Backing track maker
The backing track maker builds a base to play along with: you write the chords and how many beats each one lasts, pick the tempo (40 to 220 BPM), one of 21 grooves and one of 5 tones, and the site plays it in a loop, shows the scale to solo over each chord and exports the result as a WAV file.
Build a chord progression with tempo, groove and guitar tone to practise, record over or jam solos. Start from an example or build your own.
Starts on
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Next
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Scale to solo with
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90BPM
Space bar: play/stop
ProgressionBuild your own
Time signature
Grouping
The accents fall at the start of each group: 7/8 as 2+2+3 sounds different from 3+2+2.
Length of each chord: 4 beats = 1 bar of 4/4.
Under each chord, the scale to solo over it.
No chords yet: pick one below and tap Add.
Groove
Tone
Backing band
Soloing over it
These work too:
Your own amp (NAM)
NAM (Neural Amp Modeler) recreates real amps and pedals from captures. Load a model of your own (for example one downloaded from TONE3000, following its licence): the file stays on your device.
No model: the guitar uses the simple built-in amp.
Download and share
Start from an exampleOther progressions
- Pop in C (I–V–vi–IV) C · G · Am · F The progression behind hundreds of hits, on strummed acoustic. 4/4 · Pop / strummed acoustic · 96 BPM
- Blues in A A7 · D7 · A7 · E7 · D7 · A7 · E7 The 12-bar shuffle: the backbone of every jam. 4/4 · Blues shuffle · 92 BPM
- Bossa (ii–V–I in C) Dm7 · G7 · C7M Dm7, G7 and C7M on nylon-string guitar. 4/4 · Bossa nova · 128 BPM
- Rock in E E5 · G5 · A5 · G5 Power chords on a distorted electric. 4/4 · Rock · 120 BPM
- Reggae in A minor Am · D The offbeat skank over Am and D. 4/4 · Reggae · 76 BPM
- Baião in G G · C · D7 · G G, C and D7 in Luiz Gonzaga’s rhythm. 4/4 · Baião · 104 BPM
- Andalusian cadence in A minor Am · G · F · E Am, G, F and E: the flamenco descent. 4/4 · Pop / strummed acoustic · 96 BPM
- Ballad in 6/8 C · Am · F · G C, Am, F and G fingerpicked in two pulses of three eighth notes. 6/8 · Fingerpicked ballad · 56 BPM
- Vamp in 5/4 Ebm · Bbm7 Ebm and Bbm7 in five beats (3+2), the back-and-forth of Take Five. 5/4 · Basic · 160 BPM
- Rock in 7/8 Em · D · C · B7 Em, D, C and B7 as 2+2+3: the “limping” time of prog rock. 7/8 · Rock · 240 BPM
- Slow blues in A A7 · D7 · A7 · D7 · A7 · E7 · D7 · A7 … The 12 bars in 12/8 at 60 BPM, with piano: the slow blues to solo over. 12/8 · Slow blues (12/8) · 60 BPM
- Funk in A minor Am7 · D9 Am7 and D9 (the Dorian sound) with chicken scratch, ghost notes and a syncopated bass. 4/4 · Funk · 100 BPM
- Jazz in C (ii–V–I) Dm7 · G7 · C7M · Em7 · A7 · Dm7 · G7 Swing with walking bass and piano comping. 4/4 · Jazz (swing) · 140 BPM
- Metal in E E5 · C5 · D5 · E5 E5, C5 and D5 with palm muting, the gallop and double kick. 4/4 · Metal · 116 BPM
- Neo soul in C F7M · Em7 · Dm7 · C7M Fmaj7, Em7, Dm7 and Cmaj7 stepping down over a laid-back beat. 4/4 · Lo-fi / neo soul · 84 BPM
- Worship in C C · G/B · Am · F C, G/B, Am and F: starts on piano alone and keeps building. 4/4 · Gospel / worship · 72 BPM
How to build the progression
Start from one of the examples or from scratch: pick the root and quality of the chord, how many beats it lasts, and tap “Add chord”. If you prefer, type all the chords at once (Am F C G7); add a colon to set the beats for each one (Am:2 G:2).
Pick the time signature: 4/4, 3/4, compound (6/8, 12/8) or odd meters (5/4, 7/8, 9/8…), and for odd meters the grouping (7/8 as 2+2+3 or 3+2+2). Each chord lasts a number of units of the time signature: beats in 4/4, eighth notes in 7/8. Adjust with − and + or choose how many bars it lasts, remove with × and tap “Apply” to hear the new progression. Then choose the groove, the tone (steel-string, nylon-string, clean or distorted electric, or piano) and whether bass and drums come in.
How to practise soloing over it
With the track playing, the “Scale to solo with” card changes along with the chords: it shows the scale for each chord from its role in the key (IV calls for Lydian, V7 for Mixolydian…), the one coming next and an easy pentatonic. The “Soloing over it” section shows the safest scale for the whole song, with its shape on the neck.
To practise, lower the tempo until you can play it cleanly, keep the one-bar count-in on and work your way up 5 BPM at a time. Download the WAV and record yourself over it to hear your solo back.
What each groove is
The groove is the rhythmic pattern of the backing: how the guitar strums or picks, what the bass plays and how the drums keep time. Like a real band, the drums play a fill every 4 and every 8 bars. Tap a name to hear it.
