Lesson 5: Blues is Our Favorite Color
The notes on the low sounding E string (the thick string that is closest to the ceiling) have the same letter names as the notes on the other E string.
But they are much lower sounding versions of the notes on the high E string (the thinnest string that is closest to the floor).
All of the E string notes are written on ledger lines below the staff.
All of the E string notes are written on ledger lines below the staff.
Let’s practice playing on the low E-String.
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The fingering for the notes on the low-sounding E string are the same as the fingerings for the notes on the high-sounding E string. The E is open, F is at the first fret, and G is at the 3rd fret. Reading all of these ledger lines can be challenging. One thing that is helpful is to notice that F is the 3rd ledger line below the staff. The three lines that are written here are to be played without regard to time; just make sure to get all of the pitches correct. The pitches are written here for your reference:
E F G F ||
G F E F ||
F G F E ||
E F G F ||
G F E F ||
F G F E ||
Let’s keep working on reading music in the lower register.
This week we will be starting on the low A string.
This week we will be starting on the low A string.
Next we’ll practice going from second position, back down to first.
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In this lesson’s reading practice we will be using some of the ledger line notes on the A string. It is a good idea to clap through the rhythm of each line before playing the examples. Make sure to give yourself a count-off.
The notes for the example are as follows:
A B C | D C B | C D C B | B A ||
C B C D | E E F | G G F F | E D C ||
G G F | E D E G| F E | C B C ||
It is time to memorize “Payin’ Dues”.This song has a standard blues form AAB.
Meaning that the second line is the same as the first. Well, not exactly the same, but you have to admit, it’s pretty close.
We’ll just call the second line A’.
Practice the A sections until you can play them by memory. Then do the same with the B.
Then try playing it all together.
Meaning that the second line is the same as the first. Well, not exactly the same, but you have to admit, it’s pretty close.
We’ll just call the second line A’.
Practice the A sections until you can play them by memory. Then do the same with the B.
Then try playing it all together.
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In this lesson, we continue to work on “Payin’ Dues”. This time we are going to look at the form. The form is a standard 12-bar blues, meaning that it is twelve measures long and the form is A-A-B. You will notice that a few of the notes are different between the first A and the second A. That is why we call the 2nd A section A’. You should be practicing this song in sections.
First, try playing the A section by memory, then A’, and finally B. Once you have all the sections separately, put them all together
To play the accompaniment part to “Payin’ Dues” all you need to know is the E 5 and 6, the A 5 and 6, and the B 5. Continue to use the chunk-a-chunk-a rhythm.
Remember, you can also move the fifth chord to other parts of the fretboard. If you replace the open string with your first finger and add the third finger two frets above on the next string you can get a fifth chord anywhere on the E or A strings. That’s how we get the B5 chord.
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We can use the 5th and 6th chords to accompany “Payin’ Dues”. Use the chunk-a-chunk-a rhythm and change chords as noted in the music.
One of the challenges that young players have is hitting the open E when playing the A 5th and 6th. One way to avoid this is to make sure to put the pick on the A string and really feel the a string before playing it. While this may sound a little fantastic, you have been playing with the pick long enough that you should be developing a strong sense of where the strings are.
You know that you can use the pentatonic scale with the color notes to make up melodies.
The cool thing is, these melodies sound great when you play them along with the rhythm guitar part for “Payin’ Dues”.
The cool thing is, these melodies sound great when you play them along with the rhythm guitar part for “Payin’ Dues”.
A good way to start, is to use single sentence phrases. Come up with a short phrase like “Cow pants are real big” and play it using the scale.
Or
Be creative, try things, experiment. Have fun and keep working!
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In this exercise we work on using the pentatonic scale to make up melodies and fit them with the blues shuffle accompaniment. So one of you can play the chords from Payin’ Dues while the other improvises melodies using the pentatonic scale.
Here is a version of the chords without the melody, which should be easier to read:
E5 E6 | E5 E6 | E5 E6 | E5 E6 |
A5 A6 |A5 A6 | E5 E6 | E5 E6 |
B5 B5 | A5 A5 | E5 E6 | E5 E6 |
If you don’t have the two of you working together, you can always go to YouTube and find videos of backing tracks for an E blues shuffle; there are lots of good videos for backing tracks there at a variety of tempos. The most important part of this lesson is to have fun!Get messy with it; you should not worry about mistakes right now. As you work with using the scale to create melodies against the background track, you are going to get better and better at it.
Here is a version of the chords without the melody, which should be easier to read:
E5 E6 | E5 E6 | E5 E6 | E5 E6 |
A5 A6 |A5 A6 | E5 E6 | E5 E6 |
B5 B5 | A5 A5 | E5 E6 | E5 E6 |
If you don’t have the two of you working together, you can always go to YouTube and find videos of backing tracks for an E blues shuffle; there are lots of good videos for backing tracks there at a variety of tempos. The most important part of this lesson is to have fun!Get messy with it; you should not worry about mistakes right now. As you work with using the scale to create melodies against the background track, you are going to get better and better at it.