Intermediate Level Acoustic Blues Guitar CMMs PEE ed by KENNY SULTANIntermediate Level Thanks To: James Edward for hs help wih some of the musical transcriptions, Dale Clanski for her help with the rough draft of the book, Mark Mosrie for some. che photographs, and Irv ond Jean for keeping me inline. Special thanks tothe ladies ot Flkmote Music. ISBN 0-931759-73-0 ‘SAN 683-8022 Bock Cover Photo of he new “Sie O” Guitar by Forrest Dovd, for Notioncl Reso-Phonic Guitars, Inc. Cover Photo — Jef Brouws ‘Music Notation ~ Derek Comett Layout & Production ~ Ron Middlebrook ‘Cassette Recording: Songwriters ‘N’ Musicians Recording Studio Engineer: Cory Orosco Copyright © 1993 CENTERSTREAM Publishing PO, Box 17878 ‘Ancheim His, CA 92807 All rights for publication and distribution are reserved. No pot of his book may be reproduced in any form cor by any electronic or mechonicol means inclidng information storage and retrieval systems without permission in writing rom the publisher, except by reviewers who may quote brief passages in review.Contents About The Author. . .3 Introduction. . .4 Basic 12-Bar Blues Progression. . . 5 Blues Shuffle in E. ..7 Single String Shuffle. . .8 The Syncopated Shuffle. .. 9 The Funky Shuffle. . . 10 The Harmony Shuffle... 11 SONGS jeaway Blues (key of E).. . 12 Delta Blues (key of E)...14 Sleepy Head Blues (key of E)... 15 Hey, Hey (key of E State Street Blues (key of E). . 18 Lonesome Couch Blues (key of E)... 19 The C C Blues (key of A)... Joseph's Blues (key of A)... Back Breakin' Blues (key of A). . .26 Alternating Bass. .. 27 A Fine Filly (key of G) . . 28 The Don't Know Blues (key of G). . .29 Boogie Blues Il (key of G). . . 30 Fly Hen (key of G). .. 31 Filthy Rich (key of G). ..32 West Coast Blues (key of C). ..34 Cincinnati Flow Rag (key of C). .. 35 Slide or Bottleneck. . . 37 OPEN G Tuning. . . 38 Squashed. . .39 Can't Be Sati OPEN D Tuning. Dust My Broom. .. STANDARD Tuning. . .45 Muddy's Blues. .. 45 The F-B Blues... 47 Fingerpicks-Strings-Capo's. . 48 Conclusion, . . 49About The Author Kenny Sultan has been playing guitar since the age of seven. Soon thereafter, his brother introduced him to the Blues of T-Bone Walker and Lightnin’ Hopkins. The effect was per- manant. A noted teacher, he has taught music, guitar and blues at the College level. Kenny has also conducted workshops and seminars throughout the country. He has five albums to his credit with his partner Tom Ball and has appeared as a sideman on numerous recordings by other artists. He currently resides in Santa Barbara, California.Introduction Hello everyone! Welcome to my second book, Acoustic Blues Guitar, Intermediate level. For those of you unfamiliar with my previous book, Introduction to Acoustic Blues, (What else”), we will be trying to play finger-style acoustic blues the old-fashioned way. The rules are as stated: 1 have fun 2. play loose 3. play with feeling 4. don't worry about mistakes Sound easy enough? Remember, this is a book about Lightnin’ Hopkins, John Lee Hooker, Muddy Waters, Blind Blake and other funky guys. So just have fun, and go with the flow. We will cover blues in five different keys and positions, A, C, D, E, and G -- these are the keys I primarily use, and they are the best for acoustic blues. We will also incorporate slide or bottleneck playing in both open and standard tunings. All songs will be played primarily finger-style with a monotone bass used for most of the straight blues and an alternating bass used for the ragtime blues. On the 70-minute cassette tape that accompanies this book, I play each example and every song. Most of the songs are played at slow speed and at regular tempo, and nearly all of the tunes will have a detailed explanation about the music and how to best play it. This book is one step harder than my previous book and should prove to be a good challenge for you. Blues guitar is different than other styles of guitar in that there is more feel involved than technique. It is very important that you use the tablature only as a guide to your ears. The accompanying tape will be your most valuable tool, All the nuances of the blues cannot be written down properly; listening is the only way to really absorb all the material My suggestion is to listen to the tape before you try any of the songs, Hear exactly what you're supposed to do, then read the music to help you create the sound desired. In my ‘workshops, classes, and private lessons, [ urge my students to learn