Acoustic Blues Guitar (The Ultimate Beginner Series)

BEYOND BASICS

K ITHWYATT

Editor: Aaron Stang Additional Text and Music Examples: Colgan Bryan Ar1Jst Pho!Ography courtesy of Ebet Roberts Art Design: Joseph Klucar

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C 1 997 WARNER BROS PUBUCATIONS All Rights Reserved Any duplication. adaptation or arrangement ollhe compositions

contained In this oollectiOn requ res the wnnen consent of the Publisher.

No part ollhls book may be Unaulhorized

uses

are

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photocopied or reproduced In

any way without permlss!on.

Infringement of the U.S. Copyright Act and

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punishable by law.

CONTENTS

Page# CD Track# Introduction...................................................... .................................................................. 3........................................... Tuning notes ........... .... .............. ........ . ........................... ....... .. ........... ................. . . . .. ................................................. ......... 2 )

SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION TO ACOUSTIC BLUES . ... .................... ................ � Preface.................................................... ..... ......... .... . .. ..... . ...................... .... BASICS: Open Posti i on Chords......................................................... .......... 6 .,

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Example 6: Combine All Three Chords .................................................... 9................................. -..... 8 . Example 7: D & D7 Chords ...................................................................... l0........................................... 9

=�:: �� w�::��::::�::::::::::::::::::::::::::�::::::::::::::::::::::::�::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: : ::::::::::::::::::�::::::::::::::::::::: :? � Example I 0: G and G7 Chords ...... . . .

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CHAPTER I BLUES PROGRESSIONS ...................................................................... 1 4 Example II: Bass-Chord Pattern ............................................................... l4......................................... 13 Example 12: Blues Progression In E.......................................................... l4 ................. ......... ............... 14 :

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��:: l �·::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::�::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: L::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: � Example 15: The Quick-Change Progression..... ..... . _ ....... ....... .. ...... . 16......................................... 17 . .

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CHAPTER 2: RHYTHM ................................................................................................. 18 Example 16: The Shuffle Groove................................................................ IB. ..........................-........... 19 Example 17: Left-Hand Embellishments ................................................... 19......................................... 1 9 Example 18: A7 Embellishment .................................................................. 19......................................... 20 Example 19:Whole Progression ................................................................ 19......................................... 21 Example 20: E7 Varfatlon.............................................................................. 20......................................... 22 Example 21: Quick-Change In E ... .... ..... ......... ... ...... .... ... .. ............... . 21......................................... 23 .

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CHAPTER 3: BASS-LINES............................................................................................. 22 Example 22A E7 to A7 Bass-llne.. .... ........ ........... .......... .............. ... ...... 22 ................. ......... ... ...... ... .. . 2.. Example 22B:A7 to E7 Bass-llne ....... ............ ...... .. ... .. . ................... ...... ... 22 .. ...... .................. .. ............ 2S Example 12C:Anot:her A7 to E7 Bass-llne.............................................. 22......................................... 26 Example 22D: 87 to A7 Bass-line.............................................................. 23......................................... 27 Example 22E: The Whole Bass-line Progression.................................... 23... ...................................... 28 Example 23: The Jimmy Reed Progression .............................................. 24__............ ........................ 29 Example 24: Up-Strokes and Accents ....................................................... 25......................................... 30 Example 25: Blues Rhythm Uck .. . . ..... .... _ ........... . .. ..... .... ........ ..... ........ 25 ... ... .......... . ..... .. ...... .. . .. ... 31 2 1 ��l:s f7:2J : ��.�.����-�::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::�::::::::::::::::::::::i7"��t::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::3·j·�u Example 29: Blues In ETumaround ..................... ...................................... 29........... ...... ..................... ... 3S ....

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CHAPTER 4: BLUES IN A .. .......................... .......... . . . . .............. . .... ....... ....... ........ ......... 30 Ex;�mple 30A:A7 Embellishments ... . . . . . . . .......................................... ......... 30......................................... 36 Example JOB: D7 Embellishments ............................................................. 30......................................... 37 Ex.:lmple 30C: Blues In A.............................................................................. 31......... ........ ...... ...... ... ....... ..38 .

���:: �g�=�:,�r�:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::�l::::::::::::::::::�:::::::::::::::::::::� Example 3 I: Blues In A Turnaround .......................................................... 33......................-................41

SECTION II: SOLO ACOUSTIC BLUES GUITAR.................... -....... ................... 34 CHAPTER S: BLUES UCKS .............................................................. ,........................... 35

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Example 32F:TumaroundYarlation........................................................... 37......................................... 47 Example 32�:Whole Progress lon ... ............ .. ... ... ...... ... ............ ............... .. 38.........................................48 Ex
CHAPTER 6: SLUES CHORD SOLOING................................................................41 Example 34: E7 lnverslons........................................................................... 41......................................... 50 Example 35: Chromaticism .................................... .....................................42......................................... 51 Ex ample 36: Blues Chord Solo I .............................................................. .42......................................... 52 Example 37A;A7 Inversions .......................................................................43. ........ . ..... ....... ... ........ . ... 53 Example 37B:A7 Inversions with Chromat1cs........................................ 43.......... ... . ._......... ........... 5-4 Example 37C: Chord Solo Turnaround .................................................... 43.. ... ...... - ....................... 55 Example 37D: Blues Chord Solo 2 .. ... . . ..... .. ... ........ ....... ......... .. ... .. ...44.... ....... ............. ... .. ........ 56 Example 37E: Blues Chord Solo 3 . . . .... ........ .... ...... . "........................... 45......................................... 57 . ..

