A blues scale
A blues scale is A – C – D – E♭ – E – G, with E♭. Formula 1 ♭3 4 ♭5 5 ♭7. Play it, then slow the tempo until every note is clear.
A blues scale, note by note
Counted in steps it goes W+H W H H W+H W (W = whole step, H = half step, W+H = a step and a half). The half steps fall between D–E♭ and E♭–E. The wide steps are A–C and E–G.
| Degree | Note | Interval from A | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A | root | |
| ♭3 | C | minor third | |
| 4 | D | perfect fourth | |
| ♭5 | E♭ | tritone | |
| 5 | E | perfect fifth | |
| ♭7 | G | minor seventh |
What A blues sounds like
The blues scale is the minor pentatonic with one extra note, the ♭5 (E♭). That note is meant to be passed through, not landed on: it's the gritty in-between sound of the blues.
Over a A7 chord the ♭3 (C) clashes with the chord's major third on purpose; bending it slightly sharp is the blues.
A blues scale is A minor pentatonic scale plus E♭. Hear A minor pentatonic scale and compare.
Playing A blues
Keyboard players: one black (E♭), five white.
15 notes fit in the box between frets 3 and 9, with A at the 5th fret of the low E string.
What to play it over
Every note of these chords is in the scale: Am, Am7, Asus4, C, Cm, Csus2, Dsus2, Gsus2, Dsus4, Gsus4, C6, Cm6.
A blues scale across the fretboard
The root, A, sits at fret 5 on the low E string and 0 and 12 on the A string (0 = open). Treat the ♭5 as a passing note; slide through it rather than landing on it.
On the piano, A blues scale uses 1 black key (E♭) and 5 white.
A good drill once the scale is under your fingers: play it in thirds, skipping one note each time. Here that's A–D, C–E♭, D–E, E♭–G, E–A, G–C.
Three ways to practise A blues
Once A blues is comfortable up and down, break the order. Each pattern below uses only its 6 notes.
- Three-note runs: A C D · C D E♭ · D E♭ E · E♭ E G · E G A.
- Lean on E♭: A E♭ A E♭ A: the ♭5, the blue note, squeezed between the 4th and 5th.
Close relatives of A blues scale
Blues scale in every key
A blues scale: questions
What are the notes of the A blues scale?
A, C, D, E♭, E and G, then A again at the octave. Formula: 1 ♭3 4 ♭5 5 ♭7.
How many sharps or flats are in the A blues scale?
One: E♭.
What's the difference between A blues scale and A minor pentatonic scale?
It adds E♭.
What chords go with the A blues scale?
Any chord built only from its notes, for example Am, Am7, Asus4, C, Cm and Csus2. In a 12-bar blues in A it also works over the IV and V seventh chords, where the clashing notes are part of the sound.
Notes and fingering generated from the scale formula and checked automatically against the step pattern. Updated September 2026.