What key is this... 12 Bar Blues E Maj. A Maj D Maj

E Maj--A Maj.--D Maj. 

I am playing a typical 12 bar blues, almost shuffle like progression. I think that E min. pentatonic sounds right but I am not sure it is technically correct since they are all major chords. I don't usually associate blues with being major. I would assume it is E Maj. but I am not sure the E Major scale sound right over this. Maybe I just don't know, what I don't know.

Thanks!

If you like the sound, then it is technically correct.

There are other ways to look at those chords & try a different musical approach.  But which one you use is going to depend entirely on what kind of sound you are after.

If you are just playing those chords, in that order, then it could be an E mixolydian progression.

E (I) / A (IV) / D (bVII)

And the E minor pentatonic scale notes (e-g-a-b-d) are going to create a bluesy or blues-rock-ish sound with those chords.

You could also use E major pentatonic (e-f#-g#-b-c#).  Those notes are going to sound bluesy & R&B.  Or Allman Bros-ish.  The g# might sound a little odd when the A or D chords com along.  Depends on if you like that sound.  And of course you can just play it when the E chord happens.

And you can mix & match E minor pentatonic with E major pentatonic.

You could also play E mixolydian (e-f#-g#-a-b-c#-d) because those notes match exactly.  You would have to be careful to target the chord tones as the chords occur because you've got a whole diatonic scale there.  That would give you a more happy bluesy, rock or pop sound.

Alternately, you could look at those chords as being in the key of A major.

E (V) / A (I) / D (IV)

And play the notes of the A major scale (diatonic or pentatonic) & target the chords tones as they occur.  And E mixolydian is the same collection of notes as A major since it's just the 5th mode of the scale.

Lots of options here.  It just depends on what kind of sound you want.

Did you ever work through my improvisation tutorials?

https://www.guitartricks.com/collection/learning-to-improvise

Thanks Chris- gives me a lot to think about. I am halfway through Improvisation in a Major Key. Great info. Not what I am used to. I have memorized scale patterns. Never paid much attention to the notes. I also do not know all the notes on the fretboard so this is proving challenging- especially when you change position. I memorize, one pattern starting in one spot- usually the root note on the low (thick) E string. So you are saying to play the notes for each chord to chase the changes. Seems like a lot of work. Not sure I will ever be able to do all of that. Also, many songs are not just A, D, E so chasing chords seems hard. I would like to learn this but playing a minor penta in blues seems more my speed. I can do that pretty easily up and down the neck. Again, I don't know notes when I am playing, just the 5 shapes/patterns. I can however hear the root note in various locations and land on it at the right times usually.

You're welcome!

Memorizing scale patterns is a great first step.  And yes, it can be a lot of effort to get to the next step.  :)  But like most things, it's only difficult, until it's not.  If you practice something enough, at a certain point it becomes second nature & very easy to do.

What my improvisation tutorials aim to show is that the notes of the chords are already in the scale.  You just have to be aware of them.  So, once you grasp the scale intervals & how they form the chords you don't have to chase chord changes as something extra or additional to the scale.  The chords tones are already there!

So, yes you have to know the notes of the fretboard.  But it's not that hard.  It only takes a little dedicated effort over a little time.

When you've previously mentioned players on YouTube that were inspiring you, that's exactly what they are doing.  They are playing scales so that they land on the scale notes that are the notes of chord when the chords happen in the progression.

Let's try this a different way.  Try this tutorial on a set of specific blues licks that use minor pentatonic as a basis, but then land on major chord tones.

https://www.guitartricks.com/tutorial/217

Give it a try!

Thanks again and I will watch this video. I agree thigns are only hard until they are not. My scales are very easy today. I can play in the dark (learned that in a recent power outage), but they were once challenging. So it seems the notes from the scale are the root, 1st and 5th of the chords. I will have to work on memorizing the fretboard. Do you have any videos on that? Seems a daunting task. I've tried a few times- unsuccesfully.

"So it's seems the notes from the scale are the root, 1st and 5th of the chords."

All major & minor chords are the 1st, 3rd and 5th from their parent scale.

C major chord is the 1st, 3rd, 5th from the C major scale.

C minor chord is the 1st, 3rd, 5th from the C minor scale.

D major chord is the 1st, 3rd, 5th from the D major scale.

D minor chord is the 1st, 3rd, 5th from the D minor scale.

And so on.

But chords can also be regarded as the other degrees of the scale.  That's how you harmonize the scale & that's where the concept of key signature comes from.  

So while the D minor chord is the 1st, 3rd, 5th from the D minor scale, it is also the 2nd, 4th, 6th from the C major scale.  This might seem confusing & overwhleming at first, but it's very simple & straightforward once you understand the basic concept & how to apply.  This is why one major scale works for a whole group of chords in a key signature:  because all the chords are contained in one scale by combining the notes systematically.  That's one of the central concepts in my improvisation tutorials.

I cover this idea of harmonizing the major scale in several tutorials.  But I summarize it quickly in these lessons.

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson/11529

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson/11530

I cover the musical alphabet pattern & how to learn it in this lesson.

https://www.guitartricks.com/lesson/11526

Essentially this is the octave method.

Learn the notes on the E string to the 12th fret.  Now you know the notes on 2 strings (both Es).  Work on this a little every day in your practice session for a week.

The same pattern works 2 strings & frets higher on the D string.  Apply that pattern to the D strings 2 frets & 2 strings higher the next week.

Apply that pattern to the B string 3 frets and 2 strings higher the next week.

Learn the notes on the A string the next week.

Apply that pattern 2 frets and 2 strings higher on the G string the next week.

In 5 weeks you got the fretboard memorized!

Hope that helps!