01 A Medium Shufflemp3wma
Time/size: 5 mins /6.9mb
Blues jam track: medium shuffle in A (108 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: This is a good laid back feel to concentrate on your note choice and phrasing.
Aim for quality (and not quantity) in both the note choice as well as the tone of the notes.
On track 01 on the Play Guitar Blues 01 page I put up the A blues scale in 5th position. Here's the A blues scale in open position:
Note that the Root note of the A blues scale in open position is on the 5th or the A string. The E string has the E note which is the 5th note of the A scale and the G (on the 3rd fret of the low E) which is the b7th (flat seventh) note of the A blues scale.
Blues Guitar Licks in A
Let's look at 2 simple blues licks with a variation on each lick that uses the b7th on the low E string. Lick 1a below is starting on the root note of the scale, the A, and playing up to the b3rd, which is the C on the 3rd fret of the A string.
In lick 1b instead of starting on the Root we are instead leading into the root by starting on the b7th which is the G at the 3rd fret of the E string.
Lick 2a and 2b are also similar. In lick 2a we play the notes of the A blues scale starting on the A and walking up to the b5th (flat fifth) of the A blues scale located at the 4th fret on the 2nd or B string.
In lick 2b when we are walking the notes back down from the b5th, instead of playing the b3rd located on the 1st fret of the B string we are playing the b7th. The flat 7th here is the open G string.
Remember that the flat 7th of an A scale is the note G.
The 7th note of any Major scale is the note that is located one fret below the Root note of the scale you are playing. For the A Major scale, the 7th is G# (G sharp).
The Blues scale however uses the notes Root, b3rd, 4th, b5th, 5th and b7th notes relative to the Major scale in the same key. We know that the 7th note of the A Major scale is G#. So we flatten the note (lower it by one fret or one semi-tone) which gives us the note G.
That's how you can work out what the b7th is for any blues scale. It's simply one fret lower than the 7th of the Major scale off the same root note. Or you can just remember that the 7th note of the blues scale is one tone (two frets) below the root note of the scale you are playing in.
Notice that when I explain theory I'm saying the same things in a few different ways. There are several ways that music theory can be expressed. I repeat them because everyone has a different amount of knowledge. Some terms might be obvious and other terms you might not have heard before but hopefully now understand because I'm stating the same things just in a different way.
02 D Medium Fast Shufflemp3wma
Time/size: 4 mins 18 secs/5.94mb
Blues jam track: medium fast shuffle in D (126 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: This is based on the Allman Brothers version of Statesboro Blues.
Have a listen to that and pull out your slide.
03 C Straight Ahead Bluesmp3wma
Time/size: 4 mins 02 secs/5.57mb
Blues jam track: straight ahead mid tempo blues C (100 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: Get into the rhythm of the track and go from there.
Stevie Ray Vaughan- Texas Flood
04 Eb Medium Texas Thang (E if you play guitar and tune down 1/2 a step) mp3wma
Time/size: 3 mins 41 secs/5.10mb
Blues jam track: straight ahead blues in Eb (110 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: Dig dig hard into the notes and pull out some big fat texas tone.
05 Eb Voodoo Vamp (E if you play guitar and tune down 1/2 a step) mp3wma
Time/size: 5 mins 51 secs/8.09mb
Blues jam track: Vamp on an Eb7 chord (86 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: Chop it down with the edge of your hands!
Pull out the wah and go from there.
06 Ab Midtown Shuffle (A if you play guitar and tune down 1/2 a step) mp3wma
Time/size: 4 mins 06 secs/5.64mb
Blues jam track: medium shuffle in Ab (120 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: A few chromatic runs leading in and out of the chords wouldn't go astray on this one.
07 G6/9 I IV V Progressionmp3wma
Time/size: 4 mins 08 secs/5.72mb
Blues jam track: a I-IV-V progression using Sixth and Ninth Chords in G (120 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: Start with a G Major Pentatonic Scale.
08 C Slow Walk Down Bluesmp3wma
Time/size: 5 mins 31 secs/7.63mb
Blues jam track:slow blues progression in C (108 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: C blues scale - try this with a slide.
B.B. King - Blues Boys Tune
09 E Vamp in the key of Chillmp3wma
Time/size: 4 mins 17 secs/5.92mb
Blues jam track: A vamp in E (120 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: The chord extensions used in this are E9-E6 and E-E7-E6.
Try both Major & minor pentatonic scales and use all chord and scale tones.
10 F Straight Ahead Bluesmp3wma
Time/size: 4 mins 32 secs/6.26mb
Blues jam track: Straight ahead blues progression in F (110 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: F blues scale and play with the riff.
Listen to Albert King's version of Killing Floor and borrow some of Albert's great licks.
11 Bb Rocket Bluesmp3wma
Time/size: 5 mins 54 secs/8.16mb
Blues jam track: Straight ahead blues progression in Bb (100 beats per minute/bpm)
Backing track instruments: electric guitar, bass and drums
Suggestions: Bring out the wah!