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CHAPTER 7:THE BLUES SCALE ............................................................ -................. 47 Examples 38A-381: E Blues Ucks 1-9................... ..................... -.......47-51 ................................... 58-66 CHAPTER 8: FINGERSTYLE BLUES................................................................. -....... 52 E:lamples 39A-39H ................................................................................. 52-55................................... 67-74 Example 391: Muddy Waters Progresslon.- .......... ................................. 56 ..................... . . . ............ ..... 75 Example 39J: Muddy Waters Tumaround................................................. 57......................................... 76

CHAPTER 9: PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER.......................... ,............................... 58 Examples 40-42 ....... ... ........................ .. ..... ... .. . ...... .. .. .... .. . ....... . ......... ..58-62................................... n.79 .

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Introduction

3

INTRODUCTION Welcome to Acoustic Blues Guitar. In the 1920's and 1930's, there were some great players, such as Lonnie Johnson. Blind

Lemon Jefferson and Robert Johnson. The style and infl uen c e of these pl ay e rs esta bl i s he d a

tradition that to this day still app e als to everyone from casual listeners to professional

mus1c1ans. This book presents traditional. roots oriented blues with contemporary training methods that wil l allow you to immediately understand and ap ply these useful versatile concepts to .

your style. Section I covers all the basics you will need to know regarding the acoustic blues style:

chord shapes. progressions, chord embellishments. strum patterns. bass-lines. the shuffle

groove and turnarounds. Sect i on II focuses on sol o-sty le blues guitar, demonstrating musical examples, scales. melodic patterns, licks and fingerpicking.

If you love the blues, have an acoustic guitar and two h ands. then you are ready to go to work.

KEITH WYATT co

0

SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION TO ACOUSTIC BLUES

This section is designed to provide you with the fundamental tools and techniques needed for the acoustic blues style. Make sure you take the time to learn the examples of basic chord shapes, rhythm patterns, progressions, embellishments. bass-lines and turnarounds

in this section before you start on the next section: Solo Acoustic Blues Guitar. Take advantage of the included recording. It will be your guide to interpreting the music examples contained in the book. Remember to tune your guitar to track 2 on the CD before you play with the recording.

PREFACE One nice thing about acoustic blues is that you do not need expensive and complicated tools or devices. The main thing you need is a guitar that is set up well. There are a few simple tools and devices that you might like to keep in your guitar case: extra strings, picks, slides (glass or metal) and a capo.

Strings: It is amazing what a fresh set of strings can do to bring out the best sound of a guitar. If you play regularly, try not to leave the same set of strings on any longer than

month.

a

You might want to use light or extra-light strings to reduce muscle fatigue and sore

fingertips. Later, lighter strings will enable you to learn the valuable technique of "bending in pitch" a lot sooner. After you learn this technique correctly, you might want to experiment

with using heavier strings. Different gauges (thickness) of strings have a different sound quality, and you will need to experiment until you find the sound you like.

Picking Techniques: There are different techniques for striking the strings that you should experiment with as you learn the examples in the book: •

Playing fingerstyle (without a p ick) produces a warm sound, but it's not as clear and you

have to work harder to produce a wide range of volume. This technique is better for solo

style where you combine bass-lines and melody. •

Using a pick will give you a wider range of volume and it is easier to play single-note lines

and melodies. A pick gives you the option of playing single-note melodies with your fingers

and bass-lines with your pick, but you have to train weaker fingers to play fingerstyle melody-lines. Playing fingerstyle wit •

a flat-pick is often called hybrid-picking .

A thumb-pick is primarily designed for down-strokes to play fingerstyle bass-lines, but they are a little awkward for playing single-note melodies.

•

Finger-picks are also available, to be combined with the thumb-pick to get a brighter

sound. This technique is used more for banjo than guitar ..

The most important thing to consider when choosing a technique is the sound. While you might find one of t hese techniques easier than the others, you should still practice the technique that will give you the best sound even if it takes a little longer. Flat-picks come in a variety of sizes. shapes and materials that affect the sound and feel. When using a flat-pick,

experiment with different thicknesses and different materials to learn their effect on the sound.

BASICS: OPEN POSITION CHORDS Acoustic guitar players. in any style, spend m ost of thei r time in open pos i tio n (close to the nut) to make use of the open strings. The open strings resonate m ore than fretted notes and bring o ut the richness of the instrument.

CD

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Example 1: The E Chord

The first chord is an E m ajor chord and is a triad because there are only three different notes in the chord:

E: E Major T riad:

1

G#

B

3

5

E 0

0

4.4t 2

�" t)

0

4t

3

1

n u

......

Make sure that all strings are ringing c learly by placing the fingertips

ri ght

against t h e fret.

