Rock to fusion — chord ladder

How to read this

Eight rungs, from the chords every rock guitarist already has to the ones fusion players actually use. Each rung changes one thing about the rung before it, so nothing here is a jump. Frets read low E to high e, x is muted. Every voicing was checked note-by-note against its chord formula before it went in.

All of it is in A (and its neighbours D, E, G, F#m) so the same four progressions can be replayed at each rung and you can hear exactly what each step adds. The progressions are at the bottom; the chords come first.

Rung 1 — the starting point

Power chords, open chords, barre chords. Nothing to learn here, but they're the reference: everything below is one of these with a note moved.

  A5   D5   E5   A    D    E    G    
e|-x----x----x----0----2----0----3----|
B|-x----3----x----2----3----0----0----|
G|-2----2----x----2----2----1----0----|
D|-2----0----2----2----0----2----0----|
A|-0----x----2----0----x----2----2----|
E|-x----x----0----x----x----0----3----|

  A(bar)  D(bar)  A7(bar)  
e|-5-------5-------5--------|
B|-5-------7-------5--------|
G|-6-------7-------6--------|
D|-7-------7-------5--------|
A|-7-------5-------7--------|
E|-5-------x-------5--------|

One idea to carry forward: a barre chord is six notes and most of them are doubled. Every step towards fusion involves playing fewer notes, not more.

Rung 2 — sus and add9: the open-string rock sound

Take an open chord and either remove the 3rd (sus2 / sus4) or add the 2nd on top of it (add9). Same chords, but they stop sounding like a campfire and start sounding like a record. This is the Hendrix / Frampton / early-Landau grammar: rock chords with a colour tone.

  Asus2  Asus4  Aadd9  Dsus2  Dadd9/F#  
e|-0------0------0------0------0---------|
B|-0------3------2------3------3---------|
G|-2------2------4------2------2---------|
D|-2------2------2------0------0---------|
A|-0------0------0------x------x---------|
E|-x------x------x------x------2---------|

  Esus4  Eadd9  Cadd9  
e|-0------0------0------|
B|-0------0------3------|
G|-2------1------0------|
D|-2------4------2------|
A|-2------2------3------|
E|-0------0------x------|

The move: Asus2 → A → Asus4 → A, one finger on the B string. Then Aadd9 → A. Then Dsus2 → D → Dadd9/F#. Every one of these is a chord with a melody inside it — that's the point.

Rung 3 — slash chords: triads over a moving bass

Now the bass note changes while the chord doesn't. A/C#, D/F#, E/G# are still just A, D and E — but with the 3rd in the bass you get a walking line under a static harmony. This is the Free / Skynyrd / Petty sound and it is the first genuinely "arranged" thing a rock guitarist learns.

  A    A/C#  D    D/F#  E    E/G#  
e|-0----x-----2----2-----0----x-----|
B|-2----2-----3----3-----0----5-----|
G|-2----2-----2----2-----1----4-----|
D|-2----2-----0----0-----2----2-----|
A|-0----4-----x----x-----2----x-----|
E|-x----x-----x----2-----0----4-----|

  A/E  G/B  D/A  F#m  
e|-0----3----2----2----|
B|-2----0----3----2----|
G|-2----0----2----2----|
D|-2----0----0----4----|
A|-0----2----0----4----|
E|-0----x----x----2----|

Play A – A/C# – D – D/F# – E and listen to the bass line: A, C#, D, F#, E. Then A – E/G# – F#m – D: the bass walks down A G# F# D. Same chords as rung 1; the bass is doing the work.

Rung 4 — dominant sevenths and the Hendrix grip

Add the b7 and the chords start to lean. A7 – D7 – E7 is the blues; E7#9 is the chord everyone calls "the Hendrix chord". Then the three-string grips: an A major triad on D–G–B, and the two embellishments (the 6th, the sus4) you get by moving one finger. Hendrix's rhythm style is these three grips and nothing else.

