Slow Blues Masterclass

Hey guys! Dan here from Your Guitar Academy with a really cool blues lesson for you today. We love working with the wonderful guys at Guitar Pro, and our aim with this lesson is to help you navigate a slow blues solo with a range of theory, techniques, and even a pinch of soul! We’re talking major and minor crossover, 7th arpeggios and moving with the chords.

Please note that this lesson is part of our Blues Essentials Level 2 course, which is a full 20-lesson course all about the slow blues.

So, without further ado, here is the solo we are learning, as well as the Guitar Pro tab absolutely free to download.

There you have it guys! This is the awesome solo that we will be learning! Now then, it’s a huge amount to learn all in one go, but please be my guest to download the tab and slowly work through the solo with the Guitar Pro functionality. However, at Your Guitar Academy, our teaching focuses on understanding every element of the solo, so that you can learn it, apply it, and then use it in your own playing and improvisation. With that in mind, we’re going to work through the first two lessons here!

1. Lesson One… What you Need.

Let’s first watch the full video.

Before you fully dive into this lesson, it’s crucial that we get some key concepts under our belt. Think of this as a quick checklist of courses that you should take if you don’t understand what’s happening in this solo. They are all absolutely free via YouTube or on our website.

A. Minor & Major Pentatonic Crossover

If you want to really master the blues, this concept is crucial. The way blues players can effortlessly switch from a sweet major tonality to a more aggressive minor sound is all based in this piece of theory. These lessons can be found here.

B. CAGED Shapes with Pentatonics

Now then, this bit is NOT CRUCIAL for this unit but definitely come back to it afterward. Knowing your major and minor CAGED positions across the neck allows you to far more easily navigate the fretboard. Here is the Minor CAGED course for this one! Here is the Major CAGED course.

So, that’s the kick-off we need! Now, when you’re ready, here is the next lesson, where we start to dive into the first few bars.

2. Lesson two… Bars 1 & 2 explained.

First up, we’re in the key of B blues! This means that the chords within the track are B7, E7, and F#7 (or 9th versions of these chords). We can therefore use our B minor pentatonic, and our B major pentatonic… Chopping and changing between the two.

We kick off using the B major pentatonic scale, which gives us a sweeter tone than the more aggressive-sounding minor pentatonic scale. We then also use an E7 arpeggio within the licks, which helps us target the chord tones as well as the pentatonic shape.

Here are those shapes clearly outlined on a fretboard:

3. Dynamics…

A key thing to consider as you’re playing through this solo is the dynamic aspects. Try matching up the sound of the scale with the way you play that scale. 

For example, when you hit the minor pentatonic parts, try to dig in with a pick, or attack the strings a bit more to get a more aggressive tone. Equally, with the major pentatonic, try to soften your approach, aiming for a sweeter tone. This is a more advanced concept, but an important skill to master in the blues.

4. A perfect start…

There we have it guys! A perfect start to your slow blues career.

Please note that this lesson is part of our Blues Essentials Level 2 course, which is a full 20-lesson course all about the slow blues. I’m also very excited to say that for this Feb only we have bundled together all 3 of our Blues Essentials courses and they are now available to download for over 40% off! Buying the bundle also enters you into our competition to win a brand-new guitar! Check it out here:

If you want to really master the blues, you can now get all 3 Blues courses for 40% off on our shop.

Thank you for watching guys, and thank you to the wonderful team at Guitar Pro for hosting our content on this site.

Please do get in touch with us here at Your Guitar Academy if you have any questions or want to find out more about what we offer. All the best, and above all, have fun! 🙏🙏