Cadd9 Guitar Chord – The name says it all : ) The Cadd9 guitar chord is a C major chord with an additional 9th note from C Major Scale which is D. Cadd9 Chord has a very positive sound and in theory, you can replace the major chord with Added9th Chord, some times that will sound even better.

Chord Formula: 1-3-5-9

Chord Notes: C E G D

The most common Shape / Diagram for Cadd9 Is :

Cadd9 Chord Diagram
Cadd9 Most Used Shape

How This sound: Listen How this Cadd9 Should sound in Standard Tuning

Cadd9 Chord Sound
Cadd9 Chord Strumming Sound

Some alternative shapes are:

Cadd9 Chord Diagrams

Some examples / Common Songs That used Cadd9 Chord:

  1. Every Rose Has Its Thorn Chords by Poison: This is probably one of the best examples of the uses of this Chord. In every line of Verse and chorus, The second chord. Listen to the song here.
  2. Wonderwall by Oasis: The first chord of the Chorus when it says “I said maybe”
  3. More Than Words By Extreme: Another great song , in verse and interlude this chord is used quite a few times.
  4. Behind Blue Eyes By Limp Bizkit: In Verse and Chorus used a lot of times.
  5. High by James Blunt: In chorus used 4 times.

FAQ On Cadd9 Chord

Q: What does Cadd9 mean?
Ans: C Major chord with its 9th (2nd Note) from Major Scale is Cadd9, Play C Major and Cadd9, you will see there is an extra punch on Cadd9.

Q: C9 and Cadd9: Are they the same?
Ans: No they are not the same, Basically Cadd9 Is C major with added 9th Note of the Scale on the other hand C9 is C dominant 7th (C7) with added 9th Note on it.

Q: What other chord sounds great with Cadd9?
Ans: When you compose a song don’t always follow theory, follow your ears instead.
Cadd9 Sounds great with G Major Chord, and D Chord but you can use at least 100 other chords depending on Your song Structure and feel.

Q: What is the formula For Cadd9 or any added 9th chord?
Ans: So for any chord, if you go to Major Scale and take the 9th (2nd) note from the scale you will get 9th Chord. So for Cadd9 It’s C Major (1,3,5) + 9th Note from the scale which is D.

Cadd9 Formula: 1 3 5 9
1 2 3  4 5 6 7 8 9
C D E F G A B C D

Song Example of cadd9 Chord
Every Rose Has Its Thorn By Poison – A great example of Uses of Cadd9 Chord

Fret Position: 

Here are some Tabs / Alternative fret positions for Cadd9:
[3 x 0 0 1 0]
[x 3 0 0 1 0]
[x 3 2 0 3 0]
[x 3 2 0 3 3]
[x x 0 0 1 0] 
[x x 0 5 5 3]
[x 10 12 12 13 0]
[x 3 2 0 3 0] 
[x 5 5 5 x 0] 

If you interested in chording and progressions you might be interested with our Songs with great chording series. 

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