The Blues Scale | You'll Hear It 

Love this series! As a self-taught piano player, this is gold to me! Thank you 🙏

PLEASE keep the intro guys!!! its such a good, refreshing and unique idea on how to start the podcast.

Excellent way of explaining it guys, great vid. I have a slight variation, which is a mixture of major and minor blues that works well for me and I've found easy to convey to people. To get that 'major blues' sound over C7, I tell people to think of it as C maj pentatonic (C,D,E,G,A) - basically the A blues or C maj blues you discussed - and alternate with the regular C blues scale, again like you've outlined. When going to the F7 tho, I like to think of it as a Cm6 chord. As a pentatonic, this would give C, Eb, F, G, A which sounds great as you can stress the A to Eb interval. It's basically the chord notes of F9. Gives you a flavour between the C maj blues and the regular C blues. Easy to teach as you just change two notes (C,D,E,G,A to C,Eb,F,G,A). I know this is nothing new, just a way of thinking about it that works for me. It also avoids playing Bb too much over the F7, which for me loses the sound of the chord a little. I'm more likely to play a B natural over the F7 as I love the sound (which of course ends up being Cm melodic ascending a.k.a lydian over F7, giving you the #11), and it leads your ear back to the tonic. Dunno if anyone's interested, and apologies if they're not.

The best! Tons of great stuff. This particular topic is loaded and you guys made it a blast. Thanks!

Every time I watch one these in bed before going to sleep I always find myself back at the piano. Great show cheers 🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹🎹

I like to use a blues scale with a chain of secondary dominants type progression. For example you can use a Dm blues scale for the entire middle 8 of I Got Rhythm (in Bb). You have to be a bit careful here and there but it can be very effective. I think I got it from Gene Harris but I can't remember which recording.

So many lingering questions answered. Thank you guys, this episode was pure gold. I’m off to practice...

you guys are always so fun to watch. Fun and relevant of course! Thanks for sharing and please continue your great vids !

Great tutorial! As an organ player I don’t completely agree with the ‘do not use it in a linear way’ though. When you listen to guys like Jimmy Smith, Jimmy McGriff and Jack McDuff the whole The Blues Scale is probably their most used scale, they surely use it in a linear way a LOT, although it seems like they use it in a linear way more on their way down than on the way up. And the ‘secret’ note is used a lot too but more as a slide from the minor to the major third ( which makes it more of a blue note than an actual part of the scale ) .

Keep up the good fight.

cracked up with the suburban blues bit

As a guitarist, I gotta say that Hendrix changed the way I think about blues. The way he played over Red House in all those live versions really illustrates that the blues is about major and minor living together, especially the marriage of the major 6 to the b7. The other thing I'll say is.... as a beginner, to get some fresh sounds in your ears and to supplement the blues scale, you can designate certain modes to the blues progression. And if you're scared of modes or don't get them, just remember that they are just the major or minor scale with slight alterations. Over the I chord you can either play a mixolydian (major scale with a b7) thing for a major sound, or a dorian thing (minor scale with a major 6) for a minor sound. The IV chord needs you to play the dorian or minor version, and the V chord invites a good old fashioned I major scale. That's something that helped me out a lot as a beginner. I wouldn't be able to keep up with some of the stuff you two play over the blues if I didn't at least know about the I7 IV7 and V7.

Very nice and awesome blues piano lesson and run-through there! Blues galore here! Keep it coming. 👍🎹🎶😄

thank you guys. you probably hear enough praise because you have chops, but your conversations make it easy for me as a guitarist/bassist turning to keys with plenty of theory knowledge already. Instead of being frustrated with basic pieces from level 1 books, your natural approach to the physical operation of the instrument lets me cheat by getting my fingers in the right place. I've been drilling the chromatic scale in multiple keys for days. =)

Excellent as always,

Monty Alexander scale!

Thanks again!

This **** at the end is hysterical - good episode

This channel should low-key have 1 mil subs.

Man. I love you channel

more blues- yes!

Thank you for this! Amateur saxophonist here, you guys do such great work. I think one problem is that the blues scale is usually the FIRST thing kids are given if they want to learn to improvise. To my mind its most relevant for most students to learn to use the linear scales first. Or even better, learn them all at the same time.

Damn, that is a smart looking shirt Mr. Martin!

This channel is gold

Please do a Solo Analysis of a Keith Jarrett Standard, I would really appreciate it!! Maybe Late Lament? I would love to hear your analysis!

Haha, the chromatic scale joke made my day. Thanks for that!

"look at the way your hips are moving" OMG too funny

So rare to be funny ,but also so effective at the same time!

