What is the blues, and why?

[makkE]

I have always struggled to understand "the blues".

Now, let me give you a bit of a backround, as to why I would ask such a question.

When I grew up, it was still the time of limited music choice - you'd practically be exposed to the record collection of your parents for a start in music listening. My parents had only a few records, mostly "Rock n' Roll" (Elvis, Bill Haley, Shakin Stevens and the like)- and I guess more the pop side of it, because they used to dance to it, really more as a sport than real dancing.

As a kid, I loved it. It was simple and catchy, and it even taught me some english before I was taught it in school. I learned that "satisfaction" had to be an important word, hehe.

So, when I started making music at the age of 15, one thing put me off of "the blues" - it was that every instructional book started with it. Every guitar teacher would start off with the same old 12-bar blues in E. At that point, it reeked of boring old men to me (sorry if that offends anyone).

Now I am 34 and much more open to all music, contrary to my youth, that had me exposed to the early 90ies alternative (pop) music.

I am trying to get an ear for Jazz, Classic, Techno, Ethno, anything really. But whenever I hear some blues that's your typical 12-bar thing, my mind blocks it. I can play it, when there's a jam, but I think I don't really "get" what's so important about it.
I understand the meaning it had in it's beginning to the afro-americans, but why is it still around, and so strong?

There's got to be something to it, why else would so many books start with it, and why else is it said to be the foundation of contemporary rock music? Please explain.

Now I know, the blues is a just a form, an empty canvas that must be filled with "the blues". Maybe I am not old enough yet? I slowly start digging "bluesy" tunes the older I get, like black music in general or the way Ben Harper plays it, for example. But what is the essence and fascination of it? Is that a dumb question to ask?

My band recently found a guitarist at last (hard thing here in the middle of nowhere), and he is heavily into the blues. I like how he plays "bluesy", but whenever he starts doing his blues solos on jams (and I "play along"), I wonder what it is about this type of music.

Any thought, advice, wisdom about this mystery to me is highly welcomed, please enlighten me.

Mod, feel free to move this, I didn't really know where to post this.

[bjabass]

.....can't WAIT for some of the replies....don't know where to start myself. Maybe I should suggest Clapton's autobiography

[Intenzity]

Well there are really about 100 ways to answer this....

But, from a purely musical, tonal standpoint the blues represents the strongest progression possible in western music, from a physics/frequency point of view.

The progression from the 1 chord to the 4 to the 5 chord outlines a key center in an incredibly strong way. If you look at a mozart string quartet, or a bach chorale you will find this progression in virtually any form of classical music.

Here is why - with just those three chords, you can outline absolutely and unequivocally what key you are in.

For example in the key of C (I will show it in just triads, because that is all you need):

the "one" chord - C maj - C E G
the "four" chord - F maj - F A C
the "five" chord - G maj - G B D

Now..put those notes in "alphabetical order" in other words, start at C, and line up the notes from just those three chords so they appear in alphabetical musical order, like you would see them in a scale.

C - D - E - F - G - A - B - C

Ta-da. You have every note of the key of C in just those three chords. You don't need any more notes to outline, in a very strong way, exactly what key you are in without any ambiguity at all. You have established that every note is a note in the key of c, and you have a V-I, (G to C) cadence to hammer it home.

Like I said, this does not take into account the emotional aspect of "blues" playing, just the raw physics and musical reason behind why that chord progression is so strong, no matter what style of music it is used in - a string quartet or a Texas slide guitar riff based blues tune.

[CapnSev]

I think the blues are great for a number of reasons:

1) IMHO, pretty much all rock and roll/pop music in the early days was either a blatant rip-off of an old blues standard, or heavily influenced by one.

2) Everyone can learn a basic blues structure and jam to it together. It has the ability to bring all kinds of musicians together to play from all types of skill levels. It can be as easy or as difficult as you want to make it- the possibilities of blues structures and feels are endless.

3) The ease of the structure can make them really fun, and make you really learn to stretch yourself to keep things interesting. By not worrying about song structure so much, you can focus on other aspects of your playing: improvising, dynamics, band communication, chops, chord structure, phrasing, etc.

Actually, the blues can also have major suck potential for the same reasons listed above.

[bjm]

Well, that's a really big question.

There are many here that may be more qualified to answer than me, but I'll give you my opinion in the hope that it provides something useful.

"The Blues" is much more than just a 12-bar form. Indeed, many tunes are very "bluesy" without following the 12-bar form.

"The Blues" in the traditional sense was, of course, often filled with lyrics about the plight of African-Americans and an accompanying music style that helped to exaggerate or embellish the feelings expressed in the lyrics.

So, to me, playing the blues is more about finding ways to be emotive while playing. In a technical or theoretical sense, this often means learning to balance the tension and release in a way that causes the listener to feel sad, surprised, excited, etc.

