Description
In this week’s guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play an acoustic blues composition that requires no accompaniment. This composition uses the classic blues “call and response” technique, allowing you to first establish a simple blues rhythm, and then create fill licks in-between the rhythm phrases. Grab an acoustic (or electric) guitar and follow along.
Part 1 - Free Guitar Lesson
Part 2 - For Premium Members
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Slow Walk-Through
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Video Tablature Breakdown
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Lovin this one Brian. Very down home.
Ron
This is magnificent Brian, it sounds great down here in Australia on my Martin acoustic… love it.
Sweet
I’m grabbing my guitar and a beer and headed it to the front porch right now!
that’s what I’m talkin’ bought – where is your porch, I’ll be right over !
Count me in too.
Love this one and will be making a effort next week to get this off with all its goodies. Wonderful JohnStrat
Oh man, LUV it !!!! Getting started right now.
Thank you Brian
Nice! (How old is that Martin?)
1947
I love this tune too. Authentic and articulate blues. What model is that Martin?
Nice! Great takeaways!🎶
I’m all into this one. Thanks Brian
Evidence the rockers from later years took directly from the old Delta bluesmen is in this lesson.
The repeating lick in E with the trill can be heard as the opening guitar by Stevie Mariott in the Humble Pie song, “Rolling Stone.”
When switching to the 4th Pentatonic, the little slide down is heard in ZZ Top’s LaGrange in the first lead. Different strings, but the very same sliding in the 4th.
In the Crossroads Guitar Festival in the Cotton Bowl in Dallas 2004, Clapton’s voice over during the opening of ZZ Top, who wrapped up the event says it all. Wait for it. He talks about ZZ Top as archivists of the blues.
As a side note, Frank Beard is such an under rated drummer.
So put some delta in your blues.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=euZm1TfO9xY
Last week I wished for something in d minor, and this week I wanted acoustic blues!
I’ll bet that’s a Hanna Hat from Donegal Ireland, looks almost the same as mine.
Good eye Alex, it IS a Hanna hat
Watch out Lightnin’ Hopkins!! Nice and swampy funky and down home Bayou!! I suggest making this one a favorite right next door to EP213 & EP214 and studying and drilling this all together into second nature………..great basis for blues and exploring improvisation!! Jim C.
Oh yeah, 213 and 214 are fantastic too
See 097 I play on acousstic!
Thanks for the tips guys, I’ll check all of these out. Great lesson Brian, very achievable for my level of skill.
Love It! Love It! Love It! I wish you could come out with a song like this every week for the summer blues to play on my porch.
Thanks Brian.
I love these stand alone acoustic blues lessons. You can just grab a guitar and go! Every lesson youv’e put out lately goes straight to favorites. Man, you are on a roll!
OK, I’m going back to the buffet again. I love this stuff, and this was was a confidence builder for me. I had most of it in about an hour, and learned a bunch. More similar to this and the unplugged lessons, but I also have enjoyed your country lessons. I don’t know how you do it. Say, if you won’t name your compositions, how about a contest? The lesson numbers are confusing in conversation.
Glenn
Great lesson,
There might be a small mistake on the tab. You have the 2nd fret on the low E string and it should be the 3rd .
Otherwise great lesson
Brendan
right, sounds great with a full bend,
many thanks and greetings from athens greece Brian and Brendan
exellent Brian another gem to get stuck into lots in this one so cant wait to get started cheers mate
Thank you from France Brian.
Yeeeeeeeeeeees! That´s my lesson!
Dirty !!!
Recommended active melody to several guitar players on the bus to hear Tommy Emanuel and David Grisman in Boulder this week. Hope they signed up. Love your site Brian
Nice sounding Blues-E lesson. Some nice take-aways too.
Thanks
Ray P
5 weeks of blues. Anything for the paying members into different styles of music?
Last week wasn’t blues……
One lesson in five not blues. I stand corrected.
Another great composition. But I noted that it was easier to play when the second note in the first “call” started on a G (third fret E string) with a bend rather than the second fret. Then I noticed that you played it with a bend starting on the G, but the tab shows F#. I like the way you played it better. Thanks.
I have corrected the tab.
