Description
In this lesson, learn how to play an acoustic blues with a pick (no fingerstyle), with no accompaniment. You’ll be alternating back and forth between rhythm and lead (call and response style). This works on both acoustic or electric guitar.
Part 1 - Rhythm
Part 2 - Lead Licks
Only available to premium members.
Register for premium access
Register for premium access
Part 3 - Intro Lead Part
Only available to premium members.
Register for premium access
Register for premium access
Slow Walk-Through
Only available to premium members.
Register for premium access
Register for premium access
Only available to premium members.
Register for premium access
Register for premium access
You need to be logged in as a premium member to access the tab, MP3 jam tracks, and other assets.
Learn MoreAdd to "My Favorites"
You need to login or register to bookmark/favorite this content.
Live
Thank you Brian. I love these rhythm and leads on acoustic. I had to unsubscribe for a while, but I’m back and enjoying this lesson. Great job! And great site!
Thanks Brian. I love it and really appreciate your hard work
Possibly your finest offering yet Brian 🙂 many thanks
i’m a french bluesman musician and i hope to go in england play music on concert
… looks quit cold up there … nice lesson !
Excellent……you don’t know how timely this is for us in the Northeast!! Thanks Brian.
Excellent. really enjoy this kind of lesson, finally feel I’m progressing after years of boredom guitar
A bit up tempo for me right now but I will be giving it a serious try as I really like this kind of stuff great to have it Brian. many thanks
Another good piece Brian. It was sunny and in the 70’s today here in Houston TX—too cold to go swimming but a nice day to be out in the back yard—so if you don’t mind, and for my own purposes, I will call it the “picking out by the pool, Houston in January blues” 🙂
Great one Brian ! I am a new member and very pleased you are keeping up the acoustic lessons. Thanks so much !!!
Brian,
I want to thank you for taking the time to teach us another great lesson. I have picked up the guitar after not playing for over 30 years and with your lessons I am having a blast!
Great!! Gonna learn this one from A to Z, oh yes sir from A to Z.
I enjoy all the lessons, but for me there is something extra rewarding about ones like this that don’t need any accompaniment. As this is in the same key as EPO65 & 66, when we have all three under our fingers it could be fun to bring it all together as sections of a longer piece, adjusting tempos or playing order if needed.
Haha! I was listening when you started making comments. Great minds I guess?
Nice pick-me-up for these cloudy winter days!
Love it!
My arm is sore and my hand is cramping up but I can’t stop…. great stuff Brian.
Hi Brian. Is the tab thats posted right? I feel like it’s missing some notes. Unless i dont know how to read that bold seven looking thing in there.
So simple, so effective. Another great offering, well done Brian. I am very impressed that you can turn out such great songs week after week.
These acoustic blues are the best .I prefer fingers style but this one with rhythm and lead is good fun and hopefully i can add in a few licks from some of your other lessons. Thank you once again.
Brian - Another great lesson!! I do have a question regarding the tab post for the intro and what is shown in the video. I’ve tried tabbing out the video portion and it looks a little different from the posted tab. I’m probably missing something, but I do not see the first three bars of the posted tab the same as the intro video. I’m probably missing something, but could you please verify that the tab and video are in concert together?
Video Tablature?
Good catch on the tab. Somehow I left off a part of the intro when I exported this file.. I’ve added it back so if you re-download the tab it should now be correct. Thanks for the catch!
…… Winter blues ?? Not here in Australia - 33 degrees C, warm and sunny (sorry all you northern hemisphere guys, but oh well, why miss an opportunity to rub it in! ). I love fingerstyle playing but I find lessons like this always put some sizzle (sorry, there I go again) into my playing. Don’t know how you do it Brian but keep doing what you do ….. amazing stuff.
Thanks Brian. Looking forward to trying this out.
Brian, it’s brillant !
Bravo from Paris
Hi Brian.
Loved this last lesson. Not needing a jam track, so as to be able to just pick up acoustic and play to yourself is just great! One question though, “Winter Blues” - I thought blues had to be 1-4-5 sequence, is E/A/G 1-4-5? Can you explain?
David Miles.
Hey David, there are no rules that blues has to be 1-4-5 or even 12 bars for that matter. The feel is what makes it bluesy.
Brian - Thanks to you for the response. I am obviously an amateur if I can’t pick it up first hand, but from what I have learned from you has made me a MUCH BETTER guitar player and enhanced my love for playing. Keep up the GREAT WORK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Brian. Thanks for your answer. I am so pleased to now know that these things are not set in stone. I think that just about everytime I have read about “the Blues”, 1-4-5 has been mentioned. You have now demolished all that. You must be correct as it sounded so bluesy! I do remember though reading that Paul Jones asked Lightning Hopkins when they were on tour in the UK, “is this number going to be a 12 barre blues and Lightning responded by saying - Lightning will play as many barre’s as Lightning wants to play.!!
Thanks again.
David.
hot stuff brian…great rhythm lesson…the world needs rhythm players..and you are right..I COUDNT STOP PLAYING THAT . . RHYTHM ONCE I GOT IT.
THANKS
MARK
Great Hat!!!!!,,,oh,,,and a pretty snazzy tune also.
Thanks Brian. One of my favourite lessons. Just great when the rhythm clicks and that train won’t stop.
Love this lesson, love the way you teach.
thanks, Jill
Enjoy your lessons and appreciate all the effort you put in to them making it understandable.. The whys and how comes are very inportant and you have made these lessons reachable for us…Also thanks for have accoustic involved in your teaching…………
I’m finally mastering the ghost strum technique. keeping the left hand going
(I’m leftie) has been a challenge for me. It’s more fun now.
I love it! Thanks Brian, Jill
Brian, great stuff, thanks. In the beginning of the lesson you show palm muting with the right hand and later show muting with the fretting left hand. Do I need to master both to get the right effect?
That’s really great stuff Brian, I love it !
Love your site Brian . This is going to do wonders for my playing .All the pieces are approachable and thoroughly explained. Thanks for all the work you’ve done.Much appreciated.
Great tune and lesson, I started late but cracked it before spring has got here in UK!!
Cheers UK Bri
Love this one.
I love the intro, finally starting to make progress
Hey Brian, Is that an MPA70 that you’re playing?
Yep
I`m quite new in the ActivMelody community. Your lessons reach me in Germany. They help me verry, verry much. I wish Ihave had them ten years ago when I started on my own.
Thank you very much!
Just signed up. This one will be my first try to learn. I really like your style of teaching.
Hello Brian
I have been away from the guitar for a few months and have stumbled across your website while I’m recovering from back surgery.
I have been interested in Blues for some time now, a bit outside my wheel house, but none the less interesting. I have been working on your Winter Acoustic Blues, the strum pattern you show only addresses the first bar and the last half of the second, maybe it’s the Meds but I can’t find the strum pattern in the lesson. If you could check it out that would be great. Great stuff here, thank you.
Oh yeah!
Brian…. really enjoy your lessons……that Alvarez sounds amazing…. what model is that?
You say before the 4th lick there isn’t time to get to the 12the fret , but according to the tab there is a one beat pause before all the licks