Posts Tagged ‘blues’

Eric gives us a fine version of this Otis Rush classic from an abandoned documentary ‘Nothin’ But The Blues‘ by Martin Scorsese.

Blues guitar playing has evolved quite a bit since it initially started in the deep southern region of The United States. The blues style has changed with musicians adding their unique variations to the blues chord progression and blues scale. But to learn blues guitar you will need to study the fundamentals of the blues guitar playing style.

To be able to start playing blues on the guitar you will probably require private classes or find blues guitar lessons online. The right blues guitar lesson will initially teach you the most fundamental elements of blues guitar playing. The first is the 12 bar blues chord sequence (this sequence is also common in other genres of music). The second important element is the blues scale. Learning scales is vital for virtually any genre of music and they will allow you to make your own compositions.

The 12 bar blues chord progression will help with your guitar strumming. The lesson will teach you how you can switch chords while continuing to strum a particular rhythm. This chord progression can be played in any key, where the root chord is played for four bars, the fourth chord played for two followed by two bars of the root note, the fifth chord for just one bar, the fourth for another bar and the root chord played once again for two bars. This adds up to twelve bars and hence it is referred to as the twelve bar chord progression.

When the blues lesson shows you the strumming part of blues you need to start learning the blues scale. The blues scale is simply the minor pentatonic scale that has a sharpened fourth note. This fourth is also referred to as the blues note. When you master the scale you’ll be ready to start manipulating the scale making use of different guitar techniques and make your own solo.

Listening to a lot of blues guitarists like Stevie Ray Vaughan and B.B King will help give you the hang of blues guitar playing. When you listen to plenty of blues music while you are covering your blues guitar lessons, you’ll undoubtedly advance much faster. Also, playing the scale with a blues track backing or a drum patch will help you make your own modifications in the scale and start playing blues solos.

Blues guitar playing can be a lot of fun, but you simply must be focused and you must not force yourself through the blues guitar lesson. Getting a blues guitar lesson online will let you learn from your home and you’ll also be able to take your time for each session.

About the Author

We have provided information on some of the courses that we have researched. These Blues Guitar Lessons are excellent for aspiring the blues guitar players.

Whenever you can learn some basic piece of information and apply that information to a variety of musical situations in your guitar playing it’s an opportunity too good to miss.

Learning blues chord progressions is one such vital piece of information, you probably already play some blues chord progressions without even realizing it; it’s highly likely … there’re almost impossible to avoid!

Blues chord progressions are found in rock, country, jazz and folk music and just about everywhere else in between. Let’s get started with the most basic examples.

Basic Blues Chord Progressions:

The most common format for the blues is the twelve bar blues chord progression, there’s four variations of this progression, the trick is to learn to play these progressions in all keys and be able to recognize each progression by their distinctive sound and feel.

12 bar blues chord progressions:

Blues 1

1 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 4 /// | 4 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 5 /// | 5 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// ||

Blues 2 1 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 4 /// | 4 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 5 /// | 4 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// ||

Blues 3 1 /// | 4 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 4 /// | 4 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 5 /// | 5 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// ||

Blues 4 1 /// | 4 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 4 /// | 4 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// | 5 /// | 4 /// | 1 /// | 1 /// ||

At first glance it looks complicated, the idea is to break everything down into tiny bite-size pieces i.e., take a closer look a Blues 3 notice how except for bar two it’s exactly the same as Blues 1.

Similarly, Blues 4 apart from the second bar is identical to blues 2.

I’ve presented each progression using numbers instead of chord names to make it easier to convert each progression into different keys.

Here’s how that works …

The number 1 refers to chord one of that particular key e.g., in the key of ‘G’ chord one would be ‘G’.

The number 4 refers to chord four of that particular key e.g., in the key of ‘G’ chord four would be ‘C’.

The number 5 refers to chord five of that particular key e.g., in the key of ‘G’ chord five would be ‘D’.

I’ve listed the most popular keys below to help you get started.

Key of C

1 = C 4 = F 5 = G

Key of G

1 = G 4 = C 5 = D

Key of D

1 = D 4 = G 5 = A

Key of A

1 = A 4 = D 5 = E

Key of E

1 = E 4 = A 5 = B

Here’s a few working examples of the 12 bar blues chord progressions in different keys and formats to help you recognize them when you hear, play or see them.

