Bad Feeling Blues (Tutorial + Tab)

 

This is my version of the old Blind Blake song Bad Feeling Blues. It is an upbeat, and quite fast paced piece. This is charcteristic of Blind Blake's style of playing which was influenced by the popular ragtime music of the era. This video covers just the guitar part and does not include the vocals which Blind Blake sings in the original.

Bad Feeling Blues is a fingerstyle piece played in 4/4 time on a standard tuned guitar. It has a continuous bass line played by thumb, and the melody played with the other fingers, which is standard for fingerstyle blues guitar. It is quite a tricky piece with a fast tempo and non-standard bass line. In the video above I just play through the main section of the song once. In the original, there are a number of verses for which this guitar section is repeated. I adapted the tab from one I found on the internet, however, I couldn't find an author to credit for this.

Bad Feeling Blues Tab - Power Tab - PDF - TXT

Playing Advice

• Bouncy Bass Line - This piece is quite jaunty and fast paced which is common with Blind Blake's music. Another characteristic aspect of his music, which this piece exhibits, is a more intricate bass line from other blues music. In many fingerstyle pieces, the bass line plods away regularly on every beat of the bar. Although this is true for a number of parts of this song, there are also quite a few sections where the bass line is broken up with rests, or introduces 1/8 notes and even triplets. These add variety to the music and help lead into, and emphasise, specific sections. These variances to the standard, regular paced bass line can be tricky to master and can make it difficult to keep time and integrate them with the fast melody line. However, if you pay attention to the music and, if necessary, use a metronome you should be able to master these more intricate bass line sections without dropping beats or losing time.
  

• Triplet Time - The melody line and, on two occassions, the bass line incorprate triplets into the music. The standard timing for these triplets is three notes in the space of one 1/4 note. Although this in itself is not to problematic, it can be trickier playing them when they are played next to 1/8 notes with a triplet feel. This results in quite a lot of variance in the duration of the notes in the melody line, with this note duration changing very frequently. If you learn how the song sounds and be mindful of the note durations in the written music, you should be able to master this melody line without too many problems.
  

• Putting it all Together -This is quite a tricky piece to play. It has quite a quick tempo with an intricate and pacey melody line, coupled to a bass line which incorprates a number of variations to the standard picking pattern. It is easy to lose time when playing this song, and to make mistakes with the duration of the notes. If you listen to the music so you know the tune well in your head, this will help. Also, take each bar individually and learn it slowly at first. If you are still having trouble keeping time, try using a metronome to help. Once you have mastered each part of the music, play them together slowly until you get the hang of it. Once you can do this, increase the tempo gradually until you can play it at the correct tempo.
  

• Watch your Fingers - Because of the fast tempo of this piece, you may need to use exact fingerings with the left hand to ensure you can fret all the notes in time, if you want to play it efficiently. This will mean using all four fretting fingers (index, middle, ring and pinkie) on the left hand to ensure this. You can use a different combination of the fingers if you want e.g. not use your pinkie, but this may make it difficult to fret all the notes in time. If you watch the video you will be be able to see all my left hand fingerings and you can learn them from there. I find these fingerings the most efficient way to play this piece, although you may find dfferent ways.
  

• Adding the lyrics -I am not a good singer, so I dont add in any of the vocal setions in the video. However, you may wish to sing the lyrics whilst playing. Due to the fast pacing of the music and the intricate melody and bass line, incorporating the lyrics whilst playing is very tricky. However, once you have the guitar part mastered you can practise singing along until you get it. Below are the lyrics to the music taken from genius.com:

[Verse 1]
I got the bad feeling blues, keeps me worried all the time
I got the bad feeling blues, keeps me worried all the time
I can't get along with that high brown gal of mine

[Verse 2]
Look a‑here mama, you done throwed your papa down
Look a‑here mama, you done throwed your papa down
I wouldn't hate it so bad but the news all over town

[Verse 3]
Look a‑here mama, what you want me to do
Look a‑here mama, what you want me to do
I work all the time bring my money home to you

[Verse 4]
Lord Lord, your papa done going to stay
Lord Lord, your papa done going to stay
I never thought you would treat your daddy this a‑way

[Verse 5]
I got the bad feeling blues, keeps me so lowdown
I got the bad feeling blues, keeps me so lowdown
I'm going to pack my grip leave this lonesome town

This is about all I need to say about this piece. It is tricky and does require a lot of practise to get the timing right in both the melody line and the bass line, and bringing them both together. However, if you learn the song in your head first, pay close attention to the written music, learn to play each bar individually, and start off playing the music slowly, you should be able to master this piece.

Thanks for Reading,
Neil