Creating Your Own Tune

So that's it, you've got the tune. Now, this is the exciting bit where you can do your own thing with it. This is what I love about tunes like this. They're so simple and they have so much flexibility and freedom for you to really show your personality in your playing.

Exploring Styles

I love blues and boogie-woogie, which means when I get a tune like this, an old swing jazz standard, there's so much flexibility and room to do all sorts of things.

Starting Point: Pentatonic Scales

• We'll start with some nice, simple pentatonic scales and move through to some little bluesy lines.
• You should find what you like playing and add your own thing in; it's going to sound great!

Key Concept: This whole tune is based around the G pentatonic scale.

• Anything in swing, jazz, blues, or boogie-woogie, we like adding the minor third.
• So in this tune, we're actually playing a B natural.
• However, when it comes to improv and just having a bit of fun, let's go from the B flat to the B. This always adds color and a certain jazziness.

Practical Example

• When we're hitting a B, hit a B flat first and then roll onto the B.
• So let's take the A section. In the simplest form of improvisation, let's start with three notes: D, E, and G.

Tip: Get rid of the melody out of your head.

• Use just those three notes.
• If this is your first step into improvisation, just have a bit of fun! It's jazz and blues, there are no wrong notes, okay?

Playing the A Section

I'll play the left hand; here's what I would do using only these three notes:

1. Remember, rhythm is important here because we don't have a lot of notes.
2. Let's try to be inventive with the rhythms.

Count In:

• "1, A, 2, A. 1, 2, 3."

Note: I cheated and added an extra note at the end, but that's it!

Now, let's use those three notes.

Improvise with Right Hand

• I'll play the left hand, and you improvise with the right hand using D, E, and G, anything you want!
• It doesn't have to be the melody; just have fun!

Count In Again:

• "One, A, two, A. One, two, three. It's all yours, anything you want."

Repeat that process!

Feel free to keep playing back that left hand while you work on some more tricks with your right hand.

Expanding Your Note Range

Now that you've got the three notes, D, E, and G, let's add a few more:

• B flat and B

So now your notes are D, E, G, B flat, and B. You also have D and E up high, which gives a nice little range.

Demonstration:

• I'll just use those notes and show you a few things I would do along with the left hand.

Example Sound:

• "1, A, 2, A. 1, 2, 3."

Here's a nice little trick: B flat to B to D on a loop.

• Use your second finger on the B flat, third finger on the B, and your little finger on the D.

More Tricks

Let's throw in some more bluesy tricks:

• We have the G chord, but again we'll catch the B flat.
• This is a classic thing in blues where we go from G, moving the B and D up to a C and E, then back to the B and D.

Demonstration Speed

• At speed, you get this!

Practice:

• Chord: G, B, D
• Move to: C, E
• Then back down.

Example Sound:

• "Here we go again: 1, A, 2, A. 1, 2, 3."

Final Improv

Experiment! Have some fun. Keep playing me playing the left hand and improvise.

Once you've got those bluesy lines:

1. Add the left hand in.
2. Put the right hand in.

It's going to sound amazing!

I can't wait to hear you playing these tunes. I love this song so much, I got to play it with my hero, Jules Holland.

Final Note: I can't wait to be playing it with you soon. Enjoy, and you're sounding great already!