Major 6th Chord (6) on guitar

A major 6th chord adds the sixth to a major triad, a sweet sound from swing, country and early rock and roll.

About the Major 6th Chord

C6 is C, E, G and A. It has the same notes as Am7, with C in the bass.

Swing and western swing guitarists end tunes on a 6 chord. Rock and roll boogie riffs move between the 5th and the 6th.

Use it in place of a plain major chord when a major 7th sounds too soft.

Intervals

• 1: Root, 0 semitones above the root
• 3: Major 3rd, 4 semitones above the root
• 5: Perfect 5th, 7 semitones above the root
• 6: Major 6th, 9 semitones above the root

Major 6th Chord charts in all 12 keys

Each chart shows the strings from the thick low E on the left to the thin high e on the right. Numbers in the dots are fingers: 1 index, 2 middle, 3 ring, 4 little, T thumb. × marks a muted string and ○ an open one. A bar across strings is a barre.

Scales to play over C6

Each of these scales, started on the root of C6, holds every note of the chord:

• C Major Scale
• C Major Pentatonic scale
• C Lydian Mode
• C Mixolydian Mode
• C Lydian + b2 scale
• C Ichikosucho scale
• C Taishikicho scale
• C Hungarian Major scale
• C Chromatic Blues Scale
• C Major Blues Scale
• C Bebop Major scale
• C Bebop Minor scale
• C Bebop Dominant scale
• C Diminished scale
• C Nine Tone Scale
• C Overtone scale
• C Lydian #2 scale
• C Ten Tone Dominant scale

More chord types

• Dominant 13th Chord (13)
• Minor 6th Chord (m6)
• All chord types