Description
This week’s guitar lesson is a good example of the CAGED system in action. You’ll learn how to play chords in multiple positions on the neck and how to connect them to the pentatonic scales so that you can easily create fill licks. This lesson is full of “takeaways”.
Part 1 - Free Guitar Lesson
Part 2 - For Premium Members
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Slow Walkthrough
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Video Tablature Breakdown
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Michael O says
Love your stuff Brian!!!! However, I just can’t keep up with all these lessons. 🙁
Nick_66 says
Hahaha….same here!!! I chose the lessons that suits me best and focus on them and try to master them all. Good luck and have fun!
Craig F says
Yep, same here. Lol. The “problem” is that they all are great and I hate missing anything in any of them. Not sure what he could do differently though. Certainly not ungrateful, God, just the opposite, I wish I had run into this material back when I first started playing…
Guy Beauchamp says
Excellent track & riffs. Love your lessons.
Brian M says
The great thing about AM is the lessons never go away. Choose one work on it for two weeks then choose another. They are always there for you to refer back to. I have been a member for a year and half and have studied about a dozen or maybe 18 in that period. Some are easier some are quite challenging but they all teach you something. What I gave found a year and half later is when I go back and re visit stuff I can now play and understand stuff I could not a year ago. Its a life long journey dont give up
Michael O says
That sounded ungrateful, sorry. Your lessons are fantastic! However, I am still working on EP325.
Jim M says
Brian, you are such an inspiration man !!!
BRENDAN G says
Hi Brian,
Love this one, it is my speed and style.
Brendan
Michael Allen says
Another gem! I need work on everything you’ve included in this lesson. Thanks Brian
Chuck W says
Outstanding!!!
Chris R says
Super Awesome!! Thanks Brian
Bill B says
I cannot wait to dig deep into this one, Brian! Thank you for yet another top notch lesson.
San Luis Rey says
Stupendous ! Tremendous! It’s really impressive how you keep coming up with great lessons. Thanks again Brian!
PJR says
Brilliant lesson. I’ll consolidate lots of valuable takeaways here.
Thankyou Brian
Robert Burlin says
Musical Gem for true. Almost got last week”s lesson mastered, (at a very very slow tempo) I”ll have to come back to it because I want to learn this little ditty right away. Hey Brian! How about something scary and spooky in the near future? Would make a good lesson with that ghostly time of October right around the corner, it would be fun, or frightening I should say..
Brent C says
Some Friday’s they just come a little quicker than others. Having a BLAST learning/playing this beauty already. Brian, I sure hope you realize how much enjoyment your teaching brings to a hobbyist like me. Almost makes me feel like a “real guitarist”. Thanks again for sharing your amazing talents!!
Andy N says
Another lesson that’s exactly what I need and packed with goodies. But I’ve now got a dilemma, do I keep working on the very tasty EP329 or get tempted away by this latest siren!? More life decisions!
BRENDAN G says
A quick question, which pickup are using?
Thanks
Brendan
Brian says
I’m in the middle position – between the bridge and neck pickup
BRENDAN G says
Thanks
Glenn says
Yes! So soulful, Brian. And so helpful! I don’t know how you learned all this stuff. I’m guessing sitting in the front rows of hundreds of performances. You are an excellent communicator and your website is the best of its kind on the net. I can’t thank you enough.
Joel R says
Hello
In my opinion ,the Best lessons about Caged system application.
Lots of take away too.
And all this with very good music .!!!
Many thanks Brian .
Joe
Hrry T says
Great lesson Brian! Around the 9 minute mark, where you use the D chord shape, the light bulb came on for me. I have played Funk 49 by Joe Walsh for years and never truly understood the progression until now.
Jimmy W says
Fantastic lesson Brian ! Love the way you explain the basis of the lessons.
Thomas W says
Nice lesson! With lots of key take aways. Will dig in on Sunday.
JoLa says
One of your finest lessons, Brian, both music and the instructions! I love how you make the guitar sing in lieu of vocals, your ear for melodies is amazing. Not to mention your playing skills, oh man! 😲This lesson is a must learn, I can’t wait to dig into it.
kevin m says
WOW!!! Tough to keep up with all the amazing lessons..
chris k says
Just what i was looking for the other day in your lessons. I know you have others similar but i get distracted by other lessons along the way. Thanks , your lessons have brought me along way .
Raymond P says
Great lesson Brian, lots of great take aways. Sometimes hard to keep up with each weekly lesson but I wouldn’t change a think. Keep these great lessons coming.