One can increase tension in music in a lot of ways:
o Choose notes that "clash" or are not diatonic to the key of the moment
o Play lines that are syncopated or have unexpected rhythms
o Play more notes in a hurried way
o Get louder

Correspondingly, the release can be effected by doing the opposite:
o Play diatonic notes, esp. those resolving to the tonic
o Play more relaxed and expected rhythms
o Play fewer notes
o Get softer

But really, this is all a post analysis of something that was really more heartfelt and authentic. Nobody sat down to construct the blues, but rather communities of people just sang about their troubles. If someone had a guitar or a horn, they'd try to emulate the expressiveness of the singers, when someone wrote it down it was noticed that these phrases included non-diatonic or "blue" notes.

I think it all started with singing more than anything.

So, why is it important?

My opinion is that applying these elements of the blues helps to connect that music to the audience and makes it more human.

This is a really interesting subject and one that's hard to fully grasp in words. have you ever seen someone that was truly mourning such as after the loss of a loved one? How would you capture that in music? If you do it, it will almost surely contain some elements that we associate with the blues.


BTW, I recommend reading some of the text in Steve Khan's excellent guitar book "Pentatonic Khancepts" where he discusses how David Sanborn (sax) always had a knack for "connecting to the blues" in anything he played.

Well, this should give people a lot to discuss ! I hope it helps a little.

[eSmith]

I don't know enough to provide n actual answer but thought I would share this for what it's worth.

A guy once told me that at the turn of the century, the blues was regarded almost exactly as we regard RAP music today. "Real" musicians wouldn't be caught dead playing it.

It was "Invented" by people who didn't have a clue about music theory so it does not conform to a lot of music norms (like the blues scale only having 5 notes for instance)

BUT, it was easy to play and it allowed a lot of people to jam on instruments in an informal setting and that made it popular so it grew and became mainstream.

Now please remember that this is just a story I was told, I'm not even sure how much of it I believe, I am not stating this as fact.

-eSmith.

[dalkowski]

The blues, my friend, ain't nothing but a good man feeling bad.

And man, they are fun to play.

(Also, all of the above.)

[Stick_Player]

When I grew up, it was still the time of limited music choice - you'd practically be exposed to the record collection of your parents for a start in music listening. My parents had only a few records, mostly "Rock n' Roll" (Elvis, Bill Haley, Shakin Stevens and the like)...

Sounds like your parents grew up in the 1950s.

Now I am 34 and much more open to all music, contrary to my youth, that had me exposed to the early 90ies alternative (pop) music.

Is there some sort of time warp here?

I heard Eric Clapton last night. Maybe fill in your vast time-void starting with anything he recorded from the Yardirds (c. 1965) on. Then - very importantly - explore his influences (i.e., Robert Johnson, Freddie King, B.B. King, Albert King, Buddy Guy). You'll get a good start in understanding "What is the blues, and why?".

[Intenzity]

That story is complete baloney on just about every level possible.

Sorry, but even a half-way glance at the history of music would tell you that.

The blues was not "invented" like that, the progression the blues is based on has been at the foundation of western music for hundreds of years. Like I said, you can find it in music from the 1700's all over the place - Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, - all the biggies.

[Gord_oh]

the blues is like sex.
you may not get it,
but you know it when you hear it.

[funkygroover694]

Blue note - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

read.

[onosson]

One thing that hasn't been discussed so far are blues rhythms. I tend to think of blues as first and foremost *dance* music. On a rhythmic level it covers some really key and foundational rhythms - and if your blues doesn't get people dancing, you're doing it wrong!

[Skitch it!]

Blues tonalities are responsible for most of what you hear in popular music. Pentatonics, Blues scales/notes where formed and used back in the bad old days of slavery. While working in the fields, folk were not allowed to talk amongst themselves, so they formed those tonalities and sang them to indicate moods/feelings, they were not allowed to speak them, those tonalities were formed by real-time experience of that period.

[MalcolmAmos]

Why do they start with the blues?

It's dirt simple. If it gets fancy it moves into jazz.
It's predictable. That 12 bar progression will play a lot of blues. Sure there are different 12 bar progressions, as the blues progressed so did the 12 bar progression.
But lot of people start with the basic, dirt simple 12 bar blues progression, because it's easy to teach - we are in business here.

The feel of the blues is based upon the call and response.
The head field hand called.....
And the field hands responded....

Woke up this morning.....
Feeling kinda blue.....
Yes I work up this morning and on and on and on.

So we have early blues and we have Clapton. Lot of water under the bridge from this, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMsl9AfoCGQ to Clapton. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AscPOozwYA8 Speaking of water, like the Atlantic Ocean LOL

Here is a fun piece. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OF5OtSO3j6I

But, to play The Blues you gotta feel the blues, groove with your guitar player, let him set the lead you provide the bottom end. Basic root five or R-3-5-b7 or the R-b3-4-5-b7 blues scale. See if that helps.

Good luck.

[makkE]

Wow so many answers in a short time

Intenzity: Thanks, I never looked at it that way. Intresting. I am really only just starting to get into theory, this makes sense

Captn Sev: I see your point. Your last sentence rings a bell though. Maybe at all Jams I've been, there's just been not so great players - exept one guitarrist I remember. But all else, whenever it was "Let's play a blues in A" - all I got was rather stale wankery on the old 12 bars.

bjm: What you say about all the diffrent ways to improvise - tension and release - while of course true, shouldn't that be true in any type of improvising, independ of the style?

