Fly Me to the Moon Chords

jazzguitar.be/blog/fly-me-to-the-moon-chords/

By Terence Wright April 13,

2016

New to comping and jazz guitar chords? By the end of this lesson, you’ll have the knowledge
to comp through jazz standards with cool-sounding chords and comping patterns. Using Fly
me to the Moon as a conduit for learning, you’ll work the material required to successfully
comp through this tune, and many others.

Knowing comping patterns is a requirement for any Jazz guitarist. However, what’s often
overlooked is when and why a given comping pattern is appropriate in any particular
musical situation. That’s why, for each comping pattern you learn in this lesson, you’ll also
learn when to use it and why it works.

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THE JAZZ GUITAR CHORD DICTIONARY (FREE eBOOK)

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Download now and learn 244 chord shapes!

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Getting started – The Chords
Before you begin comping through jazz standards, it’s important to scan through the lead
sheet in order to make sure you have the right chords for the job under your fingers.

To play Fly me to the Moon, you’ll need to know m7, 7, maj7, min7b5, and 6 chord
qualities.
When comping, moving economically from chord to chord is a must, which is called
voice leading.
To ensure that you don’t leap the length of the guitar to find the next chord voicing,
you’ll learn chords with the root on both the E and A-string, using Drop 3 chord
voicings.

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Minor 7 Chords (m7)

Minor 7 chords contain 4 notes:

m7 1 b3 5 b7
chord

In order to play all 4 notes in the m7 chord, you’ll reorder them on the guitar to fit the Drop
3 voicing style. In a Drop 3 m7 chord, the notes are voiced from lowest to highest as:

Drop 3 m7 1 b7 b3 5
chord

The reason you reorder the notes in the m7 chord from Root, b3, 5, b7 to Root, b7, b3, 5 (in
the Drop 3 chord) is to make the chord easier to play on the fretboard.

As you’ll be using Drop 3 chords for the entire lesson, the maj7, 7, 6, and m7b5 chords will
be reordered in the same way.

m7 chords are featured heavily in Fly me to the Moon, as they can function as iim7, iiim7
and vim7 chords, all of which you’ll see in this tune.

The example below is the first chord in Fly me to the Moon, Am7.

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Quick Tip: To play a different m7 chord, for example Gm7, all you do is move the root note
and chord shape down or up to a G note (this works with all chords qualities as well).

As you progress through to the full tune, you’ll play through a number of examples that
require shifting m7 chord shapes to new root notes, so work on this skill if it’s new to you
at this point.

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Dominant 7 Chords (7)

Dominant 7th chords create dissonance that propels the harmony of a tune forward.

When you read through the complete changes to Fly me to the Moon below, you’ll notice
that after every 7 chord there is either a m7 or maj7 chord.

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Jazz harmony often creates moments of tension with harmony and melody, which are
followed by a consonant sounding release. The reason for the tension is because of how the
7th chord is constructed.

The dominant 7th chord contains the notes:

Dominant 7th 1 3 5 b7
chord

The b7 in the 7 chord forms a tritone with the 3 rd, which produces a very dissonant sound.

In Fly me to the Moon, the 7th chords create tension and are always resolved by more
stable sounding maj7, 6, or m7 chords.

However, tension in jazz isn’t always necessarily resolved in this fashion. In the 12 bar
blues form for example, tension is maintained with a continuous flow of 7 chords.

Check out the chart for the D7 Drop 3 voicings below.

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Major 7 Chords (Maj7)

As mentioned earlier, major 7 chords can provide the consonant and stable sounds that
follow tense moments in jazz music. In Fly me to the Moon, the maj7 chord appears only
after a 7th chord is played (tension and release).

The maj7 chord is constructed from the unaltered tones:

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 Maj7 1 3 5 7
chord

The two voicings for maj7 chords that you’ll work on in this lesson are shown below, using
Cmaj7 Drop 3 chords as examples.

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Half Diminished Chords (m7b5)

When playing min7b5 chords, you’ll immediately hear a darker quality that isn’t present in
any of the previous chords.

The notes in the min7b5 chord are:

m7b5 1 b3 b5 b7
chord

The min7b5 chord sounds darker because the first 3 notes in the chord create the
dissonant sounding diminished triad (root, b3, b5).

Min7b5 chords almost always appear as a ii in a minor II V progression in jazz.

Here are two voicings of the Drop 3 Bmin7b5 chord from the E and A strings to get started
with in the practice room.

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6 Chords (6)
6 chords are some of the most consonant sounding chords available to a jazz guitarist.

The 6 chord contains the interval structure:

6 1 3 5 6
chord

Because the 6 chord is so consonant, it’s most often found at the very end of a tune as the
final resolution to the tonic chord.

In Fly me to the Moon, the 6 chord is found just before the end of the first ending, and
again at the very end of the second ending.

Two Drop 3 6 chord voicings are included here to help you to get started with these shapes
in your studies.

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Chord Rhythm Patterns
After reviewing the appropriate chord voicings needed for this lesson, the next step is to
learn a few comping patterns to go along with those chord shapes. Comping patterns allow
you to play the necessary supporting role for a soloist or ensemble in a Jazz situation.
Without a consistent and thoughtful comping method, the rhythm will sound out of place
very quickly.

Here are three extremely versatile comping patterns that you can use in a number of
different situations.