Thanks again
Ray P
Roger P says
I’d gone back to EP199 this week to get my head around those triads and this lesson fits it very well. So nice to have a guitar teacher who genuinely wants to share rather than show-off 🙂
Alan K says
Beautiful composition Brian. I’ll file it under future lessons. Recovering from elbow/arms issues from over-use. Think I learned my lesson to pace myself and take breaks. Going slow tempo with 302 and 310. So much to learn there. Thanks for so much great stuff and the theory that ties it all in.
Ian D says
Love it…..Love it ….love it !!
Brilliant lesson and I really like it when you use the harmonized licks as they offer so many different options outside of the usual pentatonic licks that you can incorporate into your playing. Again I love the way you explain how it all fits together as I can start seeing the fretboard differently !
Thanks
deece says
Well, I just have to say it: Damn, Brian, you just get better and better! deece
Michael C says
Wow! Love it, I think this could be my favourite lesson yet! And there are so many great ones! Thanks for inspiring us to learn and play! 😊
Dronehopper says
Just love your lessons Brian, but my brain is melting 🤦♂️
Laurel C says
A great instructional lesson packed with goodies. Lots of note taking here for the workbook. Also some complementary material to add to chords (A,D,E) from EP199. Can’t help but sing along with the lyrics, ‘People, get ready, there’s a train a-coming, you don’t need no ticket, you just get on board.’
Stuart M says
Brilliant!
JohnStrat says
Brian this is a very good lesson. I wont be able to practice it for a week or two yet owing to my injury (dislocated shoulder) but it is inspiring stuff as have been so many lessons. I am eager to get playing again asap and this will likely top the list. Thanks JohnStrat
Brian M says
i love this lesson all your lessons are clear and concise I know my playing has taken some big steps since I came onboard as a Premium Member ,
roco says
Very Cool! Thanks! 🎶
Jeff S says
Brian, many thanks on the recent focus on rhythm playing. I’ve come to the conclusion I need to focus on this aspect of my playing before I tackle any searing lead licks.! I really Like the Motown feel of EP324. I also saw some of those videos with Carol Kaye, pretty interesting. I’m sure Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads has a shrine to her in her house somewhere!
Iman A says
Hi Like all the time perfect but reminds me my math class at school cause lots of brilliant information and difficult to remember all
Thanks a lot
Iman
wrightclick says
I really am enjoying this you can even fit in the lead guitar to “Let it Be ” over the track this is the first time i can make some stuff up and it sounds half decent . I wouldn’t mind a part 2 to see some more ideas and an maybe how to add a bridge section (we call it a middle eight ) .Thanks Brian cracking stuff love the way you attack the notes and do a rake when starting the lead section .
drlknstein says
man…this is a really great one – so much in part one that i can use !….can t wait to get to part 2– but i m gonna spend more time on part 1
thanks
timothy9 says
Love this one Brian. Curtis Mayfield comes to mind along with Steve Cropper. It’s amazing how much of Cropper’s stuff has become part of the language of R&B.
The growl of that P-90 kicks in at all the right places.
Franz S says
Wow! Please keep those coming… 🙂
Brian K says
Brian, I’m new to your site, and it’s fantastic. Finally, a teaching style that resonates with the way I learn!! (and really cool the way you compose all this helpful material each week). I’m working on #330 now (seriously FULL of practical stuff) – really great. I’m sure someone along the way has asked about your guitar collection – would be great to learn a bit more about it.
Mike A says
Awesome lesson Brian you always pull out the jams I want to play. I don’t want to learn cookie-cutter songs like on the radio and your lessons always outshine everyone else’s thanks again Brian
John P says
Love your chords with fill licks stuff. Hope you do more.
Craig F says
Yep, agreed.
Craig F says
I am really enjoying these CAGED system lessons; the Rhythm/Lead type lessons. Everyone I know is “stuck” in the 1st position rhythm guitar; I was stuck myself for years; these kinds of lessons incorporating Rhythm, Lead, and the whole of the fret board are just great. Thank you once again.
Qi H says
Thanks so much always! We are so lucky to find you!
Alan S says
Best stuff every! Please do a lot more songs like this with double stops.
Great Job
drlknstein says
I .like what u said- this lesson is stuff you use all the time .
Maybe that’s why it’s so good for us,. It’s a fusion of ideas that you have developed over time. It’s gold for me!
Not to take away from other lessons
There’s always something in there. A new twist on something we have seen before that makes it worth the price of admission and man what a bargain!
