When applying a guitar solo to a blues progression it is important to know what scale or scales will work and what will sound good. The most basic blues progression is constructed around I, IV, V progression in twelve bars. In the blues, these chords all tend to be the same type of chords, typically: seventh, major or minor chords. So, for example, a regular twelve bar blues will contain all seventh chords, a minor blues: all minor chords and a major blues all major chords.
Now if we examine a typical blues composed of seventh chords we will find that there isn't one particular scale that contains all of the notes within these chords perfectly. The best match might be to play the mixolydian mode over each corresponding chord. This would mean mixolydian mode in the key of the I chord, played only over the I chord, mixolydian mode in the key of the IV chord, played only over the IV chord, mixolydian mode in the key of the V chord, played only over the V chord. This is one way to do it, your solo will certainly sound good over the chord changes and bright with the major 3rd.
A blues progression can also be constructed around entirely major chords in the I, IV, V pattern. In this instance, use the I major scale to solo with. It will fit perfectly with the chords, and it will difficult to hit a wrong sounding note.
A blues progression can be constructed with entirely minor chords. In this case use the natural minor scale to solo with. This scale will fit perfectly over this progression, because the chords contain the exact same notes as the corresponding scale.
What I would like to do now is introduce the most common blues guitar scale and explain when it is best suited. This scale is called the blues scale, and it is simply the minor pentatonic scale with a flat five added to the scale. Previously, I mentioned that the most common type of blues progression is composed of entirely seventh chords(R,3, 5,flat7). The blues scale is the most popular scale used to solo over this type of progression. You may have realised that this scale contains a minor third, however the chords use the major third. How could this sound good? Wouldn't they conflict? Well, put simply this is what gives the blues such a distinctive "bluesy" sound - the flat 5 also gives this "bluesy" sound.
So there you have it, to find the correct scale to play over a blues progression, typically a I, IV, V chord progression, firstly look at the I chord. If it is a seventh chord you could use the mixolydain mode as described previously, or just use the blues scale. Using the key of A - you would use the A blues scale. If it is a A major or A minor as the I chord you would use the A major and the A minor scale respectively. You could also just use the A blues scale over these two progressions as well, or a combination. You have plenty of options available, so have some fun and experiment with these various blues guitar scales.
Now if we examine a typical blues composed of seventh chords we will find that there isn't one particular scale that contains all of the notes within these chords perfectly. The best match might be to play the mixolydian mode over each corresponding chord. This would mean mixolydian mode in the key of the I chord, played only over the I chord, mixolydian mode in the key of the IV chord, played only over the IV chord, mixolydian mode in the key of the V chord, played only over the V chord. This is one way to do it, your solo will certainly sound good over the chord changes and bright with the major 3rd.
A blues progression can also be constructed around entirely major chords in the I, IV, V pattern. In this instance, use the I major scale to solo with. It will fit perfectly with the chords, and it will difficult to hit a wrong sounding note.
A blues progression can be constructed with entirely minor chords. In this case use the natural minor scale to solo with. This scale will fit perfectly over this progression, because the chords contain the exact same notes as the corresponding scale.
What I would like to do now is introduce the most common blues guitar scale and explain when it is best suited. This scale is called the blues scale, and it is simply the minor pentatonic scale with a flat five added to the scale. Previously, I mentioned that the most common type of blues progression is composed of entirely seventh chords(R,3, 5,flat7). The blues scale is the most popular scale used to solo over this type of progression. You may have realised that this scale contains a minor third, however the chords use the major third. How could this sound good? Wouldn't they conflict? Well, put simply this is what gives the blues such a distinctive "bluesy" sound - the flat 5 also gives this "bluesy" sound.
So there you have it, to find the correct scale to play over a blues progression, typically a I, IV, V chord progression, firstly look at the I chord. If it is a seventh chord you could use the mixolydain mode as described previously, or just use the blues scale. Using the key of A - you would use the A blues scale. If it is a A major or A minor as the I chord you would use the A major and the A minor scale respectively. You could also just use the A blues scale over these two progressions as well, or a combination. You have plenty of options available, so have some fun and experiment with these various blues guitar scales.
About the Author:
Clause N Dillon has been learning and playing music for over twenty years. He has just released an easy to follow guitar scales and soloing E Book which will help any guitar player to learn lead guitar and soloing. For a limited time we have arranged for subscribers to receive a free copy by clicking the blue link. Pentatonic Guitar Scales, Blues Guitar Scales
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