Lesson four. Two days to go. If you put your time in after the last lesson, this is going to make sense. If you didn’t — well, there’s still time. I’m giving you a little wiggle room here because these next two riffs are the hardest in the whole solo.

This is Part 4 of the Slow Blues Solo Challenge. Start from Part 1 if you’re just finding this.

Riff 7 — Going Low

After riff six brought us back to E, I wanted to really feature that low E for a bit. So riff seven drops down to the fifth string.

You slide up on the fifth string to the 14th fret from the 12th. Then — and this is the tricky part — while that note is still ringing, you drop your pinky underneath your third finger to hit the fourth string at the 14th fret. All three notes end up ringing together. It’s a beautiful sound, but it takes some coordination to pull off cleanly.

Then there’s a string skip. Instead of walking through the scale step by step, you jump from the fifth string 12th fret, slide down, and land on the tonic at the 12th fret sixth string. That skip gives the riff a smooth, vocal quality — like a singer jumping down to a low note for effect.

If this is where you get hung up, you’re in good company. Take it slow and don’t worry if it doesn’t feel right away like it sounds when I play it. It’ll come.

Riff 8 — The Climb

Riff seven ends on the lowest E in the scale. Riff eight goes the opposite direction — it’s a series of ascending hammer-ons that build right up to the highest point of the whole solo.

Twelfth fret fifth string, hammer to the 14th. Cross over — 12th fret fourth string, hammer to the 14th. Again on the third string, 12th to 14th. Then 14th fret third string and hammer up to the 16th.

The fingering matters here. First finger, third finger, first, third, first, third, first, third. If you keep that pattern, you’ll line yourself up perfectly for riff nine in the next lesson without having to move your hand at all.

Make it smooth. Each hammer-on should ring out clearly. You can practice this using the full climbing scale — it’s the same technique, just applied to a shorter run of notes.

Working the Hard Parts

Here’s the thing with difficult riffs — you don’t have to master them in context right away. Separate riff seven and riff eight. Get each one solid on its own. Then start working them together over the jam track. Be creative with the timing. Play them in different spots of the progression. The notes fit the key, so you’ve got freedom to experiment.

Once those two feel comfortable, put all eight bars together. By now the first six riffs should be getting pretty automatic, so focus your energy on seven and eight.

Almost There

My practice suggestion: 10 minutes of scales, then 30 minutes focused on whatever’s weakest. Riffs one through four should be solid by now. Five and six might need a little polish. But seven and eight — those are your project for tonight.

One more lesson and this solo is done. Part 5 — Completing the Solo brings it all home with string bends, the BB King slide trick, and the blues note.

Back to the full Blues Soloing section.