The ONLY 5 Chord Progressions You Need To Play Jazz (That Nobody Teaches)

Did you ever look at a jazz chart only to get overwhelmed with lots of complicated chords?

After years of teaching, I realized most players never learn this shortcut that makes jazz easy: Just five progressions explain almost every jazz song, yet nobody seems to talk about them.

So in this video, I’ll show you the 5 progressions that my students use to quickly learn and play their favorite jazz songs.

Before I give you the 5 chord progressions, here are 3 quick mindset shifts that make learning jazz songs 100x easier.

Most players don’t struggle because they can’t play the chords…

They struggle because every tune looks like a brand new wall of advanced chord symbols.

These 3 rules will organize the symbols into patterns—so you learn songs faster and don’t get lost.

Rule #1: Think in chunks.

Let’s take the opening of Autumn Leaves.

If you try to memorize it as a list of chord symbols, it’s this:

Cm7(9,11) F7alt Bbmaj7(13) Ebmaj7(#11)

That’s a lot to hold in your head.

But if you think in chunks, it gets simple:

II–V–I in Bb: Cm7 → F7 → Bbmaj7, then a bar on the IV chord: Ebmaj7,

and a II–V–I in G minor: Am7b5 → D7 → Gm6

So instead of seven random chords, you’re really just memorizing three things that already make sense to you. More on the chunks later in the video.

Rule #2: Think in keys.

So in Autumn Leaves, at the start, we’re basically in Bb major.

When you see: Cm7 → F7 → Bbmaj7

your brain can label that as: ‘we’re home in Bb.’

Then we have a bar of Ebmaj7—still Bb major, that’s just the IV chord.

And then the song pivots to the relative minor, G minor:

Am7b5 → D7 → Gm6.

So instead of thinking: ‘new chord, new chord, new chord…’

you’re thinking: this part is Bb major… now we’re in G minor.

And here’s why that matters: because once you know the key, you’re not lost.

For a few bars you’re living in one home base—and if you know the common chords in that key, learning the song gets way easier.

The last thing that makes everything easier is the chords.

Rule #3: Simple Chords.

Now, this is huge—especially when you’re learning a song for the first time.

A lot of real book charts look intimidating because every chord has extra stuff on it: 9ths, 11ths, 13ths, altered dominants… all that.

But really… to learn the song, you don’t need the colors yet. You need the function.

As Joe Pass said:

” You must think of the chord changes in the simplest way you can look at them, don’t complicate them in your mind…”

So if the chords look complicated, here’s what you do: ignore the extensions at the beginning and reduce everything to a basic 7th chord.

If the chart is Cm7(9) is Cm7, F7(9,13), F7, Bbmaj7(9,13) is Bbmaj7 and so on.

You get the idea.

Then make it even easier on guitar: By using shell voicings—just the 3rd and the 7th, plus a bass note.

They give you the basic sound of the chord.

And they connect smoothly, so you can hear the progression and how the harmony flows.

Same song, but now it is easy.

And once you know the song—once you can play through it without getting lost—then you can start adding the colors back in.

Extensions are the toppings on a pizza. The chord quality and the movement are the pizza.

If the pizza’s bad, no topping can save it.

Ok—if you follow these three rules: chunks, key-centers, and simple chords… then you’re ready for the 5 progressions that show up over and over in jazz.

Remember that you don’t have to memorize these chords off the video, you can get the pdf and work through it at your own pace. There’s a link in the description.

Chunk #1: II V I

Chunk number one is the II–V–I.

If you only learn one progression in jazz, make it this one—because it’s the sound of jazz harmony resolving. By far the most important progression.

The job of II–V is to point at the I. The I is the target.

By the way, II–V–I just means: the 2 chord, the 5 chord, to the 1 chord—in whatever key you’re in.

In the key of C major, a II–V–I is: Dm7 – G7 – Cmaj7

That sounds like this:

Now here’s a helpful shortcut: a lot of the time your ear hears a II–V as basically V → I.

Because the V chord is the one that really demands resolution.

And for soloing, this is a great simplification—Barry Harris would often tell players: over a II–V, ‘just play the V.’

Now you wouldn’t do that every single time, and I’m not saying the II doesn’t matter… but it’s a really useful trick to have available when you’re soloing, because it helps you hear what creates tensions and how it resolves.

Now you also have a minor II V I

The minor version is just as common—and it looks almost the same on the page, with one important change.

In C minor, you’ll usually see:

The main differences are the II chord is half diminished, m7b5

The I chord is minor.

And usually the V chord is dominant with a b9, but you can stil use rule #3 and play a G7.

It’s still doing the same job: pointing to Cm.

A practical shortcut: If you are looking at II V, then check if the II chord is a m7b5 to determine if it is a major or a minor II V.

Autumn Leaves

And this is exactly what’s happening in Autumn Leaves:

Cm7 → F7 → Bbmaj7 is a major II–V–I… and later Am7♭5 → D7 → Gm6 is the minor II–V–I

Ok—chunk #1 is the engine: II–V–I.

Chunk #2 is the most common way jazz uses that engine to create loops that keep the music moving.

Chunk #2: The Turnaround

Chunk #2 is the turnaround.

A turnaround isn’t one exact progression—it’s a category.

It’s any short set of chords that keeps the harmony moving and loops back to its beginning.

The most basic one is I → VI → II → V.

In C, that’s:

Hear how that doesn’t really ‘end’… it loops and goes back to the beginning.”

Turnaround Variations

Now the important part: you’ll see a bunch of different chord choices here—but they’re usually doing the same job.