everything by ear, | rarely use written music, but under these circumstances the written notation should be used, but not relied upon exclusively. Memorize each song, then put the written material away. Try to let your own personal feelings come through in your playing, Make each song an individual experience. Remember, this isn't classical music, so play it loose. Don't worry about mistakes, and above all, have fun,-Basic 12-Bar Blues Progression- Itis important to understand the basic 12-bar blues progression before going on to ‘more complicated material and learning songs. The three main chords utilized in the blues are the I, [V and ¥, also known as the tonic, sub-dominant and dominant chords. ‘The tonic chord (1) is taken from the first note of the scale. ‘The sub-dominant (IV) is taken from the fourth note of the scale The dominant (V) from the fifth note. Using this method, a basic 12-bar blues progression would look like this: v 1 (turn around) Ww First of all, lets try to make music out of this mess. ‘There are several ways to do this. Icould list all of the chords in each key, but I'm not sure you're going to be able to take this book everywhere you go, or if you're at a blues jam session, that you would be able to remember all the chords... especially after a couple of beers. But just in case, here's the list: Key of A,D,E Key of B flat (A sharp): B flat (A sharp), E flat (D sharp), F Key of B: B, E, F sharp (G flat) Key of C: CE G Key of D flat (C sharp): D flat (C sharp), G flat (F sharp) A flat (G sharp) Key of D: D,G,A Key of E flat (D sharp): E flat (D sharp), A flat (G sharp) B flat (A sharp) Key of E: E, A,B Key of F: FB flat (A sharp), C Key of F sharp (G flat): F sharp (G flat), B, C sharp (D flat) Key of G: G,C,D Key of A flat (G sharp): A flat G sharp), D flat (C sharp), E flat (D sharp)If you don't have the book with you, there are two other ways of finding out the chords. These might look very unorthodox, but trust me... they work. There are 5 basic keys that we will be playing blues with in this book: A, C, D, E and G. To help memorize these keys, think of the word "CAGED". If the song is in one of these keys, you can figure out the chords with the use of one of your hands, Let's say you want to play 12-bar blues in the key of A. Using your right hand, count "A" on your thumb, move up the alphabet to "B" on your index finger, "C" on your middle finger, "D" on your ring finger, "E” on your pinkie, ‘Your thumb will be the "I" chord, your index finger the "Il" chord, your middle finger the “IN chord, your ring finger the "IV" chord and your pinkie the "V" chord. Again, count up the alphabet, ABCDE, from your thumb to your pinkie, and the chords that fall on your thumb, ring finger and pinkie will be the I, IV’and V. Two words of caution: Anyone that sees you doing this will think you're nuts... and it only works with the I, IV and V chords; not with the If, IT, IV or VII chords of any particular key. As an example, let's say some friends of yours want to play blues in the key of C. You don't happen to know the chords of the key of C offhand, so behind your back (or your guitar) you count, C, D, E, FG. "C" being the "I" chord, "” the "IV" chord and 'G" the "V" chord. Now, put these in the 12-bar blues form we've just covered, and you're ready to play. ‘What if you're not playing in one of these 5 keys? How do you find the proper chords? Use your guitar! If you know the notes on your guitar (I hope you do), it's easy to find the proper chord. T use my 6th string. Firs find the tone onthe 6th tring, For example, if you want to play in the key of F find the "F" note on the 6th string (the Ist fet). To find the "TV" chord from the tonic, count $ frets up the neck. Is ita B flat note? Count 7 frets up from the tonic to find the dominant "C" note. You can also find the dominant by counting 2 frets, or 1 step up, from the sub-dominant chord; B flat to C, 6th fret to 8th fret, ‘Try this with several different keys and refer back to the list of chords that were given to you earlier to make sure you are correct. Tshould let you know that to get the "bluesiest" sound possible, you should make the "V" chord a dominant 7th (B7, C7, D7, etc.), and most of the time, add a 7th note to the "IV" chord. 