16-Bar Blues (Watermelon Man Form)

The 16-bar blues, Watermelon Man form is the chord progression I I I I / IV IV I I / V IV V IV / V IV I I. In the key of C major it is C C C C / F F C C / G F G F / G F C C, and in the Nashville Number System it is written 1 1 1 1 / 4 4 1 1 / 5 4 5 4 / 5 4 1 1.

Jump to the chords and audio in C, G, D, A and E

Why it works

Here the extra bars go near the end: the V to IV move is repeated before the tonic comes back. Stretching the tension at that point turns the ending into a riff that holds off the release. It is another common way to get from 12 bars to 16.

Songs that use it

These are the chords as played in each song, in the song's own key.

16-Bar Blues (Watermelon Man Form): Chords and Audio in C, G, D, A and E

Press play to hear each key. The diagrams show the shapes used in the audio, and every chord links to its full page.

Key of C major

C   C   C   C

F   F   C   C

G   F   G   F

G   F   C   C

C

F

G

Key of G major

G   G   G   G

C   C   G   G

D   C   D   C

D   C   G   G

G

C

D

Key of D major

D   D   D   D

G   G   D   D

A   G   A   G

A   G   D   D

D

G

A

Key of A major

A   A   A   A

D   D   A   A

E   D   E   D

E   D   A   A

A

D

E

Key of E major

E   E   E   E

A   A   E   E

B   A   B   A

B   A   E   E

E

A

B

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