Blues Jam Play-Along

Volumes 1 and 2 from Mel Bay Publications
review by Richard Turner

Two of our early releases for 2008 are the Blues Jam Play Along book-CD combinations which are intended to supplement Volumes 1 and 2 of the Mel Bay Modern Guitar Method. Both of these books are written by legendary bluesman "Big" Bill Bay, who eventually found more security and prestige in the music publishing business. As a bluesman however, Mr. Bay was known for his smooth style with both slide and fingers, and for those who crossed him, his quickness and deft handling of either knife or pistol. It was not until his wife presented him with the standard ultimatum that all musicians have heard which is, "Either start makin' me some real money or I'm outta here!" With that Mr. Bay retired his guitar, his slide, his pick, his sunglasses, and his weapons, and assumed the presidency of Mel Bay Publications. With these two fine book-CD combinations we are glad to announce that the bluesman in Mr. Bay is alive and well.

These books are both concise and solid presentations of the bare essentials of blues improvisation. Both volumes present several pieces in different keys. For each piece there is a presentation of the melody in staff notation, and the corresponding scale for improvising in the correct key. The scales are given in both a first position and an upper position form. These Blues Improvising Scales are minor pentatonic scales with an added raised 4th scale degree. It was the skillful use of this raised 4th scale degree that earned Mr. Bay great fame for his improvisational ability. Sadly though, it never earned him any money to speak of.

Use of the CD is an essential part of this approach. Really, it is part of the book, not an accessory to it. The intended procedure is: Learn the melody and the improvising scale. Then put on the CD on and play the melody along with the "Blues God" and his band on the record. You get two shots at this because the 12 bar pattern repeats. If you don't have it after two attempts, do not despair. Just press the "skip back" button and give it another couple of tries. When you can start and finish with the CD (and hopefully mostly keep up in the middle) you are ready for the next step. Now you are entitled to improvise using the given scale over the accompaniment provided on the CD. For this step the CD gives several repetitions of the harmonic progression. Suddenly being expected to improvise may at first feel very intimidating but really, after a while you will be having fun. After a much longer while, those around you might even start to enjoy it. The repetitions of the harmonic progression are both varied and interesting so you will feel like you have a quality band behind you, even though your own "star power" may at first be dim.

Taking a closer look at Volume 1 we find seven 12-bar tunes presented using the keys of C, Am, and G. For the first piece, "Groove Time", we are in the key of C and are given improvising scales in both the 1st and 8th positions. The CD starts with a tuning track, then a few clicks to give us the pulse-and now we are ready to play the simple melody along with the CD. This first melody only spans the range of a 5th and should be quite playable for those just starting out. Then the fun begins! Using the CD accompaniment and the 1st position improvising scale it is time to lead the band and jam. For starters it might be advisable to just use one octave of the scale and work with those notes until you get comfortable with your basic improvisational abilities. Afterwards, try stretching it out with the entire extended scale presented and have some fun. When you get comfortable using the entire 1st position scale it is time to work with the Advanced Improvising Scale in the 8th position. Really, each of these short pieces provides the opportunity for hours of fun and learning. The next piece, "Evil Ways" is in Am, and the scales are given in 1st and 5th positions. The 12-bar melody also spans just a 5th and is really excellent. This piece does have a familiar ring to it. I think that someone may have "borrowed" this one from Big Bill and cashed in on it! So, now we have had experience with two keys. The five remaining tunes in Volume 1 are in the key of G, with scales given in the 1st and 3rd positions. I really liked "Blue Tuesday" just because it was slow enough for even me to play along with! As the book progresses, the melodies cover a wider range and we have some just slightly more complicated rhythms. All of the pieces in this first volume dovetail nicely with the materials in the Volume 1 of The Mel Bay Modern Guitar Method.

The format of Volume 2 is identical to that of Volume 1. Again we have improvising scales and melodies presented which are intended for use with the play-along CD. In this second volume the new keys of F, Dm, and D are introduced. The first two pieces are in our already familiar key of G. Most of the melodies are still in 12-bar forms but "Bullet Train" and "Just Can't Take It" are longer. Some of the melodies require movement up the fingerboard and they frequently use triplet rhythms, a bit more syncopation, left hand slides, slurs, double stops, and other delicacies required in becoming a more advanced bluesman. "Long Gone" and "Just Can't Take It" are in the new key of F with the scales given in 1st and 8th positions. "Just Can't Take It" is the longest piece in the series with the melody covering 32 measures. "Texas Shuffle" in the key of D gives us the opportunity to practice going smoothly from eighth notes to triplets and back. This is actually easier in blues style than in classical style because in blues style the eighth notes are not played evenly but are generally swung in a triplet feel anyway. The melody of "Texas Shuffle" one of my favorites of the two volumes and will take some practice to achieve a nice smooth feel.

Both of these books are excellent supplements to their corresponding volumes of The Mel Bay Modern Guitar Method. I think that the concept of teaching your students to improvise early in their studies is an essential part of basic musical training. These two volumes of Blues Jam Play-Along strive to do just that and I highly recommend them to both students and teachers. They are both highly educational and a lot of fun.

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About the Author

After demonstrating an early interest in music with the clarinet and folk guitar, Richard Turner studied classical guitar with George Sakellariou and José Rey de la Torre and received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Music from San José State University.

Since 1994 Mr. Turner has taught in the large classical guitar program at California State University at Fullerton. Several years ago he revived his early interest in American roots music and developed a course in the history of American folk music which he also teaches at Cal State Fullerton. His instrumental interests are diverse, including classical guitar, slide guitar, banjo, and steel-string fingerpicking and flatpicking styles.