1 think this has been enough on the technical side of the blues. The best way to learn is to just play it, so let's get 10 the music, CHICAG ° nn ESTIVA iMy favorite key for playing the blues is the key of E, The chords used in the key of Bare: E, A and B7. Each chord has its own unique character. In addition to sounding great, the E and A chords have an open string for their tonic note; the open 6th string for the E chord and the open Sth string for the A chord. This is a definite plus, which we will discover later. RHYTHM Before going on to learn the more intricate aspects of blues guitar playing, it is necessary to develop a good, solid foundation of rhythm techniques. “The most familiar rhythm lick in the key of E is called the shuffle. It looks like this: ITM TTCB TOIt is very important to listen to the accompanying tape to hear exactly how the rhythm should be played. Another good rhythm technique is the single string shuffle or single string boogie. The same shuffle rhythm should be used, but this time hit only one string at a time. Single String ShuffleThe Syncopated Shuffle Let's play around with the single-string shuffle and syncopate ita little. 1 suggest & you barre the fifth and fourth strings at the second fret for the first four bars. Remember, » swing it! 4 cfr 6The Funky Shuffle Let's continue our study of rhythm techniques by adding some extra notes to create & ‘a funkier sound. Keep the shuffle rhythm going through measure 8, For bars 9 and 10, » just strum the guitar on the downbeat. Then for the 11th bar, go back to the shuffle. crt PRO ERE EPEWPFER EP CE EF ES o dadaddd BT PPeREPES Epo eres a 10The Harmony Shuffle Now let's work on a more complex shuffle rhythm, Be sure to consult the chord chart for the proper fingering. The trick to playing rhythm is to keep it tight but make it sound loose. In other words, you want to be on the beat, but you don't want to sound stiff. ‘A blues player shouldn't sound like a metronome, I know this sounds like a strange (3 concept, but if you listen to the tape, it will make more sense. A BE cr BrHideaway Blues Here is your first authentic song, Good luck, and we'll discuss it after you check it out. > a a 7 Kenny Sultan celeeaeg aeeeeeg Heats 3 30303 genes teeeis sees dT, bs OTD | (fee sh, © Kenny SultanEmi B7 How did you do? Let's take a closer look at the music. In measure two, itis best to shift your entire left hand position slightly rather than try to move just your index finger since the latter is quite a stretch. (You'll see what I mean). In measures 5 and 6, the slides on the second and third strings make the phrase sound funky in a good way). Listen to the tape to be sure you get it right. In bar 8 be sure to make a full E chord. The reason why I say this is that it is very ‘common when reading tablature to make only partial chords. This is a bad habit to get into. If you make a partial E chord and accidentally miss one of the strings that you are suppose to hit, its not going to sound very good. But if you make the full E chord, you can miss a note and it will still sound all right. Finally check out the new B7th with the low bass in bar 9. Again, be sure to make the full chord. Blind Boy Fuller 13Delta Blues This song is from my first book, It relies heavily on the brush technique. The first three measures are basically a D7th chord that slides between the 4th, 3rd and 2nd fret. Be sure to pay attention to the left-hand fingering. Good luck! Kenny Sultan ad 2 By _ 07 — c7B7 ig © Kenny Sultan TtSleepy Head Blues In this song, we start by moving way up the neck (rock and roll!). Use the dots on €& >» the fingerboard to locate the notes past the Sth fret. You'll also encounter several single note runs (measures 7, and 11). When single notes are being played, it is imperative to Hsten to the accompanying tape to get a feel for the rhythm. Try to have fun-this one's “aia Tidy) ae 7 i =| cits e I I “I rrr rata CaVereya}arererare;amerbavarer’ rererare: 44 Atopen) eee aiaasas see eeeeeea sas i? i Dy ] d dia ; oq in E (open) © Kenny Sultan 15Hey Hey Now let's step up the tempo a bit. We are still playing blues in E using primarily the same chords, E, A7, B7, but everything is played at almost double-time (listen to tape). You'll notice there are no triplets. The music moves too fast to comfortably fit three notes in between cach beat. This is an old Big Bill Broonzy song entitled, "Hey, Hey". Take a look at it, give it a shot, and welll discuss it afterwards. ra Big Bill Broonzy Fld iE Aopen) 3 E (open) : B7 16It is best to listen to the tape to get a firm grasp of what this song sounds like. The fingering in the first four bars is entirely up to you, Everybody plays it differently. I use a B7th chord position moved up to the seventh fret. The A in measures 5 and 6 should be played as a partial A. It moves too quickly to make the full chord. The same holds true for the E at the end of the song. Remember, try to play it quickly. 