Electric blues is a type of blues music distinguished by the use of the electric guitar as a lead instrument and the amplification of the instruments, including the lead guitar, bass guitar, drums, and occasionally the harmonica or keyboard. Pioneered in the 1930s, it emerged as a genre in Chicago in the 1940s. It was taken up in many areas of America, leading to the development of regional subgenres, following its adoption in regional scenes such as Memphis and Texas. The genre had fully developed by the 1950s.