ii-V-I lines CAGED

Crossed Lines: ii-V-I Lines Everywhere. ©2011 Milton Mermikides Negotiating a ii-V-I harmonic progression in a fluid manner is an extremely useful jazz tool. Here, 2 examples are given in each of the 5 fretboard positions, so that material is always available to you in the flight of improvisation. Although learning lines such as these might seem mechanical, if you understand their relation to the harmony and practise them thoroughly they become extremely malleable. The better these are learned the more malleable, and amenable to creative improvisation, they become. Each pair of phrase is written so that you can interchange material from each bar (so that you pick either bar for each chord), as indicated, meaning that learning this material will give you a total of 40 useful ii-V-I phrases in any position of the neck (many more with further editing), and 480 including all keys. Not a bad day's work. G7

D‹7

& w w

CŒ„Š7

w w

7th

7th w w

3rd

3rd

3rd 7th Notice how all the phrases follow the basic skeleton above. Taking the 'guide-tones' the 3rd and 7th of each chord, we find the C on the Dm7 moving to B on the G7, and the F on the G7 moving to E on Cmaj7. This is not the only strategy though the harmony, but it;s a really effective one that is best to learn before subverting.

Position II-III C Shape

E Shape

D‹7

& œ # œ œ œ œ nœ œ #œ pick either bar

bœ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ

G7

pick either bar

œ b œ œ œ œ œ bœ œ &

A Shape

œ œœœœ Ó J

CŒ„Š7

3

pick either bar

œ nœ œ œ œ # œ # œ œ

œ œ œ œ #œ nœ œ ‰ J

Position V A Shape

nœ œ #œ œ n œ œ & œ #œ D‹7

pick either bar

D Shape

œ n œ œ bœ œ œ œ œ

G7

pick either bar

œ œ œ œ œ œ & œ œ

G Shape CŒ„Š7

œ œ œ bœ j ‰ Œ nœ

pick either bar

œ œ b œ bœ œ œ œ #œ

œ œ œ bœ œ Œ

Position VII-VIII

2

nœ œ œ œ œ Œ

bœ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ

œ œ œ œ #œ & œ nœ œ D‹7

pick either bar

E Shape

C Shape

G Shape

CŒ„Š7

G7

pick either bar

#œ œ œ b œ nœ œ œ œ &

pick either bar

œ œ nœ œ œ ‰ Œ J

œ œ #œ œ #œ œ œ œ Position IX

œ #œ

D‹7

&

E Shape

A Shape

bœ œ œ œ œ œ n œ œ

œ œ œ œ bœ nœ

pick either bar

œ œ #œ œ œ bœ œ œ &

G7

pick either bar

œ œ œ nœ #œ œ œ œ

D Shape

œ

CŒ„Š7

œ nœ œ Ó

pick either bar

œ œ œ œ œ Œ

Position XII D‹7

&

œ œ

D Shape

œ œ œ œ œ œ

G Shape

G7

CŒ„Š7 œ b œ œ œ b œ œ œ b œ œ b œ ∫ œ œ œ œ 3

pick either bar

C Shape

3

pick either bar

œ œ œ #œ œ j œ ‰ & œ œœ

3

3

œ œ nœ œ œ bœ œ œ

Œ

œ

Œ

pick either bar

œ Œ œ œ nœ œ

Practise these carefully at a variety of tempi, feels and keys. Practising a ii-V-I in a cycle of IVs (C - F - Bb - Eb) in position, is a great and helpful challenge. And as ever, apply them to your repertoire and with some creativity and imagination, and they will transform your playing. (For the better).