17State Street Blues The "State Street Blues” is a continuation of up-tempo blues in E. This song is & very thythmatic and should be played forcefully (check out the tape). Kenny Sultan ae Tel de Ebr eb er oBbTopr eb : 7 E7 Eb? ET ‘A (open) A (open) EM 3 3 3 CT BT mal © Kenny Sultan pis 18Lonesome Couch Blues “Lonesome Couch Blues", relies on single-string notes instead of the brush technique used in the previous song. This creates a more melodic sound. The blend on the 10th fret is substantial. Try to make it sound as funky as possible. The turnaround is also very tricky. Take your time. man Htones Kenny Sultan Jy Bad od oe : = ihe E ae © Kenny Sultan B7W A(D = 19& > Playing blues in the key of A is very similar to playing blues in the key of E. The three chords we will use are A, D and E7. If you notice, each of these chords has an open string for their respective tonic notes. A, the open Sth string; D, the open 4th string; and E, the open 6th string. Once again, this is very handy when playing acoustic blues. By having open bass notes, it frees your left hand to play more complicated fills. Let's start out like we did in the key of E, with the blues shuffle rhythm. The blues shuffle in A looks like this: Shuffle In A 20‘The single string boogie, or the single string shuffle in the key of A looks like this: Boogie In A 21The C C Blues Our first song in A is a basic 12 bar blues, This is a slower blues similar to the & first few songs in the book (notice the triplets). It starts with a D7th chord position moved » up to the 9th fret. Give it a try, and we'll discuss it afterwards. cia Kenny Sultan Ped joa aby A7q) ve ary 3 Te a ee re ea ee ATI) —3— —abT, Al AbT D7 (Thumb wrap) A Fim D7 FT A E7 2 © Kenny Sultan 22OO) How did it go? Some new chord formations, huh? In measures 5 and 6, use an ‘ATth chord position moved up the neck to create a D7. In measures 7 and 8, we have a new ATth chord. ‘To make this chord, you might want to play a trick on your mind. What Ido is make a D chord at the Sth fret, and then just move it up one string, Now it doesn’t seem like a new chord at all. It is just a D chord moved elsewhere on the guitar neck. Finally, be sure to bend the heck out of the 2nd string in measure 9. playing some blues licks 23Joseph's Blues "Joseph's Blues" is quite difficult. In the first bar, there is a three-string bend. Try to bend all the strings evenly, and do not overbend. In measures 5 and 6, there is a new » D7th chord and two diminished chords. Be sure to check out the chord charts. In measures 7 and 8, play this open. (In other words, do not make the A chord!) el AT A6 A Kenny Sultan D7 Djain? Dfaini7 gy | D7 (open) A Daim A (open) ud © Kenny Sultan 24Didim7 = Ditdim7 1 Walter Vincent oeBack Breakin' Blues For the "Back Breakin’ Blues", most of the movement occurs in the bass. This 4 song will provide quite a workout for your left hand, Be careful not to overdo it, Take > your time. Kenny Sultan mI AT © Kenny Sultan ath -| | OOO ere 18 lees!Alternating bass ‘To play blues in the key of G, we're going to use an alternating bass instead of the constant bass or monotone bass we've used in the previous chapters. So instead of just hitting the 6th string on the beat, we're going to alternate between the 6th and 4th string. This gives the music a much lighter feel than the more "down home" monotone bass technique. With the alternating bass pattern, the melody falls either directly on the bass note (Example 1), or right in between the bass notes (Example 2). Alternating the chord by ing the finger off a string and placing it on another string creates different notes. Example 1 Blues In G — rir Example 2 Example 3 Example 4 27A Fine Filly °, Our first song in G is not easy. (If it is too difficult for you, I suggest you check a out my first book "Introduction to Acoustic Blues Guitar".) If you are brave, go for it! Keep the bass steady, if possible. ned eny Satan © Kenny Sultan 28The Don't Know Blues ‘The "Don't Know Blues", uses an unusual technique. Instead of making a normal G, L wrap my thumb over the top of the neck. This enables me to fret further up the guitar. » Ifyou are morally against this, use your index