E♭ Blues Scale (E♭ G♭ A♭ A B♭ D♭)
E♭ blues is E♭ G♭ A♭ A B♭ D♭. The blue note comes out spelled plain A, the only natural in a scale of flats. Half-step-down bands play it as E blues fingerings.
Fretboard diagram
Every E♭ blues note from the open strings to fret 22. At fret 12 the map starts over an octave up.
Notes in this scale
| Symbol | Interval | Note |
|---|---|---|
| R | root | E♭ |
| ♭3 | minor third | G♭ |
| 4 | perfect fourth | A♭ |
| ♭5 | flatted fifth | A |
| 5 | perfect fifth | B♭ |
| ♭7 | minor seventh | D♭ |
Where to land
A lead that never touches its root is an exercise. In the first twelve frets E♭ sits on the low E string at fret 11, the A string at fret 6, the D string at fret 1, the G string at fret 8, the B string at fret 4, and the high E string at fret 11. End phrases on one of them until it's automatic, then start aiming for whichever chord tone the band is sitting on instead.
The A is the exception to every landing rule. Bend into it, slide through it, resolve it to the B♭ a half step up or keep falling to the fourth. Treat it as a note you visit, and keep ending phrases on E♭, the way every blues record you own already does.
Keep exploring
Same root
Same notes
E♭ minor pentatonic is this scale without the ♭5.
Chords it fits over
E♭7 for a blues, E♭m and E♭m7 for everything darker.
Nearby keys
E♭ blues FAQ
What notes are in the E♭ blues scale?
E♭ blues contains E♭, G♭, A♭, A, B♭, and D♭. That's the root, the minor third, the perfect fourth, the flatted fifth, the perfect fifth, and the minor seventh.
What fret does E♭ blues start on?
The lowest root is E♭ at fret 11 on the low E string, and most players anchor there. The scale itself covers the whole neck, and everything repeats twelve frets higher.
What is the blue note in the E♭ blues scale?
A, the flatted fifth. It sits one fret below the perfect fifth and one above the fourth. It works as a passing note, bent into or slid through, and resolves cleanly to either neighbor.