THEM CHANGES
This month Andy Jones of the London College of Creative Media looks at how best to approach the IV chord in a Dominant blues progression. In this lesson we are sticking to using the Major Pentatonic over the I chord and the tonic Minor 6th Pentatonic on t
In this month’s column we’re looking at playing over the IV chord in a blues. Many players recommend using the tonic (the note of the key centre) Major Pentatonic over the I chord and the tonic Minor Pentatonic over the IV chord. This outlines the Major 3rd and the flat 7th of the IV. The flat 7th of the IV is the bluesy Minor 3rd of the home key.
The problem with this approach is that in the tonic Minor Pentatonic, we have the 4th degree of the IV chord. This is a pretty nasty sound when held over a Dominant 7th chord. American theory speak terms it an ‘avoid note’, meaning that you shouldn’t hang on to it. But passing through that note is very common, in fact it’s a big part of blues playing.
I suggest that we use the Minor 6th Pentatonic instead, which replaces the 7th with the Major 6th degree. This will give us a little of that Robben Ford inspired sophistication. I think you’ll find that a lot of players who suggest using the tonic Minor over the IV are actually instinctively veering toward the tonic Minor 6th Pentatonic instead.
In this lesson we are sticking to using the Major Pentatonic on the I chord and the tonic Minor 6th Pentatonic on the IV. In ‘real world’ playing, this sounds too literal to be in keeping with any era of blues. So, as the examples progress, I start to introduce some Blues scale ideas. To be perfectly honest, many players,
Eric Clapton included, may only make a passing reference to the Minor 6th Pentatonic but there is enough of it to create a stylistic trait. Hammering up and down C Minor Pentatonic on the F7 chord in a blues in C definitely gets old quickly because of that ungainly 4th degree - the B♭.
You may find that you need to add more Blues scale inflections to keep within the classic blues sound. Over the C7 you might prefer altering these licks to include more of that blues colour. Experimentation is a vital part of creating your own playing style.
NEXT MONTH Andy shows how to use the Major Pentatonic over a Major 7 chord
As we always say with this kind of theoretical lesson, almost any type of guitar sound will do. But when trying to ingest new ideas and musical pathways it’s best not to go too radical with your sound. So tune in a pleasing tone such as a clean or very slightly driving neck pickup selection, with enough light echo or reverb to make your new licks sound sweet.