12 Bar Blues
The 12 bar blues is one of the most commonly used chord progressions in modern music. It is not only used in blues music but also in a variety of other musical styles and has formed the basis of numerous classic songs. So let's have a look at what it consists of.
The 12 bar blues is a chord progression over 12 bars usually played in 4/4 time. The progression consists of 3 different chords with the diatonic function I, IV and V, or the Tonic, Subdominant and Dominant. The table below shows which chords are played in each of the 12 bars of the music
The first line shows which diatonic function is played T=Tonic, S=Subdominant, and D=Dominant. The second shows this diatonic function in Roman Numerals. The third line shows the exact chords played in the key of D.
The 12 bar progression often repeats consistently throughout a piece of music with little or no alteration to it.
Here are few examples of it in some music. Here is the tab and notation for a standard 12 bar blues shuffle in the key of D. The guitar is tuned to Open D
Here is a small 12 bar blues piece I wrote called 12 Bar Taster which lets you see the progression in a more complete piece of music. Again this is played in the key of D on a guitar tuned to Open D.
Here are links to the Power Tab, PDF, and TXT files for both the pieces above
The table above shows the chords used in the key of D. Below is another table that shows which three chords are used in all the different keys.
The chord progression shown above is the standard 12 bar blues progression, however there are many variations of it. These are just subtly different and most of the overall structure remains the same. There are too many of these variations to list so I will show you a few of the most common ones.
12th Bar Dominant - In the standard 12 bar blues the last bar is played using the Tonic. However, a common variation on this is to use the Dominant in the 12th bar, which would look like this:
This variation is extremely common and you have probably heard it numerous times.
Dominant 7th - In the standard 12 bar blues the Dominant chord is played as a major chord. A common variation on this is to play the Dominant chord as a 7th.
Again, this is a much used variation which you would have almost certainly heard in many songs.
2nd Bar Subdominant - In this variation, the sequence of 4 bars of the Tonic played at the start is broken up by playing the second bar using the subdominant.
This variation is perhaps less common than the others but is still seen in many tunes.
As I said, these are just a few of the numerous variations on this 12 bar progression. However, they are often not used in isolation and are mixed together with each other. For example, I will apply all three of the variations mentioned above to produce another variation.
Turnarounds are very common in blues music, especially in 12 bar blues. They are bespoke phrases added near the end of the 12 bar cycle which help to lead the music back to the start of the next 12 bar cycle.
Turnarounds usually occur in the 10th and/or 11th bar and often take the form of a descending series of chords or notes.
Unlike the variations shown above which are common in many different pieces of music, turnarounds are usually phrases which are unique to the tune being played, however, there are some turnarounds you will hear used more often.
I give an example of a turnaround in the video below using Tampa Red's Boogie Woogie Dance.
Here is a video explaining the 12 bar blues and working through the examples above. It will help you hear how this sounds in actual music.
Thanks for Reading,
Neil
The Chords and their Progression
The 12 bar blues is a chord progression over 12 bars usually played in 4/4 time. The progression consists of 3 different chords with the diatonic function I, IV and V, or the Tonic, Subdominant and Dominant. The table below shows which chords are played in each of the 12 bars of the music
The first line shows which diatonic function is played T=Tonic, S=Subdominant, and D=Dominant. The second shows this diatonic function in Roman Numerals. The third line shows the exact chords played in the key of D.
| BAR | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
| Function | T | T | T | T | S | S | T | T | D | S | T | T |
| Roman Numeral | I | I | I | I | IV | IV | I | I | V | IV | I | I |
| Chords in Key of C | D | D | D | D | G | G | D | D | A | G | D | D |
The 12 bar progression often repeats consistently throughout a piece of music with little or no alteration to it.
