It isn’t that tough to learn blues guitar, but you do need the right instruction. Sure there are some different formats to the songs (12 bar blues) and there are blues guitar chords you’re going to need to learn, but that’s what we’re going to do in this article.
In this article I’ll share with you your first five blues guitar chords. These take the form of most blues chords which are 7th chords. I’ll first show you the chord with some simple tab and then go over the proper fingering for the chord.
A7
e————-
B—–2——–
G————–
D—–2——–
A————–
E————-
This chord is a 6 string chord. Note from the tab that you play the second fret on both the B and D strings. You should use your second finger on the second fret of the D string and your third finger on the second fret of the B string.
E7
e————-
B————–
G—–1——–
D————–
A—–2——–
E————–
The E seventh chord is also a six string chord. This version of the E chord looks very similar to the E major chord in open position with one note removed. USe your third finger on the A string and your first finger on the G string to play the E7 chord.
C7
e————-
B—–1——–
G—–3——–
D—–2——–
A—–3——–
E—–X——-
This chord is only a five string chord, note the X on the E string of the tab above. You’ll need more then two fingers to form this shape as well. To form the C7 shape use your third finger on the third fret of the A string, your second finger on the second fret of the D string, 4th finger on the 4rd fret of the G string and finally your first finger on the first fret of the B string. This shape may feel a bit awkward at first so be sure to take your time.
F7
e——1——
B—–1——–
G—–2——–
D—–1——–
A—–3——–
E—–1——-
There are two ways you can play this chord and the easiest in my opinion is to play it as a barre chord on the first fret. Note how the basic shape is like the E7 chord except you’ve barred the first fret. Use your index finger (first finger) to create a bar at the first fret next make the same shape as E7 on the 3rd and 2nd frets using your second and third fingers.
D Seventh Chord
e——2——
B—–1——–
G—–2——–
D————–
A————–
E—–X——-
This is the second of two five string chords in this set. Like the C7 chord you do not strum the low E string during the D7 chord. Some beginners look at this chord and think it looks like a backwards D major. Use your 1st finger on the 1st fret of the B string, then your 2nd finger on the 2nd fret of the G string, your third finger on the the second fret of the G string and finally you third finger on the first fret of the E string.
To pick up some more blues guitar chords and other techniques I suggest you try a blues guitar lesson dvd. With practice and some good instruction you’ll be a great blues player in not time.