Be careful not to touch the open stri ngs Do not push so har d that you are cramping your .

ha nd. The more developed your calluses are, the less you will need to push to get the right sound.

CD

0

Example 2: The E7 Chord

In bl ues. a fou rth note is added to the basic triad to create a dominant 7 chord (indicated as

E7).

Th e fourth n ote is 0, which is the b 7 interval of

E.

E7: E

Dominant 7:

G#

B

D

3

5

b7

1

The following fingerings are the most common E7 fingerings that apply to the blues: E7

0

0

4t

0

0

0

••

0

E7

E7

0

0

4•

4t

2

0

4•

2

I

4

2

3

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.......

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Example 3: The A Chord

The following are different fingerings for the A chord. Even though the notes are the

sam e ,

the choice of fingerings is different.

A: A Major Triad:

X

A

0

0

X

A

0

0

1

C#

E

3

5

A

A

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Example 4: The A 7 Chord

To turn the A chord into a dominant 7th chord, add the G

(b 7).

There are two places to add

a G to the open A chord: either take a finger off the 3rd string to expose the open G, or add the G to the first string.

1

Dominant 7:

)(

0

A7

0

0

X

�

E

3

5

A7

0

0

4•

4t

t•

2

J

2

3

::::::... &

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b7 X

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5: The 87 Chord

There is one primary fingering used in acoustic blues:

3

1

Dominant 7:

2

I

3

r-'"1\

.fl.�

tJ

�

'T'

"

A .....

:.-

g

F�

D�

87: B

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5

4

A

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2

co

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Example 6: Combine All Three Chords

Now that we have three chords, we can play a blues. Practice changing from one chord to the other to get used to making the transitions. Later. we will be learning some rhythm patterns that involve these chords. �7

0

2

3

I

X

0

A7

0

4

I

��

0

87

X

I

1

2

2

I

J.l..

J.l.

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n: u

0

4

3

E7

0

2

3

ffl-

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I

4

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The blues progression is a specific pattern of chords that relate to a key. If you play a

blues in the key of E. the I chord will be the E7. Two other chords, A7 and 87, are the IV an d V chord of the key of E. The Roman numerals I, IV and V identify the relationship of the

chords to the notes of the major scale:

E

F#

G#

II

Ill

A

B

C#

D�

IV

V

VI

Vll

E

The I chord is built on the first note, or root, of the major scale. The A is the IV chord of E

because it is built on the 4th note of theE major scale, and 87 is the V chord because it is

built on the 5th note of E major.

There are several different blues progressions that are popular, but the one that's the most popular is the " 1 2-bar" blues. The I, IV and V chords are always arranged in the same sequence within these twelve bars.

E BLUES E7

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10 Basics: Open Position Chords

The Key of A

The other common keys that you hear on the acoustic guitar are the "open keys," so called

because they use a lot of open strings. The second most common open key is the key of A.

The I. IV

and

V chords in an A b lu e s

are

A7, 07 and E7. You already know how to play both

the A7 and the E7, so the only new chord is 07. You g et a 07 by taking an open 0 triad

and lowering the higher octave 0 t

a C:

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Example 7:

D and 07 Chords

D:

D

Major Triad:

3

1

X

A

F#

X

5

Dominant 7:

D

0

F#

07: D

X

A

b7

5

3

1

C

D7

X

0

4• 4� I

3

2

2

u u

v

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A ..... _p

3

u

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Memorize the blues in A using chord symbols and Roman numerals.

A BLUES A7

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07

E7

Il

Il

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I IV7

I

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A7

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A7

07

rv7

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II

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IV7

I

II

Basics: Open Position Chords

The Key of C

11

Another common open position key on the guitar is the key of C. The I, IV and V chords in a

C blues are: C7, F7 and G7. CD

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Example

8: C7

The C7 is a C triad with a Bb added to the third

E

C: C

Major Triad:

G

3

1

c

X

Dominant 7:

G

E

C7: C

5

0

string: 1

3

Bb

b7

5

C7

0

r-'11 tJ

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,..

! 4 ....

e.

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Example 9: F7

The F7 is an F triad with an Eb added to the second string:

Major

F: Triad:

F

A

1

c

3

5

F7: F

Dominant 7:

1

c

A 3

2

-'II

I

I

3

2

I

A

...... D

I

T

3

2

I

I

t) 'T

Fl

X

4

b7

5

F7

3

Eb

-

-e .;

;. ;:; w

..t ;; :'; -

4

:';

4

I

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Example are

10: G and G7 Chords

two common fingerings for G:

G: G

B

D

1

3

5

Major Triad:

2

�l'l

l

3

n

n

tt

tt

._, "T" •

A

__..,_ u

" �

The second ex a mp le makes it easier to turn the first string root lowered

to

an F:

G7

�•

0

a G7. The G7 is

B

D

F

3

5

177

G7: G

Dominant 7: 0

G into

1

G triad with the

r-'_tl

0

�•

4•

a

u

._, "T"

-

J.. 1\ ;:: "

! 4 ....

v

Memorize the following blues in C the same way you memorized the other keys. At this point

you should be able to hear the similarity betwee n the keys.

