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Been uploading old tracks I recorded ages ago and hopefully some new noodles here.
Phrasing and feel is just unreal.
What sort of stuff are you listening too?
Thanks for that.
https://youtu.be/zSTAvmXG5m8
Also, pretty much any BB King or Peter Green...
https://youtu.be/2ieI49hlOUw
https://youtu.be/RtmW2ek7WkQ
doing all at once is going to be a bit much - best focus on maybe two so say song/comping vocab plus knowing the blues scale in all 5 positions throughly? for instance
A. I tend to always start a solo on the Root note ie E for blues in E
B. Bends don't come naturally
C. Play too many notes when i need to play less (and make them count more)
B. Try using the 4th position minor pentatonic (you'll often find Clapton using it). IMHO it probably lends itself to bends more readily than the other positions.
C. Don't be afraid to leave space between licks or even between individual notes. It's very easy to feel you have to be filling every available space but you really don't need to. See the examples in my previous post and embrace the space.
A - Start on other degrees of the scale. (i.e. Modes.) This is pretty common in horn-led Jazz and Blues.
B - So, work at it.
String bends need to ascend to (or descend from) a discernible pitch. From any given fret position, fret the note two semitones higher. Memorise that pitch. Then, from the initial given fret position, bend until you reach the target pitch. Once there, apply some finger vibrato. This will sustain the note and mask any pitch inaccuracy.
Once you have the hang of that, try downward release bends. Pre-bend to a raised pitch. Gradually release to the fretted note.
Some B. B. King licks involve fractional bends. Very slight sharpening at the beginning of a note to provide emphasis - not unlike singing. (Which brings me to ...)
C - Have something to say. Some famous Blues guitarists have likened guitar phrasing to speech.
A) Try starting /targetting chord tones other than the root note. The 3rd (G# of an E chord) is a good option. Even better try playing the b3 (G) leading to the thirds at the start of a phrase.
Early blues players, eg T-Bone Walker don't use a lot of string bending (probably because they were using fairly heavy flatwound strings), so don't worry about this now. The early players used 1/4 tone bends and slides.
C) Listening to great players helps.
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.