If you know the E major chord, you’re well on your way to learning the E7, a popular chord in blues and many other songs. You just remove your 3rd finger and you’re there!
Otherwise, read on to learn more about the E dominant 7th chord or E Dom. Other dominant 7th chords are A7, B7, C7, D7, F7, and G7.
How to Play the E7 Chord
You’ll strum all 6 strings when playing the E7 chord: 4 of those strings are open and the other 2 will be fretted.
To play, put your 1st finger on the 3rd string of the 1st fret. Your 2nd finger is placed on the 5th string of the 2nd fret. (Your other fingers can take a well-deserved break.)
As I said, strum all 6 strings to hear the beautiful E7 ring out!
Open Chord Variation
For a 4 finger variation of the E7, try this version. Your middle and ring fingers may be a bit cramped.
Put your 1st finger on the 3rd string of the 1st fret. As I said, the 2nd fret holds both your 2nd finger (on the 5th string) and your 3rd finger (right below it on the 4th string). Finally your 4th finger presses on the 2nd string of the 3rd fret.
Strum all 6 strings (the thickest and thinnest remain open strings) and let this E7 ring out in all its glory.
Variation on 5th Fret
For one more flavor of E7, travel on up to the 5th fret to start this varation. Your 1st finger goes there on the 2nd string. Put your 2nd finger on the 4th string of the 6th fret. And, on that 7th fret, goes your 3rd finger (on the 5th string) and your 4th finger (on the 3rd string).
String 1 and 6 are not strummed. If it helps, rest your thumb on the thickest string to mute it while strumming.
You’ve seen 3 different ways to play an E7 on guitar. I hope you’ll have a chance to experiment with them all (and others I haven’t mentioned here). You’ll find it in quite a few well known songs.
Songs to Play
Now that you know E7, you can play the all-American classic “California Dreamin'” by The Mamas and The Papas, as well as many other songs.
For more tips, see how to make your guitar chords easy to play. Also, learn more about guitar chords for beginners including how to take the chords you just learned and move them around the fretboard for new and exciting sounds.