- Pop / strummed acoustic 96 BPM
- The “down, down, up, up, down, up” strum that works for almost anything.
- Fingerpicked ballad 72 BPM
- Eighth-note fingerpicking: the bass note, then the high strings, for slow songs.
- Rock 120 BPM
- Palm-muted power chords in eighth notes: a full rock band feel.
- Basic 90 BPM
- One strum per beat, bass on the first note of each group and drums on the accents: works in any time signature.
- Reggae 76 BPM
- Guitar only on the offbeat (the “skank”) and a heavy bass line driving it.
- Bossa nova 128 BPM
- The thumb keeps the bass going and the fingers play the syncopation: the bossa sway.
- Baião 104 BPM
- Luiz Gonzaga’s rhythm from north-east Brazil: the zabumba drum going “boom… boom-boom” and a steady triangle.
- Blues shuffle 92 BPM
- Swung eighth notes (long-short) and a boogie bass line walking up and down.
- Waltz 108 BPM
- Three beats to the bar: bass on 1, chord on 2 and 3.
- Sertanejo (Brazilian country) 112 BPM
- The “boom-chick”: bass alternating root and fifth, chord on the offbeat.
- Funk 100 BPM
- Sixteenth notes on the hi-hat, ghost notes on the snare, a syncopated bass line with octave pops and “chicken scratch” guitar: muted strokes with a few dry chord stabs.
- Jazz (swing) 140 BPM
- Swing ride pattern, hi-hat on 2 and 4, a walking bass line in quarter notes (chord tones and chromatic approach notes) and short comping on piano or guitar.
- Metal 116 BPM
- Double kick in sixteenth notes, snare on 2 and 4, palm-muted power chords with the gallop, and the bass doubling the guitar.
- Country 120 BPM
- The “boom-chicka”: bass notes alternating root and fifth, the chord on 2 and 4 and the train beat on the snare. Every 8 bars the bass walks into the next chord.
- Lo-fi / neo soul 84 BPM
- A laid-back hip-hop beat (swung sixteenths), seventh and ninth chords on the piano and a soft bass.
- Salsa 180 BPM
- 2-3 clave, cowbell and congas; the bass plays the tumbao (anticipating the next chord on 4) and the piano plays the montuno.
- Cumbia 92 BPM
- The guacharaca scraping “cha-chiki” on every beat, kick on 1 and 3, the chord on the offbeat and the bass between root and fifth.
- Gospel / worship 72 BPM
- A ballad that builds: piano and bass only at first, the drums come in at bar 5 and the full band from bar 9 on, with big piano chords.
- Slow blues (12/8) 60 BPM
- Hi-hat in triplets, a heavy snare on 2 and 4, a light kick, piano pushing the triplets and the bass walking up and down. Best between 55 and 70 BPM.
- Shred / neoclassical 150 BPM
- Fast double kick, guitar and bass in eighth notes: the base of neoclassical metal. In a minor key, the suggested scale is harmonic minor.
- Prog (7/8 and 5/4) 240 BPM
- Odd meters with the accent on the first note of each group: 7/8 as 2+2+3, 5/4 as 3+2. Change the grouping and the accents move with it.
Frequently asked questions
What is a backing track?
It’s an accompaniment without the lead instrument: harmony, bass and drums playing a chord progression so you can play, sing or solo over it.
Can I download the backing track?
Yes. Under “Download and share”, the “Download WAV” button renders an audio file with 1, 2 or 4 repeats of the progression, ready for a recorder or your DAW. The file is rendered on your own device.
How do I change the tempo?
With the −5, −1, +1 and +5 buttons, from 40 to 220 BPM. When you switch grooves, the tempo moves to the one suggested for it, unless you have already picked your own.
Do I need NAM?
No. NAM (Neural Amp Modeler) is optional: if you have a .nam capture of an amp or pedal, the backing track guitar will sound like it. Without a model, it uses a simple built-in amp.
Can I play in 6/8, 5/4 or 7/8?
Yes. In the editor, pick the time signature (2/4, 3/4, 4/4, 5/4, 6/8, 7/8, 9/8, 12/8 and more) and, for odd meters, how the units are grouped. The pop, rock, ballad, basic, prog, funk, metal and neoclassical grooves play in every time signature; prog starts in 7/8, with the accent on the first note of each group. Jazz, lo-fi and country play in quarter-note meters (jazz in 3/4 becomes a jazz waltz); the blues and the slow blues stay in 4/4, 2/2, 6/8 and 12/8, gospel in 2/4, 2/2, 4/4, 6/8 and 12/8, the waltz in 3/4, and bossa nova, baião, reggae, sertanejo, salsa and cumbia in 2/4, 2/2 and 4/4.
Can I use piano on the backing track?
Yes. With the “Piano” tone, the accompaniment is played with recordings of a Steinway grand, the chord split between the two hands and the right hand moving as little as possible from one chord to the next. Jazz, lo-fi, gospel, the ballad and the slow blues start on piano.
How do I share my progression?
The whole song lives in the page address: chords, tempo, groove and tone. Tap “Copy link” and send it to anyone; whoever opens it hears the same track.