E Blues On Guitar And Harmonica
We can set up an easy two-string riff using open style chording to play the Blues.
This example looks at the open E Blues style. By using a capo, we can get it into the Blues key of G so that we can use our C harmonica in second position.
Guitar Tabs For E Blues
Strum swing eighths using downstrokes and palm mute after each down beat to give the notes some distinction.
Riff On I
E|————————–
B|————————–
G|————————–
D|————————–
A|–2–2–4–4–2–2–4–4–
E|–0–0–0–0–0–0–0–0–
Riff On IV
E|————————–
B|————————–
G|————————–
D|–2–2–4–4–2–2–4–4–
A|–0–0–0–0–0–0–0–0–
E|————————–
Riff On V
E|————————–
B|————————–
G|————————–
D|–4–4–6–6–4–4–6–6–
A|–2–2–2–2–2–2–2–2–
E|————————–
All of these riffs are alternating between the root/5th and root/6th of the key of the chord.
The interval between the root and 5th is a perfect 5th interval and the interval between the root and 6th is a major 6th interval.
For Riff On I, the notes are E/B and E/C#
For Riff On IV, the notes are A/E and A/F#
For Riff On V, the notes are B/F# and B/G#
Each of the riffs last for a single bar and can be played over the Blues progression.
Play that with me slowly on guitar.
Play E Blues In The Key Of G
Playing Blues in E does not work with our C harmonica. We want the Blues key to be G in order to play our C harp in second position.
In order to do this, let’s use a capo. By putting the capo on the third fret we shift the key up three semi-tones from E to G. Now playing the E Blues format with the capo on the third fret gets us into the key of G.
Now you can play chords, chord tones, chord tones + 6, the Blues scale and licks in the key of G using an open E format on guitar.
The Blues Scale On Guitar And Harmonica
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5 – 6 Blues Shuffle In A
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