  A7   D7   E7   E7#9  A7#9  
e|-0----2----0----x-----8-----|
B|-2----1----0----8-----5-----|
G|-0----2----1----7-----6-----|
D|-2----0----0----6-----5-----|
A|-0----x----2----7-----0-----|
E|-x----x----0----0-----x-----|

  A(3str)  A6(3str)  Asus4(3str)  
e|-x--------x---------x------------|
B|-5--------7---------5------------|
G|-6--------6---------7------------|
D|-7--------7---------7------------|
A|-x--------x---------x------------|
E|-x--------x---------x------------|

Drill: hold the A triad on D–G–B at fret 7/6/5 and hammer to the 6 and the sus4 in time. That's the Little Wing / Landau vocabulary. Then play the same three grips a string set higher and lower.

Rung 5 — 9ths and 13ths: funk-rock

Take the 7th chords and stack one more third: the 9th. Then the 13th. A9 – D9 – E9 is already halfway to Steely Dan. The 13th chords are the ones that make a blues sound like someone who's been to college.

  A9   D9   E9   
e|-x----5----7----|
B|-5----5----7----|
G|-4----5----7----|
D|-5----4----6----|
A|-4----5----7----|
E|-5----x----x----|

  A13  D13  E13  
e|-x----7----0----|
B|-7----5----2----|
G|-6----5----1----|
D|-5----4----0----|
A|-x----5----x----|
E|-5----x----0----|

The 9 chords are all the same shape (root on the A string, or on the E string for A9) — learn one and slide it. Play E9 → E13 → E9 → E7#9 as a four-bar vamp and you have every James Brown guitar part.

Rung 6 — minor 7, 9 and 11

Same idea on minor chords. Am7 is Cream; Am9 is Steely Dan; Am11 is fusion. The 11 chords are interesting because they're basically two chords at once — Am11 is Am7 with a G major triad sitting on top of it — which is why they sound wide.

  Am7  Am7(bar)  Am9  Am11  
e|-0----5---------0----0-----|
B|-1----5---------0----1-----|
G|-0----5---------5----0-----|
D|-2----5---------5----0-----|
A|-0----7---------0----0-----|
E|-x----5---------x----x-----|

  Em9  Em11  F#m11  Dm9  
e|-2----0-----0------x----|
B|-0----0-----0------5----|
G|-0----0-----2------5----|
D|-0----0-----2------3----|
A|-2----0-----x------5----|
E|-0----0-----2------x----|

Am9 (x 0 5 5 0 0) is the important one — the B on the open string against the C on the G string is a minor second inside the chord. Fusion voicings are full of those. Play it, then Am11, then Am7, and hear the colour drain out.

Rung 7 — major 7, major 9, 6/9

The major-side equivalent. Amaj7 is soft rock; Amaj9 and A6/9 are where Landau and Scofield spend their time on a major chord. The 6/9 chord has no 7th at all — it's a major pentatonic scale played as a chord, which is why it sits so well under blues phrasing.

  Amaj7  Amaj9  A6/9  Dmaj7  Dmaj9  
e|-0------0------0-----2------x------|
B|-2------0------2-----2------5------|
G|-1------6------4-----2------6------|
D|-2------6------4-----0------4------|
A|-0------0------0-----x------5------|
E|-x------x------x-----x------x------|

  Emaj7  Emaj9  Gmaj7  G6/9  Fmaj7  Cmaj7  
e|-x------2------2------0-----0------0------|
B|-0------0------0------0-----1------0------|
G|-1------1------0------2-----2------0------|
D|-1------1------0------2-----3------2------|
A|-x------x------x------2-----x------3------|
E|-0------0------3------3-----x------x------|

Amaj9 → A6/9 → Amaj7 and listen for the G#: it's the major 7th and it's what makes the chord "maj". Take it out (A6/9) and you're pentatonic; put it in and you're jazz. That one note is the dial.

Rung 8 — fusion: #11, quartal, slash-11, altered

Four moves that define the sound:

The #11. Put a raised 4th in a major chord and it goes Lydian — bright, floating, unresolved. Amaj7#11 is the fusion tonic chord. A7#11 is the dominant version (Lydian dominant) and it sounds like Steely Dan's guitarist just walked in.

