Write a Traditional Blues
In this lesson, explore the foundation of American popular music by writing in a traditional blues form.
Overview
This lesson dives into the foundations of American popular music form with the Traditional Blues. Using a story-telling template, students learn to write in a traditional blues form while exploring how they might overcome challenges that they encounter in their lives.
Blues Backing Tracks
Choose a style, then select a key to open the MP3 in a new tab.
The blues is one of the most influential and enduring song forms in modern music. It’s the foundation of rock, jazz, country, R&B, and more and writing a blues song is one of the best ways for students to experiment with lyrics, rhythm, and storytelling in a simple but powerful format.
What is Traditional Blues Form?
Traditional blues follows a 12-bar structure with an AAB lyric pattern :
A: First line states a thought or feeling.
A: The second line repeats the first (sometimes with a slight variation).
B: The third line resolves the idea, often with a twist or conclusion.
Example: The St. Louis Blues
Lyrics:
I hate to see, the evenin’ sun go down (A)
Hate the see, the evenin’ sun go down (A)
Cause my baby, has done left this town. (B)
Student Handout
To guide students in writing their own blues lyrics, we’ve created a handout where they can develop a four-chorus blues song using the AAB format. Each chorus can tell a new part of the story or expand on the main theme.
This handout is based on the story structure of this highly recommended “How to Write Your First Rap” Video, which also works perfectly for a blues song story structure.
Blues Chord Progression
The 12-bar blues progression is simple but powerful. Here’s a basic chord structure in C major :
C7 | C7 | C7 | C7
F7 | F7 | C7 | C7
G7 | F7 | C7 | G7
And in Roman Numerals
I7 | I7 | I7 | I7
IV7 | IV7 | I7 | I7
V7 | IV7 | I7 | I7
This same pattern works in all 12 keys