JamEaseB Blues Scale – Guitar
The minor pentatonic plus one extra note, the 'blue note' (b5), which gives blues and rock licks their bite. Here it is in B: the notes, the whole neck, all five boxes with TAB, and a backing track to practise over.
Notes in the B blues scale
- B1
- Db3
- E4
- Fb5
- F♯5
- Ab7
Formula: 1 – b3 – 4 – b5 – 5 – b7. Use it to solo over songs in B minor, and over B blues and rock progressions.
B blues scale on the whole neck
Know the scale?
Now solo with it.
A guitar soloing course: 81 short lessons, each one ends with you jamming over a real backing track.
- From 3 notes to your own solos
- Every note on the neck, with sound and TAB
- 379 backing tracks in every key
The 5 boxes (positions) with TAB
Each box is one hand position. Learn Box 1 first: play it up with the TAB, then back down, then move to the next box – together they cover the whole neck.
Box 1 · frets 7–10
e|-------------------------------------7--10-| B|-------------------------------7--10-------| G|----------------------7--9--10-------------| D|----------------7--9-----------------------| A|-------7--8--9-----------------------------| E|-7--10-------------------------------------|
Box 2 · frets 9–12
e|----------------------------------10-12-| B|----------------------------10-12-------| G|-------------------9--10-11-------------| D|-------------9--12----------------------| A|-------9--12----------------------------| E|-10-12----------------------------------|
Box 3 · frets 11–15
e|-------------------------------------12-13-14-| B|-------------------------------12-15----------| G|-------------------------11-14----------------| D|----------------12-14-15----------------------| A|----------12-14-------------------------------| E|-12-13-14-------------------------------------|
Box 4 · frets 2–5
e|-----------------------2-5-| B|-------------------3-5-----| G|---------------2-4---------| D|---------2-3-4-------------| A|-----2-5-------------------| E|-2-5-----------------------|
Box 5 · frets 4–7
e|-----------------------5-7-| B|-----------------5-6-7-----| G|-------------4-7-----------| D|---------4-7---------------| A|-----5-7-------------------| E|-5-7-----------------------|
3 B minor licks to play with it
Box 1 licks from the JamEase lick library, written for B minor (h = hammer-on, p = pull-off, / = slide, b = bend, ~ = vibrato).
Top-string answer
Down from the top, a step back, and home on the high root.
e|-10-7-----7--| B|-------10----| G|-------------| D|-------------| A|-------------| E|-------------|
Pentatonic repeat
One little three-note shape, walked down the box in triplets.
e|-10p-7-------------------------------| B|---------10--10p-7-------------------| G|---------------------9---9p--7-------| D|---------------------------------9---| A|-------------------------------------| E|-------------------------------------|
Vibrato home
Two notes, then hold the root and shake it. Vibrato is your voice.
e|----------| B|----------| G|-7--9-----| D|-------9~-| A|----------| E|----------|
B minor backing track
Play the boxes over this, starting and ending phrases on the gold root notes.
Slow As Hell B Minor Blues Backing Track | SRV Style Guitar Jam (43.33 BPM) – Now YOU Shred Backing Tracks
Songs in B minor
These songs are in B minor, so this is a scale that fits for soloing over them:
- Iris – Goo Goo Dolls
- Hotel California – Eagles
- Radioactive – Imagine Dragons
- Say Something – A Great Big World
- Wake Me Up – Avicii
- Oceans Where Feet May Fail – Hillsong United
- Comfortably Numb – Pink Floyd
- Home – Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
- Society – Eddie Vedder
- Exit Music For A Film – Radiohead
- Diamonds – Rihanna
- Beggin – Måneskin
Other scales in B
- B Minor Pentatonic Scale
- B Major Pentatonic Scale
- B Major Blues Scale
- B Major Scale
- B Natural Minor Scale
- B Dorian Mode
- B Mixolydian Mode
- B Phrygian Mode
- B Lydian Mode
- B Harmonic Minor Scale
- B Melodic Minor Scale
Blues Scale in other keys
- C Blues Scale
- C♯ Blues Scale
- D Blues Scale
- E♭ Blues Scale
- E Blues Scale
- F Blues Scale
- F♯ Blues Scale
- G Blues Scale
- G♯ Blues Scale
- A Blues Scale
- B♭ Blues Scale
Put it to use: solo with it, step by step, starting with three notes.
FAQ
What notes are in the B blues scale?
B, D, E, F, F#, A. The formula is 1 b3 4 b5 5 b7.
Where do I start playing the B blues scale on guitar?
Start with Box 1, frets 7–10. The root note B is on the low E string at fret 7.