  Amaj7#11  A7#11  Am(maj7)  Aadd9(close)  
e|-0---------x------0---------0-------------|
B|-4---------4------5---------0-------------|
G|-6---------6------5---------6-------------|
D|-6---------5------6---------7-------------|
A|-0---------x------0---------0-------------|
E|-x---------5------x---------x-------------|

Triad over a bass a whole step lower. G/A, D/E, F/G. They're all "11 chords" but thinking of them as slash chords makes them easy: the 11 chord on E is just a D triad with your thumb on the low E. This is the single most-used chord in 70s fusion and it's a rung-3 idea taken further.

  G/A (A11)  D/E (E11)  F/G (G11)  Fmaj7#11  
e|-3----------2----------x----------x---------|
B|-0----------3----------1----------0---------|
G|-0----------2----------2----------2---------|
D|-0----------0----------3----------2---------|
A|-0----------x----------x----------x---------|
E|-x----------0----------3----------1---------|

Quartal — stacked fourths. One finger, four strings, no third. It's not major or minor. Move it in whole steps and you're playing McCoy Tyner; hold it over a pedal bass and you're playing Holdsworth's rhythm guitar.

  A4ths  A4ths+5  E4ths  
e|-x------x--------x------|
B|-x------5--------8------|
G|-5------5--------7------|
D|-5------5--------7------|
A|-5------5--------7------|
E|-5------5--------x------|

Altered dominants. The #5 and b9 on a V chord. E7#5 → A is tension-and-release with the tension turned up; E7#5b9 is the full altered sound, and it's the only chord on this page that wants to resolve somewhere.

  E7   E7b9  E7#5  E7#5b9  
e|-0----1-----x-----1-------|
B|-0----0-----1-----1-------|
G|-1----1-----1-----1-------|
D|-0----0-----0-----0-------|
A|-2----x-----x-----x-------|
E|-0----0-----0-----0-------|

The four progressions at every rung

Same four progressions, climbing the ladder. Play each one as a four-bar loop at the first rung until it's boring, then move up a rung and hear what the change does.

1. The rock I–IV–V: A – D – E

Rung 1

  A    D    E    E    
e|-0----2----0----0----|
B|-2----3----0----0----|
G|-2----2----1----1----|
D|-2----0----2----2----|
A|-0----x----2----2----|
E|-x----x----0----0----|

Rung 2 — add colour tones

  Asus2  Dadd9/F#  Esus4  E    
e|-0------0---------0------0----|
B|-0------3---------0------0----|
G|-2------2---------2------1----|
D|-2------0---------2------2----|
A|-0------x---------2------2----|
E|-x------2---------0------0----|

Rung 3 — walk the bass

  A    A/C#  D    E/G#  
e|-0----x-----2----x-----|
B|-2----2-----3----5-----|
G|-2----2-----2----4-----|
D|-2----2-----0----2-----|
A|-0----4-----x----x-----|
E|-x----x-----x----4-----|

Rung 7 — go major-9

  Amaj9  Dmaj9  E9   E13  
e|-0------x------7----0----|
B|-0------5------7----2----|
G|-6------6------7----1----|
D|-6------4------6----0----|
A|-0------5------7----x----|
E|-x------x------x----0----|

Rung 8 — Lydian tonic, slash dominant

  Amaj7#11  Dmaj9  D/E (E11)  E7#5b9  
e|-0---------x------2----------1-------|
B|-4---------5------3----------1-------|
G|-6---------6------2----------1-------|
D|-6---------4------0----------0-------|
A|-0---------5------x----------x-------|
E|-x---------x------0----------0-------|

2. The minor rock vamp: Am – G – F

Rung 1

  Am7  G    Fmaj7  G    
e|-0----3----0------3----|
B|-1----0----1------0----|
G|-0----0----2------0----|
D|-2----0----3------0----|
A|-0----2----x------2----|
E|-x----3----x------3----|

Rung 6/7 — sevenths everywhere

  Am7  Gmaj7  Fmaj7  Gmaj7  
e|-0----2------0------2------|
B|-1----0------1------0------|
G|-0----0------2------0------|
D|-2----0------3------0------|
A|-0----x------x------x------|
E|-x----3------x------3------|