c BLUES

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C7

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C7

F7

I IV7

17

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F

f 17

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.l I

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C7

F7

l. I

:t. I

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,

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7

lv7

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II

CHAPTER 1: BLUES PROGRESSIONS CD

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Example 11: Bass-Chord Pattern

This first example is a 1 2-bar blues in E. The rhythm pattern is called the bass-chord accompaniment because you alternate between bass notes and full chords. There are two benefits to this pattern; it brings out the full sound of the instrument and is easier to move from one chord shape to another. Since you only have to play one or two notes for the bass, you have more time to finger the rest of the chord shape resulting in

a

smoother

sounding transition. 7

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hold throughow

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111

= 111

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Example 12: Blues Progression in E

Play the following blues in E with the recording while employing the bass-chord pattern. 0

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E7

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g 2:11 4

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Il

A7

xo

0

a

fb "

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4*b

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Notice the last chord,

I I

87,

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-� I

c

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I I

I I

I I

E7

B7

•

• I

WI

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111'2

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I

A7

XO

0

l I

I I

2314

87

21

E7

I I

g

12

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213

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is only played on the last two beats of the last measure while all

of the other chords have at least one full bar each. This part of the progression is called the

turnaround because. as the word implies . it turns the progression "around." back to the beginning.

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Example 13: Blues in A

This is the same progression as the previous example but transposed to the key of A. Review the A7, 07 and E7 chords and apply the bass-chord pattern to the following

progression. Notice that this example uses the I chord to end the progression. In the

previous examples, the V chord was used to "turnaround" the progression back to the beginning. 7

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Example 14: Blues in C

To transpose the blues progression to the key of C, start by reviewing the C7. F7 and the

G7

chords. Now play the following progression using the same bass-chord pattern as the

previous examples. >(

C7

0

g

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Il

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jl

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F7

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C7

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Example

15: The Quick-Change Progression

The previous examples start off with four bars of the I chord. This is called the "slow­

change" blues. A variation on this progression, the "quick-change," is to replace the second

bar with the IV chord and return to the I chord in the third bar. The rest of the progression

remains unchanged.

Quick-change E7

A7

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CHAPTER2: RHYTHM It's amazing what a little bit of rhythm will do to make those chords sound good; changing the right-hand rl1ythm pattern while playing the same exact chords covered in the previ ous chapter. This is how you can start building your rhythm patterns, starting with the full chore s hap e and breaking them down, bit by bit, to find the melodies. CD

@

Example 16: The Shuffle Groove

The rhythm patterns demonstrated throughout this book are called shuffle grooves. The shuffle groove is fundamental to blues. The shuffle is a triplet, but played only on the first and third part of the beat, giving it an uneven, lopsided effect.

,-3-.

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beat: 1 COUll/.' 1

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3

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It is very important to emphasize the down beat [the first part of the beat) groove more depth.

A shuffle is usually written

to

give the

in straight eighth notes, and it is left to the player to interpret the

feel to have the first half of the beat to be longer than the second.

be01:

count:

J J J J J J J J 1 I

2 3

2 1 2 J

3 1

2 3

4 1 2 3

of most son g s, you will see an indication such as "shuffle" or "blues feel," or you will see this symbol which tells you to interpret eighth notes with a triplet or "shuffle" At the beginning

feel:

Chapter

2:

19

Rhythm

CD

@

Example 1 7: Left-Hand Embellishments

When you e m bellish a chord by adding or removin g notes , you are adding some melodic movement. The fo llowi n g exa mple is an E7 embel lished by adding the b 7th (D) to the 2nd string with the 4th finger to create a melody. Th i s , combined with th e shuffle groove and the bass-chord strum patte rn , can make a simple open chord shape sound like the blues. s h u rn('

E7

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CD

@

Example 18: A 7 Embellishment

Th e fol lowing exa mple em bellishes the A7 chord by creati ng a melody with th e E , F # and G notes o n the 1 st stri n g . Continue to use the sh uffle groove and the bass-chord pattern .

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@

Example 1 9: Whole Progression

The followi ng blues in E incorpo rates left-hand e m bellishment and the ba ss-chord strum pattern . Remember to maintain th e sh uffle groove th rou ghout. Since the 87 ch ord only lasts fo r one bar, it will sound fine if you just maintain the bass­ chord pattern. � j -,

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hand struggling the fi nge r ing s .

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and

or yo u r left hand

find

fe el relaxe d . If you

struggling, just s l ow

yourself tig hteni ng

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20: E 7 Variation

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Example 2 1: Quick-Change in E

Apply the previ o u s E7 variation to a qu ick-change blues p rogression i n E . Wh ile this

p rogress i o n can b e used to acco m pany a voca list or soloist, it can a l so stand alone a s

a

solo I nstrum enta l . It conta i n s harm o n i c , rhyth m i c and melodic movement to provide a full

ful l

m usical statem ent.


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22 Chapter 3: Bass-Lines

CHAPTER 3: BASS-LINES So fa r we have looked at chord s u s i n g melody n ote s as embellish ments . Another way to dress up th e chords a n d l i n k them to gether is with bass-runs . You can approach b ass-r uns as a va riation to the bass-chord pattern CD

@

Example

The bass-l i n e should

by si mply a d d i n g m ore bass n otes .