Rick L says
I am continually amazed at the way you interweave a simple melody with an elegant style of playing…the phrasing is key here…I have never been a shredder or had a need for speed playing , the sonic journey is the reward…this and your previous Motown lesson a few back are masterpieces…young players can learn a lot about not being in a hurry…speed is always a tool, never a destination. Great stuff Brian…one lesson on here is easily worth the price you charge for a year’s subscription.
Andy D says
Another jam-packed fantastic lesson with loads of takeaways. Thanks again, Brian.
Craig F says
At the risk of being annoying, having just worked through the first part, I had to jump back on and just say how really great this lesson is. I’m pretty sure every part of it can be taken and played in all the other keys which, for me, makes it extremely valuable. It was just one cool thing after another to try in this or that key. Really enjoyed the first part, at least; all I could keep thinking was “solid gold”. Thanks again for a great lesson. (For me, there was just too much stuff in the first part to go straight into the second part. Hope to tackle that tomorrow.)
RNArizona says
I absolutely love this lesson. As a new member, I was going to complain that I haven’t mastered Blues EP 327 or Rockabilly EP 226 yet, both of which I love. However, I see that everyone has the same problem–and what a nice problem it is to have! Perhaps even more important to mention is that all three of these songs are in musical genres that I really don’t have much experience with. I’ll date myself by quoting the motto of Faber College, “Learning Is Good.”
Ted F says
Great lesson. Really helps to “connect the dots”. Looking forward to more of these
Ricky M says
I really love Your lessons Brian, wish I had more time to work it . with Your help Ive improved a lot. Maybe its is just Me but I thought this one sounded like John Mayers Waiting on the world to change.
David S says
Brian, Thought 318 couldn’t be beat but this one just jumped out at me with all you’ve been covering lately.Found a song a by Glen Campbell ” People get Ready ” and so much of this lesson fits the song. Found myself playing right along and didn’t realize I could do it. Thanks again for all you do for all of us. Having a ball and playing 2 to 3 hrs. a day. Learning more than I have in 30 years of playing. Wish I knew you back then. David
sunburst says
Agree, people get ready.. I like how Jeff Beck played his composition with Rod Stewart
David B says
Great Lesson. Love the takeaways. Amazed how I know chords and scales and yet haven’t been able to put it together like you do in this lesson. Great to feel you can kind of create your own song without having to memorise one.
Many thanks
David
Robert Rosewood (aka Matt Scallon) says
Transforming my songs!
David S says
Brian, The Glen Campbell version I referred to earlier is on The Legacy album 1961-2017. Can download off Amazon digital music for 99 cents.So much better than what he put out earlier in his career. The lesson you did hit it on the head.Thanks again. David
Michael W says
I’ve always loved that Jimi, Steve Ray, Curtis Mayfield lead/rhythm sound. Light bulbs are a-poppin’. Great lesson and Thank You
Davie d says
Brian, awesome lesson! This has opened my mind on how to look at the fretboard using the caged system! I understood caged before, but you have really made me see it more clearly especially as it relates to scales! I love that you make me think and figure things out for myself! You are an awesome teacher!!!
Dave D
Boise, Idaho
Les Brown says
So beautiful. Just puts me in a zone…
Scott Fowler says
I love this one. So many pieces to to digest and use! Thanks!
Will G says
Absolutely brilliant Brian. I love these hybrid styles because it helps me with ideas to support songs and our singer. My favourite playing style.
Larry P says
I”m so glad i found you. Thank You!
scubatan says
Hear hear!
David L says
Love this lesson. Does anyone know of any tunes that this progression fits with?
Thought maybe John Mayer, Waiting on the World to Change, but no, not exactly.
There’s got to be some older tunes that have this progression but I can’t seem to place it.
Thanks All!
Scott Fowler says
Alright, now that I have had a chance to really dig into this piece, this is my favorite lesson that I have found on the site so far!!!
jeff a says
Really liked EP 330 Brian! I don’t know, some lessons when i hear them i think “that’s cool” but i’ll wait for the next one and then some lessons when i hear them i think “wow, I need to get my lap top out and start learning it now”. That’s how 330 hit me. It sounds awesome and its fun to play. plus a lot of practical theory in it as well. Thanks man! you’re the best! I’m not even gonna hesitate to renew my premium membership come january. this has taken my playing to the next couple of levels.
donh1 says
This is the best lesson I’ve seen putting CAGED, Keys, I- IV- V- VI arrangement, scales/fills, and a cool groove into a fun and practical lesson.