Rung 6/7 — ninths

  Am9  G6/9  Fmaj7  G6/9  
e|-0----0-----0------0-----|
B|-0----0-----1------0-----|
G|-5----2-----2------2-----|
D|-5----2-----3------2-----|
A|-0----2-----x------2-----|
E|-x----3-----x------3-----|

Rung 8 — 11ths and #11s

  Am11  G/A (A11)  Fmaj7#11  F/G (G11)  
e|-0-----3----------x---------x----------|
B|-1-----0----------0---------1----------|
G|-0-----0----------2---------2----------|
D|-0-----0----------2---------3----------|
A|-0-----0----------x---------x----------|
E|-x-----x----------1---------3----------|

3. The blues turnaround: A7 – D7 – E7

Rung 4

  A7   D7   A7   E7   
e|-0----2----0----0----|
B|-2----1----2----0----|
G|-0----2----0----1----|
D|-2----0----2----0----|
A|-0----x----0----2----|
E|-x----x----x----0----|

Rung 4 — Hendrix

  A7   D7   A7#9  E7#9  
e|-0----2----8-----x-----|
B|-2----1----5-----8-----|
G|-0----2----6-----7-----|
D|-2----0----5-----6-----|
A|-0----x----0-----7-----|
E|-x----x----x-----0-----|

Rung 5 — funk

  A9   D9   A13  E13  
e|-x----5----x----0----|
B|-5----5----7----2----|
G|-4----5----6----1----|
D|-5----4----5----0----|
A|-4----5----x----x----|
E|-5----x----5----0----|

Rung 8 — fusion blues

  A7#11  D9   A13  E7#5b9  
e|-x------5----x----1-------|
B|-4------5----7----1-------|
G|-6------5----6----1-------|
D|-5------4----5----0-------|
A|-x------5----x----x-------|
E|-5------x----5----0-------|

4. The fusion vamp (no rock version — this is where it ends up)

Two bars each, over a static E in the bass if you can loop one

  Em11  Amaj7#11  D/E (E11)  E4ths  
e|-0-----0---------2----------x------|
B|-0-----4---------3----------8------|
G|-0-----6---------2----------7------|
D|-0-----6---------0----------7------|
A|-0-----0---------x----------7------|
E|-0-----x---------0----------x------|

And the same idea on A

  Am11  G/A (A11)  A4ths+5  Am(maj7)  
e|-0-----3----------x--------0---------|
B|-1-----0----------5--------5---------|
G|-0-----0----------5--------5---------|
D|-0-----0----------5--------6---------|
A|-0-----0----------5--------0---------|
E|-x-----x----------5--------x---------|

On the last one, Am11 → Am(maj7) is the move: the b7 (G) goes up to the major 7 (G#) and the chord goes from open and smoky to something out of a spy film. That's the whole rock-to-fusion journey in one finger.

Practice

Day	20 min	Focus
Mon	Rungs 2–3	Sus/add9 melodies, walking bass under A–D–E
Tue	Rung 4	Three-string grips with the 6 and sus4 embellishments
Wed	Rung 5	E9 → E13 → E7#9 funk vamp; slide the 9 shape through A–D–E
Thu	Rungs 6–7	Am9 vs Am11 vs Am7; Amaj9 vs A6/9
Fri	Rung 8	Slash-11s and quartal shapes over a looped bass
Sat	Progressions 1–3	Climb each one, one rung per pass
Sun	Progression 4	Improvise over it — A Lydian / E Dorian will both work

Day

20 min

Focus

Mon

Rungs 2–3

Sus/add9 melodies, walking bass under A–D–E

Tue

Rung 4

Three-string grips with the 6 and sus4 embellishments

Wed

Rung 5

E9 → E13 → E7#9 funk vamp; slide the 9 shape through A–D–E

Thu

Rungs 6–7

Am9 vs Am11 vs Am7; Amaj9 vs A6/9

Fri

Rung 8

Slash-11s and quartal shapes over a looped bass

Sat

Progressions 1–3

Climb each one, one rung per pass

Sun

Progression 4

Improvise over it — A Lydian / E Dorian will both work

Rig note: the rung-8 chords have minor seconds inside them and they turn to mud with gain. Clean or edge-of-breakup, compressor on, and let the Badger's headroom do the work. Rungs 1–5 can take whatever you throw at them.