• From: Texas
  • Registered: 2007-07-31
  • Posts: 950

Re: BLUES: the scales

I was reading this thread.... very helpful stuff. Jerome, I bet your an awesome teacher, you always remind of how much I don't know. I do know this 'pattern 4' scale, and found you could move it around. Sometimes I'll slide down to some bluesy strumming....
Maybe you could give me a quick crash course in what exactly 12 bars means??? I don't know much music theory (well I know a little but all by the wrong names), and timings something I just kind of 'feel', I've been told my timing's good but I wouldn't know how to really count it off.


   Doc, I bought a Guitar World Legends special edition magazine with Billy Gibbons the other day and it had an interesting article about the history of blues music. They say according to an old blues song that 'the blues came from texas loping like a mule'. No one knows exactly where they came from, but given the musical influence of African slaves with instruments like the mandolin and banjo (which can actually be found in early blues music I found out), I guess that had alot to do with it. I also found out that the earliest forms of 'hillbilly' music (Hank Williams Jimmy Rodgers kind of stuff) was only seperated from the blues by the race of the singer. That the patterns and structures were actually very similar.

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27 Reply by dguyton (edited by dguyton 2007-11-15 16:25:45)

  • From: Central Flatland
  • Registered: 2007-05-30
  • Posts: 223

Re: BLUES: the scales

Just about any song you care to name from the 1930's on that has the word 'Blues' in the title is (or is derived from) a 12-bar blues.  If you heard it, you would recongnize it immediately.  Clapton's 'Before You Accuse Me' (lead track on 'Unplugged') is a classic twelve bar blues.  ZZ Top's 'LaGrange' also fits the 12-bar blues pattern, at a faster tempo.

I don't know what happened there, I had "Tush" playing in my head, but "La Grange" is what spilled out my fingers.  Sorry about that.

"There's such a fine line between genius and stupidity."
                              --David St. Hubbins
  • From: Bellevue, WA
  • Registered: 2006-06-15
  • Posts: 3,336

Re: BLUES: the scales

Alright.

A 12 bar blues is a I IV V chord progression played over 12 bars.

A bar for our purposes, is one measure of 4/4 time.  You count common time as thus.

One Two Three Four
One Two Three Four

In tempo.  Because we are playing 12 bars, we will want to count our progression like this.

One Two Three Four
Two Two Three Four
Three Two Three Four
Four Two Three Four
Five Two Three Four

...

Eleven Two Three Four
Twelve Two Three Four

Simply strum on each beat for right now.

You'll play the chord progression as such.  Chords only change on the beginnings of the measures.   I've included the notes in the key of E major as an example.  You should use the chords appropriate for your favorite key.

One        I     E
Two        I     E
Three      I    E
Four       I     E
Five        IV   A
Six         IV   A
Seven     I     E
Eight       I     E
Nine       V    B
Ten        IV   A
Eleven    I     E
Twelve    I    E

Once you play it, you'll immediately recognize it.  It's the basis for literally thousands of songs.

Someday we'll win this thing...

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  • From: Belfast, Northern Ireland
  • Registered: 2006-03-04
  • Posts: 338

Re: BLUES: the scales

Well done, Jerome!

It took me years of working out and getting things wrong to get what you just posted.

Isn't the web is just wonderful! I learnt about pentatonics from crumpled photocopies ( does anyone remember the shiny paper they used to come on !) of articles in music mags back in the seventies. They were passed from learner to learner during the "boom" in guitar playing during the punk years. We'd copy them out and practice till our finger tips glowed.

"What's so funny 'bout peace, love and understandin' ."    Elvis Costello

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  • From: Texas
  • Registered: 2007-07-31
  • Posts: 950

Re: BLUES: the scales

Oh ok, Thanks tons Jerome big_smile
Im gonna copy paste and print this sheet.... E is one of my favorite keys actually so thats nice. Finally learned the nashville numbers too so now I know  what your talking about.
Thanks again,
        LR

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HannahBeth's Website

31 Reply by Tibernius (edited by Tibernius 2007-11-14 21:53:25)

  • From: UK
  • Registered: 2007-09-16
  • Posts: 369

Re: BLUES: the scales

jerome.oneil wrote:

You'll play the chord progression as such.  Chords only change on the beginnings of the measures.   I've included the notes in the key of E major as an example.  You should use the chords appropriate for your favorite key.

One        I     E
Two        I     E
Three      I    E
Four       I     E
Five        IV   A
Six         IV   A
Seven     I     E
Eight       I     E
Nine       V    B
Ten        IV   A
Eleven    I     E
Twelve    I    E

Once you play it, you'll immediately recognize it.  It's the basis for literally thousands of songs.

There's also a version which ends with:

Twelve  V  B

The rest is the same.

  • From: Bellevue, WA
  • Registered: 2006-06-15
  • Posts: 3,336

Re: BLUES: the scales

Tibernius wrote:
jerome.oneil wrote:

You'll play the chord progression as such.  Chords only change on the beginnings of the measures.   I've included the notes in the key of E major as an example.  You should use the chords appropriate for your favorite key.

One        I     E
Two        I     E
Three      I    E
Four       I     E
Five        IV   A
Six         IV   A
Seven     I     E
Eight       I     E
Nine       V    B
Ten        IV   A
Eleven    I     E
Twelve    I    E

Once you play it, you'll immediately recognize it.  It's the basis for literally thousands of songs.

There's also a version which ends with:

Twelve  V  B

The rest is the same.

You could do that as a grace note into the first verse, but I think that would leave the progression pretty unresolved if you ended on the V.

Someday we'll win this thing...

[url=http://www.aclosesecond.com]www.aclosesecond.com[/url]

jerome.oneil's Website