Gary R says
First post here. Love these lessons. Mostly self taught learning folk, bluegrass and rock. So the relative major to minor was my young path. Not the other way around. Fingerpicking Dylan to Doc Watson. Then to blues rock stones steely Knopfler. Strange path…
These are really great approaches for me. Somehow across my journey I realize that all these elements that you explain are here in my knowledge and the dots are ready to connect. My limitations are left hand muscle memory. Over such minimal pentatonic variations. One fret up or down and ouch! Left hand hurts. That surprises me.
One of my ways of looking at caged here , while watching this lesson, is seeing the F chord replacing the E up the neck, especially on strings 1-4. Same concept, just my glance down anchor.
Finding your lessons is just what I needed. My wife is amazed that I devote so much time and always walk in grinning cause I can actually understand what I kinda mostly know.
Plus I saw the b n g little sister here and added to my collection for the first time in years. Great guitar.
Arieh K says
Beautiful playing. Love it.
sunburst says
Brian, I actually just started getting into to this lesson,, the tab on this however is not up to par,, i rather now watch and listen for up down strokes .. The videos are better for this one.. because it seems in the tab , the muted up or down strums are not indicated in the first few measures..just thought to point it out to you in case you haven’t noticed
albeit terrific lesson,, reminds me of Rod Stewart/Jeff Beck people get ready
Staffan W says
Hi from Sweden! Fantastic lessons! Having played different guitars as a “side-instrument” since I was a kid, these lessons just make me develop real fast and in the direction I need for what I play these days, and for my songwriting. Big thanks!
Mark Z says
Yes! Just watching this gets me charged up! Can’t wait to learn it.
Smilin' Jim says
Another great lesson Brian!
I know little about music theory but, can you tell me if the final measure (#16) in the tabs is all “F”? Is it common to “break the routine” of going back to the “C” (the one chord) mid-measure?
Thanks!
Gregg G says
Hi Brian,
Much like everyone else I love these lessons. But, I would love to know what this particular guitar is?! How about a video on your various beautiful guitars and the kit you use? Sorry if you already have and I haven’t found it.
Merry Xmas,
Gregg.
nostril says
Love this lesson Brian!So Soulful most definitely turns on the light.
Thanks
KevinE says
This is an excellent lesson, it is so musical. As a request, please include the backing track for the slow walk through and the interactive tab for all lessons like you did in ep347 (if there is a backing track). It makes it more fun to play along.
Thanks, Kevin
scubatan says
Dido On the Slow Track!
scubatan says
A musical hike that’s full of gems! Love it when you break it down into common sense theory, I am not as overwhelmed as by some other sites. What’s interesting is the composition, especially rhythm is so intricate, it requires Brian’s original ideas and/or experience that’s invaluable. Thanks, man!
Marshall T says
I could weirdly just listen to this one. A true feel-good jam.
Guilherme N says
It reminds a U2 song, stuck in a moment.
Shane O says
That’s what I thought….sounds a lot like the live version of ´Stuck in a Moment´
brian m says
Thank you so much, I have subscribed to your lessons before and recently re subscribed. I can go a lot of places but your lessons compared to others sound like you’re playing a song and not a lesson. I am able to learn a lot of “feeling” from you. Stuff that you can’t put in a tab… mainly the rhythm, dynamics and vibrato you use. Add to that, you sneakily teach me music theory haha. Thank you so much for teaching us, this one really inspired me.
Ralph P. says
Love this one Brian. This is the kind of rhythm playing I’ve always loved. The lick at 13:15 was nagging at me for a while. Then it hit me! The beginning of George Harrison’ s solo on Let It Be. He must have lifted that from you! Borrow from the best.
Brian Canadian in the UK says
doing some catch up with the cage lesson and this is just a great practice routine to the favourites
patrick c says
This is a beautiful piece
Timoci R says
After ep330 so many times the it hit me despite your repeated insistence of using the e shape and the a shape to harmonise.It’s been staring in the face for so long I yelled when I fially understood.Thanks Brian.
Chris J says
Wow!! This is so much fun. I could play this all day. A lot of great takeaways from this. Thanks a lot!!!
Jeroen H says
At 17:41 Brain wonders where hé got it from. To me this song sounds like a song from Bob Marley.
Still I like this song because it has a lot of things to teach.
Jackson P says
Yes, it sounds a lot like “No Woman No Cry”, and to me it also sounds like “Tupelo Honey” by Van Morrison.
Adam S says
MORE LIKE THIS!!
David N says
I joined Active Melody because I watched this YouTube. Learned this song in 2 days, couldn’t help myself!! I’ve been looking for some direction for soloing over my own comping for some time now, this is perfect. Please keep doing these and explaining the theory that you have been doing to get there, awesome.