Tbone has a good plan, though I would work through
MBYCU and
Jazzin' separately. There is a lot of new material to learn in each. New approaches, really. If you are going to work through both, I recommend starting with
MBYCU and then moving on to
Jazzin', because the first gets you thinking chordally in your melodic (lead) playing.
Jazzin' takes it even further, with lots of new progressions and substitutions, etc.
My updated recommendation:
1. Start with
BYCU - that's pretty much a given.
2. Move on to
MBYCU, for reasons given above, or start in on
Blues Rhythms You Can Use. You can work in both at the same time.
(an alternative would be to begin reading and working through
BYCU Chords, but consider that to be a longer term endeavor.)
3. Start in on either
Jazzin' the Blues or the newest,
Rhythm and Blues You Can Use, depending on your interest. Both books push you into heavy use of chords, with
Jazzin' having the more complex, "jazzier" sounding chords and melodies, and
R&BYCU having more plain major and minor chords, with some 7ths and 9ths.
R&BYCU takes you through the various R&B styles, from the 1950's doo-wop and 1960's soul, to driving funk styles. (If you need help deciding, you should listen to the samples on this site.)
Jazzin' SamplesR&BYCU SamplesBlues Licks You Can Use is really a supplement which helps you to work through the various blues guitar styles. I would say you should finish
BYCU before starting in this, or any of the other books in the series.
Obviously, everyone works and learns differently, so you should feel free to choose your own sequence. And as tbone mentioned, there are other books and methods. I would never claim to have covered everything there is to learn in the blues. Nor do I claim to have the best or only system for everybody.
Finally, your best teachers are on the great recordings. BB King, Albert King, Freddie King, Albert Collins, Muddy Waters, Lightnin' Hopkins, T-Bone Walker, Robert Cray, Buddy Guy, Stevie Ray Vaughan, just off the top of my head. There are so many. Choose your favorite and listen to them over, and over, very closely. See what you can pick up.
I hope this helps. Good luck.
JG
