02_049204 ftoc.qxp 10/25/06 10:06 AM Page v Contents at a Glance Introduction .................................................................1 Part I: You Got a Right to Play the Blues .......................7 Chapter 1: Every Day I Have the Blues . Hallelujah!...................................................9 Chapter 2: Blues Meets Guitar: A Match Made in Musical Heaven............................23 Chapter 3: Grab Hold, Tune Up, Play On! ......................................................................39 Part II: Setting Up to Play the Blues............................55 Chapter 4: Getting a Grip on Left-Hand Chords............................................................57 Chapter 5: Positioning the Right Hand for Rhythm and Lead ....................................71 Chapter 6: Blues Progressions, Song Forms, and Moves ............................................97 Chapter 7: Musical Riffs: Bedrock of the Blues...........................................................121 Part III: Beyond the Basics: Playing Like a Pro ..........137 Chapter 8: Playing Lead: Soaring Melodies and Searing Solos.................................139 Chapter 9: Playing Up the Neck....................................................................................155 Chapter 10: Express Yourself: Making the Guitar Sing, Cry, and Wail......................171 Part IV: Sounding Like the Masters: Blues Styles through the Ages ...................................191 Chapter 11: Acoustic Roots: Delta Blues and Its Country Cousins..........................193 Chapter 12: The Birth and Growth of Classic Electric Blues ....................................213 Chapter 13: Blues Rock: The Infusion of Ol’ Rock ’n’ Roll.........................................233 Part V: Gearing Up: Outfitting Your Arsenal ...............253 Chapter 14: Shop Till You Drop: Buying the Right Guitar for You............................255 Chapter 15: ChoosingCOPYRIGHTED Your Amp and Effects..............................................................267 MATERIAL Chapter 16: Changing Strings........................................................................................301 Part VI: The Part of Tens ...........................................315 Chapter 17: Ten Blues Guitar Giants............................................................................317 Chapter 18: Ten Great Blues Guitars............................................................................321 Chapter 19: Ten (Plus One) Must-Have Blues Guitar Albums...................................325 02_049204 ftoc.qxp 10/25/06 10:06 AM Page vi Part VII: Appendixes.................................................329 Appendix A: How to Read Music ..................................................................................331 Appendix B: How to Use the CD ...................................................................................339 Index .......................................................................349 02_049204 ftoc.qxp 10/25/06 10:06 AM Page vii Table of Contents Introduction..................................................................1 About This Book...............................................................................................1 Conventions Used in This Book .....................................................................2 What You’re Not to Read.................................................................................3 Foolish Assumptions .......................................................................................3 How This Book Is Organized...........................................................................4 Part I: You Got a Right to Play the Blues .............................................4 Part II: Setting Up to Play the Blues .....................................................4 Part III: Beyond the Basics: Playing Like a Pro ...................................4 Part IV: Sounding Like the Masters: Blues Styles through the Ages ..........................................................4 Part V: Gearing Up: Outfitting Your Arsenal........................................5 Part VI: The Part of Tens .......................................................................5 Part VII: Appendixes...............................................................................5 Icons Used in This Book..................................................................................5 Where to Go from Here....................................................................................6 Part I: You Got a Right to Play the Blues ........................7 Chapter 1: Every Day I Have the Blues . Hallelujah! . .9 Capturing the Blues Train from Its Departure Then to Its Arrival Now ............................................................................................10 The pieces of blues that made the genre ..........................................10 The place of the blues’ conception....................................................11 Rejoicing over 100 years of blues: The shifting shape of the genre ......................................................11 The qualities that made blues cats hit the big-time ........................12 It’s Not All Pain and Suffering — The Lighter Side of Blues......................13 Surveying the Means to Make the Music: The Guitar in All Its Glory......14 The low-fi acoustic guitar....................................................................14 The semi-hollowbody electric guitar.................................................15 Solidbody electric guitars ...................................................................15 The Collision of Two Worlds: Acoustic versus Electric ............................16 Getting a Grip on How Guitars Work ...........................................................17 You’ve gotta use your hands — both of them..................................17 Producing the tones: String vibration and pitch..............................18 Electric guitars only: Pickups and amplification..............................18 02_049204 ftoc.qxp 10/25/06 10:06 AM Page viii viii Blues Guitar For Dummies Performing and Looking Like a Blues Player..............................................19 Expanding and filling your brain with know-how.............................19 Looking the part ...................................................................................20 Blues Trivia For Dummies.............................................................................21 The questions .......................................................................................21 The answers..........................................................................................22 Chapter 2: Blues Meets Guitar: A Match Made in Musical Heaven . .23 Beyond the Delta: Defining the Blues Guitar Sound ..................................24 The method to the music: Chord progressions................................24 The guitarist’s language of melody ....................................................25 The expression that invokes your senses.........................................26 The groove that sets the pace ............................................................27 Dissecting an Acoustic and an Electric .......................................................27 Getting Down with the Blues: A Quick How-To ..........................................31 The foundation for all guitar playing: Acoustic guitars...................31 Shifting acoustic to overdrive: Electric guitars ................................32 What You Need to Get Your Groove On.......................................................35 Chapter 3: Grab Hold, Tune Up, Play On! . .39 Holding Your Axe (That Is, Your Guitar) .....................................................39 Grabbing your guitar’s neck................................................................40 Pushing down on the strings ..............................................................41 Getting sound to come out..................................................................42 Holding the Pick, Attacking the Problem ....................................................44 Getting Situated..............................................................................................45 Sitting down . ....................................................................................45 . or standing up.................................................................................46 Tuning Up........................................................................................................47 Helping your guitar get in tune with itself.........................................48 Holding your guitar to an electronic standard .................................48 Playing a Chord ..............................................................................................50 Music Notation: Not Just for Geeks .............................................................51 Guidance for your aimless fingers: A chord diagram ......................51 Mapping out your short-term path: Rhythm notation.....................53 Guiding you all the way through a song: Tablature .........................54 Part II: Setting Up to Play the Blues ............................55 Chapter 4: Getting a Grip on Left-Hand Chords . .57 Starting Out Simple: Blues Chords Even Your Mom Could Play ..............58 Going to the Next Level: Barre Chords........................................................59 Forming a barre chord.........................................................................61