5 Popular Songs Made to Sound Like Legit Blues on Harmonica
Did you know it’s possible to make nearly any song sound bluesy with your harmonica? In this video Alex takes 5 regular chart hits and “bluesifies” the heck of them (includes tabs)…
1. Bad Guy (Blues Style)
This one has i, iv, and V chords and a melody in the pentatonic scale, so we just change it to shuffle and add short 1950’s like delay to blues it up.
C Harmonica, 2nd pos, key of Gm
-3’ -3’
-3’ -3’ -3’ -3’ -2 4 -3’ -3’
-3’ -3’ -3’ -3’ -2 4 -3’ -3’
-3’ -3’ -3’ -3’ -2 -4 -3” -3″
-3” -3” -2 -2’
2. I Want to Break Free (Blues Style)
This song already almost has a 12 bar progression, so we can turn it to shuffle and play blue 3rds in some spots (blue 3rd is a note in between major and minor thirds). Check it out.
A Harmonica, 2nd pos, key of E
-1 -2 -3” -3” -3” -3
-1 -2 -3” 4 -3
-1 -2 -3” -3” 4 -3 -3” 4 -3 -3″
4 -3 -3” 4 -3 -3” -3” -3 -3” -2
-3” -3” -2 2 -1
-3 -3” 4 -3 4 -3 -2 -3” -2
-1 -2’ 2 -2’ -2 -2’ 2
-3” -3” -3” -3” -3 -3” -2 -2 2 -3”
-2 -3” -3 -3” -2 2 -2 -3” -3 5 -3 -3” -2
4 4 4 -3 -3” -2 -2 -2 -2 -2 -2’ 2 -1 2
4 4 -4 -3’ -3” -2 -2
3. Happy (Blues Style)
For Happy I just made the sound grittier to make it more Sonny Boy Williamson like and added shuffle.
A Harmonica, 2nd pos, key of Em
-1 -2 -2 -2 -1 -1 -1 -2” -2” -2
-3’ -3’ -3’ -2” -2” -2” -2” -2
-2 -2 -2” -3” -2” -2” -2” -2” -2
-2 -3’ -4 6 -5 6 -6 -5 -4 -36 -36
4. Black or White (Blues Style)
12 bar progression initially, so we have vast possibilities to make it sound more like blues, for example by adding a turnaround. Turned to shuffle.
Bb Harmonica, 2nd pos, key of F
4 4 -34 4 4 -34 -2
4 4 -34 4 4 -34
-1 -2 -3 4 -3 -2 -1 1 1 -1
-1 -2 -3 4 -3 -2 -1 1 1 -1
-1 2 3 3 2 -3” -2 -1 2 3 3 2 -3” -2 -2 -3
-1 -1 -1 -3” -3” -3 -3” -2 -2 -1 2 -2 -2 2 -3” -2 -2
-2 -2” -1 -1
5. Jingle Bells (Blues Style)
Used the major pentatonic and a blues scale on harmonica, turned it to boogie boogie and changed the V chord to V7#9.
Eb Harmonica, 2nd pos, key of Bb
-3 -3 -3 -3 -3 -3
-3 -4 -2 -3” -3
4 4 4 4 4 -3 -3
-3 -3 -3 -3” -3” -3 -3” -4
-3 -3 -3 -3 -3 -3
-3 -4 -2 -3” -3’ -3” -2 -3” -2
4 4 4 4 4 -3 -3
-3 -3 -4 -4’ 4 -4 -3 -2 2 -2