finger on the 6th string. The Sth string need not be fretted, since we are not striking it anyway. We'll also be making new C7th and D7th chords. Take an A7th chord shape and move it up 3 frets to make the C7th; move it 7 up two more frets to make the D7th. Kenny Sultan THe HG ictumos bd LJ ob be! - r ? (cogular), GG G7 © Kenny Sultan 29Boogie Blues II For the next two songs, we are going to create a melody line with the bass. It's called "Boogie Woogie". These songs sound best when combined with the other G blues > or when trying to sing, If your are like me, play loud so the guitar drowns out the voice. (Or maybe you can sing?) 4 thd Kenny Sultan G D7 (C7 up ovo frets) © Kenny Sultan 30Fly Hen 6 For the first 4 bars, I would suggest moving your C chord up the neck. This will Dy bethe easiest way to make all the required notes. ‘The C7th chord in measures Sand 6 should not be that difficult. For the D7th chord in measures 9 and 10, [ wrap my thumb over the top of the neck, Good luck, and try to sound like a boogie-woogie piano player. Tiel d Kenny Suton © Kenny Sultan aeFilthy Rich Now let's try to do a blues in G with a rag-time twist, We will be getting out of our standard I, IV, V progression and moving into a I, Vi, Il, V progression. It is no big deal, the chords just change a little faster. This song also has a bridge. It starts on the B7th chord. Take a look at it, and then well go over it afterwards. i Tom Ball nara Kenny Sultan Bridge © Kenny Sultan 32G c Cmi E7 I don't think you'll have a lot of trouble with "Filthy Rich”, if you pay close attention to the chord charts and accompanying tape. Try to make the full chords in the first 4 bars instead of cheating and making only the notes necessary. In measures 5 and 6, you should release your finger on the 6th string to complete the walk down from the 4th string. It will be a lot easier that way. In the bridge, I slide the B7th chord up the neck to the Tth fret to make the E7th, Notice on the E7th that I move my bass to the 6th string on the third beat. (The same goes for the D7th two bars later.) I call this a “double alternating bass". If it is too difficult, stay on the Sth string instead, The New National Style O Guitar 33West Coast Blues As I discussed in the first book, the key of C is one of the most versatile keys. Not only ean you play folk, country, ragtime, pop, and blues, itis also one of my favorite keys Our first song is a famous Blind Blake song called "West Coast Blues". Notice the use of the A chord in measures 3 and 4. This chord is a drag to make, but itis well worth the effort because it pops up all over the place in blues/rag playing. ‘The G lick in measures 7 and 8 is also very common, Good luck, and make it swing A ET ‘ Blind Blake = m m >Cincinnati Flow Rag Our next song is by Reverend Gary Davis. He is one of my favorite players. Try 4, to listen to his recordings. They are great! He plays very loose and with a ton of soul. O15 Give it your all. ee or crac Rev, Gary Davis ad ad a a DT ar G7qH_Clepen) am ¢ 35D7 G7 re fret Let's review the "Cincinnati Flow Rag". Even though this song starts in G, it is still in the key of C. Notice the infamous A position chord moved up 3 frets to Cin measures 3, 4, and 11, 12, The tumaround of this song should be played very loose. Feel fice to strike extra strings if necessary to ereate the proper feeling. Be sure to listen to the tape and check out the chord charts, Son House 36Slide or Bottleneck Some of the most exciting blues guitar music has involved the use of a slide ot bottleneck. Robert Johnson, Elmore James, Son House, Ry Cooder, Johnny Winter, and Johnny Shines are some of the players who have used the bottleneck over the years. Most guitar stores offer a variety of manufactured slides in different shapes and sizes. | recom- mend a heavy, long slide (glass or metal)... one that will cover all the strings in case you need to make a barre ‘When you use the slide to fret notes or fo barre, place it directly over the fret wire, not between the frets as you normally would with your fingers. Make sure the slide is straight and in line with the frets, and don't push down too hard on the sting, Press lightly. The slide should exert enough pressure to create a tone from the strings, but not so much as to touch the frets or the fingerboard. This will take some practice. Since bottleneck playing is more feel than technique, the accompanying tape will prove indispensable to you on some of the finer points of playing slide; such as, tremelo playing and proper intonat ‘One quick way to find out if your intonation Ts correct is (0 use your fingers to fret the notes, and then use your slide to make the notes. Try to listen and see if there's any dif ference in tone. Sometimes the slide will sound flat (you're not moving the slide far enough up the neck), and sometimes the slide will make it sound sharp (you're going too far past the fret wire). 1 also recommend that you place the slide on your pinky so you can still finger chords with your left hand, ‘We will be playing slide in three different tunings. ‘The first tuning we will use will be open G - D, G, D, G, B, D the next, open D- D, A, D, F#, A, D and finally, we will try to play slide in standard tuning. 37Open G Tuning D.G.D.G.B,D In open G tuning, the guitar is tuned to a G chord. You must lower several strings to accomplish this. The 6th, Sth and Ist strings will each be tuned down one step or two frets. So instead of E, A, D, G, B, E, you will have D, G, D, G, B,D. You ean do this a couple of different ways, The way I use is Match your 6th string and Ist string to your 4th, all being D notes. Remember: you are not matching the tone exactly to your 4th string, but one octave lower for the 6th string and one octave higher for the Ist string. Three strings, three different D notes. Now tune your Sth string down to a G note by matching your 3rd string, but one octave lower. Remember always to tune down, You should now be in open G, Strum it, and if it sounds alright, you made it. The other way to get into open G is to fret the guitar and tune as you would in standard tuning using different frets to obtain the desired notes. Check out the guitar neck shown below. Ist String 2nd String of of Sth String D B 3rd String G of D G 6th Sing D 4th String ef | t -ef | Open G is a great tuning. I feel itis slightly more complex than open D because your tonic is not on the éth string. This was a very common tuning for Robert Tohnson and Johnny Shines. If you ever get lost playing in open G, remember my trick: either play it open or hang out at the 3rd, Sth, 7th or 12th fret. You'll never sound bad that way. You may not know what you're doing, but everyone else will think you do. 38Squashed 4 Here's a fairly simple piece in the key of G. We've eliminated the steady bass for > most of the song, $0 you need to listen to the tape to get the proper rhythm and feel. Notice that there is a pull off with the slide, How do you pull off with a slide? ‘The same as you would with your finger. Either straight off the strings or pull down a litte bit and then off. This will take some practice. All fretted notes are played with the slide. Open G Tuning Kenny Sultan DGDGBD Alternate for measures 1-2/5-6 DD © Kenny Sultan If you discover that during this song or any of the other slide pieces that there is too much extraneous noise coming from your slide (i. screeching, scratching, rattling, ete.), you might want to try the damp technique. [use this technique often. Drag or lightly place either one or all of your fingers of your left hand behind the slide. The pressure should be light, Pretend to make a harmonic behind the bottleneck. This technique will cut out most overtones and will create a cleaner sound. This clean sound works for most songs, but some of the low-down blues actually sound better without the finger drag. This produces a dirtier and funkier tone. Itis really just a matter of personal taste. Play loose! 39Can't Be Satisfied "Can't Be Satisfied" uses an altemating bass instead of a monotone bass. You will probably want to use the damp technique we just discussed; otherwise, it might sound preity ragged. Not all of the notes in this song are fretted with a slide, The last 4 measures " are fretted with your fingers. Good luck! 5 Open G Tuning oar DGDGBD ‘Muddy Waters | (no slide) optional 40Catfish Keith 41Open D Tuning D, A, F#, D, A, D In open D, the guitar is tuned toa D chord. Strum the strings, and you are playing aD major chord. This tuning is also called a "vestapol tuning” or "ctoss-note tuning” Down a whole step from E, it is a favorite tuning for many guitarists for its richness and ease of playability From standard tuning Lower the Ist, 2nd and 6th strings one whole step or two frets, Now lower the 3rd string 1/2 step (one fret). You can also produce the desired sound by fretting the notes as in the guitar neck below. IstSuing Dp , 2nd Suing A ef 