Blues & boogie
Blues and boogie-woogie piano: swinging left hands from the 1950s.
Chords: G7, C7, G7, C7, G7, D7, C7, G7, D7
How to play it
Left hand: Rock’n’roll rocker
The left hand rocks between two shapes, straight out of the 1950s.
Right hand: Offbeat skank
Chords only on the “and”: reggae and swing.
Both hands
Play them together over the Bluesy chord loop, in 4/4 at about 112 beats a minute, with a swing. Start at 60% speed.
Songs in this style
Questions
What does the left hand play in blues and boogie-woogie piano?
Patterns like Rock’n’roll rocker, Boogie walker and Jazz walk. The first is the one you hear on this page.
What does the right hand play?
Patterns like Offbeat skank, Heartbeat chords and Swing push, over the chords of the loop.
Which songs are played in this style?
Jolene by Dolly Parton, Can't Help Falling In Love by Elvis Presley and The Man Who Sold The World by Nirvana use the Blues & boogie style. The songs on this page all are played in this style, the most played first.