Indeed a very helpful 'effin thread! For years I couldn't play the barre version, always used the middle four strings and muted the E's. Then, and it took some years and a lot of pain, I gained enough strength in my fingers to play it properly. But old habits die hard, and I still prefer the cheat version, or the three finger jobber I guess it's an Fm7? But that's just laziness on my part, or the particular song's tempo calls for a faster switch. S'why it's hard to play in a song circle, everyone's watching and listening to your dirty little tricks.

And working the B flat a lot also builds up that strength neede to play these chords. I play a Gibson J-45, and only recently switched to a lighter string. Seems to ease the pain a bit.

Hey, it ain't never been called easy!

Clifton53