3rd Suing Ff 4th Suing D Sth String A -ef | 6th Suing D of ea as aie ey Peers Repu Patera RT When leavin: eater cad [Tag rainy . a wii reo Elmore James GEORGES ADIN 42Dust My Broom 4a ‘The next song was taken from my first book entitled "Introduction to Acoustic 2) Blues Guitar", Tt includes the famous "Dust My Broom” lick made famous by Robert Johnson and Elmore James. Do not use the slide in measure 11 when playing the bass shuffle. D Tuning - DADF#AD 3 3 3 3 nein D ° ° > 43Clean My Room "Clean My Room" is a continuation of "Dust My Broom". The degree of % difficulty is greater so take your time. Do not use the slide for measures 5 or 11 Kenny Sultan simile 4 pg mi i : y sinile : TL dy ' 2 © Kenny Sultan 44Muddy's Blues We now end our slide or bottle-neck study by playing in standard tuning. Playing in standard tuning is ‘more challenging than open tunings because you do not have the luxury of using 6 string barred chords, and (jou need to be much more exact with your playing because of this. I concentrate most of my standard tuning “tide playing to the key of E even though A would probably work just as well. Remember, try to strike only the notes listed in the tablature (otherwise, you'll really have the blues). Our first tune uses a lick Muddy Waters made famous. It's a twelve bar blues in the key of E and you can combine this with the songs earlier in the book in the same key. I only use the slide for the first 4 bars and for the turnaround. Occasionally I will ‘ty to sneak it in elsewhere, but itis quite difficult to do. Good luck, and we will look at it after you are done. slide standard tuning "E” ~ = =~ Kenny Sulian sl. sl L~, sl, sl dave J 44d ta eet a nd Al; 2 E c7 BT © Kenny SultanThe first 4 bars are pretty self-explanatory, just be careful to hit only the desired notes, Bars 5 and 6 are an A chord which should be played open. Bar 7 and 8 are basically an E chord with a hammer between the first and second beat. In bars 9 and 10, use the full B7 and A7 chords. Bo Carter 46The F-B Blues “The F-B Blues" is a continuation of Muddy's blues. The slide is used extensively 4 inthis song. The places I wouldn't use the slide would be the following: » 1, measures 5, 6, and 10 on the second string 2. the B7 chord in measure 9 3. the final part of the turnaround lide standard tuning "E" slide standard tuning Kenny Sutan simile 3 “I ML a) “I ~y wy I al) all “wT I ail) E(open), AT(open) cer © Kenny Sultan 47Fingerpicks-Strings-Capo's Before we close, there are a few more things I would like to discuss. ‘The first is finger- picks. I use them, but I'm not sure I would recommend them to all my students. They are very awkward and hard to get used to. If you want to try them anyway, I would recommend a Herco thumbpick and Dunlop fingerpicks. The picks will make your guitar sound louder, enable you to play faster, and make the brush technique easier. But again, they are difficult to use. If you are having trouble, try turning the picks gently towards your thumb so they are slightly off center. This will help with the angle of attack and eliminate some pick noise. My favorite strings are made by John Pearse. If these aren't available, Martin guitar strings are excellent. I use medium gauge or on occasion, medium lights, As far as a capo, there is only one that works for me, and it is made by Schubb. It is easy to get on and off the guitar neck and it doesn't pull the strings out of tune. The guitars I play vary, but my favorites are a 1936 Martin 000-18, a Santa Cruz OM model, and a new National style "0" resonator guitar. All are great instruments, and I highly rec- ommend them. Both the Santa Cruz and the National are heard on the cassette tape. Thumb PicksConclusion Well, I hope you enjoyed the book and didn't become too frustrated with my methods. Have patience, and it will all come together. If you find this book too difficult, try to check out Blues Guitar, An Introduction to Acoustic Blues also from Centerstream Publications. Remember to listen to the tape continuously and don't rely only on the music. This will help you get the proper feel for the music. (I can't stress this enough!) It is also very important to listen to as much other recorded blues as possible. The musicians I think you should listen to include John Lee Hooker, Johnny Shines, Robert Johnson, Brownie McGhee, John Hammond, Taj Mahal, Rev. Gary Davis, Snooks Eaglin, Lightnin’ Hopkins, and Mississippi John Hurt to mention a few. I personally