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Why is the blues so hard for me to play?

PLarson

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Mar 7, 2009
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918
I started playing guitar pretty late- I think I was 13-14 something. All my heroes played melodic hard rock- Thin Lizzy, Van Halen, Deep Purple, Whitesnake and so on. After a while I started to listen to really fast guitarplayers, like Helloween, Yngwie Malmsteen. But now that I'm old, I mostly listen to blues and I would like to play the blues. But it's like my fingers want to run away and still play fast, fast. :dang
 

Ace139

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May 29, 2003
Messages
1,759
Seems like you always want what you dont have. I want to play faster and cant seem to make my fingers do that. Maybe play along with some stuff you like to get the feel for playing slower:salude

Blues On!!
 

ajmojave

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Apr 3, 2008
Messages
167
I started playing guitar pretty late- I think I was 13-14 something. All my heroes played melodic hard rock- Thin Lizzy, Van Halen, Deep Purple, Whitesnake and so on. After a while I started to listen to really fast guitarplayers, like Helloween, Yngwie Malmsteen. But now that I'm old, I mostly listen to blues and I would like to play the blues. But it's like my fingers want to run away and still play fast, fast. :dang

Tjena Larson

that's interesting. I think one of the reasons i was drawn to playing blues is that i can't play fast!
 
B

Banker

Guest
Ditch the pick, play with thumb.....that'll slow you down and give more expression.
 

duaneflowers

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Aug 13, 2013
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2,522
More so than any other genre of music, at least for me, the blues has to be felt before it can be played. The notes that express true emotion... pain, hunger, relief, lust... are the ones that go down in blues history. IMHO those that can't effectively express those emotions through their playing are simply not playing the blues. While you may be used to Helloween & Yngwie and Neo-Classical attempts to cram as many notes as possible into an expression to relay a particular thought... with the blues, quite often, one well placed note can replace a hundred... bringing forth a visceral response... and that note will continue to ring out long after the music stops.

A lot of playahs mastered the blues by copying their heros... BB, PG, EC, GM, DA... etc., note for note. Getting the phrasing and sustain right, learning to put that little, almost imperceptible bend at the end of a note, the tremelo of a mellow jackhammer, the timeless sexiness of Marilyn Monroe or Raquel Welch, the depth of the philosophical inquiries of Plato or Wittgenstein, the playfulness or mirth of a puppy, the inquisitiveness and wide eyed wonder of a new born baby, the lift and soar of an eagle, the colors of the leaves in august, the finality of death... all expressed in various shades of mind blowing tone. That, to me, is the blues... accept no substitutes, as there is nothing else like it!

So in response to your question as to why it is so hard to play... in all actuality its not that hard at all... but it is hard to do it well. Blues is like communication... and since the meaning of the communication is in the response you get, the quality of the blues you play is in the response you get from your listeners. Do they feel your pain and/or merriment? If not, you are not communicating it effectively enough. Playing live is the only way to judge that effectiveness... especially to larger audiences, because as one person 'feels what you are saying' the contagion of that connection will spread and eventually it will bounce right back to you... after which you can tweak and perfect it and make it your own... at which point it can be called mastery. Playing for yourself might get you off, but it is no substitute for the real deal (yes, we are talking guitars here). :laugh2:
 

PLarson

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Mar 7, 2009
Messages
918
More so than any other genre of music, at least for me, the blues has to be felt before it can be played. The notes that express true emotion... pain, hunger, relief, lust... are the ones that go down in blues history. IMHO those that can't effectively express those emotions through their playing are simply not playing the blues. While you may be used to Helloween & Yngwie and Neo-Classical attempts to cram as many notes as possible into an expression to relay a particular thought... with the blues, quite often, one well placed note can replace a hundred... bringing forth a visceral response... and that note will continue to ring out long after the music stops.

A lot of playahs mastered the blues by copying their heros... BB, PG, EC, GM, DA... etc., note for note. Getting the phrasing and sustain right, learning to put that little, almost imperceptible bend at the end of a note, the tremelo of a mellow jackhammer, the timeless sexiness of Marilyn Monroe or Raquel Welch, the depth of the philosophical inquiries of Plato or Wittgenstein, the playfulness or mirth of a puppy, the inquisitiveness and wide eyed wonder of a new born baby, the lift and soar of an eagle, the colors of the leaves in august, the finality of death... all expressed in various shades of mind blowing tone. That, to me, is the blues... accept no substitutes, as there is nothing else like it!

So in response to your question as to why it is so hard to play... in all actuality its not that hard at all... but it is hard to do it well. Blues is like communication... and since the meaning of the communication is in the response you get, the quality of the blues you play is in the response you get from your listeners. Do they feel your pain and/or merriment? If not, you are not communicating it effectively enough. Playing live is the only way to judge that effectiveness... especially to larger audiences, because as one person 'feels what you are saying' the contagion of that connection will spread and eventually it will bounce right back to you... after which you can tweak and perfect it and make it your own... at which point it can be called mastery. Playing for yourself might get you off, but it is no substitute for the real deal (yes, we are talking guitars here). :laugh2:

Words of wisdom, thanks. I haven't always been playing at home. I was in this blues/rock cover band for a long time. But I started to feel bad, playing the same songs over and over every sunday. I got tired of it and quit. Playing at home ain't that bad. You put on a record listening and playing with the best musicians in the world. But playing live is great. Don't get me wrong. Playing a popular old song for an audience who is near extacy is great! Well, one of these days I've got to join a band again. Playing the blues....
 

duaneflowers

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0QbgW0k.jpg
 

Big Al

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Apr 24, 2002
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14,537
Play honest. The Blues is truth. Ditch the pick as Banker says and dial down the distortion. Sing the phrase you wish to play, think vocally. The complexity is found in the note, not in how many. Attack, sustain, bent, release and vibroto can all occur within a note. The better you can become fluid and natural with the guitar the better, and when it's called for you can certainly rip it up fast and with intent.
 

chuckNC

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Apr 24, 2012
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1,261
The pentatonic scale may be the same between blues and rock but the style of playing is very different. Most rock players end up sounding like they're playing rock guitar over a blues song because they aren't attuned to the stylistic "language" of the blues. Great blues players are masters of making the guitar talk.

