Smooth Chord Progressions & Guitar Chords

vi7 · ii7 · V7 · Imaj7

The quintessential jazz turnaround with rich 7th chords. The vi7-ii7-V7-Imaj7 follows the circle of fifths for smooth voice leading, perfect for chill coffeehouse vibes and neo-soul.

vi · V

The haunting minor reggae progression. Just two chords create an endless, meditative groove with a slightly melancholic edge.

i7 · v7 · VI7

The soulful 90s house progression. Dm7-Am7-Bbmaj7 creates that uplifting piano house sound. The simple three-chord loop with stabs and soul vocals defined early 90s club music.

iii7 · vi7 · ii7 · V7

The diatonic circle of fifths progression with 7th chords. Each chord's root is a fifth below the previous, creating smooth harmonic motion that resolves to the I chord.

vi7 · iii7 · IV7 · V

The smooth 90s R&B groove. Fm7-Cm7-Db7-Eb in Ab creates that laid-back, sensual atmosphere. The ii7-v7-IV7-V creates smooth voice leading that became the blueprint for 90s slow jams.

Imaj7 · II7 · ii7 · bII7

The sophisticated Brazilian progression featuring jazzy major 7th chords and chromatic movement. The tritone substitution creates that smooth, elegant bossa feel.

iv7 · VII7 · v7 · i7

The minor-key groove of 80s Japanese city pop. Gm7-C7-Am7-Dm7 creates that sophisticated, urban nightlife feel. This jazzy progression captures the bittersweet, nostalgic quality that defines the genre.

i7 · bVII7 · VI7 · V7

A sophisticated minor jazz progression with all dominant 7th chords descending chromatically. Creates a smooth, bebop-influenced sound.

Imaj7 · bII7 · Imaj7

The ultimate jazz substitution - replacing V7 with bII7 (a tritone away). Creates a chromatic bass line and unexpected color that defines modern jazz harmony.

IVmaj7 · III7 · vi7 · v7 · I7

Known in Japan as 丸サ進行, after Sheena Ringo's 'Marunouchi Sadistic', and in the West as the 'Just the Two of Us' changes. The move from IVmaj7 to III7 is the hook: a secondary dominant that pulls hard into the vi chord and gives city pop, neo-soul and modern J-pop their smooth, slightly aching quality.

ii7 · V7 · Imaj7 · vi7

The jazz turnaround that city pop borrowed wholesale. Dm7-G7-Cmaj7 resolves, then vi7 swings it straight back around, which is how these records stay glossy for four minutes without ever quite sounding like they have landed.

ii7 · V7

Disco often refuses to resolve at all. Two seventh chords trade back and forth — a ii-V that never reaches the I — so the groove can run indefinitely without the harmony ever telling you the song is over. Chic's 'Good Times' is the canonical example, and one of the most sampled bars in recorded music.