have five albums out with my partner, Tom Ball, the newest entitled, "Filthy Rich" (FF 619). Tom is an excellent harmonica player/vocalist/guitarist, and we cover a wide variety of blues styles on these recordings. They are available from your better record stores or from Flying Fish Records, 1304 W Shubert, Chicago, IL 60614, or from myself: Kenny Sultan, PO BOX 20156 Santa Barbara, CA 93120 Also, feel free to write me if you have any questions about this book. This is the second in a series of blues guitar books I am doing for Ron Middlebrook at Centerstream Publications, so keep an eye out for the next Blues Guitar book Until then, good luck with your playing, stay loose, and have fun, 49CISD Sco ae aha LVM Cts ate ae Me cre sores Reta} Damn, It’s Good To Have The Blues. BUS Oro desc aro itd Intiodudion to Acoustic Blues’ ‘oy Kenny Satan Cntersirean Publications ‘The purpose ofthis Book so presenta primary introduc: tion for the early meme plger to couse blues gut a. Through instructional text and actual song, the author coves blues in five diferent kes and poston and shows bow they can he ade any. Along with the basi Hues rintms an leads, fingers bles is covered, using both an aerating and monotone bss. The author also touches onthe specie techniques of various wellknown players, open tang, and botle neck gular. The accompanying case tupeinlodes ‘each example and every Sng, most of which are played insiow sped and a reular tengo 0000137 Book/Casete Pace 51595 ‘The Sound And Feel OfBlues Guitar’ pain Centers Publications This comprehensive blues book fares information on ‘hy pater, fingerpicking Daten, double ops, ies in A.D, E, and , and more, The accompanying CD features several composters ad all ‘examples inthe book played by Jha, 100000082 Book Pack. 51795 Electric BluesGuitar = by Derek Comet Centerstream Publications An Introduction 1 the most commonly used scales and techniques for the modern Diues payer, complete wit demonstaion for sereral ofthe examples, 00000165 Boole Pack. $1795 The Nosty Blues Bae Sn th Blais rt Cntr aint ‘mpl by om Bal ‘Gatereon bons ‘elbain of ce ae iced songs Ay the best sb aces 3 sens - a Sim The HotDog in © Po ent We re Sea ke a Bot Hus» one bean» ad ole cnr a yk en, yl Re Cor ees trowgeat 2 51295 09412 0 pg Star» harrsou moun = Acoustic Blues ‘penny Suton Gonersream Publishing This book for inermedie lel ples flop 10 Kenny's bok nade lion 1o Acoustic als. 1 cones bes in ve erent porate side or boleneck paying in bth open and Sand ngs A songs are primary nese wih 4 monaone bs el for mos. The accompa 0 inate este ape fees peormanets af very np an Sone, Mes anes ae aed at Sow Sed ‘a regular emp ate leaning, a ext al ies hate eed expan abo te mest 2d a . Guitar ‘ke and postions and incor Taw best o plait 67-nipute audio accompaniment 0000157 Boolucassete Pac $1595 Blues Guitar Legends i] by Renny Stan Centersirsan Publishing This BooW/CD package allows You to explore the shes of Lignin’ Hopkins, lad Blake, Mississipi John Hurt, Bind Boy Fuller, and Big Bll Broonzy ‘Through Sula arrangemens you will eam how studying the masters ean hep you deep your own se CENTERSTREAM VIDEOS ACOUSTIC BLUES GUITAR by Kenny Sultan Centerstream Publications This video presents a combination of 3-key blues techniques for players who already know basic chords and have some experience with the guitar. Features straight blues in the Key of A, ragtime blues in G, and slide guitar in open D tuning. Includes musical examples. 75 minutes. ‘90000051 $19.95 ‘Blues Guitar Legends (5) In the Styles of Lightnin’ *""° Hopkins & Blind Blake by Kenny Sultan Centerstream Publishing This intermediate-level video eA ‘eaches the techniques of blues BR reas tighnin’Honkins and Blind Blake. Kenny Sultan shows how to interpret the “legends ‘without attempting note-forote renditions of the original music, letting players adapt the music to their own playing Video complements Kenny's best selling hook Blues Guitar Legends AMOOOTRT Bock Pack 199510000198 1995 Mena) Harmonica dy Gem Weter fe Tealfemetpaeic ba Sourcebook ers eam Bes nd rock i= Of Sonny Terry rato Indes scales, mvs cho other swat nents of mse, The Go-minue essere fears is sulosplisdemonsraons ard lesan pln wh. 00000127 $1695 Blues Harmonica ~ ‘AComprehensive Crash Course & Overview by Tom sat enterica Pubisbing This new bokeasste pack feares a” compreteasne crash-corse onal apt of the blues Rarmoniea. 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