"Triple Lowden 8 Bar" - a very simple Blues

[VikingBlues]

Thought I should add something more blues. But I'm having to re-learn things a bit. Playing blues on an acoustic and not an electric - rather a different task.

Here's a very simple 8 bar recording in A - three tracks recorded all with the Lowden. 1st verse there's rhythm only, then one verse with (simulated*) bass added, then the third Lowden track with a lead line from verse 3 onwards.

It's not so easy when there's no backing track with a good strong rhythm and you have to do it all yourself. Must practice more.

download/file.php?id=3037


*-simulated in I just used the DAW to drop the track an octave.

[MichaelRobinson]

VB... I have the same problem. I know my problem is to play finger style with a walking bass, witch I can't. I can hear it but I can't play it, as often is the case.

Maby we should be class mates ??

[tytlblues]

Well this is very nice VB.....love this acoustic and the melody here is lovely.

[VikingBlues]

VB... I have the same problem. I know my problem is to play finger style with a walking bass, witch I can't. I can hear it but I can't play it, as often is the case.

Maby we should be class mates ??

I'm afraid I'm very bad at learning the ways to "properly" do things. So I just end up making it up as I go along - though to be fair I enjoy the process a lot more as a result.

The sort of acoustic blues with laid down "rules" for which finger patterns to use and how to play a bass line at the same time leave me cold and have me running for cover. I recall last year starting to look at Travis picking with the acoustic -I left that particular classroom very rapidly.

The teacher I use most on line for blues - Michael "Hawkeye" Herman is very much of the school that the pupil has a great deal of freedom to interpret how to play in their own way - which gets my vote!

Well this is very nice VB.....love this acoustic and the melody here is lovely.

Thanks for those thoughts. The melody line jumped into my head as soon a I started playing the chords for the first time - I love it when that happens.

[12bar]

Sitting in the Delta - great atmosphere!
I too have problems with the walking bass, I have to be very concentrated to manage it, and can only play simple lines. So no problem with 3 tracks!

[Blindboy]

This is very nice.
I like how you built up the tracks, (I have trouble doing that. ) and I love the sound of the Lowden.
It doesn't really sound "Delta" to my ears, but it is definately Blues. You have surely found your voice.
On the subject of walking or alternating thumb bass, I can do it, but I do it wrong.

[VikingBlues]

Sitting in the Delta - great atmosphere!
I too have problems with the walking bass, I have to be very concentrated to manage it, and can only play simple lines. So no problem with 3 tracks!

Thanks Gerd. Glad it's not just me! I do find that trying to play a bass line at the same time as the chordal playing on an acoustic takes away a lot of my ability, such as it is, to be expressive - it just ends up sounding stilted. So the solution of being my own trio works OK for me.

This is very nice.
I like how you built up the tracks, (I have trouble doing that. ) and I love the sound of the Lowden.
It doesn't really sound "Delta" to my ears, but it is definately Blues. You have surely found your voice.
On the subject of walking or alternating thumb bass, I can do it, but I do it wrong.

Thanks Blindboy - I'm pleased to hear your comment about my "voice" in particular.

The Lowden has a sound that is everything that I hoped for when I started the search for a high quality acoustic.
It's not a voice ideally suited for authentic gritty blues - I feel it's much more a voice that fits into the folk / celtic arena. Which is the sort of genre so many Lowdens buyers play. But for more gentle almost folksy blues I feel it sounds fine.

But ... ouch .... those bends on an acoustic! Even with the lower tension Newtone Heritage strings. OK if I keep the sessions pretty short.

[12bar]

The song I started picking the bass line was Hey, Hey, played by EC but pretty much in the Big Bill Broonzy style. I tabbed it for my tutorials pretty fast but needed a long time to get it halfway right. The key was really slowing it down and starting with thumb than adding more and more notes with the rest of the fingers. I still fake it a bit at the turnaround, but I have my fun with it. I took it because I LOVED that song and really wanted to play it.
(The same was mean old World for my slide playing in open G. I played it over and over to get it right.)