C Minor Blues

Blues is to jazz what yeast is to bread – without it, it’s flat.  – Carmen McRae
Jazz speaks for life. The Blues tell the story of life’s difficulties.  – Martin Luther King Jr.

Blues is not only the most common tune type found in jazz; it’s also an underpinning of the jazz style. It is a vehicle that lends itself to expressing emotion. It is a form that is easy to recognize and relate to. Early blues had a 4-bar phrase to complete the melody and lyrics. The entire form evolved over time into a standardized 12-bar form. Jazz blues are sometimes simple and repetitive (Bags’ Groove, C Jam Blues, Sonnymoon for Two) and sometimes complex (Blues for Alice, Matrix). Musicians who are new to jazz can use five or six notes (from blues and/or pentatonic scales) and play solos that sound good without regard to the chord changes. Skilled players will combine bluesy sounding phrases with phrases that outline the harmony.

In the key of C minor this means you could explore playing Ab or A, and Bb or B pitches in the first four measures.

The vm7 (Gm7) chord that would be suggested by the key signature is most effective when the V7 (G7) chord is used.  The V7 (G7) has a harmonic tension that wants to resolve to the im7 chord.

Minor blues progressions have many variations. These are some basic ones:

||:  im7 | im7 | im7 | im7 || ivm7 | ivm7 | im7 | im7 | iim7b5  | V7b9 | im7 | V7 :||
||:  im7 | im7 | im7 | im7 || ivm7 | ivm7 | im7 | im7 |  bVI7     |  V7    | im7 | V7 :||

This Minor Blues Chord Progressions summary (https://www.jazzguitar.be/blog/minor-blues) from Jazz Guitar online offers eleven variations of C minor blues. Note that all eleven versions are 12 bars in length and go to the ivm7 chord (Fm7) in the fifth measure.

Frequently played jazz blues in the key of C minor include:

Equinox (recorded in C# minor but often played in C minor) – by John Coltrane (C Dorian Minor)
Footprints (in ¾ or 6/8 meter) – (C Dorian Minor) –  by Wayne Shorter
Mr. P.C. (composed for the great bassist Paul Chambers) – by John Coltrane (C Aeolian Minor)
Mr. Syms – by John Coltrane (C Dorian Minor)
Nutville (24 bar form with unique chords on last 8 bars) – by Horace Silver
Stolen Moments (solos are played over C minor blues) – by Oliver Nelson (C Dorian Minor)

Other minor blues not in C minor that don’t go all go to the ivm7 chord in the 5th measure:
Birk’s Works (F Aeolian Minor) – by Dizzy Gillespie
Blue Trane (Eb Dorian Minor) – by John Coltrane
Boogie Stop Shuffle (Bb Minor) – by Charles Mingus
Israel (D minor with a minor cliche) – by John Carisi
One for Daddy-O (Bb Aeolian Minor) – by Nat Adderley
Nothing Personal (G Dorian Minor) – by Don Grolnick
Pursuance (Bb Minor) – by John Coltrane  
Tsakwe/Royal Blue (G Harmonic Minor) – by Abdullah Ibrahim