Introducing MicroLessons – Thank You For Supporting 200 Lessons! – EP200
To celebrate this week’s 200th episode (EP200), I wanted to create something big. I considered my options for an “epic” lesson this week and decided it would be much better to create a whole new section of the website to address smaller chunks of guitar information that I can share each week! I’m calling these […]
3 Essential Chord Shapes on the Guitar – Chord Inversions – EP199
In this guitar lesson, you are going to learn 3 triad chord shapes (a triad means just 3 notes). I’ll show you how to play these chord shapes up the neck of the guitar and how to play a 1, 4, 5 chord progression with them. You can use them both in rhythm playing and […]
Solo Blues Rhythm and Lead (No Accompaniment) – EP198
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a solo blues composition in the key of E. This works on both electric and acoustic guitar. This is another lessons that uses the “call and response” technique, going back and forth between playing rhythm and lead licks, and you’ll learn how to improvise in this […]
Acoustic Fingerstyle Guitar Lesson – “Song For Brian” – EP197
In this acoustic guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a simple fingerstyle melody that requires no backing track or accompaniment. This sounds great on it’s own and works on both acoustic or electric guitar. In addition, I’ve created a bonus video for Premium Members that shows you how to write compositions like this. It […]
Jerry Garcia Style Guitar Lesson – Grateful Dead Style Lead – EP196
In this guitar lesson, I’ll break down several Jerry Garcia style licks and explain how to play them and where they come from. Jerry was really good at playing the chord changes (which means switching the scale to match whatever the chord was). I’ll show you how to change scales to match the chords by […]
Angus Young (AC/DC) Style Guitar Lesson – Rhythm with Fill Licks – EP195
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a classic rock rhythm in the style of Angus Young from AC/DC. Angus Young has always played the same heavy rock, blues guitar style throughout his career. This lesson is built in layers (much the way that AC/DC structures their songs). The first time through, it’s […]
Solo Blues Guitar Lesson on Electric Guitar – EP194
In this blues guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a solo composition on electric guitar in the key of B. Far too often the assumption is made that everything that you should learn on electric guitar is with the intention of playing in a band or with a group of musicians, so I created […]
Have a Jam Session By Yourself – Funky Jam on Acoustic Guitar – EP193
In this week’s guitar lesson you’ll learn how to have a jam session with yourself, alternating back and forth between 2 chords for the verse, and then switching to a 3rd chord every so often to break things up. In between those chords you’ll be playing fill licks while never breaking the rhythm! Lessons like […]
Rhythmic Acoustic Blues Guitar Lesson – Call and Response Blues – EP192
In this acoustic blues guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a driving rhythm as well as lead licks, and will go back and forth between them using a “call and response” technique. I’ll break down the strum pattern in detail and have included a bonus video focusing solely on strumming (strum patterns are included […]
Country Lead Guitar Lesson – Bluesy with Pedal Steel Licks – EP191
In this country guitar lesson, I’ll show you how to improvise using harmonized leads (included harmonized 6ths and 3rds). I’ll explain this from a theory perspective, and then give you a practical application by showing you how they relate to chord shapes that you already know. Several classic pedal steel licks are also included.
Drop D, Heavy Blues Guitar Lesson (With No Accompaniment) – EP190
This week’s guitar lesson is a slow and heavy sounding blues that’s played fingerstyle in Drop D Tuning. I’ll show you how to play this composition note for note and will also show you how easy it is to improvise in this style (giving a few examples). Also, this lesson works really well on acoustic […]
Ragtime Blues Guitar Lesson – Solo Guitar Lesson – EP189
In this ragtime blues guitar lesson, you’ll benefit in two ways. 1) You’ll learn a fun composition that requires no accompaniment, a composition that you can play on your own at whatever tempo you want which works on acoustic or electric guitar. 2) I’ll explain how to play the chord changes and where all of […]
Slow, Laid Back Groove (Bluesy) – Rhythm and Lead Guitar Lesson – EP188
This week’s guitar lesson is a slow, laid back groove that’s played in the key of D. You’ll be learning some J.J. Cale, Mark Knopfler, and David Gilmour licks in this composition. All 3 of those guitar players have one thing in common, and that is that they all are experts are saying a lot […]
Percussive Fingerstyle Blues Composition – Acoustic Blues Guitar Lesson – EP187
This lesson was designed to teach you how to play a percussive fingerstyle blues that requires no accompaniment. I’ll show you how to tap the strings on the off beats to create a rhythmic sound that accompanies your playing. I’ll also show you where these notes come from so that you can start to create […]
Boogie Woogie Style Rhythm Guitar Lesson (Includes 3 Levels) – EP186
This week’s guitar lesson features 3 boogie woogie style rhythms that can be played over the same MP3 jam track. Each rhythm is slightly more difficult than the previous in that the first one (Level 1) is the easiest and Level 3 is the most difficult. This lesson gives you 3 variations on how to […]
Western Swing Style Rhythm Guitar Lesson – EP185
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to spice up your rhythm playing with some jazzy sounding chord substitutes. Western Swing is a great format for this because it combines, blues, jazz, and country and creates techniques that can be applied to any of those styles. In addition to explaining the theory behind the chords, […]
Slow, Minor Key Blues in A – Both Rhythm and Lead Guitar Parts – EP184
In this blues guitar lesson, you’ll learn how play along with a slow, minor key jam track that is missing any guitar tracks. The jam track consists of a piano, bass, and drums and it’ll be up to you to fill in both rhythm and lead parts. I’ll show you how to alternate back and […]
Slow Blues in G – Includes Major Pentatonic Licks – EP183
In this blues guitar lesson you’ll learn how to play a slow blues in the key of G focusing on major pentatonic scale licks. I’ll show you some easy patterns that you can connect to chord shapes so that you can easily improvise using the major pentatonic scale. I’ve also included the MP3 jam track […]
Blues Guitar With a Tempo Change – Rhythm and Lead – EP182
In this blues guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a I, IV, V blues chord progression with a dramatic tempo change. The I chord is always played in a faster tempo. Going back and forth between these two tempos and learning how to slow down between them will help develop your sense of timing. […]
Zydeco Guitar Lesson – Cajun Style Rhythm and Lead – EP181
This is a Zydeco style rhythm guitar composition (with a lead part as well). I’ve got this lesson split into 3 different parts. The first part shows you how to play on the off-beat (between the beats). The second part utilizes a double stop (playing 2 strings at one) and allows you to play different […]
