Chicago Blues Shuffle drum pattern
A two-bar Chicago blues shuffle: shuffled ride, four soft kicks, hi-hat foot on 2 and 4, a backbeat led in by ghosted skip notes and a let-of-4 turnaround in bar two. Press Play to hear it with a sampled drum kit at 132 BPM, change the tempo or swing, and follow every hit on the grid.
How to count the Chicago Blues Shuffle
Count it as: 1 trip let 2 trip let 3 trip let 4 trip let · two bars. The pattern is a 2-bar phrase in 4/4 (two-bar triplet shuffle).
The Chicago Blues Shuffle pattern, hit by hit
Each character is one step of the grid and each group is one beat. X is an accented hit, x a normal hit, o a quiet or ghost note and - a rest.
| Voice | Bar 1 | Bar 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Kick | x-- x-- x-- x-- | x-- x-- x-- x-x |
| Snare | --- X-- --- X-- | --- X-- --- X-x |
| Ghost snare | --o --- --o --- | --o --- --o --- |
| Pedal hat | --- x-- --- x-- | --- x-- --- x-- |
| Ride | x-x x-x x-x x-x | x-x x-x x-x x-x |
Tempo and feel
Driving but relaxed, like a band that has played this all night. The skip notes carry the swing; the backbeat just sits in the middle of it. The default tempo is 132 BPM. It plays with 67% swing by default; move the Swing control toward 50% to hear it straight. Slow it down until every hit is controlled, then raise the tempo a few BPM at a time.
How to practise the Chicago Blues Shuffle
Play the ride shuffle alone: every beat and every let. Add four soft kicks and the hi-hat foot on 2 and 4. Add the backbeat with a ghost on the let before it, then the bar-two turnaround.
Variations to try next
Move the shuffle to the snare, both hands, for a full double shuffle. Play the kick on 1 and 3 only for a lighter band. Move the right hand to a closed hat for the vocal verses.
Where to hear this feel
Records in this family include Muddy Waters - Got My Mojo Working (Live at Newport 1960), Little Walter - Juke and Chicago blues shuffles of the 1950s. A practice study of the Chicago blues shuffle, in the tradition of Fred Below behind Little Walter and the Chess bands, and Francis Clay behind Muddy Waters on Got My Mojo Working at Newport in 1960. It is not a transcription of either. The ride shuffles, the kick plays four soft quarters under the bass, the hi-hat foot closes on 2 and 4 and the snare backbeat is fattened by ghosted skip notes before it, a hint of the double shuffle. Bar two turns around with a snare and kick on the let of 4.