The Hendrix Chord
E7♯9 sounds major and minor at the same time. Start from the dominant seventh E7, add a G on top, and you have the chord rock guitarists nicknamed the Hendrix chord. Hear why it bites: G♯ is the major third, G sounds like the minor third, and spread almost an octave apart they turn a muddy clash into grit. Learn why that G is spelled as a raised ninth, hear the blues bend frozen into one grip, then build A7♯9 and D7♯9 and play a 12-bar blues in A with a 7♯9 on every chord.
In this lesson you'll
- Build a 7♯9 chord on any root: root, major third, flat seventh and the raised ninth on top (E7♯9 = E G♯ D G; A7♯9 = A C♯ G C; D7♯9 = D F♯ C F).
- Hear the difference between a plain dominant seventh and a 7♯9, and explain why the extra note is spelled as a raised ninth (F𝄪 in E7♯9) and not as a second third.
- Play a 12-bar blues in A with A7♯9, D7♯9 and E7♯9, and play along with the groove.
Music in this lesson
- Purple HazeThe Jimi Hendrix Experience · 1967
- TaxmanThe Beatles · 1966
Remember
7♯9 is a dominant seventh plus a raised ninth: in E, G♯ is the major third and G sounds like the minor third, so the chord is major and minor at once.
Stacking thirds on E gives E G♯ B D F♯; raising the ninth gives F double sharp, which sounds as G — the chord already has its third, so the new note is named as a raised ninth on top.
It freezes the blues bend between the minor and major third into one grip, and with G♯ low and G high, almost an octave apart, the clash becomes grit instead of mud.