Although blues music relies heavily on improvisation, it nevertheless follows some basic structure. This allows musicians to explore their creativity while still being able to play together in a cohesive and controlled manner. Today we will look at the 12-bar blues chord form and how you can use it.
12-bar blues progression is the most common blues form and can be heard on countless legendary blues tracks. (Check out our playlist below!) When looking at 12-bar blues, we can divide it into 3 groups of 4 bars (hence the name).
Most 12-bar blues chords are played in 4/4 time.
Let’s break down what each of these 3 sections consists of:
4 bars of the I chord
Total: 4 bars
2 bars of the IV chord
2 bars of the I chord
Total: 4 bars
1 bar of the V chord
1 bar of the IV chord
1 bar of the I chord
1 bar of the V chord
Total: 4 bars
As a general rule, the third and final section of the 12-bar blues is generally used to resolve the first two sections.
Let’s look at an example in the key of A, a common key for blues guitar:
4 bars of A
2 bars of D
2 bars of A
1 bar of E
1 bar of D
1 bar of A
1 bar of E
From section 3, you would go right back into section 1. This pattern repeats on and on for the entirety of the song.
Using this common structure, you can play a wide variety of popular blues songs, and even improvise over these chords using the pentatonic scale. Try it out today!
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