Slow Burn
Smouldering slow minor blues in C — take your time and let every note cry.
Jam this track with live chords →The C Minor Scale
The notes of C minor are C, D, Eb, F, G, Ab, Bb — formula 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7. Key signature: three flats (Bb, Eb, Ab). Its relative major is Eb major, which uses the same notes from a different home. Below: the full neck, the chords in the key, and the pentatonic that lives inside it.
C minor on the fretboard
Practice C minor position by position — interactive fretboard →
Chords in the key of C minor
Harmonising the scale gives the seven chords songs in C minor are built from:
| Degree | i | ii° | bIII | iv | v | bVI | bVII |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chord | Cm | Ddim | Eb | Fm | Gm | Ab | Bb |
The core minor progression is i–iv–v (Cm, Fm, Gm); songs wanting a stronger pull home borrow a major V (G) from the harmonic minor.
The C minor pentatonic shortcut
For soloing in C minor, most players reach first for the minor pentatonic — the same scale minus the two most clash-prone notes. C minor pentatonic: C, Eb, F, G, Bb.
Backing tracks in C minor
Scales stick when you use them. These free tracks are recorded in C minor — play them right here, or open them in JamLab to see the scale on a live fretboard while the chords change: