Cantaloupe Island Chords for Jazz Guitar: The Chart and 3 Voicings
Nov 10, 2026Short answer: Cantaloupe Island, by Herbie Hancock, is a 16-bar tune with three chords: F-7, D♭7 and D-7. Each chord lasts four bars: F-7, then D♭7, then D-7, then back to F-7. On many charts the same chords are written Fm7, D♭7 and Dm7.
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Cantaloupe Island chord chart
% means the same chord as the bar before. The colors match the voicings below.
3 Cantaloupe Island voicings
These are the voicings we use on this tune in the Master Standards Blueprint. Two of them are one shape: the "So What" chord. Play it at the 8th fret for F-7 and at the 5th fret for D-7. The orange dot is the root.
The same voicings as fret numbers, low E string to high E string (x = don't play that string):
| Chart says | Play | Frets (low E → high E) |
|---|---|---|
| F-7 | F-11 | x 8 8 8 9 8 |
| D♭7 | D♭13 | 9 x 9 10 11 x |
| D-7 | D-11 | x 5 5 5 6 x |
The two-note version: how Herbie comps it
You could just strum the chords. But I'd rather know how the players on the record approach the tune, and not play the same thing on every song because the chart says so. On the original, Herbie Hancock's right hand plays small two-note shapes. On guitar they sit on the G and B strings:
| Chord | Two-note shapes (G string, B string) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| F-7 | 1 and 1 → 3 and 3 → 5 and 4 | A♭ + C → B♭ + D → C + E♭ |
| D♭7 | 1 and open → 3 and 2 → 4 and 4 | A♭ + B → B♭ + D♭ → B + E♭ |
| D-7 | hold the full D-11 voicing |
Look at what changes between the first two rows. C moves down to B, and D moves down to D♭. Everything else stays. That's the whole difference between F-7 and D♭7 in this tune, and it tells you how to solo on it too.
On the D-7, hold the chord and leave space. It's a break after the busy first eight bars.
How Cantaloupe Island is built
The three chords sound great together, but they don't come from one key. Here are the ways I make sense of them.
The voice leading is just as simple. Follow one note through the four sections:
| Line | F-7 | D♭7 | D-7 | F-7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Going down | C | B | A | A♭ |
| Going up | C | D♭ | D | E♭ |
| Staying put | F | F | F | F |
The D♭7 to D-7 move works because D♭ is also C♯, so it sounds like a leading tone pulling up into D.
Where Cantaloupe Island fits
Most tune lists come down to "learn these because I say so." I order tunes by one rule: each new tune adds no more than three new chords, and reuses the chords you already know. You learn one new idea and use it right away on the tune in front of you. It feels like walking up a staircase instead of swimming between unconnected islands.
Cantaloupe Island is the fourth tune in Volume 1, "First 5 Jazz Tunes". The whole volume is built on minor pentatonics:
By the time you reach Cantaloupe Island, you already own most of it:
So it costs you two new chords, and one of them is a shape you've played since the first tune. The one new idea is the dominant 7 chord.
That's why it comes fourth and not first. You already have the minor pentatonic under your fingers from three tunes, so here you only have to learn what to change when the D♭7 arrives.
The full system is in the best order to learn jazz standards.
The three Cantaloupe Island classes
Cantaloupe Island scales (and what matters more)
People search for the scales to use on Cantaloupe Island, so here they are. Read this first, though.
If you want a scale for each chord:
| Chord | What to play |
|---|---|
| F-7 | F minor pentatonic. The melody is almost all F minor pentatonic. |
| D♭7 | Keep F minor pentatonic and change one note: C becomes B natural. |
| D-7 | D minor pentatonic. |
That B natural is the bluesy note of the tune. Save it for the D♭7. It stands out much more if you hold it back until its moment.
How I'd learn the tune instead
Then grab real ideas: blues phrases, and what you hear on the recordings. Start with Herbie's original and Freddie Hubbard's solo on it.
Frequently asked questions
What are the chords to Cantaloupe Island?
F-7, D♭7 and D-7. Bars 1–4 are F-7, bars 5–8 are D♭7, bars 9–12 are D-7 and bars 13–16 are F-7 again.
How many bars is Cantaloupe Island?
16 bars, four bars on each chord. You play the form once for the melody and keep repeating it for solos.
Who wrote Cantaloupe Island?
Herbie Hancock.
What scale do you use to solo over Cantaloupe Island?
F minor pentatonic on F-7, the same pentatonic with C changed to B natural on D♭7, and D minor pentatonic on D-7. But a scale for every chord is not how professional players think when they improvise, and it's not what Chase teaches. He starts from the bass line, the comping, the melody and the voice leading.
How do you play D♭7 on Cantaloupe Island?
As a D♭13 with the root on the low E string at the 9th fret: 9 x 9 10 11 x. For soloing, Chase treats it as A♭ minor, or keeps F minor pentatonic and changes C to B natural.
When should I learn Cantaloupe Island?
Early. In the Master Standards Blueprint it's the fourth tune, after So What, Milestones and Little Sunflower. By then you know the D-7 chord and the shape for F-7, so the only new thing is the D♭7.
Keep learning
- The best order to learn jazz standards: the rule behind the order, and where Cantaloupe Island sits
- Minor pentatonic substitutions for jazz guitar: more ways to move minor pentatonics, including in minor 3rds
- Blue Bossa chords for jazz guitar: the chart and 7 voicings for the tune that adds the minor ii-V-i
Go deeper
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