Slide Guitar Lesson: The Mixolydian scale on the slide guitar

Have you ever wanted to play slide guitar licks that sound like “”Dreams from the Allman Brothers, or maybe “Soul Serenade” from the Derek Trucks band?  If you said yes, then the Mixolydian Scale is the scale you need to learn.

So what is the mixolydian scale?  Well, this scale is exactly like the major scale except for one note, the b7th.  This one note makes a drastic change from the sound of the major scale, and you’ll hear this sound in many types of music including blues,  R&B, Funk, and Jazz.  Bass players use this scale to play all the funky bass lines you’ve heard including, “We Want the Funk” from Parliament.

So why should I learn this scale?  Put simply, the mixolydian scale will open up a whole new world of sounds for you.  It’s kinda like the Major scale but not as pretty sounding.  Hear are the intervals contained in the major scale and then in the mixolydian scale. As you can see there is only one note difference, the b7th. This makes a huge difference in sound between the two scales, and also when you can use each one.

Major 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Mixolydian 1 2 3 4 5 6 b7

If you already know the Major Scale you just have to change one note to be able to learn this scale.  It’s not really that hard, but you have to get a feel for what this scale sounds like so you can understand how to use it.

Play each note of the Major scale and sing the note as you play it.  Now do the same with the Mixolydian scale and take note how the b7th changes the sound of the scale.  Memorize this sound in your head.

Here is how you play the Mixolydian scale in Open E Tuning in the key of C.

Here is a slide guitar lick in Open E Tuning using the Mixolydian Scale in the key of C.

This Scale sounds great when played over a C to Bb chord progression.

I’ve recently released a Slide Guitar DVD that explains the Mixolydian scale on more detail.  This scale is a must learn if you want to take your slide guitar playing to the next level.

For more info on slide guitar check out my website as well as all of my slide guitar DVDs.