The
sixteen-bar blues can be a variation on the standard twelve-bar blues or on the less common eight-bar blues.
Adaptation from twelve-bar progression
Most sixteen bar blues are adapted from a standard
twelve-bar progression,
i.e.,
by applying one of several formulae including the following:
Sixteen-bar progression -
extending variety:
first section extended (1a)
T |
T |
T |
T |
| T |
T |
T |
T |
| S |
S |
T |
T |
| D |
S |
T |
T |
Sixteen-bar progression -
extending variety:
third section extended (1b)
T |
T |
T |
T |
| S |
S |
T |
T |
| D |
D |
S |
S |
| T |
T |
T |
T |
Sixteen-bar progression -
repeating variety:
second section repeated (2a)
T |
T |
T |
T |
| S |
S |
T |
T |
| S |
S |
T |
T |
| D |
S |
T |
T |
Sixteen-bar progression -
repeating variety:
third section's first half repeated twice (2b)
T |
T |
T |
T |
| S |
S |
T |
T |
| D |
S |
D |
S |
| D |
S |
T |
T |
|
Sixteen-bar progression -
blend of extending and repeating varieties
(3)
T |
T |
T |
T |
| S |
S |
T |
T |
| D |
S |
D |
S |
| T |
T |
T |
T |
-
- Guide:
- Each table field represents one measure
- T = tonic chord
- S = subdominant chord
- D = dominant chord
(1a) Twelve-bar progression's first tonic chords (bars 1-4) are doubled in length or repeated, becoming the first half (bars 1-8) of the sixteen-bar progression
- Examples: "I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man" and "Close to You", written by Willie Dixon
William James "Willie" Dixon was an American blues musician, vocalist, songwriter, arranger and record producer. A Grammy Award winner who was proficient on both the Upright bass and the guitar, as well as his own singing voice, Dixon is arguably best known as one of the most prolific songwriters...
, first performed by Muddy WatersMcKinley Morganfield , known as Muddy Waters, was an American blues musician, generally considered the "father of modern Chicago blues"...
; and "Oh, Pretty Woman", written by A.C. Williams, first recorded by Albert KingAlbert King was an American blues guitarist and singer, and a major influence in the world of blues guitar playing.-Career:...
(instrumental sections are 12-bars)
(1b) Twelve-bar progression's last dominant, subdominant, and tonic chords (bars 9, 10, and 11-12, respectively) are doubled in length, becoming the sixteen-bar progression's 9th-10th, 11th-12th, and 13th-16th bars
- Example: "Trigger Happy" by "Weird" Al Yankovic (verse, with additional ornamentation and "turnaround
In jazz, a turnaround is a passage at the end of a section which leads to the next section. This next section is most often the repetition of the previous section or the entire piece or song...
" applied to tonic chord in bars 13-16)
(2a) Twelve-bar middle section (subdominant on bars 5-6, tonic on 7-8) is repeated, often along with its lyrical-melodic material
- Examples: "rural" (as opposed to "urban") versions of "See See Rider
The song is generally regarded as being traditional in origin. Ma Rainey's version became popular during 1925, as "See See Rider Blues." It became one of the most famous of all blues songs, with well over 100 versions. It was recorded by Big Bill Broonzy, Mississippi John Hurt, Lead Belly,...
" (as interpreted by, among others, Mississippi John HurtJohn Smith Hurt, better known as Mississippi John Hurt was an American country blues singer and guitarist.Raised in Avalon, Mississippi, Hurt taught himself how to play the guitar around age nine...
, Lead Belly and Big Bill BroonzyBig Bill Broonzy was a prolific American blues singer, songwriter and guitarist. His career began in the 1920s when he played country blues to mostly black audiences. Through the ‘30s and ‘40s he successfully navigated a transition in style to a more urban blues sound popular with white audiences...
); most renditions of "Going Down The Road Feelin' Bad" AKA "Lonesome Road Blues", e.g. by Henry WhitterHenry Whitter was an early country musician.-Biography:...
(first recording of this tune, 1924), the Blue Ridge Duo (George Reneau and Gene AustinGene Austin was an American singer and songwriter, one of the first "crooners". His 1920s compositions "When My Sugar Walks Down the Street" and "The Lonesome Road" became pop and jazz standards.-Career:...
, also co-author of The Lonesome Road"The Lonesome Road" is a 1927 song with music by Nathaniel Shilkret and lyrics by Gene Austin, alternately titled "Lonesome Road", "Look Down that Lonesome Road" and "Lonesome Road Blues." It was written in the style of an African-American folk song....
, a different song) and Woody GuthrieWoodrow Wilson "Woody" Guthrie is best known as an American singer-songwriter and folk musician, whose musical legacy includes hundreds of political, traditional and children's songs, ballads and improvised works. He frequently performed with the slogan This Machine Kills Fascists displayed on his...
; "Sleepy Time TimeFresh Cream is the debut studio album by British supergroup Cream. It was the first LP release of producer Robert Stigwood's new "Independent" Reaction Records label, released in the United Kingdom as both a mono and stereo version on 9 December 1966, the same time as the single release of "I Feel...
" by CreamCream were a 1960s British rock supergroup consisting of bassist/vocalist Jack Bruce, guitarist/vocalist Eric Clapton, and drummer Ginger Baker...
(2b) Transition from ninth (dominant) to tenth (subdominant) twelve-bar chord is repeated twice
- Example: "Watermelon Man" by Herbie Hancock
Herbert Jeffrey "Herbie" Hancock is an American pianist, bandleader and composer. As part of Miles Davis's "second great quintet," Hancock helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the "post-bop" sound...
(3) Transition from ninth (dominant) to tenth (subdominant) twelve-bar chord is repeated once; last tonic chord bars are doubled in length
- Example: "Let's Dance
"Let's Dance" is rock band Slade's last single from 1988. The single was only released in the UK. The song was originally covered in 1985 and appeared on the Crackers – The Christmas Party Album the same year. The track was eventually released as a single after being dropped from RCA Records...
," written by Jim Lee, first performed by Chris MontezChris Montez , is an American singer.-Early life:Montez grew up in Hawthorne, California, influenced by the Latino-flavored music of his community and the success of Ritchie Valens....
, and covered by bands including the RamonesThe Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...
Adaptation from eight-bar progression
Alternatively, a sixteen bar blues can be adapted from a standard eight bar blues by repeating each measure of the eight-bar progression and playing the result at double speed (
doppio movimento).
See also
- Eight-bar blues
- Thirty-two-bar form
The thirty-two-bar form, often called AABA from the musical form or order in which its melodies occur, is common in Tin Pan Alley songs and later popular music including rock, pop and jazz...
- Blues ballad
The term blues ballad is used to refer to a specific form of popular music which fused Anglo-American and Afro-American styles from the late 19th century onwards...
- Talking blues
Talking blues is a form of country music. It is characterized by rhythmic speech or near-speech where the melody is free, but the rhythm is strict....
- '50s progression
The 50s progression is a chord progression and turnaround used in Western popular music. As the name implies, it was common in the 1950s and early 1960s and is particularly associated with doo-wop...
, another chord progression widespread in Western popular music
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