I’m watching this with interest going through a pile of unsalted pistachios. Man, this is an awesome dialogue, both informative and relaxing! 👍

Is too much what any musician can do with this wonderful scale, am using it in a way that will keep me busy till end of my life

I’d really like to see more discussion on using the blues scale in bebop. Any suggestions for that?

the next secret note, to me, is the A using it together with the Bb (it brings out the slightly lower 7th-harmonic-vibe in the Bb, the kind of extra flat 7th). you can actually hear this harmonic in low tonic notes.

I love that you guys drink Spindrift! Super clean beverage!

I'm just a clueless newbie, but I have been thinking about the major blues scale as just being the first mode of what you guys call "THE" blues scale and I've heard other people studiously refer to as the Minor blues scale. FWIW

I like that theme song. I like to play the blues and going more to jazz blues progressions. I also play some bluegrass guitar.. I was giving a lesson on the famous G run lick made famous by Lester Flat. Iit came from the E blues scale. E( G A Bb B D E). But guitarist play it in G. I also use it when playing piano G blues. Essentially it has a real cool sound. As I play the chords I like to think of the instaneous chord's being formed.G7 with and E is G 13. The A in a 9, Bb is a # 9.. But the magic happens on C7 with the G# (+5) The D7 chord has some neat stuff going on too. Of course the tritone sub for D7 is G#7 Notes of Ab7..I'll do it bother ways ..(Ab C Eb Gb) or G#7.( G# B# D# F#). That Ab7 or tritone sub against the E blues makes instantaneous chord's Ab7#5.. Ab7b9, Ab7b5. Texting on a small phone hope no mistakes.

AIGHT😂✌🏾🍷

Another note that I was taught is the 6th, so in C add the A to that 6 note scale. Then, for those who play instruments where notes can be bent, raising the minor third and minor 7th a quarter tone or so is an option. In particular, raising the minor third a little past that quarter tone brings you into the territory of a third that's a little more of a natural harmonic to the tonic than our equal tempered major third. I find this on bass by playing a double stop (root and major third) in a low register, which always sounds horrible, then flatting that third until it sounds the least horrible. Still not something to play that low but it's how I locate that micro-tonal third. It seems to be 25 or 30 cents flat from the major third. I don't know what it's called (natural tempered?) but I find it a good option to bend up into from the minor third without going all the way to the major. Nor does it have to be OCD-precise; it just adds to the range of microtonal thirds for the player, going from minor to a quarter tone sharp, then through that "natural" third to the major third. Whatever sounds good as you bend it. (Dare I say "You'll hear it"?) Love what you guys do! I've realized very late in life how much value there is to be gained from a familiarity with keyboards. So I'm years behind the technical aspects of what you teach, but I always find valuable insights from your podcasts: tonally, rhythmically and theoretically. Also you're both endlessly entertaining. Thanks so much for doing this!

Thanx, Gents.

Peter and Adam, thanks for this but re the “Major Blues scale” : I don’t know if they teach it at Berkeley but I don’t think it is such an unusual term. Been playing for 30 plus years and I remember hearing that term when I started. Also Dan Greenblatt’s book on the Blues ScaleS (which was published 16 years ago) uses the same term with some solid examples which I think could support the view that the Major Blues scale goes beyond a simple “add a blues note” to a pentatonic and is also a solid building block of blues playing or blues based jazz standards (section B of St Louis Blues?).Of course there’s various ways of looking at this but thinking of it as a separate scale may help students/players moving away from pentatonic runs and cliches with a blues passing note thrown in. Cheers.

oh i've been hearing this one...

What was the tune that was played at the end of this lesson today?

Didn't you say you wanted to say some more stuff about when it's ok to use the different blues scales of the chords? Or did I miss that?

the major blues scale opened up my musical mind just now. and the secret blues scale too. im just confused why you "cant" use the f blues sclae over f when going from C7 to F7. also im subscribing

What tune does Adam play @13:48 , THANKS IN ADVANCE :)

The best scale around

Nice. Making my brain to raise its game. Wouldn't the Major Blues be Eb rather than A??

Gems

Gm blues on Cm what do you called that ?

“using the blues scale in a pentatonic way”. A lot of times I feel like this great content is going over my head 🤯Not sure what you meant by that but if I look at C blues scale (no secrets), I think that’s Eb pentatonic with a flat 3. If I am attempting Ain’t Misbehavin in Eb, I find I am using those notes a LOT. So am I playing C blues scale or Eb pentatonic with flat 3? Like you say the scale works over a lot of chords so for me it becomes a case of, how do I NOT play these notes and play something else? 😀. Many thanks for this terrific channel!

