G blues

G1B♭♭3C4D♭♭5D5F♭7

Minor pentatonic with one note squeezed in between the fourth and the fifth. It is written as a flattened fifth, so the fifth letter carries both of them and the fourth keeps its own.

on guitar on piano

Written out

Fig. 2 · G blues, ascending

Every accidental is written in, rather than left to a key signature, so the letters can be read one at a time.

The step pattern

GW+HB♭WCHD♭HDW+HFWG

What is true of it

G blues is G, B♭, C, D♭, D and F, and back to G.

Its steps are W+H – W – H – H – W+H – W, where W is a whole step and H a half.

Across the first twelve frets of the ukulele its notes fall in 26 places, which is what makes a scale a shape rather than a list.

Chords made only of these notes

Gmminor Gdimdiminished Gm7minor seventh Gm7♭5half-diminished seventh B♭major B♭mminor

Found by testing every chord in the catalogue against these 6 sounds, not chosen.

Other scales on G

G major pentatonicpentatonic G minor pentatonicpentatonic G major bluespentatonic G majormajor G natural minorminor G harmonic minorminor

C blues C♯ blues D♭ blues D blues D♯ blues E♭ blues E blues F blues all 374