Backing tracks for improvisation
Slow blues shuffle (Am pentatonic)
"Jack" riff (Am pentatonic)
"Strutting" vamp (Cm pentatonic)
"Thrilling" Bm blues (Bm pentatonic)
"Crawling" medium-tempo E blues (Em pentatonic)
Slow blues shuffle (Em pentatonic)
All backing tracks by Mark Baxter (c) 2013

List of good blues/rock jam tunes 

  • Hit the road Jack/Stray cat strut riff - Ray Charles/Stray Cats
  • Sweet home Chicago - Robert Johnson, Blues Brothers
  • Sweet home Alabama - Lynard Skynard
  • Cissy strut - The Meters, John Mayer, John Schofield
  • Stormy Monday - T-bone Walker, Allman Brothers
  • Various blues, different keys (often E, G, A, B, C or D), shuffled or straight, fast or slow.
  • Stand by me - Ben E King
  • House of the rising sun - Animals, Bob Dylan
  • All along the watchtower - Dylan, Hendrix
  • Sunshine of your love - Cream
  • Hey Joe - Hendrix
  • Cocaine - J.J. Cale, Eric Clapton
  • Gloria - Van Morrison, Doors
  • The thrill is gone - BB King
  • The beat goes on riff - Sonny and Cher
  • Peter Gunn riff - Henry Manchini
  • I'm a man - Muddy Waters
  • Six-blade knife - Dire Staits
  • Billie Jean - Michael Jackson
  • Back-door man - The Doors
  • The last time - The Rolling Stones
  • I shot the sheriff - Bob Marley, Eric Clapton
  • Superstition - Stevie Wonder, Stevie Ray Vaughn
  • Johnny B Goode - Chuck Berry
  • Honky-tonk woman - Rolling Stones
  • Can't always get what you want - Rolling Stones
  • Hard to handle - Otis Redding, Black Crowes
  • Chevrolet - Taj Mahal, Derek Trucks
  • Crossroads - Robert Johnson, Cream
  • Ayo technology - Milow
  • People get ready - Curtis Mayfield, Rod Stewart/Jeff Beck, Bruce Springsteen
  • Black magic woman - Fleetwood Mac, Santana
  • Mustang Sally - The Commitments
  • Jammin' - Bob Marley
  • Roadhouse blues - The Doors
  • Ain't no sunshine - Bill Withers
  • Folsom prison - Johnny Cash
  • Strange Brew - Cream
  • Free Falling - Tom Petty, John Mayer

What makes a good rock or blues jam session tune??

  • A short, repetitive chord progression or riff, or a basic verse chorus structure. (So it's easy for the other musicians at a jam session to quickly learn and remember)
  • A single pentatonic scale sounds good when used over the entire progression. (So it is easy to solo over)