The Blues Scale

Before reading any further, please read the lesson on the Minor Pentatonic Scale (It will all make sense after you read it).

The Blues scale is a common scale in Blues and Jazz, as well as Rock music, just like the minor Pentatonic. In fact, the Blues scale is the minor Pentatonic scale with just one note added. If you know how to create the Pentatonic scale, you can easily create a Blues Scale. 

The formula for the Blues scale is the same as the minor Pentatonic, except we add add a flatted 5th. Like this: 1,3b,4,5b,5,7b

So if we use the A Major scale as a reference, here are the notes we get:

Take the first note of the scale (A)
Then take the 3rd note and flat it (C)
Take the 4th note (D)
Take the 5th note and flat it (Eb)
Take the 5th note (E)
Take the 7th note and flat it (G)
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The notes we end up with are: A C D Eb E G

Here it is plotted on the fretboard diagram:

E ||-F-|----|-G-|----|-A-|----|-B-|-C-|----|-D-|----|-E-|-F-|----|-G-| 
B ||-C-|----|-D-|----|-E-|-F-|----|-G-|----|-A-|----|-B-|-C-|----|-D-| 
G ||----|-A-|----|-B-|-C-|----|-D-|----|-E-|-F-|----|-G-|----|-A-|----| 
D ||----|-E-|-F-|----|-X-|----|-A-|----|-B-|-C-|----|-D-|----|-E-|-F-| 
A ||----|-B-|-C-|----|-X-|--X-|-X-|-F-|----|-G-|----|-A-|----|-B-|-C-| 
E ||-F-|----|-G-|----|-X-|----|-B-|-X-|----|-D-|----|-E-|-F-|----|-G-| 

Here it is in tablature form, spanning 3 octaves:

Blues scale, key of A minor

E||-----------------|-----------------|----------------|
B||-----------------|-----------------|----------5---8-|
G||-----------------|--------------5--|--7---8---------|
D||-----------------|------5---7------|----------------|
A||----------5---6--|--7--------------|----------------|
E||--5---8----------|-----------------|----------------|



--5---8----||
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Does it sound more moody or bluesy than the A minor Pentatonic scale? That one flat note can really change the mood. That's why this scale is used more in blues music, instead of the minor Pentatonic. Use this scale when soloing over a blues progression. If you know the key of the chord progression, then use the formula above to figure out the scale. See the lesson called "Using Scales" for ideas on how to solo with this scale.