Fools Blues

There's nothing quite like a trusty blues progression to get the fingers going. This month Ron has put together a tasty little blues for us to sink our teeth into.

If you're not familiar with the blues progression, take a few minutes and get familiar with the chord movement. In it's most basic form, if you stick to those chords and move them at the right time, you're well on your way to playing the blues. Many musicians have had long, successful careers simply cycling through those chords.

Once you've got a handle on the harmony chords, how they're moving and what they sound like, take a stab at the melody. As always, I suggest listening to the MP3 to get a sense of what it's supposed to sound like but when you try to play it yourself start out slow and get the feel. In all music, the feel is the most important part. With blues, it's absolutely critical. Nothing is worse than blues music without feeling. So get the feeling, the vibe, the sound of the blues down first, then work on the speed.

Once you've got the melody, take a look at the bass line motors. To play both parts simultaneously you have to get the left moving on automatic, like a true bass motor. Once again, get the notes happening, get it sounding right then work on the speed. The speed will come once you've got the right notes. If you don't have the right notes, what's the use in playing fast?

When the melody is down and you've got a handle on the bass part, the fun really begins. Check out Ron's solo. He just couldn't stay away from that distortion pedal! Some soloing tactics: use the notes in the melody - you already know they're going to work, you know where they are, see what melodies you can make up. Minor pentatonic scales work great in blues progressions, so does the blues scale. The blues scale is your minor pentatonic scale with a flat five added (take the note a fifth away from the root of the scale and go down one fret). The blues scale creates a nice little chromatic run from the fourth, through the flat five to the fifth of the scale. Very cool.

Don't be afraid to try the different bass lines or even just work through the chords, variety is the spice of life and the key to keeping the tested and true blues progression sound fresh every time.

Have fun.

foolsbluesbass.mp3
foolsbluesbass.pdf
foolsbluesmelody.pdf
foolsblueswalkingbass.pdf