BookatlasPiano Rabbit Hole: Improvisation Theory & Practice
5571 / 18210 · Workshop 39 — “Watermelon Man”: Blues-Funk Vocabulary, Dominant Vamps, Riffs as Harmony, and Making Repetition Feel Inevitable Instead of Boring← prev⊞ allnext →

39.1Start with a dominant tonic

Let’s work in F7.

Notes:

F A C E♭

F A C E♭

Normally, in classical/function-first thinking, a dominant seventh chord suggests:

B♭ is coming.

Because:

F7 = V7 of B♭.

But in blues and funk, F7 can remain:

home.

This is a major stylistic shift.