Article by Ryan S. Gilliam

When beginning blues guitar you must understand that blues music is far more complicated than it seems. This is why it is crucial to select a particular blues style and pattern your music soon after it. One of the certain styles suggested by blues authorities is the ragtime blues. To uncover out why it is the very best blues style to play, you can find out far more particulars below.

What is Ragtime Blues? When it comes to producing blues music, even the smallest details that musicians incorporate could go a lengthy way. This is a lesson that a lot of have learned from the so-called blues guitar master, Gary Davis. A number of musicians who wanted to understand far more about blues music included Gary Davis and ragtime blues in their study, which has led to a wonderful deal of success.

One of his songs in specific, Candy Man, is recognized as one of the best examples of ragtime blues music. When he is playing this song with his guitar, Gary Davis utilizes only one finger and his thumb when choosing the guitar. However, this is just a glimpse into the techniques that practitioners of ragtime blues use to produce their own song.

Gary Davis: Ragtime Blues Master Gary Davis created a name for himself by mastering the ragtime blues style. Those with an ear for blues music will simply recognize his songs due to their complexity and diversity of musical elements. It is quite impressive how Davis managed to preserve his skills regardless of all these years. As opposed to other blues musicians, he took a break from playing but he never fully let go of playing blues. Rather, he began once more soon after re-discovering his blues skills and has managed to grow to be genuinely successful throughout his musical career. He showcased his style by creating records and performing in live gigs. He also managed to pass on his tactics to other aspiring blues musicians such as Stephan Grossman.

Learning Davis’ Strategies Gary Davis uses only two fingers to pick on his blues guitar: his thumb and forefinger. And yet, these two are in a position to produce a wonderfully rich sound. This forefinger naturally moves speedily and is independent of his thumb’s movements. He also makes use of picks rather of his bare fingers because it is far much more accurate in producing the desired sound. An additional critical component that makes Davis’ ragtime blues music stand out from others is the thumb beat timing. You should also be swift in moving your thumb such that you can very easily switch treble strings to produce the illusion that more than two fingers are used at the same time.

Allure of Ragtime Blues Music Till These days The classic Candy Man song from Gary Davis is one thing that will forever be embedded into the history of blues music. It is 1 of the ideal examples of ragtime blues music, as far as structure goes. You can therefore follow the patterns of this song or some of Gary Davis’ musical patterns in general to replicate his own musical style. An additional critical tip to contemplate for beginning blues guitar students is to have fun. Learn to get pleasure from this procedure and take it simple. If you can start by enjoying the music itself, then you will locate it less difficult to understand and develop enthusiasm into the understanding approach.

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In the early 1900s is when the Blues as we know it today took shape in this country.  But if you have studied the Blues you know that it’s roots stem back hundreds of years and many miles across the Atlantic Ocean to both Africa and Europe before taking root in the American South.

It was actually the blending and clashing of African and European music where it all started.  Add to that the spice of the American South and you have the Blues as it is today.

The use of flatted notes (the 3^rd, 5^th, and 7^th) come from the indigenous music of West Africa, therefore the Blues have mostly been influenced by African-American culture.  And interestingly enough the lyrics of Blues stem from the “field hollers” of slaves. The instruments most associated with the Blues are guitar, harmonica, and piano, which are not African in origin but they come from Europe.

Then during the Reconstruction Era in America (post Civil War period), proto-blues music began to develop due to dance halls and bars that were frequented by the rural working class.  These “Juke Joints” began to sprout up all over the South.

The music created and listened to in these joints was made for dancing, and in time a shuffling beat similar to the “ragtime beat” became popular.  This rhythm would soon become well known and associated with the Blues.

As the Reconstruction Era ended, African Americans were faced with much racism and poverty.  They were forced to travel from place to place to find work.  Many of them made an attempt to make a living with their music, and so they traveled with guitar in hand via train.  No wonder trains are such a common symbol in Blues music.  As these musicians traveled, the incredible music and lyrics of the Blues was spread and is now a world wide passion.

Are you a musician and have that urge to tap into the Blues?  This challenging and deep-hearted genre can be really fulfilling.  Here are some tips to get you started.

Listen to some of the “greats”. These include Robert Johnson, Albert King, Willie Dixon, John Ledbetter, Muddy Waters, B.B. King, Bo Diddley, John Lee Hooker, Otis Rush, Blind Lemon Jefferson, Junior Wells, Howlin’ Wolf, Jimmy Reed, Lonnie Johnson and many more. Look for the “Best Of” compilations at your music store or online!

Learn the basic “twelve bar blues” chord progression. In degrees of scale, the first four bars stick to the first degree. The next two bars are the fourth degree, and then two bars of the first degree. The last four bars are the fifth degree, fourth degree, first degree, and fifth degree, respectively, and then the progression repeats. Blues can be played in any key but the most common keys are A, E, D, C, and G.

Learn to play a few different songs that use the 12 bar blues progression. Chuck Berry’s “Johnny B. Goode” is a blues in Bflat, Tracy Chapman’s “Gimme One Reason” is a blues in C, and Stevie Ray Vaughn’s “Pride and Joy” is a blues in Eflat. These songs all song unique because of their tempo, but are based on the same chord progression. Playing a variety of blues will help you understand what they have in common and how they differ, which will in turn help you build a solid foundation in blues while still encouraging your own creativity.

Learn the “Blues Scale”. This scale is based on the minor pentatonic and consists of 1,2,flat3,4,flat5,5,flat7,octave. Most blues solos fall within this scale. Improvisation is a very important part of the blues and nearly every song will devote at least one pass through the twelve bar progression to an instrumental solo. Many blues players alternate between the minor pentatonic and the major scale, incorporating major and minor thirds into their solos.

Jam the blues with other musicians and experiment with the style.

The blues have always had a tendency of being very sad. In many cases, the artist is painting a story of what was going on in their lives at that time or something that they had experienced in their life.

If you have a true understanding of the period of time that the blues period was most recognized it came in after the ragtime period and this will also give you a feel as to where things were at in the world.

One of the most unique parts about the blues is that, unlike popular music of today, blues music does not always follow a set verse or chorus.

Blues music uses musical element by the use of “Blues Notes,” making the music maintain a sad tone and feel to it. Another piece that is drastically different about the blues is that the artist tend to be gifted more as musicians than vocalist.

Although you may feel that in many genres today, several of the artists have less than acceptable voices, for the most part they still make the grade. Having said that, and focusing back to the blues, you will find that part of the appeal with blues music is that they simply tell a story about where they were in life, economic hardship, women, slavery, and cheating.

So the next time you hear a great blues song, take it in for all it has to offer. If you listen closely, you will hear exactly what challenges faced that artist and society in that period of time. Let me know what you thought of this post by leaving a comment.