The instruments you need to learn to play blues rock
Blues Rock music is the fusion genre most identifiable with the 1960’s and 1970’s rock music scene that made Led Zeppelin, Cream, Janis Joplin, Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jeff Beck, The Rolling Stones, and The Allman Brothers Band famous.
These musicians are still selling records worldwide, some long after their deaths.
Blues Rock music needs two specific elements – a three-chord song which is traditional in blues music, and instrumental improvisation. Blues Rock has also had significant influences on hard rock and southern rock.
If you want to learn to play the music that has inspired several decades of rock music you must learn electric bass, electric guitar, and drums. These three instruments are the staple of blues rock music.
Electric Bass
The purpose of the electric bass in blues rock music is to outline the chord progression.
The bass guitarist backs up the vocalist or band leader as well as any solos that are happening and serve as the rhythm keeper of the band.
The Fender Standard Jazz Bass
Fender is one of the most well-known names around the music world. The Fender Standard Jazz and the Precision Bass are both made in Mexico and are much more affordable than the American made versions but still offer fantastic sound quality.
The Jazz Standard has an Alder body with a polyester finish and a C-shape maple neck. The rosewood fingerboards have 20 frets and open gear tuners.
Ibanez SR500
Ibanez is another well-known guitar and bass maker, and the SR500 does not disappoint with its mahogany body and warm, resonant sound. The Ibanez bass has a thin neck that offers fast fingering around the fretboard.
Electric Guitar
The electric guitar is the lead guitar and plays melodic lines and impressive solos. Blues rock can be emotional and fast-paced with a lot of instrumental components.
A blues rock guitar needs to be fast while allowing for improvising.
Most blues rock bands have a heavy focus on the lead guitar, so the instrument needs to be high quality, reliable, and offer flexibility in play.
Fender American Special Stratocaster
If you’ve ever picked up a guitar, you know that the Stratocaster sets the standard for electric guitar.
These American made guitars are the best guitars for under one thousand dollars and feature an alder body which is Fender’s trademark with a 9.5 in radius neck. Rosewood or lacquered maple fretboards are standard for this guitar.
The trademark feature of the Stratocaster, however, is the three single-coil pickups which make the Stratocaster tone famous.
Epiphone Les Paul Standard
The Epiphone Les Paul Standard is one of the best beginner electric guitars that even most blues rock players start out learning to play music on. The Epiphone offers a high-quality alternative to the original Gibson Les Paul.
The Les Paul guitars have the second most iconic guitar body shape. The Epiphone body is mahogany and features a treated maple top and rosewood fretboard.
Les Paul electric guitars are set apart by their Alnico humbuckers. This feature allows for easy volume control when timing needs to be fast.
Drum Kit
The double bass set became the standard kit for jazz players and was popularized by rock drummers making them an excellent fusion genre kit for blues rock music.
The double bass set allows for quick patterns that are powerful.
However, traditionally blues and acoustic rock are played with drum kits featuring fewer pieces and smaller drums while larger drums are better for rock and other amplified styles.
Before choosing a drum kit for a blues rock band, make sure you understand precisely how the band intends to perform their blues rock music.
Yamaha Stage Custom Birch
This all birch 5-piece drum kit by Yamaha is perfect for the beginner or intermediate blues rock players.
The 6-ply shells on this Stage Custom’s kit are 6.6mm thick, butt-jointed, and straight sided with bearing edges cut at 45 degrees. The toms are quick at delivering the fat notes at a loud volume that are quickly tunable.
The snare is bright and offers tuning ranging from funky cracks to expansive clonks. This drum kit exemplifies the Yamaha brand.
Tama Superstar Hyper-Drive
The Superstar drum kit includes a bass drum, snare drum, on-floor tom, and two rack toms.
Tama Superstar Hyper-Drive is made of maple wood and offers superb low and medium tones.
While Tama brand is newer on the music scene, the Hyper-Drive Kit is designed for a crisp and focused sound with lots of texture and soul.
The showstopper of this Tama kit is the Duo Snare with legs. When you disable the snares, the duo becomes your first-floor tom.
People love to play blues rock music because of the soulful lyrics and meaningful melodies that mix with chords and beats from rock that are upbeat, lively and get a crowd lively and engaged.
If you want to start playing blues rock music or start a blues rock band, learn one of the three main instruments – guitar, bass, or drum kit, and you’ll become the next blues rock legend.
I’ve always wanted to learn blues rock music. I suppose I will need lessons to play it properly because it has two specific elements that I won’t learn in a day. Since you said that I have to learn to play the electric guitar to play these songs, I will consider taking up some classes if I find any good ones I can enroll in.
I really enjoyed reading it. It’s a very good article. Thanks