Dear Uncle Larry,
thank you for the episode on Cowboy Chords! I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge in this honest straight to the point musical way, it’s just great, no bullshit! I’m a pianist trying to get my fat fingers moving on the neck like they do on the piano… Not that easy. I realised I’ve been thinking in roughly the same way about the groups of inversions like you.



(Check out this episode of Homeschoolin’ if you haven’t already https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oePRDaHLOLA)

I look at it this way, there is only ONE shape.
All major triads come from one shape, the yellow one. I call it my “A-shape” with the root on the 6th string

The same figure with the root on the 5 string, in red – my ”D-shape” The root on the 2nd string has moved up half a step due to the tuning, but it’s the same form.

Then the same figure with the root on the 4th string in green – my “F-shape” Now both the root on the 1st string and the fifth on the 2nd string have moved up a half-step but the relationship between the triad notes are the same.
(If you’d have a low B and F # string as 7 and 8 string, you would see the green figure with the major third from the 8 string upwards.

So then A is in the yellow “mother” figure. C, E and F can be found in the green shape. D in the red. G as a combo of the Yellow & Green. B like A in the yellow. Guess you could call it the ABCDEFG-system 🙂

Hope this is useful to someone, feel free to comment below!
Best
John

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