In this lesson we’ll look at a couple minor ii-V-i licks. Don’t know what a minor ii-V-i is? No problem, I’ll explain! The minor ii-V-i is a chord progression commonly used in Jazz. The chord progression is as follows: ii7b5-V7(b9)-i7. If we are in the key of C minor, the chords would be Emin7b5, G7b9, and Dmin7. Let’s look at a few licks that you can play over a minor ii-V-i:
Lick #1
Lick #1 is transcribed from Charlie Parker's solo on "Confirmation" and you can hear the lick at :45 in the song. This is a minor ii-V-i in the key of D minor.
There is a b9 (Bb) played over the A7 chord, and a G# approaches the 5th of d minor.
Lick #2
Notice the use of repetition in the beginning of bars 1 and 2. This is a minor ii-V-i in the key of C minor.
There are altered b9 and #5 tones played over the G7, and there is a simple G major triad in the second half of the second measure.
Use these minor ii-V-i licks as inspiration for improvising over standards that have minor ii-V-i chord changes. You may find minor ii-V-i’s to be a bit more challenging to improvise over than a major ii-V-I but that is because you are less familiar! With enough practice you can master both major and minor progressions!