22A: E7 to A 7 Bass-line lead to the ro ot of the next ch o rd . Notice h ow the bass n otes at the

end of the E7 bar sound like they are "steppi n g u p " to the A7 chord . .-J-.

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228: A 7 to E 7 Bass-line

Th ere a re a couple of choi ces fo r bass-l i nes th at lead from A7 to E7 . The first choi ce is to continue the upward move ment and jump down to the low E at the beg i n n i n g of th e n ext bar. ,- 1 --,

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22C: Another A 7 to E7 Bass-line

You can also walk stra ight down fro m th e A 7 to the E 7 . Sh uffle (•r:l

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Example 220: 87 to A 7 Bass-line

You can walk u p to the 8 7 from the open A by playi n g th e n ote i n b etween th e o pe n A and the second fret B . Th e n reverse th e pattern from th e 87 to th e A 7 . This little wa l k-up to the 8 7 is a l i n e you wi l l hear in n u merous b l ues songs . r-1

Sbume r-" " �

(n J ) ) =

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@

Example 22E: The Whole Bass-line Progression r- .� --,

Shuffie ��

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@

Example 23: The Jimmy Reed Progression

A l ot of people call th i s the "Jimmy Ree d " patter n , n amed after the immortal Chica go blues g u itarist. Jimmy Reed si m u ltaneo u sly played acoustic g uitar a n d h a rm o n ica on a nec k-ra ck , kind of a fo l k style , a n d wrote many fa bu lo us , i n fl ue ntia l b l u e s so ngs . I n spite of its a c oustic roots , this pattern i s actu a l ly the most basic that electri c b l ues p l ayers learn today because it leaves room for vocals a n d other i n struments . Play the blues in

E with

a shuffle gro ove and use all down strokes .

Shuffle (J'J

.- J-. =

J ))

E7

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n

n

n

n n

n

n

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Notice how this pattern sounds m ore " c o m pact a n d muted " c o m p a r ed to the b i g , open and ringi ng s o u nd of the previous progressions . You can ac c omp l ish th is by muting the strings

with yo ur ri g ht ha nd . placi n g it lightly against th e strings near the bridge.

co

@ You

Example

24: Up-strokes and Accents

dd rhyth m i c va ri ety a n d fl avor to the g ro ove by occasiona lly th rowi n g i n acce nted

can

u p-strokes . These acce nts s h o u l d not i nterru pt the g ro ove or re pl ace the acce nts on the d own beat.

P J\t �

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·

·

· · - - - · - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ·

n

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n

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CD

@

Example 25: Blues Rhythm Lick

This m ove is a common b l u es cl ic h e . Tech n i cally, it i s th e IV ch o rd being thrown in q u ickly to create more melodic m ovement. For the open E7 c h ord . add th e A tri ad by layi n g your finger across the 2 n d , 3 rd a n d 4th strings at the 2 n d fret. Fol low this m ove with the same three strings p l ayed o p e n , a n d f i n i s h with the E ch o rd .

r .f -,

hume (n J Jl > ==

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ft

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CD

@

Example 26: Full Progression

Apply the previous exa m ples to the fo llowi ng slow-change b l u es in E

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Chapter 3: Bass-Lines 29

CD

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Example

29: Blues in E Turnaround

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30 Chspt:er 4: Blues in A

CHAPTER 4: BLUES IN A Th e key of A i s pro ba bly the second most comm o n g u itar key for b l u es _ N ow experiment with the fo l l owi n g e m bell ishment ideas fo r both the A7 a n d 07 chord . The E7 wi l l use the same embellis h m ents used in th e key of E . CD

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Example

30A: A 7 Embellishments

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3DD: E7 to D7/F#

There is a weak spot in the previous progressi o n ; the tra nsitio n between the fu l l sounding on

E 7 and the th i n ner sounding 07 . The l owest sounding 0

the instrument is almost an

octave higher th a n E, making the tra nsiti o n sou n d and feel more abrupt. As a so l ution , u se

the l ow F# in the bass of the 07 instead of th e D . Th i s w i l l smooth th e tran sitton between the two c ho rds by adding more fullness to th e 0 7 chord and reduc i ng th e distance between

step .

the b ass notes to a whole

Wh ile the F� is i n the chord , it usua l ly is not in th e bass. When a note oth er than th e root

is in th e bass . it is i n d icated in the ch ord sym bol by placing a s l ash after the c h o rd name , fo l l owed by the n am e of the bass note . So , fo

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31: Blues in

A Turnaround

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SECTION II: SOLO ACOUSTIC BLUES GUITAR This section concentrate s on solo blues guitar style b l ue s g u itar . Yo u sho u ld sti ll conti n u e to

m a in t a in

-

the art of pl ayi n g unaccompanied

th e tools and ideas from Section I

as

you

a re l e a rn ing the fol lowing examples. You will soon see how both secti o ns com p l i ment each othe r .

