Blues scale · 6 notes
F blues scale on guitar
The F blues scale has 6 notes: F, A♭, B♭, C♭, C and E♭. The minor pentatonic plus one “blue note”, the ♭5: six notes of pure blues.
Notes
- F
- A♭
- B♭
- C♭
- C
- E♭
Formula
1 ♭3 4 ♭5 5 ♭7
Steps
W+H – W – H – H – W+H – W
Sound
Gritty, crying and unmistakably bluesy
F blues on the whole fretboard
Every F blues note from the open strings to the 15th fret in standard tuning (E A D G B E). The root, F, is shown in red so you can always find home.
A shape to learn first
You don’t need the whole neck at once. This hand position is anchored on a root note on the 6th (low E) string, which is how most guitarists find a scale in any key.
Root on the 6th (low E) string
F at fret 1. 1st position: frets 1–4.
In the Guitar Scale Finder app you also get the chords of F blues as chord diagrams, and can search all 1,860 scales for the notes you play.
Intervals and formula
Measured from F, the F blues scale is built from these intervals. It contains 4 flats (A♭, B♭, C♭ and E♭).
| Degree | Note | Interval | Semitones from root |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | F | root | 0 |
| ♭3 | A♭ | minor 3rd | 3 |
| 4 | B♭ | perfect 4th | 5 |
| ♭5 | C♭ | diminished 5th | 6 |
| 5 | C | perfect 5th | 7 |
| ♭7 | E♭ | minor 7th | 10 |
Chords that go with F blues
A 6-note scale doesn’t make a full set of triads, so guitarists use the chords of its parent scale, F minor. Every note of F blues is in these chords’ key.
- iFmF · A♭ · C
- ii°G°G · B♭ · D♭
- ♭IIIA♭A♭ · C · E♭
- ivB♭mB♭ · D♭ · F
- vCmC · E♭ · G
- ♭VID♭D♭ · F · A♭
- ♭VIIE♭E♭ · G · B♭
Progressions to try
- Fm – B♭m – Cm i–iv–v · minor blues, from the parent minor key
- Fm – D♭ – Cm i–♭VI–v
How to use F blues
Reach for it over 12-bar blues, blues-rock, and over dominant 7th chords and minor chords. Its sound is gritty, crying and unmistakably bluesy.
Tip: Treat the ♭5 as a passing note: slide or hammer through it on the way between the 4th and 5th rather than landing on it.
- The F blues scale is F minor pentatonic plus the “blue note” C♭. See F minor pentatonic.
Where to find F on every string
Knowing where the root sits lets you start this scale anywhere. Here is every F between the open string and the 12th fret.
| String | Frets with F |
|---|---|
| High E (1st) | 1 |
| B (2nd) | 6 |
| G (3rd) | 10 |
| D (4th) | 3 |
| A (5th) | 8 |
| Low E (6th) | 1 |
Same notes, different name
These scales from the Scale Finder library contain exactly the same notes as F blues. They sound different because a different note is treated as home.
F blues scale FAQ
What notes are in the F blues scale?
The F blues scale has 6 notes: F, A♭, B♭, C♭, C and E♭. Its formula is 1 ♭3 4 ♭5 5 ♭7. It contains 4 flats (A♭, B♭, C♭ and E♭).
What chords go with the F blues scale?
The F blues scale is drawn from F minor, whose chords are Fm, G°, A♭, B♭m, Cm, D♭ and E♭. It also works over a F blues built on dominant 7th chords.
Where do you play the F blues scale on guitar?
The root, F, is at fret 1 on the low E string and fret 8 on the A string. A good first shape covers frets 1–4, starting from the root on the 6th string.
Which scales share the same notes as F blues?
The F blues scale is F minor pentatonic plus the “blue note” C♭.