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The blues serves as the backbone for nearly every contemporary genre that features guitar. As a musician primarily recognized for my blues-rock style, I consistently return to the blues as my musical foundation, nonetheless of how far I venture into rock territory.
For instance, when I perform in the key of F, I frequently draw upon melodic single-note lines that stem from my deep thankfulness for blues guitar improvisation.
Figure 1 showcases five bars of improvisation that mimic a vocal quality. I initiate in the 6th-position “B.B. box,” placing my index finger on the F root note located on the B string’s 6th fret. The surrounding notes - D, G, Ab, Bb, and C – reference both the F major pentatonic (F, G, A, C, D) and F minor pentatonic scales (F, Ab, Bb, C, Eb).
In bars 2 and 3, I shift up the fretboard to emphasize the F minor pentatonic scale, but as I transition from bar 3 to bar 4, I revert back to F major pentatonic. This interchange between the two scales is a hallmark of blues guitar, a technique I absorbed from my musical idols: B.B.King, Otis Rush, Eric Clapton, Peter Green, and many more.
With this solid foundation in place, it feels intuitive to expand the harmonic structure into different modes.In Figure 2, I incorporate the notes Gb and Db into the F minor pentatonic while replacing the major third, A, with the minor third, Ab.
This results in the F Phrygian-dominant mode (F, Gb, A, Bb, C, Db, Eb), which is the fifth mode of the Bb harmonic minor scale (Bb, C, Db, Eb, F, Gb, A), sharing the same seven notes. In bar 3, I return to the blues with a phrase rooted in F minor pentatonic.
I typically initiate moast solos with phrases grounded in the blues, even if the piece isn’t strictly a blues composition. This approach is something I picked up from Eric Clapton, who once stated in an interview, “I always start with the blues.” You can hear this philosophy in his work with John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers, and also in Cream.
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For me, it transcends mere scales; it’s about the nuances in phrasing and the tactile nature of your playing. The key considerations are which notes should resonate with pain, which should evoke a sense of longing, and how to convey genuine emotion through your performance.
Figure 3 resumes at the fourth bar of an improvised phrase, starting with an F major triad (F, A, C). This serves as an excellent example of how a triad can act as a “bridge” when transitioning between phrases or different areas of the fretboard.
In bars 5 and 6 of the figure, I push the tempo with rapid phrases influenced by another important inspiration, Eric Johnson.
Building a strong foundation in the blues has proven invaluable, allowing me to explore a wider musical landscape. In the upcoming month,we will delve deeper into this concept.