In the first section , different optio n s for right h a n d technique were pointe d out. Li ke th e first se ctio n the ex amples on the re cording a re demo nstrated us i n g a flat pick for the ba ss­ ,

n o tes and single-note leads . wh ile th e fingers strike the chords and embellish m ents . This is called hybrid-picking . It is o kay to use

a

inste a d of trying to match the recordi n g .

th umb-p ick, finger-p icks

or

fin gers without a p1ck

CHAPTER 5: BLUES LICKS A l ot of the great s i ngle-l i n e solos that you h e a r a re rea l ly n ot

as

diffe rent from the ch ord

parts as you might i m a g i n e . When we l e a rn ch ords a n d we l earn h ow to e m bellish chord s , we a re rea l ly creati n g m e l o d i e s u s i n g n otes that b e l o n g t o t h e chord a s we ll as n otes bu i lt around the c h ord

scale tones. Rather th a n learn scale p atterns u p a n d down the neck,

-

as i s the cu stom when l e a rn i n g electric guita r . we wi ll co nce ntrate on the chord tones to find out what n otes c a n be used for melody a n d solo i ng . The o p e n c h ords a re especi a l l y i m p o rta nt because they b r i n g o ut t h e ri c h , ful l chara cte r of the a coustic g u ita r. CD

@

Example 32A: E7 Blues Lick

I f. for exa m p l e . you want to p l ay a m e l ody o r to s o l o a g a i n st a n E ch ord . i n stead of ju st playi n g a n E s c a l e . try l o o k i n g at the n otes of th e chord to see what you can get out of it. The followi n g l i ck is a very common b l ues p attern util i zi n g o n ly the n otes of an E7 c hord . The

trick is to hold th e o p e n E 7 c h ord shape w h i l e m a ki n g i t sound like a si n g l e-note melody.

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Example 328: A 7 Blues Lick

While this l i ck h a s the s a m e s el ecti o n of n otes as th e e m bell ishment examples i n the previous secti o n . th e te c h n i q u e is slig htly different. I t uses the o pe n A7 c h o rd shape plus embellish ment note s , but it is pl ayed as a s i n g l e-n ote lead p attern . Notice th e curved l i n e b etween the th i rd a n d fou rth note . It i s called a slur a n d it indicates that the

F�

on th e 2nd fret is to be stru c k a n d the n " pu ll e d-off" to th e o p e n E . This

tech nique a dd s some swi n g a n d p h ras i n g to the lick. The best way to em ploy th is tech nique i s to strike the

F#

and pull a cross the str i n g with your 2nd fi n ger . sou n d i ng th e open E

string i n the pro cess . , J -,

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Example 32C: 87 Blues Lick

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g h t h a n d only , while the

left hand h o lds the chord s h a p e .

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Example 32D: E7 Lick

One of the m o st n otable

s

ty l i sti c blues trade m arks yo u ca n get from a g u itar is th e be n d .

Bending is t h e technique o f stretching t h e stri n g to raise the p itch of a note . Y o u stretch the stri n g by p u s h i n g or p u l l i n g the stri n g toward a n ei gh bori n g stri n g . Bending " i n p itch " means the note is bent far e n o u g h to sound l i ke a n a ccu rate n ote or pitch above the fretted n ote. I n bl u es , it is a l so common to use q uarter bends , which are o n ly slight bends that add some spice to the fretted n ote i n ste ad of taking it all the way to the n ext note . With the exce pti o n of the o p e n E , this l i ck is the same as some of the previous A7 l i c ks . This works because it sta rts with a n E a n d fi nis hes with E7 ch ord to n es . Notice the q u arter bend on the 3rd fret of the 1 st stri ng :

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A 7 Lick

This lick a ctually spells out an A blues scale. A s i n gle-note scale p attern by itself wo u ld n o rmally so u n d too thin for solo style g u itar . Starti n g the l i ck with a n open A a nd a llowi n g it to ri n g through out ma kes th is s i n g l e-note pattern s o u n d fu l l er. ,- 1 -,

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Example 32F: Turnaround Variation

This turnaround should l o o k fa mi li a r since it is basically o n e of th e turnarounds from Secti on

I. There is one c h ord s h a p e that is d ifferent from the open ch o rds that we have been usi n g . The primary reason for u s i n g

a

d ifferent c h ord shape l i ke th is is that thi s shape sounds

h i gh er and th inner th a n the o p e n fi n g eri n g . This allows for m o re melo d ic m ove ment a n d va riety . Y o u can l a b e l these ch ords with d ifferent n a m es wh e n m ovi ng down t h e fretboard i n half ste p s , but it re ally i s n't ne c e s sa ry . By starti n g a n d e n d i n g on E, the chords i n b etween sound more like a tra n sitio n than a series of d ifferent chord s . It i s better to treat th is movement as a m e l od ic idea since it d oesn 't re a l ly change the overall ch ord progression . E7 X

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Now let's put together all fo ur o f the previous licks to create a com plete progression .

