Blues Chord Progressions

The heart and soul of American music.

Published: 10 Sep 2013 Updated: 14 Jul 2022Visits: 135Code: UL59c

INSTRUMENTS: Chords Main: Music Others: ANY Ukulele
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Blues Chord Progressions


The twelve bar blues and its many variants use an elongated, three-line form of the I - IV - V progression that has also generated countless hit records, including the most significant output of rock and rollers such as Chuck Berry and Little Richard. In its most elementary form (there are many variants) the chords progress as follows: I - I - I - I - IV - IV - I - I - V - V - I - I

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Blues Guy

There is an entire section dedicated to Playing the Blues on Ukulele right here on this site:

A Guide to Blues Chord Progressions for Ukulele A to Z

If you really want to learn a lot of chords from basic I IV V blues progressions chords to more advanced 4-part Jazz chords checkout Curt's book A Guide to Blues Chord Progressions for Ukulele A to Z and guaranteed you'll know a boat load of chords in the proccess.

A Guide to Blues Chord Progressions for Ukulele A to Z starts with a basic three chord, 12 bar blues and progresses through 26 blues progression in C and G tuning up to a sophisticated jazz blues with multiple chord substitutions.


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Related Lessons, Videos, Lesson Series, Songs, Books & Reference Charts, Resources & Assets, Workshops are below.

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What is the Blues?

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The Blues are at the heart of all American music. It has influenced Country, Rock, Folk, Jazz, Bluegrass and just about every form of American music we listen to today. The Blues - a chord progression, a scale, a feeling. This lesson presents an introduction to the blues progression and a couple of scale position of the pentatonic scale to get you started improvising.

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Learning The Blues Scale on `Ukulele

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Harmonic Analysis ( HA ) is the process used to determine the harmonic function of chords within a chord progression. A chord progression is defined as a sequence of chords, each chord has a root and has a particular chord type. The relationship of a chord's root to a scale determines its function within that scale's tonality. Once a chord's function is identified, scale selections along with chord and scale substitutions can be made. This process is called Root Movement Analysis ( RMA ). This series of lessons are extracted from my book for use with individual private and on-line students. Each lesson directly corresponds the chapters in my book Harmonic Analysis for Scale Selection and Chord Substitution by Curt Sheller (me).

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Remembering Songs

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Listening to songs and wanting to play the same songs on ukulele – that's what draws most people to the ukulele. That and it looks like a load of fun and easy to play – which it is. Then you need to actually remember the songs that you're learning, so you can play them again. And, hopefully, not have to read them off a sheet all the time.

Related Lesson Series

Related Lessons Series for Blues Chord Progressions.

Harmonic Analysis for Scale and Chord Selection

Updated: 09 Jun 2023

Harmonic Analysis (HA), also known as the study of chord relationships, is the method used to identify the harmonic role of chords within a chord progression or song. A chord progression refers to a sequence of chords, with each chord having a root note and belonging to a specific chord type. The function of a chord within a particular scale's tonality is determined by its relationship to that scale.

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A basic / standard I, IV, V blues in the key of G major.

Related Books & Charts

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Harmonic Analysis for Scale Selection and Chord Substitution

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Harmonic Analysis is the understanding of the functional sequence of chords. It is the process used to analyze the harmonic structure of a progression, song or composition. This analysis is then used to make scale selections for improvisation and chord substitution.

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A Guide to Blues Chord Progressions for Ukulele A to Z

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The Blues are at the heart of all American music. It has influenced Country, Rock, Folk, Jazz, Bluegrass and just about every form of American music we listen to today. 26 blues progression in C and G tuning, progressing from basic to advanced jazz progression, with chord grids and substitutions explained.

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The Advanced Guide to Blues Chord Progressions for Guitar - Volume I

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Volume I covers the keys of C, F and Bb. The key of C includes detailed accompanying text explaining the principles behind each progression. Each volume of The Advanced Guide to Blues Progressions for Guitar features basic to advanced blues chord progressions. to be used with the chord voicings from volume I, II & III of The Advanced Guide to Guitar Chords.

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The Advanced Guide to Blues Chord Progressions for Guitar - Volume II

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Volume II covers the keys of E, A, D and G. The key of E includes detailed accompanying text explaining the principles behind each progression. Each volume of The Advanced Guide to Blues Progressions for Guitar features basic to advanced blues chord progressions. to be used with the chord voicings from volume I, II & III of The Advanced Guide to Guitar Chords.

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Exploring jazz chords using a variety of common chord progressions based on songs from the standard jazz repertoire. Core Chords are the basic set of chords needed to play a wide range of music, in a variety of styles. This set of chords includes basic open position chords, basic movable form chords and the core 4-part "jazz" chords.

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A Guide to Ukulele Chords for Lefties

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A Selection of Books & Reference Charts that are recommended for creating a solid foundation with your chosen instrument and music in general.

Books

Learning the Ukulele Fingerboard – C Tuning

Finally, learn the names of the notes of the fingerboard.

Six Secrets of Ukulele Fingering

Learn the six fingering principles to navigating the ukulele fingerboard. Fingering is one of the most universal topics.

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Harmonic Analysis is the understanding of the functional sequence of chords. It is the process used to analyze the harmonic structure of a progression, song or composition.

Ukulele – Reading Music Series – Primer

Learn to read single note melodies in the first/open position is a lot easier than you might think.

Daily Practice Material for the Contemporary Ukulele

An organized collection of daily practice and reference material for the contemporary ukulele player for developing the vocabulary and knowledge necessary for single note playing.

Checkout the Books for ALL available books.

Reference Charts

Ukulele Fingerboard Chart for C Tuning, Low or High G - G C E A

Ukulele Fingerboard Chart for C Tuning, Low or High G – G C E A

Ukulele Fingerboard Chart for G Tuning, Low or High A – D G B E

Ukulele Fingerboard Chart for G Tuning, Low or High A – D G B E

Key Signatures — Circle of Fourths and Fifths – ANSI A & A4 sizes

A handy reference chart of all 15 major and relative minor key signatures. US Letter 8.5 x 11 sized (ANSI-A) , A4

Checkout the Books for additional Handy, Dandy Reference Charts.

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