Your mourning example sort of struck me though. I`ll keep an ear on that

eSmith: That sounds reasonable. But my quest is more in the vein of: "What can that blues do for me today, and do I need to get into it as a contemporary musician?"

Daldowski: I've heard that notion But I hear it in few of the blues guys I have met. Maybe I haven't met a real blues musician yet?

Stick_Player: The time warp may be my backwards parents. I grew up in the late 70ies, yet there was no record older than 65 in my parent's collection. I will check out your suggestions
I might simply not know enough blues, since I've always neglegted it for above stated reasons.

Thanks for your input, everyone else. Reading wikipedia now

[BigOldHarry]

uuuurrrr?

I think the old saying... "If you have to ask..." applies here.

But the rest of the crew has filled you in just fine.

Watch this:

YouTube - Lonnie Mack - Stop

If it makes you choke up, then you understand the blues

[eSmith]

Intenzity, as I said I am not saying it is true or fact however the fact that iv-v-1 progressions existed before blues doesn't mean the story isn't true. There are only a few progressions that work in western music and each of them is pretty much represented in every style. That is why you cannot copyright or patent a progression. there are just not enough of them for that.

Just because every blues tune is written as IV-V-I doesn't mean every IV-V-I tune is blues.

-eSmith.

[bjm]

"bjm: What you say about all the different ways to improvise - tension and release - while of course true, shouldn't that be true in any type of improvising, independent of the style?"

Yes, of course, those tension and release elements are universal.

As other have pointed out, all of the elements found in blues were all found elsewhere earlier, but the particular emphasis on:

o dissonant harmony
o call and response
o relationship to human suffering
o non-emphasis on (but not absence of) instrumental technique

all combined with the technology and politics of the time make it "the blues" IMO.

Many other music styles (take reggae as an example) have many of these same elements, but emphasized in different proportions.

In the blues, one finds a lot of dominant (often non-functional) harmonies, whereas in reggae one may find somewhat more major and minor chords.

In the blues, one finds swing and shuffle triplet-based grooves, whereas in reggae one finds different usually duple-meter grooves.

I'd argue that all music utilize certain harmonies, rhythms, melodic devices, but what makes one style differ from another is the heavy emphasis on certain harmonies/rhythms/devices over at the expense of others.

This discussion about the blues is approached differently by each contributor here, some from a theory perspective, some from a "feeling" perspective and other from a historical perspective.

Perhaps the best exercise is to listen to a lot of "blues" and consider:

What elements are common to all of this music? What elements are found commonly in other styles and what elements are less found outside the blues?

Perhaps that will get you to the understanding you seek.

I am repeatedly listening a lot to "Showdown!" by Albert Collins, Johnny Copeland, and Robert Cray. Every time I listen, I hear something new, esp. in the tight relationship between bass and drums.

[James Judson]

Many descriptions of blues here. They are all wrong and at the same time they are all right. They are describing music in general. Most of my life I did not like blues. Why? Predictable might be the easy answer. As soon as you say blues is "X", you will find a blues tune that is exactly opposite. I reccomend hanging with some blues musicians. Go to some blues jams. Analize as many "blues" tunes as you can find. Go to a blues festival with many bands/artists. If the festival is big enough you will hear country, rock, funk, gospel, jazz, blue grass, reggae, folk, (sorry if I left out your favorite).

What is blues? ...............err................uhm............. ......well MUSIC.

[puddin tame]

Originally Posted by Intenzity

Well there are really about 100 ways to answer this....

But, from a purely musical, tonal standpoint the blues represents the strongest progression possible in western music, from a physics/frequency point of view.

The progression from the 1 chord to the 4 to the 5 chord outlines a key center in an incredibly strong way. If you look at a mozart string quartet, or a bach chorale you will find this progression in virtually any form of classical music.

Here is why - with just those three chords, you can outline absolutely and unequivocally what key you are in.

For example in the key of C (I will show it in just triads, because that is all you need):

the "one" chord - C maj - C E G
the "four" chord - F maj - F A C
the "five" chord - G maj - G B D

Now..put those notes in "alphabetical order" in other words, start at C, and line up the notes from just those three chords so they appear in alphabetical musical order, like you would see them in a scale.

C - D - E - F - G - A - B - C

Ta-da. You have every note of the key of C in just those three chords. You don't need any more notes to outline, in a very strong way, exactly what key you are in without any ambiguity at all. You have established that every note is a note in the key of c, and you have a V-I, (G to C) cadence to hammer it home.

Like I said, this does not take into account the emotional aspect of "blues" playing, just the raw physics and musical reason behind why that chord progression is so strong, no matter what style of music it is used in - a string quartet or a Texas slide guitar riff based blues tune.

is the goal of music to make the listener aware of what key you are in?


I think the thing is, many 12 bar blues sound very tired because they use those same old cliche riffs and patterns. a lot of songs, though, I won't even be aware it's 12 bar blues if i'm not paying attention to it and that's where it gets cool