The blues has never been about what's legal

IV Blues on the V7?

What piano do you guys use? And would do a review on it?

Altho I am an avid lover of the piano but not quite where you are on the technique side of things 🙄 I find it easier to dumb down some of your run through of whatever it is you are discussing sometimes to .75 in the settings. just to not have to frustrate myself needing to go back a few times. I get that it's conversational and not 'tutorial' as such but...it's just a comment as the heading says. But you are great..sometimes a little 🍄but that's what makes it interesting too.

That first lick sounds like the opening of “Pleasure” by Ohio Players ;)

Fuckin love these guys

I can’t recall Bud Powell ever using a blues scale on the blues

15:13 Does your town have a style of BBQ named after it? If yes, then you live in a blues town. Not all blues towns have their own BBQ, but all towns that have an official BBQ, that outsiders also crave, are blues towns. States, too... for example Texas, and North and South Carolina both have Piedmont Roll, but I give it to North Carolina, because absolutely no outsider would consider that mustard stuff from South to be edible, never mind BBQ. Just some silliness so that maybe the algorithm notices the channel, even though it's an old video. These older videos are just as relevant as the new ones.

Make vídeo on Double Stops in Blues!

"oh you like that? you like that, big guy????" 17:55

Donna Lee was written by Miles tho... someone screwed up at the label. But AWESOME video!

👍

David Sanborn in the 80s was the ultimate king of the blues scale. He threw in all kinds of intervals when he was playing 8 notes per beat and every one sounds deliberate and even necessary. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-7jiEcqrhtiY.html It's a unique sound.

hey guys, i don't agree with you on the significance of decent fingerings for the blues scale for scale-wise motion. of course, with the blues scale it's no different as with ANY scale: just running it up and down is not music! but you'll have to be able to get through the octaves without stumbling over your fingers. so here are my right hand fingering suggestions for all keys (minor blues scale 1 - b3 - 4 - #4 - 5 - b7 - 1): C: 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 3, 1 F: 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 1 Bb: 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 1 Eb: 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 1 G#: 4, 1, 3, 1, 2, 3, 4 C#: 3, 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 3 F#: 3, 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 3 or 2, 4, 1, 2, 3, 1, 2 B: 2, 4, 1, 2, 3, 1, 2 or 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 4, 1 E: 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 3, 1 A: 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 3, 1 D: 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 3, 1 G: 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 3, 1 note: i generally prefer 1, 3, 1 over 1, 2 , 1 as this allows more independant movements of the fingers. best, andy

Lol yeah you 'can't' ever move the bluez scale to the 4 chord. Cuz we're such authentic bluesmen lmao. I thought this was a jazz channel? You use different scales on a jazz blues, you don't only play the blues scale off the 1 chord. And what is this you shouldn't play the blues scale in a linear fashion? It sounds great like that! AND what is this secret blues scale business?? It's about juxtaposing the blues scale with mixolydian! Come on people! However, good job on demonstrating the concept of using a blues scale a minor third down and it ends up major over the chord.

term ”Major Blues Scale” is logical for several reasons: We allready talk about major and (its relative) minor. C major and A-minor scales, same notes We allready talk about (major) pentatonic and minor pentatonic. C-pentatonic and A-minor pentatonic, same notes So why not talk about Major Blues and Minor Blues? C major blues and A minor blues, same notes Also, using ”C major blues” over C-blues gives us a in my opinion correct view of tonic. Using ”A blues” over C-blues is kind of confusing.

Please, please, please consider Barry Harris' statement "there is no such thing as the blues scale...there are just funky notes." Theory comes after practice. Bach did not follow the rules in my green counterpoint book. the rules came much later. OUCH

what would Mozart, Bach, Ludwig comment if they saw this video ?????

Showing some figures slowly would have been helpful.

Sorry guys. This was not one of your better efforts. There is some important content in there but you didn’t explain it as well as you might have. This advanced intermediate player would have benefited from more specific examples or perhaps a PDF summary. Hey I love open studio and will keep coming back. I’m just being honest about this one

genius talk?

hey nice april fools joke on your most recent podcast!

Major blues scale is basic shit for us harmonica players

heah no reason to insult people. I am 50 years old and still sound like your suburban chump

How can you guys criticize Oscar Peterson. - man -

You guys are great, but it’s really lame how you look down on lesser musicians, and of course you’re gonna say your not. But your attitude in multiple instances on your podcast would suggest otherwise. Yeah, we get it! You’re both ridiculous musicians and you know vast amounts of shit more than the average musician. Great. Most people can see that.

Great insights, poor illustrations. Lose the button down shirt. Not a fit, or fashion