What Are Cowboy Chords?

The cowboy chords

Tap each card to hear it, then copy the shape. All of them sit in the first three frets and let some strings ring open, which gives the full, ringing sound acoustic guitar is known for.

Major chords: C, A, G, E, D

Minor chords: Am, Em, Dm

Open 7th chords: E7, A7, D7, G7, C7, B7

The five majors spell C-A-G-E-D, the same five shapes the CAGED system later moves up the neck.

Why they are called cowboy chords

The nickname ties these shapes to country and western music, where simple open chords strummed on an acoustic guitar are the standard sound. The chords themselves are not tied to any style: the same shapes are used in folk, pop, rock and blues.

Which keys you can play with cowboy chords

A key has seven chords. How many of them are open shapes decides how easy the key is on guitar.

The diminished chord in each key is rare in songs, so it is left out of the last two columns. G major and C major, and their relative minors E minor and A minor, are the open-chord keys: each needs just one barre chord.

For other keys, a capo moves the open shapes. Capo 2 with G shapes sounds in A major; capo 2 with C shapes sounds in D major. You keep the easy fingerings and the ringing open strings, and the pitch moves up.

Cowboy chords compared with barre chords

The other family of chords you will meet is barre chords, where one finger presses several strings and the shape can slide anywhere on the neck.

Most players use both. Open chords for ringing strumming parts, barre chords for keys and chords that have no open shape. F and Bm are usually the first barre chords, because songs in C and G need them. The barre chords guide covers the E and A shapes and how to get them ringing cleanly.

The four-string F above is a halfway step: a small barre on two strings instead of six. The F chord page shows the full barre and the other easier versions.

A practical learning order

1. Em, then E, then Am. Em is two fingers. E adds one finger. Am is the E shape moved over one string. Three chords, one shape.
2. C and G. C keeps Am’s index and middle fingers in place; only the ring finger moves.
3. D and A. Both use only the top four or five strings; check the x marks.
4. Dm. The minor version of D, still on the top four strings.
5. The 7th chords. E7 is E with the ring finger lifted off the D string. A7 is A with the finger on the G string lifted. D7, G7 and C7 sit close to their major shapes. B7 is new; it is the V7 chord of E major and E minor.

Practise changes between pairs that appear together in songs: G to C, C to G, G to D, D to Em, Am to E, E to A. Change on the first beat of the bar and keep the strumming hand moving even if the new chord is not ready yet. The strumming pattern guide gives patterns to practise with, and a slow click on the metronome (60 BPM is a good start) shows whether the change lands on the beat.

Checking your chords sound clean

Play the chord, then pick each string from low to high. Every string marked o or with a dot should ring. A dull string usually has a finger touching it; arch the fingers more and press with the tips. A buzz means a finger is too far behind the fret wire.

Tune before you start. Open chords use open strings, so a single string out of tune spoils every shape that uses it. The guitar tuner works in the browser with your phone’s microphone.