Play a Blues Shuffle
Introduction
This track is based on a common pattern found in many blues songs.
The shuffle pattern starts out as a power chord, more or less, and the 5th of the chord moves up to the 6th, and then flat 7th.
The Accompaniment
Materials to Use
- Beginners: use C major pentatonic or C minor pentatonic
- Intermediate: combine C major pentatonic and C minor pentatonic
- Advanced: play Mixolydian chord scales for each chord.
Be sure to try playing the shuffle accompaniment pattern.
The Chords
You can use power chords or dominant barre chords to accompany.
Basic Scales
C Minor Pentatonic
C Major Pentatonic
More Advanced Scales
C Mixolydian
F Mixolydian
G Mixolydian
Backing Track
Put it all together! Play the chords and scales along with the backing track.
Exercises
- Play the chords C7, F7, and G7 along with the track.
- If you know any other versions of these chords, try those instead.
- Play the C pentatonic major scale along with the track, in time.
- Play the C pentatonic minor scale along with the track, in time.
- Advanced players: try playing the appropriate Mixolydian patterns along with each chord. One octave should be plenty.
- See if you can learn the typical blues shuffle pattern implied by this part.
- Develop 2-3 short melodies using the scales. Each melody should consist of 5-10 notes. Play the melodies with the track.
As the creator of Hub Guitar, Grey has compiled hundreds of guitar lessons, written several books, and filmed hundreds of video lessons. He teaches private lessons in his Boston studio, as well as via video chat through TakeLessons.