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12 bar blues practice mp3s, all 12 keys

Asher S

Asher S

Jan 31, 2008
558
33
MA
www.bluedogjazz.com
#1
As a result of some insomnia last week, I got around to making these 12 mp3s of a basic 12-bar blues progression, for the purpose of practicing improvisation. The tracks are simple by design: no walking basslines, no fills. Just root notes on the quarter note beats and some minimal dominant 7 chords (bass upper register)

This was created on GarageBand using the "Lounge Jazz" drum pattern # 1 at a tempo of 120.

The chord progression is (4/4 time):

| I7 | IV7 | I7 | I7 | IV7 | IV7 | I7 | VI7 | II7 | V7 | I7 VI7 | II7 V7|

I will try to leave the compressed folder file uploaded for a while. It's about 60 MB in size. You can unstuff it with Stuffit Expander.

12-bar-blues_mp3s_ALL_KEYS.zip

ADDENDUM: Here are the same tracks, but minus the bassline. These can be used to practice walking bass lines. The compressed file is about 90 MB in size:
12-bar-blues_no_bass_mp3s_ALL_KEYS.zip
 
#10
oldrocker said:
I'm not familiar with this progression. Most of the 12 bar blues I know go something like:

| I | I or IV | I | I | IV | IV | I | I | V7 | IV | I | V7 |

Can you give an example of some songs that follow your progresion?

Thanks
Click to expand...

OK, well first of all, it's not "my" progression ;). Off the top of my head I can't recall a specific tune that uses that but I'm sure there are MANY. The progression I used is probably more common in jazz than blues/rock. It's one of several well-known standard blues progressions, as is the one you listed.

There's a table on p. 46 in David Overthrow's book "The Total Jazz Bassist" that lists 8 of the many common blues progressions, including the one I used for these mp3s.

BUT- it doesn't really matter- all you really need to know is the blues scale for the I key and you can solo over all of these.

ADDENDUM: Here's one example similar to what I used- easier heard during TJ's solo:

 
#12
The progression provided by the OP is:

| I7 | IV7 | I7 | I7 |

| IV7 | IV7 | I7 | VI7 |

| II7 | V7 | I7 VI7 | II7 V7|

Note the OP should have designated the II7 chords correctly as ii7 chords (minor chords).

This is a swing blues progression typically used in jazz blues. The swing blues progressions are made by chord subsititutions from the simplier blues progression you cited.

For the chord progression cited by the OP, one can say the following:

It has a fast change (the IV7 chord in bar 2).

In bar 8, the VI7 chord is subbed for the I7 chord (this is a simplification of more standard bar 7/8 sub of | I7 ii7 | iii7 VI7 |)

Bars 9 and 10 are a ii7 V7 sequence that leads into the I7 chord in bar 11. ii7 V7 I7 chord sequences are very, very common in jazz tunes. In a lot of swing blues the I7 chord in bar 4 is subbed by a ii7 V7 progression.

The last two bars are a standard (one of my bass teachred called this "do-wop" ending) turnaround. I7 VI7 ii7 V7. The ii7 V7 in bar 12 leads nicely back into the I7 chord at the top of the form.
 

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