Greetings fellow Junctionites! Jumping back into my 3rd Position Blues Scale stay song, we will be covering the next two choruses this week. During this, we will also be using plenty of distorted notes, scoops, and working with both the bottom and middle octaves. Make sure to work with your bends in the lower octave carefully, since missing a note by just a half step either way (up or down) will put you at a totally different note and is a quick way to make some people start running at the next blues jam! Take your time and you’ll get this in no time, so grab them harps and get to it…
- Dennis Gruenling
Topics and/or subjects covered in this lesson:
3rd Position
Print Chords & Tab
A Harp in the Key of D.
Loop 0:17 2nd and 3rd Verse Run-Through
Loop 1:01 Breakdown of First 4 Bars and 2nd Verse
Loop 3:24 IV Chord Breakdown (Bars 5 - 8)
Loop 5:38 Practice Loop of First 8 Bars
Loop 5:57 Breakdown of Last 4 Bars
Loop 7:05 Practice Loop of 2nd Verse
Loop 7:31 Breakdown of First 8 Bars and 3rd Verse
Loop 9:57 V Chord Breakdown (Bars 9 - 12)
Loop 11:29 Practice Loop of 3rd Chorus
Loop 11:55 Practice Loop of 2nd and 3rd Chorus
Comments
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I'm having some trouble with the timing of Chorus 3. I hear the problem in my recording, and I think you can probably see what I mean, so I'm happy about that. I feel like I'm rushing and I feel like my phrasing is off. I should be hitting the 3+ on the downbeat, right? (To be "straight" in my timing. I know that I should be laying back.) Thank you, Dennis!
Two things:
1) I really like how you repeat the main lick in Chorus 3. It's cool how the change to the IV chord gives the line a different feel.
2) Your theme for this song is the 3rd position blues scale. You use the 3rd position blues scale throughout the 12 bars, even though the 3rd position blues scale (here, the B blues scale) is NOT the blues scale relative to the IV (when the band is in E) and the V (when they are in F#). When Jason Ricci talks about this, he says that there are enough notes in common between the blues scales on the I, IV, and V that it's not really worth the effort to play the blues scale in relation to the IV or V. Dave Barrett thinks that a musician should play the blues scale relative to the I chord, and throw in the root notes of the IV and the V when appropriate (to "tip your hat to the chord changes", he says). I'd love to read what you think about this.
Third chorus is interesting.
Very cool. Thanks.
Thank YOU!!
really a great lesson a lot fun notes, love it
Thanks Boyd!! I really like this groove too.
Hi Dennis,
Is there any particular reason to use the 3-hole blow vs. the 2-hole draw, especially on the third chorus?
Thanks,
Bill
Hi Bill - Yes, a couple of reasons...one is for the particular sound you get from the blow note being in the opposire breath direction. Another reason being that it is the same breathing pattern for those same parts of the scale as in 2nd position (this note would be a blow note in 2nd position - the 4 blow to be exact). Also, intonation is important, and since the 3 blow doesn't bend, and not everyone has expert control over their intonation, I used the 3 blow here. Thanks!