, the 12-bar blues, and a Southern rock favorite each belong to a clear era.
- One borrowed chord turns a bright loop bittersweet, and a falling bass line shapes the Andalusian cadence.
- Seventh chords, the ii-V-I, a funk vamp, and a J-pop favorite add richer color.
- Four entries pair with real guitar stems in a matching key.
What You Need to Play and Record These Progressions
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A guitar, a tuner, and a way to record are enough to start playing the guitar chords in this list.
| Gear | What it does | Starter tip |
|---|---|---|
| Acoustic or electric guitar | Plays the chords | Light-gauge strings make barre chords easier |
| Clip-on tuner | Keeps strings at pitch | A DAW tuner plugin works too |
| Capo | Raises the pitch of open shapes | Change key and keep the same fingering |
| Audio interface | Connects a guitar or mic to your computer | One instrument input is enough |
| Microphone | Records an acoustic guitar | Aim at the 12th fret from 6 to 12 inches |
| DAW | Records, edits, and arranges | Ableton Live, FL Studio, or Logic Pro |
| Headphones | Let you hear takes clearly | Closed-back models stop bleed into the mic |
How to Read the Progressions Below
Each progression appears as Roman numerals and as chord names in one key. Numerals mark each chord's position in the key, so the formula works anywhere. Uppercase means major, and lowercase means minor.
| Numeral | I | ii | iii | IV | V | vi | vii° |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Key of G | G | Am | Bm | C | D | Em | F#dim |
Most keys here stick to basic guitar chords such as G, C, D, Em, and Am. For a higher key, add a capo and keep the shapes.
1. The Four-Chord Pop Loop (I-V-vi-IV)
Key of G: G, D, Em, C
This is one of the most popular chord progressions in pop and rock. "Let It Be" plays it in C, and "With or Without You" plays it in D. Em is the only minor chord in the loop, and it adds a touch of sadness to an otherwise bright sound.
Try it: Drop the tempo to around 70 BPM and fingerpick each chord as an arpeggio for a ballad intro.
2. Same Chords in a New Order (vi-IV-I-V)
Moving Em to the front changes the mood of the same four guitar chords from #1.
| I-V-vi-IV | vi-IV-I-V | |
|---|---|---|
| First chord | G | Em |
| Mood | Settled and warm | Restless and moody |
| Example | "Let It Be" | "Zombie" by The Cranberries |
Play the D as D/F# so the bass walks from F# up to the E of the next Em.
3. The Doo-Wop Progression (I-vi-IV-V)
Key of C: C, Am, F, G
This progression shaped 1950s doo-wop and early 60s soul, and Ben E. King's "Stand By Me" uses it in A.
The move from the home chord to its relative minor, then up through IV and V, suits slow tempos and triplet strumming.
For late-60s soul tone, try the guitar stem from When Times Are Bad (We Turn To Love) by Coupe De Villes, a 1968 recording in Ab minor at 148 BPM. Play the progression in B major (B, G#m, E, F#), which uses the same seven notes as Ab minor.
4. The 12-Bar Blues (I-IV-V)
Key of E: E7, A7, B7
Of all the common chord progressions in guitar music, the 12-bar blues is the oldest on this list. Three dominant seventh chords follow a fixed form, the same one Chuck Berry used for "Johnny B. Goode."
| Bars | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1-4 | E7 | E7 | E7 | E7 |
| 5-8 | A7 | A7 | E7 | E7 |
| 9-12 | B7 | A7 | E7 | B7 |
The B7 in bar 12 pulls the form back to bar 1, so it loops cleanly in a DAW.
5. The Mixolydian Rock Move (I-bVII-IV)
Key of D: D, C, G
The C chord comes from D Mixolydian, a mode that lowers the seventh note of D major from C# to C. That lowered note keeps the progression open and bright, and Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" runs on this exact sequence.
ry it: Play C as Cadd9 and keep your ring finger on the 3rd fret of the B string through all three chords. That D note rings through every change.
