Sevenths
A minor 7th chord
Smooth and soulful; a staple of jazz, R&B and funk.
Am7 is the ii7 chord in G major, iii7 in F major and vi7 in C major. In minor keys: i7 in A minor and iv7 in E minor.
- Notes
- ACEG
- Formula
- 1♭35♭7
- Built from
- root · minor 3rd · perfect 5th · minor 7th
How to play Am7
About the A minor 7th chord
Am7 is the vi7 of C major and the ii7 of G. Its open voicings on guitar and ukulele have one of the most relaxed sounds in pop.
Playing it
On guitar, Am7 is one of the friendlier shapes: x02010 needs just two fingers and lets the open strings ring. Don’t strum the low E string.
On piano, Am7 sits entirely on white keys.
On ukulele, Am7 needs no fingers at all: the four open strings — G, C, E and A — spell it out.
Related chords
Take away the root and the other three notes form C (C E G) — so you can think of Am7 as C with A added underneath.
Am7 contains exactly the same notes as C6. Which name fits depends on which note is in the bass and what key you’re in.
Move a single note and Am7 becomes a different chord: drop the G for Am, raise C to C♯ for A7, lower G to F♯ for Am6 and swap C for D for A7sus4.
Where you’ll hear it
You’ll find Am7 in common progressions such as Am7–D7–Gmaj7 (the jazz cadence in G major).
