Blues Shuffle on Guitar: Rhythm, Counting and the Classic Accompaniment

What a shuffle is

In a shuffle every beat is divided into three parts: the long eighth takes two of them and the short one takes one. This gives the long-short sway. Most blues and many rock and roll songs rest on this rhythm.

How to count a shuffle

Count in triplets: one-and-a, two-and-a, three-and-a, four-and-a. Play on one and on the a and skip the middle. That gives the long and the short eighth. Until the rhythm becomes familiar, tap it with your palm on your knee.

A metronome with triplets

Set the metronome to 80 beats per minute and switch the subdivision to triplets. The metronome will tick three parts in every beat: you hear the grid the shuffle is played on. Play an open string on the first and third part of every beat.

The classic accompaniment

This is a simple figure on the A chord:

• The open fifth string and a note on the fourth string at the second fret.
• Then the same pair, but with the note on the fourth string at the fourth fret.
• In the second bar the same figure moves one string lower, onto the D chord.
• Keep the sway of the shuffle even and do not hurry.

The 12-bar blues form

The shuffle is played over a three-chord form. In the key of A these are A7, D7 and E7: four bars of A7, two of D7, two of A7, then E7, D7, A7 and E7. Listen to how they sound and try playing the shuffle on each of them.

What to read next

Improvising in the blues: blues guitar improvisation for beginners. Rhythm and beats: how to read rhythm on guitar. For more about the genre see the Blues on Guitar page in the genres section.