What BPM is blues?
The most common tempo for blues is 82 to 92 BPM. Across 40,760 blues songs with verified tempo in the TempoTunes library, the median is 100 BPM and half of all songs fall between 84 and 118 BPM.
- Most common
- 82 to 92BPM
- Median
- 100BPM
- Songs
- 40,760verified tempo
Blues songs across the tempo scale
Songs per 10 BPM. Orange marks the busiest stretch.
Blues is spread wide. Even its busiest stretch, 82 to 92 BPM, holds only 19% of the songs, so you can find blues at almost any pace.
One caution when you read any tempo chart: the same groove can be counted at half or double time, so a blues song at 100 BPM can also read as 200 BPM. That is why many genres show a second, smaller hump.
The busiest blues tempos
Chill blues: 60 to 90 BPM
13,748 blues songs at this pace: wind-downs, slow burns, and late-night listening.
Key to the Highway
Muddy Waters
86 BPM (1972)
Hobo Blues
John Lee Hooker
86 BPM (1999)
All I Could Do Was Cry
Etta James
86 BPM (1999)
Standing Knee Deep in a River
Joe Cocker
67 BPM (1994)
Keep My Name Outta Your Mouth
The Black Keys
82 BPM (2020)
Django
Joe Bonamassa
68 BPM (2009)
Crawlin' Kingsnake
Buddy Guy
71 BPM (1998)
Mama’s Baby
Howlin’ Wolf
71 BPM (1962)
Steady blues: 90 to 120 BPM
17,426 blues songs at this pace: head-nod grooves and walking pace.
Jealous Hearted Man
Muddy Waters
92 BPM (1977)
A New Leaf
John Lee Hooker
116 BPM (1962)
Come Back Baby
Etta James
116 BPM (1999)
Performance
Joe Cocker
116 BPM (1974)
Poor Boy a Long Way from Home
The Black Keys
92 BPM (2021)
Livin’ Easy
Joe Bonamassa
103 BPM (2016)
I Need Your Love So Bad
Buddy Guy
116 BPM (1999)
Dis moi oui
Colonel Reyel
105 BPM (2011)
Drive blues: 120 to 150 BPM
8,635 blues songs at this pace: dance-floor and workout energy.
That's Alright
Muddy Waters
123 BPM (1978)
Lead Me
John Lee Hooker
120 BPM (1991)
I Want to Ta Ta You, Baby
Etta James
120 BPM
Civilized Man
Joe Cocker
126 BPM (1984)
Busted
The Black Keys
120 BPM (2002)
Your Funeral and My Trial
Joe Bonamassa
126 BPM (2006)
Mary Had a Little Lamb
Buddy Guy
126 BPM (1968)
I Didn't Know
Howlin' Wolf
126 BPM (1975)
Other genres by BPM
Build a blues playlist at your pace in seconds
Set the tempo, pick genres and artists, and TempoTunes builds the playlist from 2 million tracks with verified BPM. Save it to Apple Music, Tidal, or YouTube Music (Spotify once we reach 250k monthly listeners). Playlists that match your Pace.