In this article, I am going to show you two different Blues piano shuffle licks & riffs that are fun and easy to play. Make sure you click on each sound file to hear the lick played.

Do you like the sound of the Blues? So do I. That’s why I created the new Play Blues Piano Series.

Blues Piano Lick #1

Before trying to read this lick, make sure that you listen to the audio file (right below the lick) to hear how it should sound. Even though the lick and left-hand are written out as eighth notes, they are really played with a triplet feel. It is common to write swung eighth notes as “regular” eighth notes rather than triplets. Take a look at example 1.

Ex. 1

Do you see how much more difficult it is to read example 1 than lick #1?

It’s unnecessary most of the time to write swung eighth notes like this. Instead, just notate that the eighth notes should be swung by using a style marking.

In the case of example 2, the style marking is Medium Shuffle. Well, medium is going to be right around 120bpm and shuffle means that the rhythm is a shuffle, triplet feel. BUT, notice how much easier it is to read lick #1?

I also want you to notice the tiny F# in the beginning of the lick. This is called a grace note. It should be played quickly and usually with the same finger of the note that you are going to. So the next note is G, played with your middle finger, so use your 3rd finger on the grace note.

Lick #1

Medium Shuffle

Listen to the lick
 

Blues Piano Lick #2

Lick #2 is a C minor pentatonic scale played in triplets. However, there is something interesting about how this lick is formed (besides just being triplets). Let’s start by just taking a quick peek at lick #2 and listening to it.

Lick #2

Medium Shuffle

Listen to the lick

Alright, so you hear the triplets right? But did you hear how the triplets were divided into four note groupings? In example 2, I’ve separated the groupings with boxes. This is creates a very cool sound because it’s triplets, but it’s triplets accenting a note other than the first triplet. The “top” note of each four-note grouping will produce a natural accent. Notice how the accent is on the first triplet in beat one, the second triplet in beat two and the third triplet in beat three? This is an example of phrasing a rhythm.

Example #2

Listen to the lick
 

Remember, even though the left hand is written as eighth notes, they are still played with a triplet feel. This means the first eighth note will “line up” with the first triplet and the second eighth note will line up with the THIRD triplet, NOT the second triplet. See example 3.

Example #3

Listen to the lick

Blues notes are alterations of the chord that are a “caryy over” from guitar players. Years ago when the blues style was first being formed, guitar players would ‘bend’ notes on the guitar. This created a very soulful technique because the pitch would move up or down a half step or more.

However, it is nearly impossible to bend notes, unless you actually manipulate the strings inside the piano! So what is the pianist to do? Blues notes to the rescue!

By creating an alteration on the 3rd and 5th chord tones, we can simulate that blues, soulful sound. Example A shows you a regular C7 chord and chord tones.

Now, if we add alterations on the 3rd and 5th chord tones, we get example B. Notice that the minor 3rd resolves to the Major 3rd and the #4 resolves to the 5th.

Using Blues Notes in your Piano playing

There are basically three ways to use these blues notes in your playing.

1. Play them as individual notes and add them to your lines (Ex. C)
2. “Crush” the blues note together with its resolution note (Ex. D)
3. “Slide” into the resolution note from the blues note (Ex. E)

Listen to Example C:

Listen to Example D:


Listen to Example E: