Description
In this week’s guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a fun, driving rock rhythm over a stripped down jam track (just bass and drums). This rhythm style uses the call & response technique as well as playing on the off-beat.
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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Great lesson! It does sound bad to the bone! I can always benefit from lessons on rhythm and timing
Brian, Love the guitar! Your so lucky to be in Nashville around all the music makers. I never seen a soapbar and a hum bucker on a T-style like that. Sounds great. This lesson was great too. I remember the Billy Squire riff!. So fun to play. Thanks for another interesting lesson.
This is TERRIFIC! Thanks Brian and Happy New Year. Your lessons have become my retirement plan.
As in keeping my brain busy learning new things.
right there with you….this is retirement! Nothing better!
I’m not retired, but refining my guitar skills sure makes retirement look good. Stick around Brian, you are an awesome teacher!
retirement same with me. due to my age and lack of printing nohow. does anyone know how to print the tab larger so i can read it. i know there is zoom but i dont how to it printed larger. anyone-thank you.
In the full screen tab view, there is an icon on the bottom right that looks like a sprocket. It opens a dialog box where you can print the fans full size.
cherck out Cats Squirrel on thefirst Cream album
Or Jethro Tull This Was (1968)
Both covers of original …
Regardless this is great lesson
I love blues rock style lessons from Brian 🙂
Funny, I was also thinking Cat’s Squirrel. Not familiar with Billy Squire’s song.
I love Friday nights!! 😎
Sick bass line too! 🤘
Also, I don’t normally ask about the gear, but I gotta know what that guitar is! 2 weeks in a row with that one, it must be good. P90 neck, humbucker bridge? I fell out of love with my Tele, but that’s giving me GAS all over again 🤣
Danocaster
Thanks for the reply! And the lesson! Can’t wait to dig in
This will become an instant classic Brian. Straight onto my ‘To Do’ List!
Another killer lesson Brian. Wouldn’t the V11 Chord and 11 Chords imply the V Chord? This is why I always thought we are able to slide down or up a step.
When you play the major triad it’s a similar sound as moving from a 6th chord down 2 frets to the 9th chord. Here you’re moving from a major chord triad down to a 9 sound (implied without the root and major 3rd) using the major 2nd and the b7 but also getting the 11. I think even playing diads it implies the same thing. That’s my guess.
In this case the walk down starting in measure 30 is harmonized thirds in the E mixolydian (A major) scale starting with a G# dim on the 12th and 13th frets (picture the 12th fret on the 4th string and 11th fret on the 5th string to complete the chord), F# min on the 10th and 11th frets, Emaj on the 9th fret, Dmaj on the 7th fret, C# min on 5th and 6th frets, and B min on 3th and 4th frets. It really wants to conclude with Amaj on the 2nd fret of the 2nd and 3rd strings.
Yeah, Man, this is too cool. One of your best!
Larry
The E A combo is from Cat’s Squirrel done by Jethro Tull and Cream (I think they did a rendition).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UhJzjSltmqA&ab_channel=JethroTull-Topic
I love this lesson. So much fun! That opening riff is just a pentatonic so we probably hear versions of it in tons of songs but it made me think of Spirit in the Sky, although that’s not quite it, and also a random song I have on my itunes called You Can’t Be Told by Valerie June. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSKJOwbKQ30
Thanks Brian!
My bad. The call is not a major pentatonic, its an E7 arpeggio. Brian played the flat 7th instead of the C#.
Brian b – went immediately to Cat’s Squirrel too. And you are correct Cream does do it. On their Fresh Cream album.
hey Brian, how about sharing your Kemper tones?
Love the call and response this has along with the gritty tone on the tele.
Thanks Brian, I particularly like those blues rock lessons with emphasis on the rhythm.
Rhythm is the foundation of music, I know I have to work on and this EP will help me.
Really cool to see how 3 instruments complement each other…
@Brian: Would you share how you (technically) record your bass and how your got those punchy first few bars done? I am already afraid the answer will be “it’s all in the fingers…..”
Awesome!!!! Again…..
Isolating each riff/lick adds to the rhythm vocabulary.
Great lesson Brian,
Showing the tab music above your fretboard demo is really helpful too,
Thanks
Ray
Fun!
Hi Brian,
Well thought out lesson as usual.
Your “mystery” riff in part 2 recalls the tune “Cats Squirrel” for me, as performed by Cream on their 1st album and also by Jethro Tull.
