Why modify Lick 4 and 5 for IV & V chord?

Tangled_up_in_Blue

Blues Newbie
Hi @Griff or any other forum member that can clear up some confusion I have with this.

Lick 4 starts with the Major sound and then moves into Minor, Griff says that a modification is required when playing over the IV and V chord as the first full bend is a major 3rd and so if we only half-bend we keep that bent note a minor 3rd.I get that. However I have 2 problems that I can't quite wrap my head around.
1. If you look at Ex 38, when Griff applies the half-bend (i.e. the modification) we are still actually on the I chord. So why do we need to modify it?
2. Notes 2 & 4 of the lick are still based in the Major sound but are not modified, and note 4 is being played over the IV chord. So to my mind the note that has been changed does not need to be and why are notes 2 and 4 not modified?

Lick 5 - I have a similar confusion here too. Ex 42 Griff modifies the first note of the lick in bar 8 going from I chord to V but does not modify in bar 4 going from I chord to IV.

TIA
Steve
 

Paleo

Student Of The Blues
Here's my take on it.

1. If you look at Ex 38, when Griff applies the half-bend (i.e. the modification) we are still actually on the I chord. So why do we need to modify it?

We’re at the very end of the I chord.

He's opted to use it as a pick-up "in anticipation" of the change to the IV chord.

2. Notes 2 & 4 of the lick are still based in the Major sound but are not modified, and note 4 is being played over the IV chord.
Note 2 is the 2 and note 4 is the root. Neither is characteristically Major or minor.

3 and 6 are "Major" sounds; b3 and b7 are "minor". sounds.

Lick 5 - I have a similar confusion here too. Ex 42 Griff modifies the first note of the lick in bar 8 going from I chord to V but does not modify in bar 4 going from I chord to IV.

In Bar 4 the lick starts on the b3 (F) of D Major blues Box V going into the D7 chord.


In Bar 8 he lowers that first note to E because he's going into the E7 chord.


In all cases he’s “anticipating” the next chord.
 
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Tangled_up_in_Blue

Blues Newbie
@Paleo and @Griff

Thank you very much for that concise response. That really does clear this up for me and adds to my understanding of how to use these licks (and many others of course). I don't like to get too bogged down with the theory side of things but every now and then something crops up that starts to bug me and I feel a need to understand it a bit more to feel comfortable with it.

Thanks again for taking the time to explain - much appreciated. :thumbup:
 
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