On Practicing Guitar

Freddy King's The Stumble Tab and Video

Freddy King or Freddie King? No matter how you spell it, this funkiest member of the three Kings is known for his smoking instrumentals. And if you’re contemplating learning one of them, my vote goes in for “The Stumble.” Here’s why: “Hideaway” has already been covered pretty definitively plus, if you learn The Stumble, you can easily pull together that number. “San-Ho-Zay” IS super funky, but I’m planning to shed that one so, please – don’t steal my master plan!

But the killer centerpiece lick in sixths and interesting chord progression for improvising are the real reasons to learn The Stumble, not to mention that it’s really memorable and tuneful. It’s a live staple, but I have yet to hear a really groovy, scintillating studio cover. Maybe yours will be the one.

 

The biggest challenge to nailing the tune is in the turnaround lick. It has a fairly long, repeated sequence of double-stop sixths. Some people play it exclusively on the high E and G strings, but I find that there is too much movement up and down the neck for accuracy. My version offers an alternative, putting the majority of the run on the B and D strings. Still, there is plenty of ground to cover, and I feel a Gibson guitar’s shorter scale is an advantage. Freddy probably recorded it on a ‘50s Les Paul Gold Top, which you can see in the picture above.

I tend to play higher up the neck at times to get a fatter tone from the thicker, lower strings. Also, with so much movement in this lick, it’s helpful to be working the higher and hence closer together frets. There is one difference between the way I play the main lick and the original version. I’ve included the original in the tab (below), but in the video I play the repeat of the bottom end of the run with a flat 3 and flat 5 – it adds a bluesy-ness to the sound that I really like.

In the improvisational sections, I play a combination of ideas of my own along with some Freddy King stuff that I really like. An example would be 4 – b5 – 5 repeated lick of Freddy’s (1:15), and the classic double stops (1:18). I expand on the diminished chord in measure twelve (1:55) using a simple change from Hendrix’s “My Friend” – fits perfectly! Otherwise, there is quite a bit of free form riffing out, which is pretty much expected on this showcase piece. For an example of a super hot one see Gary Moore.

The changes are below. Note that it is a sixteen bar form, not a twelve. This is often referred to as a more Gospel influenced progression, and the use of the circle of fifths at the end underscores this.

A7          A7          E7           E7

A7          A7          B7          B7

E7           E7           A7          Bb dim 7

E7 – C#7 – F#7 – B7 – E7 – A7 – E7 – B7

Hubert Sumlin and "The Shake" - Spoonful Solo

Hubert Sumlin played on all of Howling Wolf’s sides from the mid-fifties to the early sixties and beyond. He’s known for his ‘crazy,’ ‘unpredictable’ style, which includes sharp upwards slides, squawking staccato double stops and chords, and off kilter yet memorable signature licks and fills. But he was also an early master of one of the hardest moves in rock and blues guitar playing: the whole step bend with vibrato sustaining the note at the end, sometimes called a “shake.” Let’s take a look at one of Sumlin’s most well-known solos, from “Spoonful,” where we can see how he employs that shake.

Learning how to do the shake is pretty straightforward, but it takes strength, coordination and a good ear to get it right. Essentially, you have to bend the note up a whole step, using your third finger with the middle and index fingers on the same string behind it for support. You then hold the note out and add vibrato for that big, vocal effect.

 

Listen to the solo and take a look at the video and tab. The solo is only about ten seconds long but it’s packed with bends and vibrato. You will need to be able to control the release of your bends, meaning, if there is no release mark (the downward, curving arrow), the note ends at its peak. I recorded the solo at tempo, slower, and then I demonstrate an exercise that you can do to help develop the technique.

In the exercise (below), bend the note up a whole step as described above, using your index and middle fingers to back up the third finger. Make sure the note is perfectly in tune by matching pitch with the note two frets above the original note. OK, start again. Now, do this very slowly. With the note bent up a whole step (A to B on the G string, in the example), release the note downward one quarter tone while still pressing and then bring it back up to pitch. Repeat this as long as the note sustains.

All of the bends in the tab and the exercise are done with the third finger. Break the solo up into pieces and practice them separately. The first lick is the best for practicing the shake, but make sure to apply the Shake Exercise to the B string shake in measure three. Watch the whole step pre-bend and release at the fourteenth fret in measure five.  It’s crucial to use a pre-bend here to avoid falling behind for the last notes of the solo. Most of the licks from the solo turn up as fills during the rest of the song. See if you can figure them out, and add them in when you play along. 

It’s a really good idea to try to imitate the sound of specific guitar players’ vibratos. In my case, the two that I most remember trying to cop were Hendrix, especially a complex bend-release-bend-shake that he does at the beginning of the Isle of Wight live album, and Clapton’s numerous vibratos and bends in Cream’s epic version of “Spoonful.” I guess you could say I’ve come full circle at this point.