Resource(s) for learning blues?

tm3

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I've found a few interesting YouTube videos but would like something a little more structured, ie gradual progression from easy to more difficult and ideally with some explanation of what is going on from a music theory standpoint. I found some possibilities with a forum search but given that the newest posts that I found were over 4 years old I thought it a good idea to ask again.

A couple of contenders that have been mentioned:

Ukulele Blues, by Bruce Emery
How to Play Blues Ukulele, pdf book from Ukulele Hunt

I would appreciate any other suggestions, opinions on "best" for a beginner, comparisons of the above, etc.
 
As has been said before and will probably be repeated further down this thread, you don't "learn" the blues, you "have" the blues.

You need to find a song or tune that reflects your mood or feelings and play around with it until it reflects yourself ... then you're "playing the blues"!

To suggest one can "learn" the blues much like one learns a cake recipe just doesn't work for such an expressive genre.

Take a "simple" tune like St. James Infirmary or Pretty Polly, just two chords needed, and work on it 'till it sounds like what you want it to sound like ... then you're getting somewhere ;)

YMMV :music:
 
The "old school" method is talk to that guy named snatch. He hangs around the crossroads.
 
As has been said before and will probably be repeated further down this thread, you don't "learn" the blues, you "have" the blues.

You need to find a song or tune that reflects your mood or feelings and play around with it until it reflects yourself ... then you're "playing the blues"!

To suggest one can "learn" the blues much like one learns a cake recipe just doesn't work for such an expressive genre.

Take a "simple" tune like St. James Infirmary or Pretty Polly, just two chords needed, and work on it 'till it sounds like what you want it to sound like ... then you're getting somewhere ;)

YMMV :music:

That's an interesting idea that I have not heard.

The "old school" method is talk to that guy named snatch. He hangs around the crossroads.

I went down to the crossroads, tried to flag a ride, nobody seemed to know me, everybody passed me by.

But, I did buy a house by the river side.
 
To learn the Blues you need a lot of money and a bad, bad woman. In lieu of that you can get How To Play Blues Ukulele from howtoplayukulele.com. I went through the book and it is great. Another one of my favorite resources is the youtube channel, tenthumbs. It is quite a mixed bag, catering to a wide audience, but he does have periodic blues tutorials that are devoted to stuff like technical questions, turnarounds, blues songs, how to make things tasty, etc.
 
Manitoba Hal has some good videos online (youtube) that can get you started.

For a humorous take featuring a "middle class" blues and bottleneck uke, check out Martin Mull's version

 
Robert Klein tells it true;



Seriously though, You can learn to play a "blues song" but you can't learn to play "the" blues. For that you just do.
 
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It seems as though I may have mis-stated my intent. My apologies.

I want to try to learn to play some "blues songs," as I enjoy the genre. I don't want to "be" the blues or "have" the blues (life is pretty good right now) any more than I want to "be" a chocolate cake; but I sure enjoy me some chocolate cake, given that I "have" the right recipe.

I'll see if I can figure out how to change the thread title. In the mean time, I'll check out what kind of contract Ukulele Hunt requires to part with his educational material (thanks, ripock). If he's looking for a soul to steal, forget it.
 
It seems as though I may have mis-stated my intent. My apologies.

I want to try to learn to play some "blues songs," as I enjoy the genre. I don't want to "be" the blues or "have" the blues (life is pretty good right now) any more than I want to "be" a chocolate cake; but I sure enjoy me some chocolate cake, given that I "have" the right recipe.

I'll see if I can figure out how to change the thread title. In the mean time, I'll check out what kind of contract Ukulele Hunt requires to part with his educational material (thanks, ripock). If he's looking for a soul to steal, forget it.

Speaking of the last remark you made, have you ever pondered what a horrible deal-maker the devil is. I was thinking about this earnestly the other day. So his deal is to give you something really good for what, 40 years or so, and in return you suffer for eternity. That's not even close to a good deal.
 
Oh I don't think Riley B King or Bonnie my fave female singer ever sold their souls. Might be thu that uke as a happy go instrument is not exactly one to choose.

With our ukes we can definately cry and sing too with some bad bad experiences we have had, but after a while it is good to find a happy song that suits better. And makes us feel better. I can never listen very long Bonnie's blues singings and much prefer some other genres she play have played and plays. But so good hear her souring electric slide guitar that she always have played better than than other players.
 
Speaking of the last remark you made, have you ever pondered what a horrible deal-maker the devil is. I was thinking about this earnestly the other day. So his deal is to give you something really good for what, 40 years or so, and in return you suffer for eternity. That's not even close to a good deal.

It's the kind of deal that ranks right up there with credit card interest, social security, and whole life insurance policies.
 
