Drums › Grooves › Slow Blues 6/8
The Slow Blues 6/8 drum groove
The pattern, step by step
One cell per sixteenth note, sixteen cells to the bar — exactly what the hub's drum machine plays. Downbeats are shown in bold.
Slow Blues 6/8
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kick | ● | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · |
| Snare | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | · | · | · | · | · | · | · | ● | · |
| Hi-hat | ● | · | ● | · | ● | · | ● | · | ● | · | ● | · | ● | · | ● | · |
- Kick · 4 hits · steps 1, 5, 9, 13 · beats 1, 2, 3, 4 · quarter notes
- Snare · 2 hits · steps 7, 15
- Hi-hat · 8 hits · steps 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15 · beats 1, 2, 3, 4 · eighth notes
Where to start
Play the triplets on the ride, nothing else, against a metronome at 60. Hold two minutes. Manage that without drifting and you have solved the hardest part of the style.
What the hands and feet actually do
At this tempo there is nowhere to hide: every triplet must be perfectly even, and the slightest imbalance is heard from metres away. Fills are played in sextuplets, not sixteenths.
The trap
Speeding up without noticing. That is THE trap of slow blues: boredom pushes the tempo. Count the triplets out loud in rehearsal and you will see how far you drift.
Listen to this
To hear the Slow Blues 6/8 groove in its element:
The Thrill Is Gone (B.B. King) · Red House (Jimi Hendrix) · Since I've Been Loving You
Neighbouring grooves
Play it right now
The Drum Hub's drum machine loads this pattern, plays it at any tempo and lets you edit it cell by cell.
Open the Drum Hub →Frequently asked questions
How do you play a Slow Blues 6/8 groove on drums?
Play the triplets on the ride, nothing else, against a metronome at 60. Hold two minutes. Manage that without drifting and you have solved the hardest part of the style.
What tempo is Slow Blues 6/8 played at?
The usual range runs from 55 to 80 BPM. The hub's 1 pattern(s) are set to 70 BPM, and the tempo stays free inside the drum machine.
Is Slow Blues 6/8 straight or shuffled?
Shuffled: the offbeats are delayed (0.66 of swing in the hub's pattern), which gives the shuffle feel.
Which drummer should you listen to for Slow Blues 6/8?
B.B. King, “The Thrill Is Gone”. Worth hearing: The Thrill Is Gone (B.B. King) · Red House (Jimi Hendrix) · Since I've Been Loving You