G blues is a scale which comprises all the notes in minor pentatonic scale with an added flattened fifth note, commonly used by blues guitarists and often referred to as the G Blues Scale.
Turek and McCarthy regard minor blues as similar to diatonic minor except for its inclusion of flattened 5th. Meanwhile, others such as Philip Tagg (2009a) characterize it as an incipient form of modal mixture.
Key Pitfalls
Many Blues players fall into a habit of sticking with just one basic pentatonic scale pattern, leading them to sound alike other players and restrict the musical potential of their solos. If you want your Blues to sound fresher and more original, try adding additional notes into your scale pattern pattern.
If you normally play G minor pentatonic scale, try adding in an extra C natural note for something new and fresh to this scale. While some chords might clash with it, others could benefit greatly. Just be mindful to use this addition sparingly.
Mixing major and minor versions of the scale can also be very effective when playing, provided you know when to switch back and forth between them.
Below you’ll see that shape 3 from the minor blues scale intersects with shape 4 from the major blues scale, enabling you to switch back and forth while still having access to all blues notes.
Add extra spice and jazziness with some chromatic notes if it fits the music, just be careful not to overdo it – too much spice could ruin a dish!
Note also that it’s very common for some of the notes within a blues scale to appear in other scales; for instance, E and B can both be found in this g blues scale and F minor pentatonic scale, giving you access to different sounds without learning new scales. This allows you to add variety without learning new ones.
Scale Shapes
As you investigate the g blues scale, it is vital that you learn to appreciate how its shapes interact on the fretboard. This will enable you to practice moving up and down in an orderly fashion and identify which notes share positions with other scale shapes that you already know.
The first scale shape is a variation on an open E major chord, consisting of root notes on an open low E string and on its second fret of the high E string, often associated with Stevie Ray Vaughan’s classic song “Pride and Joy”.
As with other pentatonic scales, this one forgoes all half steps (notes which lie immediately next to one another), instead opting for whole tones – notes an entire step above each other – instead. It contains minor thirds, the blue note (b3), perfect fifths and major sixths as its components.
By employing similar chords, this scale serves as an excellent foundation for improvisation. Additionally, its inclusion of a flatted fifth note (commonly known as the ‘blue note”) gives more individual sound than standard diatonic scales used in jazz or other genres.
The second blues scale shape combines natural minor and major scales into one pattern. Based on major pentatonic scale, this scale adds the distinctive “blue note” for that signature bluesy sound.
As part of their blues improvisation, blues players often employ chromatic runs – notes which fall above or below the key of the current chord – due to blues scales not always adhering to diatonic rules that limit how often an octave may be altered up or down.
The second blues scale shape is based on an A minor pentatonic scale variation that includes blue note and adds fourth note, providing an easy starting point to explore G blues scale over multiple chords.
Intervals
Understanding intervals is essential when playing blues; this enables you to generate more melodic and harmonic ideas for soloing over chord progressions. Intervals refer to the distance between two notes on the fretboard that determine the sound of any particular scale or chord. For instance, E (the first note of G minor key) and G# (one and half steps apart) is considered a major third interval.
There are three different kinds of intervals: perfect, augmented and diminished. While perfect intervals sound harmonious and smooth, augmented intervals contain an additional semitone for sharper dissonant tones while diminished intervals have flattened tones for harsh and discordant sounding notes.
The minor blues scale is based on the G minor pentatonic scale but features an additional “blue” note between its fourth and fifth degrees to create its distinctive sound; many listeners will be familiar with its sound when hearing blues songs. Furthermore, this scale is considered hexatonic because its six notes make it easier than more complex diatonic scales to manage.
To play the minor blues scale effectively, start by learning its shapes. Next, try practicing over a blues backing track until it feels natural for you – and when comfortable do so again mix minor and major blues scales in your soloing.
Parallel thirds can add another great dimension to your improvisations by shifting two notes of similar shape a tone apart, creating an interesting chromatic line on the fretboard that sounds incredible and is very easy to do due to being easily moveable up or down the neck.
Try experimenting with parallel thirds over various chords in a blues progression to find some awesome melodies – you might just surprise yourself! Doing this is sure to expand and challenge your blues soloing into new and interesting territory!
Chords
If you have already mastered the minor pentatonic scale, transitioning to G blues chords should not be too challenging. The primary distinction is in the blue note (b3rd or f# in this instance). While this note doesn’t always clash with major chords of a key, when it does it can create tension due to being out-of-harmonic with them – to avoid this try playing your minor pentatonic scale without including this note for now and only include blue notes when needed for blues progressions!
To create these chords, use the same shapes you learned for minor pentatonic scale with one added b3rd note. Remember that any time “blue” appears next to any shape it indicates that its note is blue in tone.
Add some texture and vibrancy to your chords by using extended blues shapes like barre 7ths and 9ths, which add jazzy flair and really enhance the sound of blues playing. Just be wary as these chords may be challenging to play without losing rhythmic integrity!
Add dominant 7th chords to add harmonic tension in a blues progression and it can really amp up the tension back and forth between tonic and minor key, creating more tension before returning “home” to tonic key again.
Blues chord progressions vary considerably between bars, but you’ll often see certain common themes emerge. For instance, some songs will start on a one-chord progression while others might begin with four or five chords; this depends on the structure of each song as this determines which chords will be included and in what proportion.
Experiment with various combinations of rootless shapes to craft your own blues chords and build your own signature style of chord progressions. Do this by beginning with major chords in a progression and shifting them towards minor keys; or switch up the progression altogether for something totally new. Try these various combinations, and listen out how they sound over our jam tracks!