Blues music paved the way for many other genres of music we know and love. Although blues music has evolved over time, a fundamental chord progression called the 12 bar blues still lives on. 12 bar blues songs are comprised of 3 blues chords: the I, the IV, and the V and are played using a pattern that ultimately ends up being 12 bars long.
Now, although it’s called the 12 bar blues and theoretically the pattern should be 12 bars long, there is room for variation. Like anything in music, you can use the principles of a certain concept and then alter it to your liking. You’ll see that in a few of the 12 bar blues songs below, they all more or less follow the standard 12 bar blues pattern although certain songs have variations that you might not expect.
If you’d like to learn these songs faster I’d highly recommend checking out Guitar Pro. It is a great software that allows you to actually hear the tabs being played in real time, thus giving you a better sense of rhythm.
I tried to incorporate songs from various artists into this list to give readers a little more selection. However, certain artists such as B.B King, Chuck Berry, and Little Richard were a few of the leaders in the creation of 12 bar blues songs.
If you’re looking for more 12 bar blues songs be sure to check them out. Furthermore, if you’d rather have an officially tabbed book of blues songs, I’d recommend checking out these popular Amazon options:
- Blues Guitar Songs – Book with CD
- Blues Guitar Songs For Dummies
- Blues Songbook: Guitar Chord Songbook (Guitar Chord Songbooks)
Otherwise, check out the list of 50+ legendary 12 bar blues songs below and happy blues playing!
What Are The Best 12 Bar Blues Songs?
1. “Pride and Joy” By Stevie Ray Vaughan
2. “Rock and Roll” By Led Zeppelin
3. “Tush” By ZZ Top
4. “Johnny B. Goode” By Chuck Berry
5. “Going Up The Country” By Canned Heat
6. “Hound Dog” By Elvis Presley
7. “Tutti Frutti” By Little Richard
8. “The Thrill is Gone” By B.B. King
9. “Crossroads” By Eric Clapton
10. “Ball and Biscuit” By The White Stripes
11. “I Got You (I Feel Good)” By James Brown
12. “Rock Around the Clock” By Bill Haley & His Comets
13. “Something Like Olivia” By John Mayer
14. “Bring It On Home (Intro)” By Led Zeppelin
15. “Give Me One Reason” By Tracy Chapman
16. “Red House” By Jimi Hendrix
17. “I’m Your Hoochie Coochie Man” By Muddy Waters
18. “Crosscut Saw” By Albert King
19. “T-Bone Shuffle” By T-Bone Walker
20. “Rock and Roll Music” By The Beatles
21. “Move It On Over” By George Thorogood
22. “Ice Cream Man” By John Lee Hooker
23. “Sweet Home Chicago” By Robert Johnson
24. “Viola Lee Blues” By The Grateful Dead
25. “Still Haven’t Found What I’m Lookin’ For” By U2
26. “Call Me The Breeze” By Lynyrd Skynyrd
27. “The Jack” By AC/DC
28. “Rave On” By Buddy Holly
29. “Blues With a Feeling” By Little Walter
30. “Dust My Broom” By Elmore James
31. “Folsom Prison Blues” By Johnny Cash
32. “Stuck In The Middle With You” By Stealers Wheel
33. “Maybellene” By Chuck Berry
34. “Kansas City” By Wilbert Harrison
35. “Good Golly Miss Molly” By Little Richard
36. “Boom Boom” By John Lee Hooker
37. “Mustang Sally” By Buddy Guy
38. “Going Down” By Freddie King
39. “Blue and Lonesome” By The Rolling Stones
40. “Have You Ever Loved a Woman?” By Derek & The Dominos
41. “Mary Had a Little Lamb” By Stevie Ray Vaughan
42. “Strange Brew” By Cream
43. “Boogie Shoes” By KC & The Sunshine Band
44. “I Can’t Quit You, Baby” By Led Zeppelin
45. “Baby What You Want Me To Do” By Jimmy Reed
46. “Born Under A Bad Sign” By Albert King
47. “Iceman” By Albert Collins
48. “Rock Me Baby” By Johnny Winter
49. “All Your Love” By John Mayall
50. “Killing Floor” By Howlin’ Wolf
51. “Ten Long Years” By B.B. King
Final Thoughts
Hopefully, this list has given you a few ideas of 12 bar blues songs you can start learning. Once you play this progression a few times and get the hang of it, you’ll be able to very easily distinguish a 12 bar blues progression in a song.
It’s a great chord progression that’s easy to play and has a ton of versatility options.
What a great list! Thanks for putting this together.
The Wanderer … Dion. 12-bar blues with 8-bar bridge…
Move It on Over (Hank Williams), Long Gone Lonesome Blues (also Hank)
Herman’s Hermits “Something Tells me I’m into something good”