So instead of thinking lots of ‘new chords,’ think: I… then something that pushes forward… then II–V… and you’re back.

Here are the most common variations in C major.

Explainer turnarounds:

The basic one is

A lot of times that Am7 becomes A7, because it pulls harder into Dm7.

Cmaj7 → A7 → Dm7 → G7

And sometimes the I chord is replaced by Em7, but it’s still the same turnaround.

Example 5: Em7 → A7 → Dm7 → G7. (play)”

The core thing to remember is: a turnaround is a loop-back progression. Its whole job is to keep the harmony moving and bring you back to the start of the loop.

The two chords that keep you oriented are I and V—home, and the chord that wants to go home.

The other chords are connectors that make that motion smoother.

On-screen: “turnarounds that are simplified down to I V (maybe Barry?)”

And if you’re soloing and the changes feel fast, simplify it—focus on the chords that clearly lead into the next chord, so you don’t get lost in the details.

Minor turnaround

And there’s a minor version too.

In a minor key, the turnaround is often:

Im → VIø → IIø → V.

Am6 → F#ø → Bø → E7 → back to Am.

Same idea: it’s a minor-key turnaround that brings you back to A minor.

So if you can spot I–VI–II–V in major, or this minor version, you’re going to recognize turnarounds instantly.

Now, notice something: in the major turnaround, we often change Am7 to A7 to pull harder toward Dm7.

Adding dominants to create more movement is exactly the idea behind secondary dominants. That’s up next!

Chunk #3: Secondary dominants

Chunk #3 is the secondary dominants.

And this is where Chunk #1 comes back, because a secondary dominant is basically the same II–V / V–I pull, but aimed at a chord that is not the main I of the key.

In other words, it’s a V chord that temporarily treats another chord like home.

In All of Me in C major, you have the chord E7.

E7 is not in the C major chord family, so it looks “out of key”.

But it doesn’t sound random, because it’s doing a normal job

it’s a V chord pulling to Am.

And even if it resolves to A7 the first time, you also have it resolving to Am7 a few bars later.

That’s a secondary dominant.

Same thing with A7 going to Dm.

Here’s the shortcut:

When you see a dominant chord that looks out of key, ask

What chord is this trying to go to?

Most of the time it resolves down a fifth.

Once you start seeing that, those “mysterious” dominants stop being mysterious.

They’re just chords that point to the next chord and push the music forward.

A Quick upgrade: the secondary II–V

Sometimes jazz makes that pull even stronger by putting a II chord in front of the dominant.

So instead of just

E7 → Am

You’ll sometimes see

Bm7b5 → E7 → Am

So instead of a secondary dominant can also add a complete secondary II V.

Ok — next let’s get into a color chord that doesn’t look diatonic either, but shows up everywhere, even in Radiohead songs.

Chunk #4: IVm

Chunk #4 is IVm, the minor subdominant sound.

In a major key, the IV chord is normally major. In C major, that’s an F major triad.

But a super common move, also outside jazz, is IV → IVm → I.

Same destination, but the minor IV has that darker pull back home.

Now here’s the jazz version. Same move, just with basic jazz harmony.

–

And you can hear this in All of Me as well, near the end you have this progression:

Now the important thing is that IVm is really part of a category, a minor subdominant family. Different chords, same sound and same job. They all want to resolve to I.

Here are a few common flavors you’ll run into, all of which resolve to C.

IVmMaj7: Fmaj7 → FmMaj7 → Cmaj7

bVII: Fmaj7 →Bb7 → Cmaj7

bVI: Fmaj7 → Abmaj7 → Cmaj7

This is one of the most beautiful sounds in harmony

Don’t worry about the theory yet. Just get used to the sound: minor subdominant, then back to home.

Ok, next chunk:

Another common way back to I is the #IV diminished chord. You probably recognize it from blues, where it is fairly common.

Chunk #5: #IVdim

Chunk #5 is the #IVdim chord.

In the key of C major, that’s F#dim.

And in jazz, when we write dim, we usually mean the diminished 7th chord, it’s not just a triad.

This is one of those sounds you’ve definitely heard, even if you’ve never named it.

In a C blues, it shows up all the time right here:

F7 → F#dim → C7

That F#dim isn’t a new key or anything weird. It’s just a passing chord that connects back to C smoothly.`

Same idea in the famous song St Thomas.

Cmaj7 → C7 → Fmaj7 → F#dim → Cmaj7

So if you have an F#dim in the key of C, don’t panic.

How To Use The 5 Chunks

Here’s how to use these 5 chunks when you learn a tune.

Step one: Find the key center for each section so you know what the home key is. Here it’s Eb major all the way

Step two: scan the chart and circle all the chunks you see.

And when you spot one, don’t get stuck on the exact spelling.

If it’s a turnaround, just tag it as turnaround.

If it’s a secondary dominant, just ask what chord it’s pointing to.

If it’s a minor subdominant sound, just hear it as that color moving back to I.

Step three, play the whole tune with simple shell voicings.

Like this you’re not memorizing 30 chords, you’re recognizing 5 ideas and using that to remember and play the song.

Joe Pass’ Chord Method

Now that you’ve got an easier way to learn songs, the next thing to build is your chord vocabulary.

Joe Pass had a really solid method for this: you start simple, but you end up being able to do almost anything.

That is what I break down in this video, check it out!

Learn Jazz Make Music

https://jenslarsen.nl/i-wish-i-learned-jazz-chords-like-this-stop-wasting-time/

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