Chord solos in minor blues

Zayit · Post by **Zayit** » 10 Dec 2003 3:04 pm

I'm playing a gig next month with an electric blues band that does several minor blues tunes like 'Laylah', Black Magic Woman & 'Thrill is gone'.

I'd like to do something different from the single-note slide lines that fall nicely onto to the blues scale "3 frets up" from the root in the C-6 tuning.

Can anybody suggest some models for chord solos in minor key blues? (I've heard Junior, JB & Cindy do lots of great stuff on major blues).

Denny Turner · Post by **Denny Turner** » 12 Dec 2003 8:44 am

Zayit, You might toy around with this; Keeping in mind that a relative minor (Aolean) is identical to it's parent Major (Ionian) ...and is also identical to it's parent Major's V7 ... and the relative minor can be played just as well in it's parent Majors because it's the same notes in the same 2 fret box (Amin7b6 scale = CMaj7 scale = G7 scale which all are found in the same 2-fret box > G7 / F7). Likewise Imin7 (blues scale) is found in the IV7 2-fret box made-up of the IV6 fret and bIII6 fret (the box for Imin7, IV7 and bVIIMaj7); Meaning if you want to play in Amin7b6 (relative minor) then play it in the CMaj7 box which is also the same thing as the G7 box; And if you want to play around an Amin7 Blues scale (Dorian), then play it in the D7 box (C6 fret + D6 fret). It just takes a small bit of woodshedding to convince the old noggin that the minor scales and their chords are indeed right there in their relative Maj7 / Dom7 boxes. With just a bit of work with it you will also find that your licks you used to think about as major also work as a different voicing of minor when played in a relative Maj7 or relative Dom7 box. ------- Also, the 9th chord located 2 frets below a 6th chord fret, is absent of the 3rd note so can be used quite well as a blues chord sub for it's minor; ie. for an Cmin you can play the notes of Bb6, because Bb6 is the extension notes of both C7 AND Cmin7 (Cmin7/9/11 in this example). With just a little bit of woodshedding with these techniques, you will hear Booker T. voicing jumping right out of the steel ...which also suggests an effective rythm technique by emulating some of Booker T's rythm style that uses allot of selective extension notes even absent of root or even the triad.

Aloha,
Denny T~[This message was edited by Denny Turner on 12 December 2003 at 08:57 AM.]

Chuck Fisher · Post by **Chuck Fisher** » 12 Dec 2003 9:38 am

take a minute and alter your tuning, you can get really fresh stuff like that sometines. Sonny Landreth uses Dm very effectively. Flat that third.

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 12 Dec 2003 1:47 pm

Here are a few simple ideas for a C minor blues ... scale notes and chord runs

<pre>

C minor pentatonic scale (extended)

E------11---8------------------------------------------------------------------------
C--------------10-------------------------------------------------------------------
A-----------------10----9---8-------------------------------------------------------
G-----------------------------8------------------------------------------------------
E-------------------------------8----------------------------------------------------
C----------------------------------10---7-------------------------------------------

C minor

Gliss ............. Gliss........
3 3
/----/ /----/
E--------3-------8-7-6-----3-------------------------------------------------------------
C--------3-------7-6-5-----3---5---3--------------3-----5--6--5------3-------------------
A--------3-------6-5-4-----3---5---3--------------3-----5--6--5------3---3---------------
G------------------------------------3------------3-----5--5--5------3-------------------
E------------------------------------3-----------------------------------3---------------
C------------------------------------------------------------------------3---------------

F minor C minor

E--------------8-7-6----------------------------------------------------------------------
C----------8---8-7-6-------(10) pull behind bar & relese----8---------3--------------------
A-------8--8---8-7-6-----8--8-------------------------------8---------3--------------------
G-------8--8-----------8----8-------------------------------8---------3-------------------
E-------8----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

G7 (diminished run) C minor

E----------------------------------------15-------------------------------------------------
C-------2----5----8----11----------------15--------------------------------------------------
A-------2----5----8----11----------------15------------------------------------------------
G-------1----4----7----10----------------15----------------------------------------------
E-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
C-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

</pre>

Zayit · Post by **Zayit** » 12 Dec 2003 3:43 pm

Thank you very much for your replies!

Denny- great website, thank you very much for the lesson in modal theory. I'm taking that to the woodshed tonite.

Andy- the tab is beyond my wildest dreams (I had just hoped for some references to obscure Bob Wills or Bill Cody cuts). This is also going to the woodshed- thx again.

Chuck- thank you too. I am fooling with tunings some on my 'other neck'- my 6-string Rick varies from E-7 to open-E to C#m7 by changing 1 or 2 strings. On my Regal s-8, (C-6 with high G) I've tried the Bobby Black C-6/A7 that gives a nice fat dominant chord on the bottom, but I'm most comfortable with the plain Jane C-6. I will try flatting the 3rd on the Rick like Sonny does on 'Shootin for the Moon'...

This forum is truly amazing. I am humbled every day.