Joe Pass Chord Licks 5: ii-V With Subs

Though the first five licks in this article were fairly diatonic, Joe loved to use

chromaticism, in both his lines and harmony, so this last phrase will dig in a

bit on Joe’s use of chromatic harmony and chord subs. This progression is a

ii-V-I from a Blues in Bb, though once you play the first chord you realize

that he’s using a sub over the Cm7, in this case a C7. The C7 functions as a

V7/V7, and is a favorite for many great jazz guitarists, including Lenny Breau

who used it more than just about any other playing with his two-note chord

voicings. As well, in the second bar Joe switches to a Cm7 chord for the first

three chords, then jumps to a Gb7, which resolves to an F7, before finally

making his way to the Bb7 chord in bar three. This type of chromatic

approach, moving from Cm7-Gb7-F7, is something Joe used a lot and is an

essential sound for any jazz guitarist who is looking to dig deeper into Joe’s

playing and comping.