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39

Blues Licks

33: More Blues Bass-lines

Example

Even th ough th e previous exa mple sounds full harmonica l ly and melodically, there is sti ll some empty space . Here is another opportun ity to apply bass runs to make it sound like a complete piece of m usic . Sbume


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Clrapter 6: Blues Chard Soloing

41

CHAPTER 6: BLUES CHORD SOLOING In order to maste r the p owerful technique of soloi n g with cho rds . you n eed to m e m orize

certain c hord i nversio ns . C h o rd inversions a r e n ot only a great way to add melodic movement to your chords, but they also provide va luable visual refe rences that will help yo u to travel the fretboard . When yo u i nvert

a

ch ord , you a re actu a l l y re-a rra n g i n g th e sam e n otes into a different

order. By re-arra nging th e n ote s , d ifferent notes end up on top of the chords and o n th e b ottom . For exa mple , the o rd er of th e n ote s , fro m the low string to the h i g h stri n g , of th e

open E7 is

E-8-E-Gn-D-E .

The melody n otes a re either 0 or E . The o rd e r of the notes of the

next inversion , at the 2 n d posti o n , is E7

0

E

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B

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Now ta ke th is a ste p further and le arn the inversions that wi ll place the re m a i n i n g n otes of the chord i n the melody - B , 0 and the higher octave E. P l ay the fol l owing shapes forward and backward in the order that they occur a n d it will sound l i ke a scale of ch ord s . 7

E

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35: Chromaticism

Yo u can a d d m o re m e l o di c o pti ons and m ore te nsion to dominant chord i nversions by taking a ny i nversion up or down a half ste p , as long as you return to th e actu al ch ord . This half step movement is ofte n descri b ed as chromatic movement or chromaticism . De cending

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Example 36: Blues

This chordal technique 1s used by cou ntry blues gu ita r pl ayers to solo without losing the feel of the rhyth m . Notice h ow taking th is E 7 fi n g eri n g down o n e fret to E b 7 , for th e second measure , implies

(E b ).

qui ck-change progress i o n . Since th i s fi ngering omits the root

a

it d o e s n ot clash with the a

E of the A7 chord . If yo u c ompare this E b 7 fin g ering to A7 , you wi ll find that the re's o n ly

on e note d i ffere nce ; t he B b in ste ad of the A. Th e B b is com pati ble with the A7 chord , thus al lowi ng the Eb 7 ch ord to act as a substitute . ShufJle E7


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Now transpose E 7 i nvers i o n s to A 7 , X

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Example 3 7C: Chord Solo Turnaround

Apply i nversions an d chromaticism to a turna round .

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44 Chapter 6: Blues Chord Soloing CD

@

Example 3 7D: Blues Chord Solo 2

N oti ce how th e ascending patterns that ta ke you u p the fretb oard increase th e te nsion and

the excitement, whi l e descending patterns te nd to decrease th e te nsion and excitement. S h u ffle

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3 7E: Blues Chord Solo 3

Example

After learn 1ng Blu es Chord Solos 1 , 2 and 3 , try combining them in exactly the same order. Chord Solo 3 spends the most time in the higher register of th e neck. As a result , the first two

solos will soun d like they are building

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KEB M O

CHAPTER 7: THE BLUES SCALE In addition to using chord shapes , there is a more obvious source to help yo u cho ose notes

that g ive you the blues sound , the blues scale. The blues scale has five notes and an extra note in it that people use a lot. Th e first five notes of the E blues scale are known as the E m i no r pentaton ic : E-G-A-B-0 . The extra note i s B b , which is techn ically described as the b 5 or "blues" 5th .

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y o u want to learn a l l of the fin g e rings for the entire fretboard , you m ight want to check out the UBS Blues Guitar B as ics book ( UBSBK 1 03CO) , available from Warner Bros .

Publications . CD

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Example

3BA: E Blues Lick 1

Notice th e effect of the bends and th e sh uffle groove . which can be enough to change an otherwise dry sounding scale i nto a musical statement.

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Example 388: E Blues Lick 2

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Example 38H: Double-Stop Turnaround

The "double-stop" bend during the A7 lick is a l ittl e tricky . Y o u n e ed to keep your' first fi n ger o n the 1 st stri n g wh i l e th e second finger bends th e 2nd string slightly. There's

fa m o u s

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tu ne that uses this l i ck in th e i ntro called "That's Alright, " and it was written by M u ddy Waters ' guita r p l aye r . J i mmy Ro gers . Sh uffie

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381: A Progression Of Licks

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At thi s point . you should b e ab le to see how the E blues scale ca n fit an E7 chord . When playi ng through a blues progression , you now have to deal with relating the sca le to two other chords ; i n this case , th e A7 and the 87 . The bea uty of the b lues scale is th at you do not have to play a d ifferent scale fo r each chord .

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52

Chapter 8: Fingersty/e Blues

CHAPTER S: FINGERSTYLE BLUES Fingerp icking is

a

great way to ke e p "ti me " for yourself with bass n ote s wh i l e sim u lta ne ou sl y

playing the m e l o d y n otes . When done correctly , it

al most sound a s if two peop l e are

should

playi ng i n stead of o n e .

M a ke s u re you p ractice every patte rn very slowly at first, then grad u a l ly increase the speed.

You sho u ld m ute the bass notes to

c ontra st

the ri n g in g m e l o d y n otes .

