I'm trying to learn how to play the blues and I can't figure it out at all. I was wondering if anyone played blues and if they had any tips are anything on how to do it. I've been to many sites and read all sorts of "basic blues improv" articles but they don't make any sense to me.

Help??

Thanks in advance.

Well, I don't know your level of playing and this may be info. you allready know but, if you are a beginner then part of the problem may be that on a diatonic -C for example- playing it even in the cross harp position 2 of the notes you need (to play the G blues scale) have to be bent. So the notes you need are G, Bflat, C, Dflat, D, and F. Choosing primarily from these notes to improvise is a good starting point to give your playing a blues sound. Note-it's not the notes themselves but the pattern that is the blues scale. So the same pattern is used to derive the C blues scale (C, Eflat, F, Gflat, G, Bflat). You could play all of these notes on a chromo without need for bending skills but you lose the "wailing" effect of the diatonic.



Post Edited (02-18-05 00:27)