Major Blues Scale

The major blues scale is the happy cousin of the blues scale: the major pentatonic plus one note, the b3, that slides into the major 3rd. In G that's G A Bb B D E. The result is bright and sweet with a bluesy edge, the sound of country solos, western swing, rockabilly and soulful major-key blues.

It's also a scale you already half know. G major blues uses the same six notes as E minor blues, so if you can play the minor blues scale, you have the shapes. What changes is the home note and the notes you rest on.

The three lessons in this chapter:

1. Formula, patterns and sound. The degrees, the five boxes across the neck, where the scale fits and how to move it to any key. Free.
2. Practice exercises. Box 1 in 16ths, sequences, skip-a-note pairs and a slide that connects two boxes.
3. Soloing. A swung G7-C7 vamp to play over, two original licks, and how to use the b3 without sounding sour.