You have to pay your dues if ya wanna play the blues... :cool:
 
Stole this off the web. Hope it helps


1. Most Blues begin, "Woke up this morning..."

2. "I got a good woman" is a bad way to begin the Blues, unless you stick something nasty in the next line like, "I got a good woman, with the meanest face in town."

3. The Blues is simple. After you get the first line right, repeat it. Then find something that rhymes... sort of: "Got a good woman with the meanest face in town. Yes, I got a good woman with the meanest face in town. Got teeth like Margaret Thatcher, and she weigh 500 pound."

4. The Blues is not about choice. You stuck in a ditch, you stuck in a ditch--ain't no way out.

5. Blues cars: Chevys, Fords, Cadillacs and broken-down trucks. Blues don't travel in Volvos, BMWs, or Sport Utility Vehicles. Most Blues transportation is a Greyhound bus or a southbound train. Jet aircraft and company motor pools ain't even in the running. Walkin' plays a major part in the blues lifestyle. So does fixin' to die.

6. Teenagers can't sing the Blues. They ain't fixin' to die yet. Adults sing the Blues. In Blues, "adulthood" means being old enough to get the electric chair if you shoot a man in Memphis.

7. Blues can take place in New York City but not in Hawaii or any place in Canada. Hard times in Minneapolis or Seattle is probably just clinical depression. Chicago, St. Louis, and Kansas City are still the best places to have the Blues. You cannot have the blues in any place that don't get rain.

8. A man with male pattern baldness ain't the blues. A woman with male pattern baldness is. Breaking your leg cause you were skiing is not the blues. Breaking your leg 'cause a alligator be chompin' on it is.

9. You can't have no Blues in a office or a shopping mall. The lighting is wrong. Go outside to the parking lot or sit by the dumpster.

10. Good places for the Blues:
a. Highway
b. Jailhouse
c. An empty bed
d. Bottom of a whiskey glass

11. Bad places for the Blues:
a. Nordstrom's
b. Gallery openings
c. Ivy league institutions
d. Golf courses

12. No one will believe it's the Blues if you wear a suit, 'less you happen to be a old ethnic person, and you slept in it.

13. You have the right to sing the Blues if:
a. You older than dirt
b. You blind
c. You shot a man in Memphis
d. You can't be satisfied

14. You don't have the right to sing the Blues if:
a. You have all your teeth
b. You were once blind but now can see
c. The man in Memphis lived
d. You have a pension fund

15. Blues is not a matter of color. It's a matter of bad luck. Tiger Woods cannot sing the blues. Sonny Liston could. Ugly white people also got a leg up on the blues.

16. If you ask for water and your darlin' give you gasoline, it's the Blues

17. Other acceptable Blues beverages are:
a. Cheap wine
b. Whiskey or bourbon
c. Muddy water
d. Nasty black coffee

18. The following are NOT Blues beverages:
a. Perrier
b. Chardonnay
c. Snapple
d. Slim Fast

19. If death occurs in a cheap motel or a shotgun shack, it's a Blues death. Stabbed in the back by a jealous lover is another Blues way to die. So is the electric chair, substance abuse and dying lonely on a broke-down cot. You can't have a Blues death if you die during a tennis match or while getting liposuction.

20. Some Blues names for women:
a. Sadie
b. Big Mama
c. Bessie
d. Fat River Dumpling

21. Some Blues names for men:
a. Joe
b. Willie
c. Little Willie
d. Big Willie

22. Persons with names like Michelle, Amber, Debbie, and Heather can't sing the Blues no matter how many men they shoot in Memphis.

23. Make your own Blues name Starter Kit: a. name of physical infirmity (Blind, Cripple, Lame, etc.) b. first name (see above) plus name of fruit (Lemon, Lime, Melon, Kiwi, etc.) c. last name of President (Jefferson, Johnson, Fillmore, etc.) For example: Blind Lime Jefferson, Jackleg Lemon Johnson or Cripple Kiwi Fillmore, etc. (Well, maybe not "Kiwi.")

24. I don't care how tragic your life: if you own even one computer, you cannot sing the blues.
 
Laughed my way through the list, EDW. Thanks for sharing!
 
Found a lot of awesome videos on YouTube. Just search Ukulele Blues.
 
Study a little bit of the Rev. Gary Davis.......that'll start you down a path of playing some blues.........

Death don't have no mercy

Hesitation Blues

Multiple versions out there but pretty easy to get started on..
 
OP is the beginner's thread, not the esoteric thread. Let's not be fresh and confusing. To answer the OP questions, I play the blues on my happy uke, and reentrant tuning is great for the blues. I won't answer about my soul. Right now I like Phil Doleman as an instructor. He is teaching some classic blues and jug band. You will find him on YouTube and Patreon. Ukulele Hunt is always great. Ten Thumbs is terrific on YouTube and Patreon as well. My cred? I was Stevie Ray Vaughns cocktail waitress back in the day. True, but everyone just laugh. Enjoy.
 
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