I see you sweeping measure 11 ( inverted triad 789? anyway i’m sweeping it cause it sounds right! so many variations and room to make up stuff ..like this ,enjoyed for a good practice
I love your tabs with the note duration as well as fret and string. What software do you use?
Outstanding composition and really useful explanations, by the way.
Just perfect! Love it, Brian.
John
Hey Brian, my hats in the ring for another 12mths this being the start
of my 4th yr .love this number, that guitar is the same age as me
It just sounds better.
Cheers
Superb. Thanks again
Hi, I think there are some mistakes in the tab. In the beginning. I tried to learn but it Is different to the Video and the sound. 😄
I have corrected the tab.
Sorry, but I am still sure it is not correct. You play an E with the hamering on in the beginning. It‘s not in the tab.
Steffen
Well, ok. you do not Play the second string 🙂
I’m not seeing what you’re referring to. I’ve watched it several times – can you be very specific about what is incorrect, what measure?
Sorry, but what I meant is that in the Video you explained the respond part in the beginning and after the A you play an E with the hammering on but in the tab is not the whole E writen. Only the D and G string which you are playing. That was what I was wondering about, but now I unterstand.
Beauty Hat I really enjoy this great and excellent Blues lesson . Love it
These are so good. I really wish you would show us how to play a simple rhythm as a micro lesson to go with each one. This one could be microlesson STR 315. That rhythm you played in this one was way cool but it doesn’t even need to be that complex. Just a 5 to 8 minute video kind of thing. Pleeeez and thank you.
Wow! This is the kind of blues that makes you thrill from the beginning through the end of the song always smoothly over the course with hammer on , pull off strings , bendings, hybrid picking …all the great stuff from blues and even a jazzy feeling on it … I really enjoy this kind of clapton style and in my opinion some muddy waters too
Love this one Brian! Lots of light bulbs turning on, winking, blinking, and then, gradually, going dimly-bright. I can follow along, but not yet with metronome ease.
Brian thank you. I have been working on some of the Legacy and Micro Lesson files. Enjoy them tremendously. I especially enjoy the lessons like EP315. They permit you to sit down and ply. Can’t beat it.
Thanks
East Coast Bill
Just the type of composition I’ve been looking for. I was just starting to work on EP213. Can folks recommend other lessons (or micro lessons) in this vein?
Jamie take a look at 097.
Once you get going on this take a listen Bonnie Raitts Blender Blues on You Tube to expand your licks. Brian takes it easy on all of us so our heads don’t explode, good job my brother, tasty licks as always!
After 3+ years as an ActiveMelody member, I can take the “call” part of this lesson and sit around for hours crafting different “responses”. No matter how new a player you are, you should try it. But first learn the lesson.
So much going on here, I say this would be a good monthly challenge.. there is so much that can fit between this slow 12 bar
I just returned home from Portugal and so I will pick on this wonderful lesson to get refreshed as it’s been listening only. Re running this for me it has to rate as one of the top lessons it’s such a classic bluesy hook of a rhythm it has to be perfected and improvised on. What a goody.
JohnStrat
Hi Brian,
Thanks so much, Such a nice piece! A quick question, when you finished the 1st round 12 bars, did you add two extra bars to do the turnaround? Not that matters, but I realised it’s not a strict 12 bar, it would be great to know that we are allowed to mess around with a 12 bar.
Sorry I got that wrong, the turnaround is actually the first two bars of next around!
Sound great on a 12 string
Brian,
Thanks for doing what you do, and for the way you bring it to your army of students. Great, great stuff. Thank you!
thanks, absolutely love this one. And that Martin is a beauty.
But most of all – where did you get that great hat ??
Found that hat at a little shop in Germany – just had to have it!
I’ll have to wait until I go to Germany. I had the pleasure of having a beer with Peter Finger a few years ago after a performance in SF. Great guy and great show.
Hope you heard some great music on your trip.
thanks again for 315. I am having a great time working on it.
This is one for the fourth! Love it – smooth and natural
Really enjoy your lessons and site, I generally support the on line instructors but you are a cut above, I listen to some others and get bored quickly I like your approach and style.!! I will be traveling and its nice to login no matter where I am to squeeze in a lesson and some playing time….Cheers
solid!!!
