Bob Dylan Solo Transcription
I recently posted a short lesson video covering the recorded intro and outro solos for Bob Dylan’s “Just Like A Woman.” The solos use an E harmonica, and are played in 1st position, with single notes which open periodically into doublestops.
Learn to Sing It
The solo melodies are based on the vocal melody for the verse and chorus, so I recommend learning to sing the vocal, since it will give you the outline for the solo and help you play it better by ear.
I can hear the protests – “C’mon! I just want to play harmonica!” – but in order to play the harmonica well, you have to develop your ear. And singing is the simplest way to train your ear. Plus, bands love it when players can sing backup, so it will make you more valuable as a bandmate. Learn to sing the songs you play, and you’ll find it so much easier to make the songs speak on the harp.
Intro
For this post, I transcribed Stevie Wonder’s intro solo on “I Was Made To Love Her,” and adapted it to play on 10-hole diatonic harmonica. Stevie played the original solo on a C chromatic harmonica, and my goal was to try and play it as faithfully as possible on the blues harp.
Which Position and Which Key?
“I Was Made To Love Her” is in F major, but the solo contains bluesy minor sounds. What harp and what position would be good for bluesy minor sounds in F? The meat and potatoes blues solution would be 2nd position on a B-flat harp. All the notes are there, from hole 2-6, but it sounds an octave lower than the recording. And the higher octave, holes 6-9, requires an overblow on hole 6. Another option would be first position, up high on an F harp, from holes 7-10. This puts you in the right octave and all the notes are there, but only if you have strong blow bend skills. Most beginners play blow bends better on low harps, I find, and an F is the highest harp most people own. So in the end, I decided to use 3rd position on an E-flat harp, since it gave me the octave I wanted, with a minor sound, and only one really crucial bend.
Eb Harmonica
Many students tend to favor harps in the keys of G, A, Bb, C. In comparison, E-flat is kind of a high harp. But since most of the song is played in the middle octave without bends, the short, stiff reeds actually work for us, by making the harp more responsive and snappy.
Three Challenges
1) Play the 8 draw gently, or it will stall.
2) Go easy on the 5 draw bend, it’s only a quarter tone bend, and you don’t have much wiggle room.
3) The last note, -3″, will require practice. Three draw with a whole step bend can be tricky to dial in on your normal harp, and it will feel different on a higher-pitched Eb harp. But even if you NEVER get that last note, the other 99% of the tune should sound great immediately, as long as you have clear single notes and go easy on the 8 draw and 5 draw.
