I've been doing a lot of playing, learning & thinking recently. So this post is really for me, but good for you too!
Remember when playing the blues over your standard 12 bar progression, you can end your licks on any chord tone (1, 3, 5) of the chord that you're playing over, plus the b7 of that same chord (that's the blues), or the 9 (or 2) of that same chord if it's a 9th chord (or even a 7th chord in a progression that is suitable to substituting 9th chords for 7th chords), or on the b3 of the I, IV or V like when moving the entire box 1 shape up to the IV chord or V chord root position. Mix it up and get out of the habit of ending on the root 1 of every chord! Another one is the b5 of the I, IV or V as your passing over them, typically resolved back to the root, but if you leave it hanging, gives you a very eery Led Zeppelin kind of sound over the chord that you hang it over. If you're playing over a purely major blues - think about using the 2 and 6 the same as you would your b3 and b7 over a regular blues or minor blues. Just a thought. :), -- And remember you can bend up into any of these resolution points or slide down into them ... but it just takes practice & planning to get into the habit of doing that ... add a little vibrato to you're bent or unbent resolution - now, that's the blues!
Anyway, good luck & have fun with it!
Peace,
Beth
Remember when playing the blues over your standard 12 bar progression, you can end your licks on any chord tone (1, 3, 5) of the chord that you're playing over, plus the b7 of that same chord (that's the blues), or the 9 (or 2) of that same chord if it's a 9th chord (or even a 7th chord in a progression that is suitable to substituting 9th chords for 7th chords), or on the b3 of the I, IV or V like when moving the entire box 1 shape up to the IV chord or V chord root position. Mix it up and get out of the habit of ending on the root 1 of every chord! Another one is the b5 of the I, IV or V as your passing over them, typically resolved back to the root, but if you leave it hanging, gives you a very eery Led Zeppelin kind of sound over the chord that you hang it over. If you're playing over a purely major blues - think about using the 2 and 6 the same as you would your b3 and b7 over a regular blues or minor blues. Just a thought. :), -- And remember you can bend up into any of these resolution points or slide down into them ... but it just takes practice & planning to get into the habit of doing that ... add a little vibrato to you're bent or unbent resolution - now, that's the blues!
Anyway, good luck & have fun with it!
Peace,
Beth