The Steely Dan Mu Major Chord [And Beyond] For Guitarists, Part Two
Clothed in Part One we discussed the essence of the Steely Dan Mu most important chord - a root perception major musical tones with the 2nd added and spoken adjacent to the 3rd - and promising 3 observe voicings on guitar. Clothed in Part Two we look by the side of the evolution of the Mu most important belief in the harmony of Walter Becker and Donald Fagan, and how to apply these ideas to the guitar.
The Steely Dan Mu most important chord evolved in soon albums as the music--and the West Coast Studio musicians performing it--leaned more towards a jazz elucidation of the chord changes, someplace dissonant intervals [major and minor 2nds], slash chords and quartal harmonies thrive. Starting with Dr. Wu [from the Katy Lied album], the Mu most important belief extended to include minor chord function as well. This verge on relies on the bass player to indicate the tonality [root], as the chord voicing replaces root and/or 5th with other range tones [tensions] to add difference of opinion and richness.
Home At Last, from Aja, is a high-quality instance of this. Although played on piano on the recording, these 3 observe voicings are playable on guitar. The intro is a G minor root perception voicing on strings 4, 3 and 2, with the 2nd degree [A] replacing the G on chain 4 [can we call this G Mu Minor?]. The 2nd chord, same strings, is an F Mu most important, i.E. A root perception musical tones with G replacing F. The other 2 intro chords are an A Mu Minor [same as G Mu Minor, 2 frets higher] and Bb Mu most important [same strings, C D F].
Following the G minor intro, the verse section ["I know this super highway, this clear familiar sun"] begins with an Ebmaj9 chord. This voicing is superlative described as a slash chord, Bb/Eb, i.E. A Bb major musical tones with an Eb in the bass. This 4 observe voicing can be played on strings 5, 4, 3 and 2 [Eb Bb D F]. The bass player is in performance Eb. Like the Mu major and minor chords, however, the function of these chords can alteration if the bass player changes the root. For instance, with the bass in performance a C root this becomes a Cmin11 Eb/b3, Bb/b7, D/9, F/11]. This voicing is besides used in Green Earrings, from Royal Scam. Starting by the side of hinder 3 with the Bb/Eb, the voicing moves in in one piece steps [Ab/Db, Gb/Cb].
Green Earrings besides has an instance of quartal harmony, occurring throughout the Am7 vamp which harmonizes the 1st 8 bars of the verse. These are 3 observe voicings stacked in 4ths. These voicings were explored notably by John Coltrane [McCoy Tyner's toil on passion Supreme, My Favorite Things, Transitions], Miles Davis [the quintet albums with Herbie Hancock], amount Evans, et cetera. In the '50's and 60's. The voicing in place of the Am7, played on strings 3, 2 and 1 is D G C. With the bass player sounding A this voicing sounds like Am11, but with a G in the bass it's a Gsus4 or G11, F in the bass an F13, et cetera. Quartal chords are built upwards in 4ths, unlike traditional triad- based harmonies [built in 3rds]. When we invert these stacked 4ths, we last part uo with mu major and mu minor- type voicings. For instance, the Am11 voicing from Green Earrings, whilst inverted, would be G C D, and, inverted again, C D G, low to prohibitive. This creates a major 2nd difference of opinion sandwiched between the C and D. This interval is the essential characteristic of the mu major sound.
The Steely Dan Mu most important chord evolved in soon albums as the music--and the West Coast Studio musicians performing it--leaned more towards a jazz elucidation of the chord changes, someplace dissonant intervals [major and minor 2nds], slash chords and quartal harmonies thrive. Starting with Dr. Wu [from the Katy Lied album], the Mu most important belief extended to include minor chord function as well. This verge on relies on the bass player to indicate the tonality [root], as the chord voicing replaces root and/or 5th with other range tones [tensions] to add difference of opinion and richness.
Home At Last, from Aja, is a high-quality instance of this. Although played on piano on the recording, these 3 observe voicings are playable on guitar. The intro is a G minor root perception voicing on strings 4, 3 and 2, with the 2nd degree [A] replacing the G on chain 4 [can we call this G Mu Minor?]. The 2nd chord, same strings, is an F Mu most important, i.E. A root perception musical tones with G replacing F. The other 2 intro chords are an A Mu Minor [same as G Mu Minor, 2 frets higher] and Bb Mu most important [same strings, C D F].
Following the G minor intro, the verse section ["I know this super highway, this clear familiar sun"] begins with an Ebmaj9 chord. This voicing is superlative described as a slash chord, Bb/Eb, i.E. A Bb major musical tones with an Eb in the bass. This 4 observe voicing can be played on strings 5, 4, 3 and 2 [Eb Bb D F]. The bass player is in performance Eb. Like the Mu major and minor chords, however, the function of these chords can alteration if the bass player changes the root. For instance, with the bass in performance a C root this becomes a Cmin11 Eb/b3, Bb/b7, D/9, F/11]. This voicing is besides used in Green Earrings, from Royal Scam. Starting by the side of hinder 3 with the Bb/Eb, the voicing moves in in one piece steps [Ab/Db, Gb/Cb].
Green Earrings besides has an instance of quartal harmony, occurring throughout the Am7 vamp which harmonizes the 1st 8 bars of the verse. These are 3 observe voicings stacked in 4ths. These voicings were explored notably by John Coltrane [McCoy Tyner's toil on passion Supreme, My Favorite Things, Transitions], Miles Davis [the quintet albums with Herbie Hancock], amount Evans, et cetera. In the '50's and 60's. The voicing in place of the Am7, played on strings 3, 2 and 1 is D G C. With the bass player sounding A this voicing sounds like Am11, but with a G in the bass it's a Gsus4 or G11, F in the bass an F13, et cetera. Quartal chords are built upwards in 4ths, unlike traditional triad- based harmonies [built in 3rds]. When we invert these stacked 4ths, we last part uo with mu major and mu minor- type voicings. For instance, the Am11 voicing from Green Earrings, whilst inverted, would be G C D, and, inverted again, C D G, low to prohibitive. This creates a major 2nd difference of opinion sandwiched between the C and D. This interval is the essential characteristic of the mu major sound.
Source...