Fred recommended that players of the Blues (or any genre) research the material they are going to play, and the artists that have performed the songs. Gary Davis’ “Candy Man,” in the key of C. Once these movements are worked out, the piece can be worked out in all keys, although some adaptations will be necessary.įred finished out the evening playing some of his favorites. This can be a convenient technique to get to a desired position on the neck. Fred often uses familiar chord shapes moving them into various positions. The eight- or twelve-bar segments are connected with a turnaround section similar to a solo break. For Fred, a lighter string action on a guitar doesn’t make playing any easier for him he actually prefers a heavier action which has an added benefit of giving the guitar a fuller sound. The lighter touch also helps minimize hand fatigue when playing. Some other playing techniques Fred mentioned are palm-muting most of the bass notes using a thumb pick along with the first and second fingers of the right hand and using a lighter touch with the left hand.that is, using just enough finger pressure to avoid string buzz. Blues is played fingerstyle, sometimes with the help of finger and/or thumb picks. Most of them have twelve-bar phrases, but some have eight, such as “Trouble in Mind,” and “Key to the Highway.” Fred emphasized that playing Blue songs is “All about the groove,” a strong bass accompaniment by the right thumb on strings six and five (or four and five) accompanying a 1-5-4 chord progression. He says, “Doodle long enough, and the guitar will reveal its secrets to you.”īlues songs are normally played solo with voice by a single performer. That is, randomly playing riffs and combinations of notes to see what develops. One inspirational tool Fred utilizes is what he calls “doodling” on the guitar. With Fred’s permission this video will be posted to YouTube and be available to all through a link on this site.Īccording to Fred, one of the beauties of the guitar is that it is always revealing new things about itself as one plays. One of our attendees made a video of Fred as he ran through the piece at a leisurely pace. He had the attendees who brought guitars play along with him as he did a section-by-section analysis of the song. In order to illustrate his technique, Fred played through “Key to the Highway”, an 8-bar Big Bill Broonzy song played in the key of E. The sound of his resonator guitar running through Jerry Carter’s amp was satisfying to Fred and all present. Fred strung it with D’Addario Half Round strings, with gauges of. The guitar was made in San Luis Obispo, California. He had already performed two gigs that day and was pleasantly surprised with the relaxed and congenial atmosphere.įred brought his National Resonator guitar which has a factory-installed magnetic pickup. Not only were the guitarists present pleasantly entertained and well-instructed, but Fred himself was relaxed and enjoying the lively interaction that is typical of RGC meetings. Fred discussed the history and evolution of this music and demonstrated many of the techniques.Ī number of the attendees joined in as Fred explained some of the basic structures of the blues. His speciality is Delta and Piedmont fingerstyle acoustic blues invented and made famous by American journeymen blues guitarists such as Robert Johnson, Blind Blake and Reverend Gary Davis. The April 17 meeting of RGC featured local guitarist and bluesman, Fred Vine, who started playing guitar around 1965. Fred Vine Talks about the Blues – Apr 17, 2017
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