Perfect. Will definitely be working this one up. Love these solo blues pieces.
Hi Brian,
Nice blues, I really love it.
To be honest I have been waiting for a long time for this type of blues.
Relatively easy to play and extremely gratifying for a novice player.
Is it possible to have something more sophisticated with similar
rythme in the key of E in the next weeks ?
Francis
from Paris (France)
EP 214 EP 214 (part 2)
Thanks a lot. One of my favorites.
Beautiful lesson,Brian.Ilove it.
My favorite lesson so-far; I really like delta blues and/or Chicago. Really like this, thank you.
Two other comments:
1) We’re all envious of the many guitars you play.. but beautiful to see! (Q: how many guitars does a guitar player need? A: One more)
2) I vote for more videos with Otis in the background
jim
Hey Bryan
What artists are good to listen to with this kind of delta blues vibe. I love this sort of blues but struggle to find any.
Awesome. The most straight forward no accompany lesson that I have seen. Makes it easy for this beginner to see where to add fill licks.
Man, you provide value – over delivery every time. This one is worth my year’s subscription. I just love jamming this vibe! That’s what I ‘m talking about!!
You are serving humanity !
If we get proficient at this lesson what level would you say we would be between one and 10?
I think the tabs wrong? Shows an A instead of an E in the first measure, with the hammer on
Gotta say this is one of my all-time favorites!
I’m with you on that! Love this tune.
Pairs nicely with ML 052!
Hi Every one. Im new to this site. This freebie on youtube got me hooked so I’ve joined up (played it ’til about 1a.m. this morning!
Tom
Me too. There’s loads of stuff on here at every level. Great value.
Hi Brian, been away for a couple of months, glad to be back! This lesson is the 1st of many reasons; even my wife likes it. If I heard it coming from the bushes while canoeing down a lazy river, my hairs would stand on end!
lots of challanges for me. thank you!
Loved this one. What are others in the same vein and skill level?
Great 12 bar song . You can really grind into the E section.
Very inspiring, Brian, thanks.
If I’m not mistaken, isn’t there a little bit of “Hey Joe” about that first lick? (but I can play that lick so I’m not complaining)!! LOL
Cheers Brian. Can play around with this all day and learn new things every time.
Two things, and yes I really like this particular lesson.
I learned the opening section of Hendrix’s Catfish Blues (which of course, is a take-off on a Muddy Waters song) note for note and it took forever but I loved it. I had to unlearn that, so as to not get mixed up memorizing and sussing out this lesson by Brian. Took a while as I am not an advanced player. (formerly trained as a bassist). But I stuck to it and I really like this lesson for the information and style.
2. For some reason and this may help others: I could not get the G string to ring out on the hammer to the first fret, when hitting the E chord. Frustrating and tore up my index finger trying. I kept at it or a period of time and realized that my strum hand on the right, was hitting down more on the bass strings and not nailing the G-string. I further realized that if I make a conscious effort to even accent the G string with my Pick on the sweep, I will surely get that G# to ring out in the hammer, a nano second after the E chord. Well, you get the idea.
Back to practice. Love this lesson. It’s a classic. And you can always add on to the fills once you learn the Time and the beats. Thx, Brian.
The time stamp of the hammer-on, is at 5:07.
Could not make the edit on my original post. Thx.
Another fantastic challenge Brian. I never knew that I would love learning how to play the blues.
Nice and sweet rhythm love this one Brian, amazing teacher for sure! thanks my man.
My first lesson here and had loads of fun! I signed premium straight away.
Looking forward to learn here
Brian, I really enjoyed this lesson particularly because of the options and variety of riffs you have built in. Could you tell me what pick you use for acoustic guitar ? Best wishes Rod
Really Cool I like and try it .. greetings from vienna
Love this one Brian ! Ep 366 is also a fav. Really enjoy these solo compositions. Thanks, Ashley.
I stumbled onto this lesson on YouTube. I have been looking for this for a long time. It inspired me to get my guitar back out and join for a year. Just this one lesson I would gladly pay the year for.