Blues Lick Lesson #05 (Jump Blues Lick)
In this 5th blues lick lesson, I show you how to play this jump blues lick in the key of C scale. This lick uses some interesting concepts, like the use of the major 3d, grace notes and a reverse sweep (or rake). Recommended playing level: intermediate and up.
C major pentatonic
This is mostly an C major pentatonic blues lick that is used on the I-chord. The lick has a triplet feel and is played mostly in the 8th position on the guitar neck. On the figure below you can see the major & minor pentatonic (in the 8th position) next to each other as a comparison (R=root). Look specifically at the major 3d, because this is a recurring theme in this blues lick.
Concepts in this blues lick lesson
In this blues lick lesson, you get the guitar tabs on screen, a detailed explanation of the picking technique and 2 variations (adaptations) for a slower blues. Concepts that are present in this video
- Using the major 3d (mixing major & minor pentatonic)
- Grace notes
- Reverse sweep (upstroke sweep) and rake.
Backing Track
Up-tempo jump blues backing track (150bpm) here.
Gear
The guitar used is my 2013 Gibson ES-335. The guitar has a warm, vintage sound. Everything is recorded through my pedalboard and the Fractal Audio Systems AX8.
👉 Check out my gear page on Thomann: gear-thomann.guitar-inspiration.com
Practice Tips
Practice this lick slowly first, then with the backing track on my channel. The lick is also easily transposable to other major blues songs, so I hope you’ll get some mileage out of this one.
Keep on playing that guitar!
Hope to see you again next time,
Maarten