Here are few examples of it in some music. Here is the tab and notation for a standard 12 bar blues shuffle in the key of D. The guitar is tuned to Open D
 |
| Captured from Power Tab |
Here is a small 12 bar blues piece I wrote called 12 Bar Taster which lets you see the progression in a more complete piece of music. Again this is played in the key of D on a guitar tuned to Open D.
 |
| Captured from Power Tab |
Here are links to the Power Tab, PDF, and TXT files for both the pieces above
| Power Tab | TXT | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 Bar Blues Shuffle | Power Tab | TXT | |
| 12 Bar Taster | Power Tab | TXT |
Shifting to a Different Key
The table above shows the chords used in the key of D. Below is another table that shows which three chords are used in all the different keys.
| Tonic (I) | Subdominant (IV) | Dominant (V) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Key of C | C | F | G |
| Key of C# | C# | F# | G# |
| Key of D | D | G | A |
| Key of Eb | Eb | G# | Bb |
| Key of E | E | A | B |
| Key of F | F | Bb | C |
| Key of F# | F# | B | C# |
| Key of G | G | C | D |
| Key of G# | G# | C# | Eb |
| Key of A | A | D | E |
| Key of Bb | Bb | Eb | F |
| Key of B | B | E | F# |
12 Bar Variations
The chord progression shown above is the standard 12 bar blues progression, however there are many variations of it. These are just subtly different and most of the overall structure remains the same. There are too many of these variations to list so I will show you a few of the most common ones.
12th Bar Dominant - In the standard 12 bar blues the last bar is played using the Tonic. However, a common variation on this is to use the Dominant in the 12th bar, which would look like this:
| BAR | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
| Function | T | T | T | T | S | S | T | T | D | S | T | D |
| Roman Numeral | I | I | I | I | IV | IV | I | I | V | IV | I | V |
| Chords in Key of C | C | C | C | C | F | F | C | C | G | F | C | G |
This variation is extremely common and you have probably heard it numerous times.
Dominant 7th - In the standard 12 bar blues the Dominant chord is played as a major chord. A common variation on this is to play the Dominant chord as a 7th.
| BAR | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
| Function | T | T | T | T | S | S | T | T | D7 | S | T | T |
| Roman Numeral | I | I | I | I | IV | IV | I | I | V7 | IV | I | I |
| Chords in Key of C | C | C | C | C | F | F | C | C | G7 | F | C | C |
Again, this is a much used variation which you would have almost certainly heard in many songs.
2nd Bar Subdominant - In this variation, the sequence of 4 bars of the Tonic played at the start is broken up by playing the second bar using the subdominant.
| BAR | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
| Function | T | S | T | T | S | S | T | T | D | S | T | T |
| Roman Numeral | I | IV | I | I | IV | IV | I | I | V | IV | I | I |
| Chords in Key of C | C | F | C | C | F | F | C | C | G | F | C | C |
This variation is perhaps less common than the others but is still seen in many tunes.
As I said, these are just a few of the numerous variations on this 12 bar progression. However, they are often not used in isolation and are mixed together with each other. For example, I will apply all three of the variations mentioned above to produce another variation.
| BAR | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | |
| Function | T | S | T | T | S | S | T | T | D7 | S | T | D7 |
| Roman Numeral | I | IV | I | I | IV | IV | I | I | V7 | IV | I | V7 |
| Chords in Key of C | C | F | C | C | F | F | C | C | G7 | F | C | G7 |
Turnarounds
Turnarounds are very common in blues music, especially in 12 bar blues. They are bespoke phrases added near the end of the 12 bar cycle which help to lead the music back to the start of the next 12 bar cycle.
Turnarounds usually occur in the 10th and/or 11th bar and often take the form of a descending series of chords or notes.
Unlike the variations shown above which are common in many different pieces of music, turnarounds are usually phrases which are unique to the tune being played, however, there are some turnarounds you will hear used more often.
I give an example of a turnaround in the video below using Tampa Red's Boogie Woogie Dance.
Video
Here is a video explaining the 12 bar blues and working through the examples above. It will help you hear how this sounds in actual music.
Thanks for Reading,
Neil
Comments
Post a Comment