Soulful Blues Lead Guitar Lesson – Using Major and Minor Pentatonic Scales – EP216
In this blues guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a soulful lead in the key of F#. I intentionally omitted any open string notes so that you can transpose any of these licks to other keys. In fact, this lesson comes with 2 MP3 jam tracks, one is in the key that is taught […]
Blues Lead Guitar Lesson with Piano Accompaniment – EP215
This week’s guitar lesson is a blues lead (with rhythm elements thrown in) that has only a piano as accompaniment. It’s always great practice to learn how to accompany a single instrument like this because it forces you to listen and compliment the other instrument. It’s a completely different dynamic than playing with a full […]
(Part 2) Muddy Waters Style Blues Guitar Lesson – Solo Composition – EP214
This week’s guitar lesson is a follow-up to last week’s Muddy Waters style acoustic blues guitar lesson (EP213). I received so many requests for a Part 2, that I decided to go ahead and create an additional 24 bars that you can combine with EP213.
(Part 1) Muddy Waters Style Blues Guitar Lesson – Solo Composition – EP213
In this week’s guitar lesson, I’ll show you how to play a Muddy Waters inspired blues composition that’s played solo guitar (meaning no accompaniment). This composition is made up of several classic Muddy Waters licks. Muddy always played with a slide and even though I’m not using a slide for this, I’ll show you how […]
Tony Joe White Style Rhythm Guitar Lesson – EP212
In this week’s guitar lesson, we’ll take a look at the bluesy rhythm playing of the great Tony Joe White. He’s the songwriter behind “Polk Salad Annie” and “Rainy Night in Georgia” and several other great songs. He also happens to be a fantastic guitar player and his blues rhythm style has always fascinated me. […]
Solo Acoustic Blues Guitar Lesson (Played With a Pick) – EP211
In this week’s guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a solo blues composition that works on acoustic or electric guitar. This is designed to be played with a pick (for those of you that are intimidated by fingerstyle). This uses the classic “call and response” technique and I’ll break it all down so that […]
Gospel Style Blues Guitar Lesson – Major Pentatonic Scale – EP210
This guitar lesson is a blues lead that’s played in the major pentatonic scale. This isn’t your typical 12 bar blues format. There are lots of chord changes in this, but the same basic principles apply when playing lead. You’ll be playing within the key (C), and won’t have to worry about playing the chord […]
Acoustic Jam Guitar Lesson – Jam With a Buddy – EP209
In this acoustic guitar lesson, you’ll learn both rhythm and lead parts for a 2 person jam that can be played on acoustic or electric guitar. This is designed for you to be able to play with someone else, however, if you don’t have another guitar picker nearby, then you can use the provided MP3 […]
Acoustic Blues Guitar Lesson in A – Solo Composition – EP208
This week’s guitar lesson is a solo acoustic blues composition in the key of A. You’ll learn how to alternate between a shuffle rhythm and harmonized leads. You’ll also learn how to relate each of these licks back to basic chord shapes so that you can use them when you improivse or write your own […]
Bluesy, Jazz Guitar Lesson (Solo Composition) EP207
In this bluesy jazz guitar lesson, you’ll learn a solo composition that works on acoustic or electric guitar. I’ll show you where all of the licks and chords come from so that you can improvise in this style or even write songs like this. This was inspired by the great jazz guitar player Kenny Burrell. […]
Blues Rock Trio – One Chord Blues – EP206
In this week’s guitar lesson you’ll be sitting in as the guitar player in a rock / blues trio, filling in both rhythm and lead parts. There are no chord changes in this song, only a single chord. Since there are no other rhythm instruments, you’ll be defining the song as minor or major, and […]
Minor Key Blues – Using Minor Arpeggios To Connect Chord Shapes – EP205
In this minor blues guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to think outside of the pentatonic boxes (an easy place to get stuck) by learning how to use minor arpeggios to connect chords in different voicings up the neck of the guitar. You’ll learn the E minor, A minor, and dominant B7 arpeggios, as well as […]
Chord Embellishments and Hybrid Picking Guitar Lesson – EP204
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a solo blues composition using just 5 basic chords. Instead of just strumming the chords, I’ll show you how to use hybrid picking to help embellish the chords. You’ll essentially be playing extra notes with each chord to create a more sophisticated sound. I play through […]
Jam Band Blues – Rock, Blues Lead Guitar Lesson – EP203
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn a call and response lead that was inspired by the Allman Brothers. There’s also several fast licks (with some Stevie Ray Vaughan influence) that I’ll break down into triplets, making them much easier to learn. Lots of takeaways from this lesson that you can apply to your playing.
Fingerstyle Blues Rhythm and Lead Guitar Lesson – EP202
This is really 2 lesson rolled into one. You’ll learn a very cool blues fingerstyle rhythm (similar to something you’d hear Chet Atkins play). I’ll show you how to palm mute the bottom 3 strings and use your thumb as your “bass player”. There is a lifetime of fingerpicking in this one lesson! In addition […]
John Fogerty Guitar Lesson – Rhythm and Lead – EP201
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a John Fogerty inspired lead and rhythm. This was created by pulling together several of Fogerty’s signature licks both from his solo career as well as his days in Creedence Clearwater Revival. You’ll learn both lead and rhythm in his style and this lesson includes the […]
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 […]