Elements:

Timing: Sometimes hitting notes ahead of the beat or behind it -- on purpose of course -- to play around/against the beat.

Dynamics: Emphasizing some notes more than others the way an interesting speaker would. Because playing the blues is telling the story with your guitar.

Space: Leaving air in the music. Sometimes in unexpected places!

These items are a big part of something called "tension and release." Good blues playing is full of this. Like good lovemaking.

The other element I would mention is funk. This is the toughest thing for guys who grew up on hard rock to get. Hard to describe but I know when it's there. And also when it's not. I struggle with all of this stuff because I grew up a hard rock guy. About the time I lose myself a little bit, my old "native tongue" returns! It helps to listen to a lot of blues. For me Chicago blues especially seems to help get my thinking back into blues territory.

____________
One more thing occurred to me before I hit the Submit button. Most rock guys think playing blues is all about bending strings. If you try to rein that in a little bit you may be surprised how much more 'blue' your playing will be.

Hang in there, you'll get it!
 

kidmo

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Jul 9, 2008
Messages
154
Get a mean woman, when she steals your money, wreaks your truck and takes your dog, the blues will come to you. :rofl
 

renderit

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Jan 19, 2009
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10,951
Get a mean woman, when she steals your money, wreaks your truck and takes your dog, the blues will come to you. :rofl

Wait.....that's the formula for Country! When she kills you, or steals your heart or the devil be taking your soul or your woman or both, or nobody loves you, that's the blues.
 

joemags54

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May 17, 2011
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1,275
Wait.....that's the formula for Country! When she kills you, or steals your heart or the devil be taking your soul or your woman or both, or nobody loves you, that's the blues.

HA! ... ..............Actually, your thread title has the makings of a blues tune, built right in....
 

mistersnappy

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Jan 20, 2006
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7,321
Play honest. The Blues is truth. Ditch the pick as Banker says and dial down the distortion. Sing the phrase you wish to play, think vocally. The complexity is found in the note, not in how many. Attack, sustain, bent, release and vibroto can all occur within a note. The better you can become fluid and natural with the guitar the better, and when it's called for you can certainly rip it up fast and with intent.

Big Al speaks The Truth.

Here is an example of this: Clapton shredded some blues changes waaaay back in the day. Go to 3:08:50 on this video of some live Derek and the Dominos on Stormy Monday. Check out his 12 bar intro: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=maMYLqQegAc

Let me know what you think. :dude:
 

les strat

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Aug 22, 2004
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I started out in the 80's playing metal and hard rock, which led me to the influences of those bands, and in turn who influenced those bands.

Listen to the chords and phrasing of the solos. They are saying something. It's not wanking or exercises. As mentioned slow down, lose the pick if you have to, and make every note count... let one bent note hang and cry as it's released. That'll say more than a thousand 32nd notes. Find your notes in the major and minor pentatonic and blues scales that are bending points (*ALL OF THEM), and use them. Almost think of it as being vocals.

Then, what's cool is incorporating some of the flash and speed every now and then to your bluesy solos. I know it pisses of some of the purists, but so what! LOL.
 

herb

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Jan 13, 2002
Messages
981
THe great blues players have put a ton of work into their phrasing. You cannot just play "the right scales" and call it "the blues". Every line you play must be saying something. "Saying something" in music means that you are communicating a musical idea or theme with your listener(s). We've all heard someone we dig play a phrase and think "wow, that really struck a nerve in my soul". If you haven't, maybe a new passion/hobby is in order.

Listen to someone who is known as a "good phraser" to see how they do it. Transpose a solo to get ideas. Take these ideas and play them with a friend or over a backing track. Ya gotta practice this stuff.
 

clayville

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Feb 25, 2004
Messages
5,736
My two cents... Play like a blues singer: behind the beat and with lots of emotion. Economy is your friend, but put all your effort into the little details. Slide or pre-bend into notes, toss in some meaningful vibrato, repeat yourself for emphasis, weave in and out of rhythm and melody.

And study the form in all it's manifestations. "The Blues" is a very big genre and it helps to hear and feel the difference between Texas and Chicago, between Memphis and New Orleans, between the 1930s, the 1950s and the 1970s.

Start now. :jim
 

doubletone

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Joined
Jan 13, 2015
Messages
21
My two cents... Play like a blues singer: behind the beat and with lots of emotion. Economy is your friend, but put all your effort into the little details. Slide or pre-bend into notes, toss in some meaningful vibrato, repeat yourself for emphasis, weave in and out of rhythm and melody.

And study the form in all it's manifestations. "The Blues" is a very big genre and it helps to hear and feel the difference between Texas and Chicago, between Memphis and New Orleans, between the 1930s, the 1950s and the 1970s.

Start now. :jim

+1

Play like a blues singer or a horn player. Phrasing is key because they have to breathe in between.

Listen to a singer sing a line and follow up with a phrase. That call and response is the key to the blues
 
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