Better pedigree than Billy Squier haha.
Cheers
Another great short lesson with lots of juicy licks to savor – thanks again, Brian. These double-stop licks and slides fit beautifully in any E7-A7-B7 blues jams too! Funny you mentioned Billy Squier – I immediately thought of the opening riff to “Lonely Is the Night” when I heard your first few licks. You remain the best guitar instructor on the Internet!
Happy New Year
Brian This is a great rhythm lesson and lots of fun.
JohnStrat
Great lesson. I’d been listening recently to the Grateful Dead’s “New Minglewood Blues,” which is in the key of E like your lesson. I found that the descending double stops in the lesson fit nicely with this tune. Good way to put the lesson into practice.
(I was speaking of the licks that Brian starts teaching at about 10:50 in Part 2 of the lesson.)
Thanks, Brian! Once again you saved me some time. This is a great opening for JJ Cale’s Crazy Mama my trio has been working on; couldn’t find a nice opening and I modified this lesson to fit it. BTW…recently I heard a George Harrison interview where he said he was a “guitar player” not a “guitarist” like a Chet Atkins. He played to work out songs. Often going months and months not playing if not working on something. I thought that’s me! I was trying to be a “guitarist” and I don’t have the time/talent for that. But at 69 after 20 years playing, I can be a good “guitar player” for my trio. AM really helps me with at! I’m taking your ideas and adapting to songs. Great unique additions I make my own. Thanks!!
The “slow” version is the fastest I can manage (barely!), but what great tips! Thanks 🙂
Ouuuuups, seems easy… not at all !!!! Big one to progress !
Hi Brian, Happy New Year. great lesson and hope you are going for many more years as I’m only 70 this year!
Another superb lesson Brian, thank you! Taking out a subscription to your lessons is probably the best thing I’ve ever gone guitar-wise and I can see and feel the improvements in my playing already. Just one question if I may…how would one go about soloing on top of that rhythm. Maybe another lesson on that? Much obliged, Ciaran.
Wow, can’t wait to learn this one Brian. At 74, I’m going to do the slow version 1st and work my way up lol.
All I can say is I just love these rhythm lessons. I have got so much out of the funk lessons and I just know I will learn a lot from this one too.
Great lesson Brian – I immediately hear a very old Aussie classic here from Daddy Cool: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WI4dWXuC6Ww
I’m using the Scuffham S-Gear amp simulator with the old factory preset named ZZ Dog for the ZZ Top sound. I had to download the old factory presets and then add ZZ Dog to my list of presets. This link has a zip file with a bunch of old factory presets, and instructions on how to import a preset. https://www.scuffhamamps.com/forum/9-presets/4365-old-factory-presets-v106
This rock and chicago blues stuff is really grabbing my attention. Loving all of the common sense theory on chords with licks too. Thanks so much Brian.
I hear Lonely is the Night. Also hearing Cat Squirrel from Fresh Cream.
Cat’s Squirrel
Brian – EP447 Rock Blues Rhythm was the best on-line course I’ve ever had. Real guitar playing and not just memorizing. Thanks. Brian Burke
Beautiful! Ill never get fast on this but luckily it sounds nice slow also
I thought it sounded like ZZ Top too and I’m really getting in to it. However, I was cranking up some Freddie King and I thought to myself how much the jam track sounds like him. The album I was listening to was Freddie King Live & Loud 1968 and the song Feelin’ Good (I wanna Boogie). This is probably not on the vinyl, I pulled it off iTunes and it’s a bonus track
To me the call sounds very close to Aerosmith: Same Old Song and Dance (My Friend) not exactly but very close
amazing and sweet, thanks Brian!!
Anyone can help? Not sure that I will explain this right. First, I am an acoustic guitar player, electric really does not come natural to me. But i want to learn! I play with a squire strat vintage 70. My problem is when i do make a chord, it does not take much pressure to make the strings go out of tune, it is very noticeable when go from chord to chord. Is it that i don’t have the right gauge, or do I just have to get use to not applying to much pressure when grabbing the chords?
Brian, okay, this is a great one! Thanks for all the light bulbs.
–Cooper
love this lesson. The timing was a challenge for me but really feel like I got a lot out of the work I had to put in. And for what it’s worth, I totally heard this as ZZ Top!
If you like this lesson, EP032 “John Lee Hooker Style” has some of the same elements as this one, but is a bit easier to learn I think. But are fun to learn. Thank you Brian.