Blues Scales

The Blues Scale, whether it’s Major or Minor, is one of the most widely used scales in modern music, and it’s usually the first scale that most guitarists learn when they venture into the realm of soloing. Each Blues Scale has its own unique sound and tonal quality, but they are both very closely related in their fingerings and their make-up. One of the main differences between the two scales is how and when you use them.

The Minor Blues Scale is more versatile and can be used over any Major 7, Dominant 7 or Minor 7 chord, as well as all of the chords in any Blues progression. But, the Major Blues Scale can only be used over one chord at a time. For example, if you have a C7 chord, you can play C Major Blues, but when the chord changes to F7, as in a C Blues song, you have to switch to the F Major Blues Scale. So, it’s a bit trickier to apply to a soloing situation.

Click the links below to learn more about how the Major and Minor Blues Scales are built, how you can use them and learn one and two octave fingerings for each of these scales.

Blues Scales

• Major Blues Scales
• Minor Blues Scales

Click to return to the Essential Jazz Guitar Scales Page