Blues Harp Scale

There is much discussion over what exactly is a blues scale. I've listed a basic scale that is used in blues. These are the notes that sound good for blues. Practice this fast and slow. Almost all blues riffs use a piece of this scale. The three hole draw bent is a parial bend. It should drop the three down the half step needed to make the minor. This note is the heart of the blues and can vary from unbent (for a major country and western music sound) to more than a half step for a dark minor sounding blues. Your ear should tell you when you have this bend right.

Scale up:

Scale down:

There are a couple of notes below the 2 draw that are repeats of notes in the middle scale.

There are some blues notes above the 6 hole blow, but I not fond of the sound of them. You can use the high end of the harp, but the low end sounds so much better. The top 4 holes in a harmonica should be used in first position and then only occasionally.

Note:

In an interview with Kim Wilson, Carlos Colina asked Kim what was his greatest strength in playing the harp. Kim answered "I have a good 3 draw bend".

 

Blues Harp Songs and Riffs

The following are the basic riffs that you'll need to play blues harp. My goal here is to give you a basic understanding of what is going on in blues and what you can play at different points in the 12 bar blues cycle.

12 bar blues harp theory
 Beginner's Practice Riffs
Faking Blues Riffs
Blues Harp Scale
Triplets
Help Me lick
Hoochie-Coochie Man and Mannish Boy Riffs
Peter Gunn Bass Line

Here are some simple harp tabs for songs. They are mostly not blues, but they are "Bluesey" with plenty of bends to practice.

Stormy Weather
Amazing Grace
Black Rat Blues Harp
Don't Get Around Much Any More

I've spent some time and tabbed out some blues riffs and phrases using a little javascript engine that I designed. This will allow you to play riffs in first, second and third positions. This is great for learning to really play blues harp.

B.B. King Sweet 16
Little Walter's Juke
Little Walter's Off the Wall
Born Under a Bad Sign
Cream - Sunshine of You Love

I spent a lot of time working out almost all of Help me by Sonny Boy Williamson II (Rice Miller).