Blues 1 – key of G

G /// | G /// | G /// | G /// | C /// | C /// | G /// | G /// | D /// | D /// | G /// | G /// ||

Blues 2 – key of G

G /// | G /// | G /// | G /// | C /// | C /// | G /// | G /// | D /// | C /// | G /// | G /// ||

Blues 3 – key of G

G /// | C /// | G /// | G /// | C /// | C /// | G /// | G /// | D /// | D /// | G /// | G /// ||

Blues 4 – key of G

G /// | C /// | G /// | G /// | C /// | C /// | G /// | G /// | D /// | C /// | G /// | G /// ||

Blues 1 – key of E

E /// | E /// | E /// | E /// | A /// | A /// | E /// | E /// | B /// | B /// | E /// | E /// ||

Blues 2 – key of E

E /// | E /// | E /// | E /// | A /// | A /// | E /// | E /// | B /// | A /// | E /// | E /// ||

Blues 3 – key of E

E /// | A /// | E /// | E /// | A /// | A /// | E /// | E /// | B /// | B /// | E /// | E /// ||

Blues 4 – key of E

E /// | A /// | E /// | E /// | A /// | A /// | E /// | E /// | B /// | A /// | E /// | E /// ||

As you learn or play a song run it through the “12 bar blues” filter, ask yourself is this song a 12 bar blues, if so, which version.

Here’s an example …

Did you know that two popular Eric Clapton songs use the same 12 bar blues, blues 4 format?

Do you know which ones? …

“Crossroads” and “Before You Accuse Me”.

“Crossroads” is played in the key of A

“Before You Accuse Me” is in the key of E (MTV unplugged version)

Don’t forget to check both songs out next time you play your guitar.

About the Author

And now I’d like to invite you to get free access to my “How To Remember 1,000 Songs” eCourse. You can download the course for free at: => http://www.guitarcoaching.com

From Mike Hayes – The Internet Guitar Guy & The Express Guitar Programs

A beginner blues guitar lesson might be just what you need to get off the ground in the world of playing guitar. The guitar can be a pretty intimidating instrument if you’ve never learned anything about music or were not in the high school band.

Fortunately for you, you can take some very basic ideas about playing the blues guitar and get a pretty good idea about how to get started. Check out these 4 easy tips to help you tackle the art of learning the blues.

1. Learn from the professionals.

Imitation is one of the absolute best ways to learn a skill including how to play the guitar. Since I know that you already have access to the internet, check out some video-streaming sites and search for your favorite players. You can really learn a lot from some simple observation.

2. Start with twelve-bar blues.

If you take anything away from this beginner blues guitar lesson it should be that twelve-bar blues started it all. Just about every song composed in the 1950s that involved an electric guitar was twelve-bar blues.

Here’s a simple example of this style that only involves three chords:

* The first chord is E5 played with your index finger on the second fret of the A string. Strum the top two strings only.

* The second chord is B5 played with your index finger still on the second fret of the A string and your ring finger on the fourth fret of the D string. Strum those two strings only.

* The third chord is C5 played by taking the exact formation for B5 and sliding up the guitar neck by one fret. That’s simple enough.

3. Use the techniques of other players.

There probably isn’t one single original blues player that’s alive anymore and that means you don’t have to be completely original either. Find out what some of your idol’s favorite riffs are and then play the heck out of them. The sooner you start adding licks to your style, the sooner you’ll establish your own original characteristics.

4. Base your solos off of the minor pentatonic scale.

You don’t normally hear about soloing in a beginner blues guitar lesson, but it’s important to mention scales at this point. Most beginners hate the idea of scales because they’re not too exciting, but their purpose is very important.

If you plan on taking the path of improvisation and having jam sessions, all the notes you use are usually from this scale. Get yourself a scale chart and play through the scale a couple times before each practice session and you’ll be ahead of half the other beginners out there.

About the Author

Learning the blues can be tough and that’s when it’s nice to know that there are easier options to learning like good online guitar lessons. Just to get you aware of your options, check out this first-hand experience with the very popular beginner’s guitar series call Jamorama guitar.