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Post subject: Scales for "Help the poor"
Posted: Sun Apr 20, 2014 9:22 pm
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Hi

I have what may seem to be a bit of a strange question: can someone please advise on the scales that you would use over the BB King / Eric Clapton song "Help the poor"?.

I ask as what I would think to use doesn't sound that good - other opinions would be useful.

The chord progression is (based on one version I have seen):

Verse
Dm x 6
A7 x 2
Dm x 2
G7 x 2
Dm x 1
A7 x1
Dm x 2

Chorus
G7 x 2
Dm x 2
G7 x 2
A7 x2

Thank you.

Edelstone


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Post subject: Re: Scales for "Help the poor"
Posted: Mon Apr 21, 2014 6:26 am
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Joined: Tue Nov 26, 2013 5:33 pm
Posts: 581
Location: South Carolina, USA
D blues scale.


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Post subject: Re: Scales for "Help the poor"
Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2014 7:54 am
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This is a case where the D blues scale almost fits but some notes sound a little bit "off". Here's how I approach these situations.

Know all the chords of the backing track so that as you solo, you know precisely what chord you're playing over and what chord is coming next. I say obvious but this is certainly not always practised by guitar players who think the pentatonic drudgery of the blues scale is a universal panacea.

So we start with six bars of Dmin. We're on safe ground here, the blues scale D F G A C D will not fail us here and we have plenty of time to noodle around over the Dmin. But the next chord A7 throws a spanner in the works. This chord is voiced A C# E G and the C of the blues scale will sound slightly off key. A trick I like to use is to play a C bent up to C#, this lets you stick to familiar scale patterns while still matching the harmony of the underlying chord. You can use the E as well, semitone bends and trills between E and F (or C# and D) as the progression moves between Dmin and A7 work well here.

The next change is between G7 (G B D F) and Dmin (D F A). Looking at the notes of G7, the obvious note to add into our mangled blues scale is B. Try this ...

Fret G and B strings at the 12th fret with middle and ring fingers. Smack those strings HARD, bend both strings up so the G goes up to A and the B goes up to C the effect is you are bending from a diad in the G chord to a diad in Dmin7. Yes, it's a cliché but hey, we're playing blues here. This works nicely as a release bend, falling from Dmin7 to G.

When you start to play solos this way instead of falling into the blues scale safety net a curious thing happens. When you listen to your solo in isolation with no backing, you can actually hear the chord changes being suggested by the notes. I might even plug a Strat in and do a quick demo of this now.

I'd spice things up with a flattened 5th (A flat) during the six bar Dmin section too.

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Post subject: Re: Scales for "Help the poor"
Posted: Tue Apr 29, 2014 8:24 am
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GilgaFrank wrote:
I might even plug a Strat in and do a quick demo of this now.


Done and done as good as I can be bothered. Not played guitar all week, this is a one-take deal.

http://soundcloud.com/gilgafrank/help-the-poor/s-4S4jt

Timing's horrible the second time through the progression.

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Post subject: Re: Scales for "Help the poor"
Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2014 1:30 pm
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thumbs up GilgaFrank. 8)

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Post subject: Re: Scales for "Help the poor"
Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2014 1:43 pm
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Well done
mud


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