Blues Jam question

[ThomasG]

I have never played in a blues jam. What keys are the most popular for a blues jam that you may have experienced ? I am not a blues cat, but, it should be fun. Thanks from my fellow bassists.

[TheBasicBassist]

F, Bb, Eb and Ab. Most blues tunes will be in flat keys because, generally, they're easier for horn players to read/improvise/play in, due to the fact that most horns are transposing instruments from any of those keys.

[MalcolmAmos]

In my neck of the woods blues is played with a Major dominant chord progressions. Check out the backing tracks on the right hand side of the screen. When blues goes fancy and becomes jazz the flat keys come in, basic old time blues is Major A, D, G, E, etc. -- in my neck of the woods.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Isl1Lk_-yw8

[blues.bass]

Originally Posted by TheBasicBassist

F, Bb, Eb and Ab. Most blues tunes will be in flat keys because, generally, they're easier for horn players to read/improvise/play in, due to the fact that most horns are transposing instruments from any of those keys.

Really?
Most of the blues jams in my town attract many more guitarists (and to a lesser extent harmonica players) than horn players, so most of the tunes are in either A, D, G or E.

[ThomasG]

With guitar players I would think in the sharp keys rather than flat.

[CapnSev]

IME/IMO, the key really doesn't matter, the patterns are always the same for the most part. On the majority of tunes, you just need to know where your I, IV, and V are, and build the appropriate lines from there.

[Ric5]

With a 5 string bass pretty much any key is easy to do a 1-4-5 progression.

[gjbassist]

Yep. I IV V is mainly what you need to know. As far as keys, E and A tend to be fairly common. The only time I really ever see Eb, Ab, etc is when playing with someone who tunes down ala SRV. That doesn't usually happen at open jams though.

[CapnSev]

Originally Posted by Ric5

With a 5 string bass pretty much any key is easy to do a 1-4-5 progression.

That's a lot of why I bought a 5er- I can stay in one single hand position and hit all the changes.

[butchblack]

Blues bass is as much about feel as it is key. Be familiar with a basic I,IV,V progression, your basic rhythms like a box shuffle, flat tire, swing, march and common variations like a quick IV or II,V turnaround. Don't over play and you should be fine.

[James Judson]

The right answer is "All Of Them". Blues patterns are very predictable so it should not be a problem playing that 1 - 4 - 5 progression in any key.

[ThomasG]

I like the 5 string answer. Certain keys I can play in the same position with the 4, but with a 5 all.

[Fergie Fulton]

Since its pretty much determined you will encounter a "feel" or a style rather than a song brush up and learn these five basic templates;
traditional blues
Swing blues
Country blues
Shuffle blues
Walking blues

From these five basic styles you can mix and match to create a feel for;
Major blues
Minor Blues
Rock blues
Texas Blues
Chicago Blues
Slow blues
It goes on and on really, By mixing these ingredients you get feels and style in latin, jazz, rock, reggie, ska, waltz, etc.

Its not about scales so much as chord tones with a flavour, most walking blues lines incorporate the chord tones as a rule, that's the great thing about the genre it is a simple introduction and foundation to chord tones.
In a lot of blues chords are implied by the bass rather than stated. This again is another skill the bass player can offer, whether a song is a C, C7, or Cm7 since they share certain notes the player can decide which ones to imply or which ones to be dominant.
That applies all the way through the chord tones even to the extensions of like a Cm9 or a Cm11 which can be used as passing notes or as part of a walk, or the colour after the root has been stated in say a slow blues.
from the five templates stated anyone should, with a little bit of imagination be able to jam blues.

[uglyrumor]

Originally Posted by ThomasG

With guitar players I would think in the sharp keys rather than flat.

One man''s sharp is another man's flat!

[BluesWalker]

Originally Posted by TheBasicBassist

F, Bb, Eb and Ab. Most blues tunes will be in flat keys because, generally, they're easier for horn players to read/improvise/play in, due to the fact that most horns are transposing instruments from any of those keys.

There is a lot of truth to that. In addition, some older recorded tunes are in flat keys due to slow tape during the recording.

[BluesWalker]

Originally Posted by gjbassist

Yep. I IV V is mainly what you need to know. As far as keys, E and A tend to be fairly common. The only time I really ever see Eb, Ab, etc is when playing with someone who tunes down ala SRV. That doesn't usually happen at open jams though.

A lot of Albert King songs are in flat keys.

[TheBasicBassist]

Originally Posted by blues.bass

Really?
Most of the blues jams in my town attract many more guitarists (and to a lesser extent harmonica players) than horn players, so most of the tunes are in either A, D, G or E.

Yes, sir. I'm located right by Harlem - in the 130's - there's a handful of really heavy jazz schools in this area so all of the sax', trombonists and baritone horn players are around playing at some point or another.

[Eminentbass]

Originally Posted by TheBasicBassist

Yes, sir. I'm located right by Harlem - in the 130's - there's a handful of really heavy jazz schools in this area so all of the sax', trombonists and baritone horn players are around playing at some point or another.

Yup, jamming blues with jazz guys is a different story. Coming from a rock background and being used to the standard 12 bar with I VI V means I made a fool of myself the first time I stood in a with a jazz band and someone called a blues tune. I didn't know there was another recognized blues form that included diminished passing chords and a few other extras. The keys preferred by horn players weren't a problem but being aware of more than one standard progression always helps.

[Fergie Fulton]

Originally Posted by Eminentbass

Yup, jamming blues with jazz guys is a different story. Coming from a rock background and being used to the standard 12 bar with I VI V means I made a fool of myself the first time I stood in a with a jazz band and someone called a blues tune. I didn't know there was another recognized blues form that included diminished passing chords and a few other extras. The keys preferred by horn players weren't a problem but being aware of more than one standard progression always helps.

This is where the idea of dealing with intervals and chord tones pays of rather than dealing in keys. Since our instrument can deal with key changes when you have a progression and the root is defined you just use the intervals to find your way around.
A song like "Born under a bad sign" has the same intervals regardless of any key it is played in.
Again the numbers system comes to the fore rather than working out any transposition, that happens automatic when the root is decided.

[alirazz]

If you'd like to explore the topic more, I recommend Ed Friedland's book "Blues Bass". I'm reading it right now and it has a lot of good info.