The best way to le arn th e i n d e pe n d e n c e that is necessary for this te c h n i q u e is to start with an even bass p attern a n d add eac h m elody note one at a t im e . You will fi nd that the m e lo d y

notes are either p laye d at th e same time as a bass note

or

in between the b as s notes .

As yo u a re memorizi n g th e pattern s , make su r e you m e morize which n otes are playe d

on

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Example 39A

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sh uffle in the bass u s in g the open E. Emphasize the down beat , and

n ote

use the palm mute t e c h n iq u e by p l acing the rig ht-h and palm lig htly agai nst the strin gs near

the bridg e . Do not push so h a rd that you stop the n otes fro m ri ng i ng .

just hard enough to

get a m uffl ed sou nd . Later . when yo u begi n a d d i n g melody notes to th e pattern , th e muted

bass notes will co ntrast the ri n g i n g mel ody notes in such a way as to create the i l l u s io n that more th a n one instru ment is playi ng at the same ti m e .

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Example 398

Now add a melody note on

fi rst and third beats of each measure. You will have

the

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the first string with yo ur middle fi nger wh ile striking the bass note with the pick. This moveme nt is often described as a pinch . Be careful not to break tempo , a n d remember to mainta in the palm mute.

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Play a melody note on every beat. This pattern alternates between p i nching the bass and mel ody notes on every beat and playing a bass note i n between each pi nch . r- .l-,

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Now play th e melody i n sync with the bass notes by playing the exa ct same sh uffle in the melody that is in th e bass . Th is is a great exercise of pinches throu ghout . .--- 1 -;

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54 Chapter B: Fingerstyle Blues

CD

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Example 3SE

P l ay the melody n ote on th e opposite part of the beat

as

th e b ass n otes. When p l ayed

corre ctly , p l ac i n g a mel ody n ote i n b etween the uneven bass n otes will sound l i ke a solid

triplet.

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CHAPTER S: PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER It i s im portant to fi nish by usi n g progressions to apply th e ideas a n d conce pts that have

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@ Example 40 This p ro g ress i o n is a quick-c hange blues in E. Full n e s s will come from emphasizing the

ba ss-li n e . Remember to hold th e chord shapes as you play th e melody . Do n ot try to fi nger th e melo dy-l i n e one note at a ti m e . N otice th e va riations betwe e n th e two choruses ( repeats ) . These variati o n s are i m p rovisations that wil l k e ep the p rog ressions i nteresti n g .

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shuffle feel i n th i s exa mple should be v e ry strong . At first it wi l l b e a l ittle tricky to

m a i nta i n the sh uHie , since th ere i s a vari ety of rhythms found in both the bass and melody.

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TA BLATURE EXPLA N ATION

A RTICU LATIONS

R E A D I N G TAB L A T U R E : Ta blature I ll us trates the s 1 x stnngs o f t h e g o 1 ta r Notes and chords are 1nd 1ca1ed by the placement of fret n u m bers on a g1ven stn n g(s ). 0

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--:a

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-9

, A t"" Choot\1

ON:

Play lower note.

�

•

-�

H A M M ER

then "hammer on" to h1gher note w1th another finger. Only the

,____, �

first note is attacked.

Cl>o•rll A�I

PULL OFF: Play h1gh er note, then "pull off' to

BENDING NOTES

J

lower note w�th another finger. Only the first note is aHacked.

H ALF S T E P : Play the note and

bend

1

stn ng one

half step. ·

.

LEGATO SLIDE: Play note

'

and slide to

P R EBEND A N D

the

R E L EASE: Bend

followmg

the string, play iL

no te. (Only

then release to

first note IS

the original note.

·I

attacked).

W H OLE STE P : Play t h e note and

PALM MUTE:

end string one

T he note or

whole step.

notes are muted by the palm of the p1ck hand by llg hUy touching

the

string(s) near the bridge.

RHYT H M S LASHES

ACCENT: Notes or ('

chords are

ST R U M

to be played

I N DICA­

TIONS: Strum With md1cated rhythm. The chord voicings are found on

® ® ® 5�

3•

,,,

A

G

F

® ® ®

open 3 1 r ope

E

A

n -J J ) ...

I N D ICAT I N G

with added

S I N G LE

em phasis.

NOTES USING RHYTHM SLASHES:

the first page of the transcription

DOWN

Very often

underneath the song title.

STROKES AND

single notes are i n corporated I n to a rhythm parL The note name Is

UPSTR OKES:

i n dicated above the rhythm slash w A half step is the smallest interval in Westem musrc: 11 1s eq ual

to one fret

Notes or

with a fret n u m ber and a string

chords are to

i ndication.

be played with

A whole step equals two frets.

either a downstroke

· · ay Kenn Chipkln and Aaron Stang

( -, . ) or upstroke ( 1990 Beam M Up Music C/o CPPIBelwtn. Inc Miam1. FIOOda 330 1 4 lntemaJionaJ Copyrl ht SeaJred Made I n U.SA All R h iS Reserved

v

) of the

pick.

! S B N 0· 7 6 9 2 -003 8 · 9

1111 11 1 1 1 1111 1 1 1

9 780769 200385