C Major Blues Scale

1Composition: what it contains

C – D – E♭ – E – G – A

Formula

1 2 ♭3 3 5 6

Steps

W – H – H – W+H – W – W+H

Number of notes

6

Sharps and flats

1 ♭

Also called

blues major scale, country blues scale

2Appearance: diagrams and sound

Tip: click any note, key or fret to hear it. Orange = root.

3Indications: what it is used for

The major pentatonic plus the flat third (1-2-♭3-3-5-6). Heard in country, country-rock, southern rock, gospel, jump blues and swing. It fits major and dominant seventh chords, I–IV–V progressions in major keys, and the I7 chord of a major-sounding blues. The ♭3-to-3 move is its signature: a slide or hammer-on from the minor third into the major third. Players often mix it with the minor blues scale to switch between sweet and gritty sounds.

4Dosage: how to practise it

Eight to ten minutes daily at 80–120 BPM over a I–IV–V or blues shuffle. Repeat the cell 2-♭3-3-5 until it is effortless, then extend it to full positions. Practise double stops (third and fifth) and slides into the major third on guitar. On piano, use the ♭3 as a crushed grace note under the major third. On bass, use it for walking lines over dominant chords. Work on phrases starting on the sixth degree and resolving to the root.

5Warnings and common mistakes

The flat third is a passing note: do not sustain it over a major chord. Do not confuse it with the minor blues scale, which uses the flat third as a chord tone and includes the flat fifth. Over the IV chord, the scale built on the tonic may still work, but check the major third against the IV chord's flat seventh. The shapes are identical to the minor blues scale from its relative minor, so keep the major root in mind.

6Interactions with chords, scales and keys

Chords that fit this scale

C Cm Csus2 C6 Cm6 Cadd9 Cm(add9) C6/9

Same notes, different starting point

• A Blues Scale

7Other presentations available

The same scale from every note

• D flat Major Blues Scale
• D Major Blues Scale
• E flat Major Blues Scale
• E Major Blues Scale
• F Major Blues Scale
• F sharp Major Blues Scale
• G Major Blues Scale
• A flat Major Blues Scale
• A Major Blues Scale
• B flat Major Blues Scale
• B Major Blues Scale

Other scales from the same note

• C Major Scale
• C Natural Minor Scale
• C Harmonic Minor Scale
• C Melodic Minor Scale
• C Dorian Mode
• C Phrygian Mode
• C Lydian Mode
• C Mixolydian Mode
• C Locrian Mode
• C Major Pentatonic Scale
• C Minor Pentatonic Scale
• C Blues Scale
• C Whole Tone Scale
• C Half-Whole Diminished Scale
• C Whole-Half Diminished Scale
• C Phrygian Dominant Scale
• C Hungarian Minor Scale
• C Lydian Dominant Scale
• C Altered Scale
• C Double Harmonic Major Scale
• C Bebop Dominant Scale