Blues Licks Guitar Lesson

Chapter 1: (00:33) Intro Music Brad lays down some blues riffs and licks in the key of E. Chapter 2: (04:47) Learn Blues Licks In this lesson, you will learn some blues licks that work over a 12 bar blues progression in the key of E. All of the licks that Brad teaches are derived from the E minor pentatonic scale. This illustrates a very important blues concept. The 12 bar blues progression is typically played in a major key. All musical examples in this lesson apply to the key of E Major. Although the minor pentatonic scale is a distinctly minor scale, it sounds great when used over a major blues progression. The b3 note in the minor pentatonic scale creates a distinct blues flavor when applied to a major blues.

First Box of E Minor Pentatonic

Note: A fretboard pattern of this scale can be found in the Supplemental Content tab.

Brad demonstrates how to play the first box of the E minor pentatonic scale. You have already learned this pattern in the key of A. The first E minor box can either be played in open position or 12th position. All the licks Brad demonstrates in this lesson are played in open position. However, you should learn how to play this pattern in both available positions.

Fingering of the First Box

Since the first box of the E minor pentatonic scale contains open strings, some adjustments need to be made to the fingering of this pattern. When you learned this pattern in the key of A minor, you used either the first, third, or fourth finger to fret each note. When playing in open position however, you will only use the second and third fingers. Fret all notes played at the 2nd fret with the second finger. 3rd fret notes should be played with the third finger. Watch closely as Brad plays through this pattern.

Rhythm of the Licks

All of the licks Brad teaches in this lesson are played in 12/8. This means that there are 12 beats in each measure. The eighth note is the primary metronomic unit. Time signatures such as 12/8 and 6/8 usually group eighth notes into sets of 3. This gives these time signatures a distinct triplet feel. For example, in a measure of 12/8, you will see 4 groups of three eighth notes. The first eighth note in each group is slightly stressed. 4/4 and 12/8 are the two most common time signatures used in a 12 bar blues progression.

Lick #1

Note: Tablature to all of the licks discussed in this lesson can be found under the Supplemental Content tab.

The first lick requires that you slide briefly out of open position. The lick begins with a fretted E note on the B string played in combination with the open E string. This is a very common blues guitar technique. The fretted E and open E combine to form a very thick, almost chorused sound. Steve Ray Vaughn and Buddy guy have exploited this technique to great effect. Brad chooses to play this double stop using his second finger.

Then, the lick slides back into open position. The second finger frets the note D. This note is played in combination with the open E string. When played together, these notes imply an E7 sound.

Brad demonstrates how a trill can be added to the end of this lick. A trill is essentially a rapid series of hammer-ons and pull-offs. Rapidly hammer and pull-off between the tonic note E and the open D string. Chapter 3: (11:31) More Blues Licks Lick #2

This lick begins with a double stop that implies an E7 sound. The third finger frets the note on the G string. The second finger frets the note D on the 3rd fret of the B string. Once again, this lick is played in 12/8. A trill can be added to the end of this lick. Instead of holding out the tonic note, trill between E and the open D string.

Lick #3

This lick is fairly similar to the previous lick. However, it is played in the lower octave of the E minor pentatonic pattern. Notice the movement from the low open E string to the fretted E note one octave higher. Ending a lick with this octave leap is a very common blues trick.

Lick #4

This lick begins in the second box of the E minor pentatonic scale. It begins with some whole step bends played at the 5th fret of the high E string. Make sure that your bends are perfectly in tune. It may be helpful to pluck the 7th fret of the high E string. This note is B. This pitch will give you a clear idea of how far you need to bend the note at the 5th fret. There is nothing more painful to listen to than an out of tune bend. Listen to Brad's bends as a good reference.

This lick also features a slide that adds some chromaticism. The chromatic notes, A# and C#, are played as grace notes. This means that they are played so rapidly that they are not counted as part of the beat. A miniature note head indicates a grace note in standard notation.

Lick #5

This type of lick is frequently used as a turnaround to end a blues tune. This lick begins with a double stop. The two notes in this double stop, B and D, imply an E7 chord within the context of the lick. Turnarounds are very important to the blues and jazz genres. For this reason, it is very important that you learn and memorize several turnaround licks. This lick features a very common chord substitution technique. This concept is referred to as the "tritone substitution." The chord a tritone away is substituted for the secondary dominant chord, F#7. F#7 is dominant to B7. Instead of playing F#7 however, the chord a tritone away is substituted to give the turnaround a bluesier feel. C7 is the chord that is a tritone interval above F#7.

Note: The tritone substitution involves some complicated music theory. It will be discussed in future lessons of Matt Brown's Phase 2 jazz series.

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