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Why SO many blues songs?
Maybe I joined during the calendar when it was “blues month” or something but it seems that every other week is a blues song. I strongly dislike the blues. Is this the norm for TAC? I have 150 or so sessions under my belt and just wondering what to expect going forward.
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15 Replies
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Disliking the blues implies that you also dislike rock and roll as blues is the father of rock. A lot of the early rock pioneers copied blues songs, Elvis, Eric Clapton, Rolling Stones, Beatles, Led Zeppelin, etc. so what kind of music do you like?
The reason blues are used as an example is a lot of guitar techniques come from blues players and songs; pull offs, hammer ons, fingerpicking, bends, slides, etc. TAC is using these songs and players to demonstrate and teach these basic techniques. It is less about the song and more about the techniques.
That being said typically, only one week a month might have a traditional blues song or artist. The other weeks will have songs inspired by blues such as BB King, Eric Clapton, etc..
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Not liking Blues might imply someone doesn’t like Rock And Roll to you, but it doesn’t necessarily mean it…
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Fair enough
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Big stretch on that insinuation Moose! I love rock and roll, just wish Tony would work in a Stones song or Cream or Robert Plant or REM or The Who or CCR etc etc etc or any other band influenced by the blues. I’m aware of rock genealogy also…..
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Sorry. Saying that you hate or strongly dislike something is a trigger word in my household and I reacted to that. You are correct, blues and rock are different enough that you can like one and not the other.
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Well it’s quite unfortunate that you dislike the blues, because it’s on TAC quite regularly. Probably because apart from classical music, it’s at the root of most of the music we hear today. A lot of it is derived from it and that’s probably why Tony focuses on giving us the basic techniques from the blues…
On the bright side, you might get an acquired taste for it 😀 Before i joined TAC i strongly disliked bluegrass and traditional country music, but this has dramatically changed my perceptions and tastes, to a more ecclectic array i should say.
My advice is to take it all in your stride, and there are some really gold nuggets to be taken from it, enjoy 😉
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Can’t please everybody I guess. Blues is such a huge part of music, it seems perfectly natural that we are learning blues riffs. I’m sorry that you don’t like it. I’m 65 and I’ve been drawn to blues music for over 50 years. Of course I love rock and classical as well. We are musical creatures and all these genres, methods and styles of musical expression, evolved from the soul we have been endowed with by the Creator.
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Blues skills ARE the foundation for Rock.
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If blues didn’t have the lure that it had and still has, the British Invasion doesn’t happen when it did and rock music would not be what it is today. I’m not saying we don’t have some form of rock and roll music but the men that became Beatles, Cream, Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac and Led Zeppelin heard blues music and said “That’s what I want!”
Just think of all the great players from England that we love, almost everyone started as a blues player. Most of them played either with John Mayall and the Blues Breakers, the Yardbirds (where you had to be a blues player to qualify), or both: Peter Green, John McVie, Mick Fleetwood (all of Fleetwood Mac), Jack Bruce, Eric Clapton, Mick Taylor, Jimmy Page, etc. Even Jimmy Hendrix had to go to England to get noticed because that’s where this great blues movement was happening! -
@PickinmyPocket : Hey there Michael,
I will take a stab at an explanation. The Blues are like moonshine. All those bands you mentioned are like a Pousse Cafe cocktail. For learning purposes a bartender first learns how to pour an ounce into a shot glass. Then after you can pour and ounce accurately and precisely, you learn how to make a Pousse Cafe.
Blues are foundational as opposed to highly decorated. If you take the decoration out of the Rolling Stones you get Muddy Waters.
How did your strong dislike for the blues develop? I would not play Ripple (Grateful Dead tune) for years because it reminded me of church music. I figured that one out.
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by jumpinjeff.
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❤
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This reply was modified 1 year, 6 months ago by
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hm. never met anyone who didn’t like the blues. are you from earth?
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Wow, what an insightful comment, now please go back to your comic book….
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so, not from earth then? possiblly a disgruntled Igigi? just remember we’re cooler than mars. maybe that is too bloozee for ya.
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Dear Mr. Igigi,
Maybe Joe can help.. within this performance are hidden gems that I learned from Tony’s lessons since I’ve been coming around circa 2016. Especially some of the stuff starting at around 4:06. learning the techniques and such through any of Tony’s lessons will, without a doubt, apply to something in any guitar player’s future.
peace.
Trace The Earthling.
Joe Bonamassa Official – “Woke Up Dreaming” – Live at the Vienna Opera House – YouTube
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