6. The Andalusian Cadence (i-VII-VI-V)
Key of A minor: Am, G, F, E
Four chords step down the scale, and the bass follows from A to G to F to E. The final E major comes from the harmonic minor scale, and its G# pulls the ear back to Am. Ray Charles built "Hit the Road Jack" on this sequence.
On nylon strings with rasgueado strums, the progression sounds like flamenco. On an electric guitar with tremolo picking and spring reverb, the same four guitar chords sound like 60s surf rock.
7. The Borrowed Minor Four (I-III-IV-iv)
Key of G: G, B, C, Cm
- G sets the home key.
- B replaces the expected Bm and raises D to D#, which adds an unexpected lift.
- C returns to the key as the IV chord.
- Cm comes from G minor, and its Eb, a half step below the E in C, creates the bittersweet feel.
Radiohead's "Creep" repeats this loop for the whole song. You can also add the Cm to the end of the pop loop from #1.
8. The Neo-Soul Float (Imaj7-IVmaj7)
Key of C: Cmaj7, Fmaj7
Two chords are enough when both carry a major seventh. The seventh softens each chord, and neither one pulls hard toward the other, so the loop keeps moving without a clear ending. The result suits neo-soul and lo-fi.
- Add a 9th (Cmaj9, Fmaj9) for a richer top note.
- Slide into each chord from one fret below.
For lo-fi, play these guitar chords at 70 to 85 BPM and quantize lightly to keep some human timing.
9. The Jazz Turnaround (ii-V-I)
The ii-V-I is the most used cadence in jazz, and it comes in two versions. "Autumn Leaves" uses both.
| Version | ii | V | I or i | Feel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Major (C) | Dm7 | G7 | Cmaj7 | Warm and resolved |
| Minor (C minor) | Dm7b5 | G7 | Cm7 | Dark and tense |
The minor version resolves to Cm, the key of Echo of Turo by Mark Saddlemire. The jazz-funk track runs at 121 BPM with separate wah and fuzz guitar stems, and both share the progression's key, so no transposing is needed.
10. The Dorian Funk Vamp (i7-IV9)
Key of G minor: Gm7, C9
A minor chord followed by a major IV is the signature of the Dorian mode, and that IV adds brightness a plain minor loop lacks. Santana's "Oye Como Va" repeats the same vamp as Am7 and D9.
Mute the strings with your fretting hand and strum steady 16th notes, letting a few accents ring.
Winner by Swede is a funk track in G minor at 88 BPM with an isolated electric guitar stem. A Gm7 to C9 vamp fits that key as it is, so you can layer your own part with no pitch shifting.
11. The Royal Road (IVmaj7-V7-iii7-vi)
Key of G: Cmaj7, D7, Bm7, Em
Japanese songwriters call this the ōdō shinkō, or Royal Road progression, and it appears across J-pop, city pop, and anime soundtracks. Starting on IV delays the home chord, and ending on the minor vi leaves the loop unresolved, which gives it a wistful feel.
In D# major, the progression becomes Abmaj7, Bb7, Gm7, and Cm. Don't Think It's to Be Down by Toshiyuki Yasuda, a 2009 library release, is in D# major at 139 BPM and includes an electric guitar stem.
Matching a Progression to a Guitar Sample
Three steps connect any progression on this list to a recorded guitar part.
Step 1. Choose the Mood
Pick a progression that fits the track, such as the Royal Road for soft, nostalgic material or the 12-bar blues for grittier takes.
Step 2. Filter by Key and BPM
Our guitar samples page lets you filter songs by genre, key, BPM, year, region, and license. Each track page lists its stems. The Sounds tab adds royalty-free guitar loops tagged by key and BPM.
Step 3. Transpose Your Chords to the Sample's Key
Move your guitar chords to the sample's key with a capo or by playing the formula in the new key. The recorded guitar keeps its original tone this way.