How to Communicate Chords Quickly With a Band - The Nashville Numbering System
“…okay, it’s a blues rhythm in B, watch me for the changes…”
Marty Mcfly
Have you ever heard musicians on stage say a bunch of numbers, like they’re talking in code?
“Okay it’s a standard two five one, watch the dominant six on the turnaround…”
Welcome to the Nashville numbering system.
The Nashville Numbering System
Back in the 1950s, Nashville studios were a production line of incredible music.
It wasn’t unusual to see music legends packed in one after another throughout the week. The same core group of studio musicians — later known as The Nashville A-Team — often played for artists like Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Patsy Cline, Brenda Lee, and Jim Reeves.
A producer would hand out a fresh chart, the band would run through the song once or twice, and then hit record. If the key didn’t suit the singer’s voice, they’d have to change it on the fly.
With such tight schedules, handwritten charts were constantly being scribbled over or rewritten — until one guy decided there had to be a better way.
The story goes that Neal Matthews Jr. from The Jordanaires (Elvis’s backing singers) came up with a system. Instead of writing chords, he wrote numbers representing their place in the scale.
If you were in G:
1️⃣ = G
2️⃣ = A minor
3️⃣ = B minor
4️⃣ = C
5️⃣ = D
6️⃣ = E minor
7️⃣ = F# diminished
So, when someone calls “one-four-five in G”, that means G–C–D. In A, it’s A–D–E. Same pattern, new key. Magic.
It caught on fast. By the 1960s, every session player in Nashville could glance at a chart, get the feel, and switch keys on the fly — no panic, no paper flying across the room.
Using the Nashville Numbering System at a Jam
Jam nights are unpredictable. Someone forgets the bridge, another player changes the key to suit the singer, and the bass player’s just following the kick drum. The Nashville Number System brings order to all that madness.
It means everyone — guitarists, horn players, keyboardists, singers — can communicate instantly. It’s the language of professionals who’d rather play than explain.
Example of a Numbered
Chord Chart
Don’t be put off by the extra symbols - the basis is the same.
Originally found on:
https://discover.hubpages.com/entertainment/Nashville-Number-System-Charting-Songs
A Nashville Chart in Action
So here it is — a real piece of Nashville magic. This is a Nashville Number System (NNS) chart for “Crazy”, one of Patsy Cline’s most iconic songs. It might look cryptic at first glance — full of numbers, dashes, and little arrows — but once you get the hang of it, it’s surprisingly simple.
The original song is in Bb.
Step 1. Forget Letters — Think Numbers
Instead of seeing chords like C, F, G7, you’re seeing numbers that represent each chord’s position in the scale.
This chart is in C major (see top right corner). So:
1 = C
2 = D minor
3 = E minor
4 = F
5 = G
6 = A minor
7 = B diminished
If you ever need to change key — say, to A — you just relabel the numbers with the new key’s chords. The pattern stays the same. That’s the beauty of it.
(you need to use diatonic major scales to list out the chords correctly in each key. Don't know your diatonic major scales? Use the Internet or get lessons!).
Step 2. Bars and Beats
Each vertical bar line | marks one measure.
Dots (•) indicate beats or held notes.
So when you see:
| • • | 4 | 4 3- | 2- 5 5+ |
you’re counting through the measures in time — in this case, a 12/8 feel (that lazy triplet swing that makes “Crazy” so smooth).
Step 3. Minor, Major, and Extra Symbols
– means minor (e.g. ‘2–’ = D minor).
° means diminished (e.g. ‘#4°’ = F# diminished).
+ means augmented or altered (e.g. ‘5+’ = G augmented).
b3° means a flat third diminished — very jazzy, adds colour.
These symbols make it flexible enough for pop, jazz, country — or anything in between.
Step 4. Walk-ups and Movement
See that “chromatic walk-up” note in the intro and outro?
That’s a little melodic run the bass player or guitarist plays to climb smoothly between chords — it’s not a separate chord, just a line connecting them.
The small arrows ↑ or ↓ mark bass movement — often showing how to walk up or down to the next chord (like 1–♭7–6).
How to Start Using It
Pick a key you know — let’s say G.
Write out your scale and number each chord.
Learn common progressions like 1–4–5 (blues), or 6–4–1–5 (pop).
Practise transposing on the fly.
Once you’ve got it, you’ll be able to jump into almost any tune — and more importantly, keep up when the singer suddenly decides, “Let’s do it a tone higher!”
Final Thought
The Nashville Number System wasn’t born in a classroom. It came from tired, clever musicians in smoky studios who needed a faster way to make great music. It’s not about theory — it’s about connection.
So next time you’re at a jam and someone says, “It’s a 1–6–2–5 in A,” don’t panic.
Just nod, count yourself in, and channel your inner Marty McFly.
JW
