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6 Cutting-Edge Blues Licks You MUST Know

If you love to play the blues, you don’t want to miss TrueFire artist Jay-P’s first course, 30 Cutting Edge Blues Licks You MUST Know. You’ll find modern sounding blues licks taken from the toolbox of Robben Ford, Eric Johnson, Greg Koch, Carl Verheyen, Vince Gill, Joe Bonamassa, and more.

In these lessons taken from the course, Jay-P will mix in a bit of country, funk, rock, and jazz to bring a contemporary sound to the blues along with different scales, modes, and concepts that will challenge the listener. Let’s check it out:

Chroma Jazz

Download the tab, notation, and jam track for this blues lick on TrueFire.

This lick is a jazzy/country lick in A, which starts with a chromatic line and a slide.

Koch Diminished

Download the tab, notation, and jam track for this blues lick on TrueFire.

This lick is a typical Greg Koch lick and fits nicely in the country/jazz and blues/rock style. It’s a great example of playing chromatic notes in the blues, and it gives the lick almost a diminished character.

A Blue Country

Download the tab, notation, and jam track for this blues lick on TrueFire.

This country/blues lick is a nice one in the key of A, which can also be used as an exercise.

Bona Massa

Download the tab, notation, and jam track for this blues lick on TrueFire.

Lick 18 is a Joe Bonamassa type of blues lick with a Stevie Ray Vaughan vibe. We’re in the key of G.

Fabulous Dave

Download the tab, notation, and jam track for this blues lick on TrueFire.

This complete solo is sort of a Fabulous Thunderbirds style solo, inspired by Dave Gonzalez of the band the Paladins.

Horn Part

Download the tab, notation, and jam track for this blues lick on TrueFire.

This example is in the second position of the blues scale of G and sounds almost like a horn part.


If you’re looking for more cutting edge blues licks to add to your arsenal, make sure to check out the full course on TrueFire. Each lick comes with the tab, notation, and jam track you need to learn it on your own. In addition, you’ll get two full-length solos from Jay-P that use the concepts from the course to help you put it all together. Be on the cutting edge now!

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