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Freddie Green Rhythm

The Freddie Green rhythm is strong quarter note rhythm that was popularized by one of
the greatest rhythm section guitarists of all time, Freddie Green.

Use a single chord to first familiarize yourself with the rhythm before moving on to longer
progressions.

Listen & Play Along

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Now, see if you can comp through the first 8 bars of Fly me to the Moon using the Freddie
Green rhythm.

The toughest part about this exercise is making the chord transitions. If you find it difficult
to switch between two particular chords, isolate the problem chords and practice playing
them back-to-back until they are comfortable.

Listen & Play Along

When Can You Use the Freddie Green Rhythm?

Duo Playing – Without a drummer, it creates a nice percussive effect and helps maintain
time.

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Small Ensemble – Will again help maintain time. However, if you’re playing with another
accompanist such as a pianist, you’ll need to consider a few factors.

If the pianist is comping rhythmically and consistently, then you can play less
rhythmically, maybe even play some arpeggios. In this situation, the Freddie Green
rhythm is less appropriate.
If the pianist isn’t playing rhythmically, then you need to fill that role, which would
make the Freddie Green rhythm a perfect fit for the job.

Big Band/Large Ensemble – If you don’t have a bandleader to defer to, it’s a good choice to
default to the Freddie Green rhythm. Freddie Green was the greatest big band jazz guitar
accompanist of all time!

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The Charleston
Another essential comping pattern is the Charleston rhythm. The Charleston rhythm
features two strums per bar played on beat one and the ‘&’ of two.

The chord played on beat one is held until the chord played on the ’and’ of beat two.
The second strum on the ‘&’ of two is always a short strum.

Listen & Play Along

Once you feel comfortable with playing the Charleston rhythm over the single Am7 chord,
play this rhythm over the first 8 bars of Fly Me to the Moon .

Listen & Play Along

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When Can You Use the Charleston rhythm?

The Charleston rhythm works in virtually the same situations as the Freddie Green rhythm.

If you ever find yourself playing in a small ensemble and you notice the time is off, it’s a
good idea to switch to the Freddie Green rhythm to get things back on track.

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Bass/Chord Comping
Lastly, if you ever find yourself playing without a bass player and would like to recreate the
feel of a bass player, you can play this bass-chord rhythm.

Separating the root note, in this case the bass note, from the chord creates the illusion
that a bass player is present.

Start by playing the bass-chord rhythm over a single chord. In this example, you’ll play the
Am7 chord in combination with the bass-chord rhythm.

Listen & Play Along

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Next, play through the first 8 bars of Fly Me to the Moon using the same bass-chord
rhythm as in the example above.

Listen & Play Along

When Can You Use the Bass-Chord comping rhythm?

Solo – This rhythm works great as a soloist as it creates the illusion that two instruments are
playing at once.

Duo – You can play the bass-chord rhythm so long as there’s no bass player.

Small Ensemble – If you’re playing in a small ensemble without a bass player, you may
choose to play the bass-chord rhythm.
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As long as there’s no bassist, or piano player playing bass lines, the bass-chord rhythm will
fit nicely.

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Fly Me to the Moon Chord Changes

After covering chord voicings and a few very useful comping rhythms, you’re ready to take
on the full tune.

Once you’re comfortable playing the chords using whole notes, work on playing each of
the three comping patterns previously covered in the lesson over the entire tune.

Freddie Green Rhythm

Charleston Rhythm
Bass-chord Rhythm

The tune is relatively long, so make it a part of daily practice to memorize the complete
chord changes.

Here are a few tips for memorizing the chord changes to a tune:

Take it 4 Bars at a Time – You’ll memorize the tune a lot faster if you don’t try to
learn it all in one go.
In Writing – Practice rewriting the chord changes on paper.
Singing the Bass Notes – Singing the lowest note in the chord, for example A for Am7,
will help you to memorize the changes using the musical part of your brain.
Use all 3 Comping Patterns – Varying the way you play through the tune will allow
your hands to memorize the location of the chords faster.

Backing Track

Listen & Play Along

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As a review, and to reiterate some of the harmonic tendencies mentioned earlier in this
lesson, here’s a follow-up analysis of the harmony in Fly me to the Moon:
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The C6 Chord Appears in Both Endings – 6 chords often appear at the very end of a jazz
tune because of their consonant sound.

Maj7 Chords Often Appear After 7th Chords – Maj7 chords often show up after a 7 chord
to provide the release created by the tension in the 7th chord. Maj7 chords are often the I in
the ii V I progression.

m7 Chords Are Often Found Before 7th Chords – m7 chords are commonly used as the II
in a II V I progression, which results in them being positioned before 7 chords. m7 chords
are consonant, stable sounding chords and provide a contrasting flavor to the 7 chord.

7th Chords Create Tension – 7th chords are often used as the V in a II V I progression,
conveniently sandwiched between two consonant chords, the iim7, and the Imaj7.

Min7b5 Chords are the ii in a Minor ii V Progression – in jazz music, min7b5 chords are
almost always the iim7b5 in a minor II V progression. This means that they’ll almost always
be followed by a 7th chords acting as a V7 in a progression.

About the Author

Terence Wright is a jazz guitarist and music educator based in Canada. He is a regular
performer at festivals and jazz venues, and teaches jazz guitar students both locally and
through Skype. He maintains and operates Terence Wright Guitar, a website for free jazz
guitar resources.

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