Licks
Guitar Solo Tip: What Nobody Ever Tells You
(and makes or breaks your solos!)
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Here’s What Nobody Ever Tells You About Playing a Great Solo!
Until now…ready?
0:24 Rhythm is the most important thing to nail when we play a solo.
How do we know? Because every great sounding player has a strong rhythmic groove! The fact is the right notes with a boring rhythmic feel will always sound boring…but ‘weird’ notes with amazing rhythm- can sound amazing (John Coltrane, Scott Henderson, Allan Holdsworth anyone?)
0:40 So in this guitar lesson I want to show you a simple way you can practice developing your rhythm. It’s easy to do and is even fun to do…
0:55 Try thinking like a drummer. You don’t need to go out and buy a chest wig and a tank top (only joking..)
Instead put most of your focus on nailing the groove…instead of thinking so hard about the notes you’re playing! Hammer out the rhythm of your solo phrases and licks with gusto and passion. This will give your phrases rhythmic life and expression.
1:50 I’m going to demo this for you now over a backing track. I’m really trying to ‘lock in’ with the drums and bass, and the groove of the music as a whole – instead of just ‘playing in time’.
2:06 Imagine someone walked into your practice session as you were soloing without backing. Would they hear where the beat was just by listening to you solo? They should be able to!
2:25 So what kinds of results can you expect from doing this? Well, you could see instant change…I’ve seen it in my students many times.
It’s a fast way to improve the sound of your soloing…and you don’t really need to learn anything new – you just play what you already play with more groove!
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Repeating Guitar Licks: Monster Repeating Licks for Rock and metal Guitar!
Learn how to easily create dozens (even hundreds) of awesome sounding repeating guitar licks to use for high energy solos. Repeating guitar licks are an easy and effective way to create exciting, high energy guitar solos and we hear them used by all the great rock and metal players like Slash, Vai, Page, Rhoads – pretty much all of ’em use some repeating licks in their solos.
But how can you come up with your own awesome repeating licks?
Well stay tuned because in this video I’ll show you an easy way you can create ear catching repeating rock licks from our old friend the blues scale!
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Repeating Guitar Licks – How To Make Your Own Awesome Repeating Rock Licks!
0:15 Repeating licks demo. Hear me solo using some repeating licks similar to the ones I’m going to show you in this guitar lesson.
1:00 In this lesson I’m going to show you how to take one simple repeating lick and create lots of simple and logical variations on it. This is a great way to build out a guitar style because you’ll see how you can easily start to make up new licks and ideas simply by reworking things you already play and know…cool!
1:15 Here’s how you can play the A blues scale pattern down at the 5th fret. Also I show you how to modify it slightly to give a ‘symmetrical blues scale’ shape. This is great for repeating licks because the fingering is the same on every string making it easy to adapt a lick to other string sets.
3:00 Repeating Lick 1. Here I’m going to show you a simple repeating lick. This will be the starting point for the other repeating licks we’ll create during this lesson.
3:54 This repeating lick is cool…but how can we change it to create a new repeating lick. The symmetrical scale pattern we’re using makes this pretty easy. In this example I’ve just moved it onto the B and high E string.
4:38 String skipping can be a cool way to ‘open up’ a repeating lick and create a new idea. Here we skip the B string to get a dark, bluesy repeating lick. Watch the string skipping. It might test out your fretting hand!
5:45 Extending the original repeating lick is a cool way to create a new idea. We’re going to extend it into a lick that lasts for 4 beats instead of 1 beat. This high energy repeating lick is heard in the playing of guys like Zakk Wylde.
7:03 This repeating lick can easily be transferred to the top two strings like we did before. This is how easy it can be to create your own repeating licks – it doesn’t need to be complicated to work!
7:32 String skipping can open this lick up nicely too. Here we can skip over the B string to create a cool string skipping repeating idea which will sound great in your solos.
9:09 All these repeating licks are simply variations on the original starting lick. This what’s so cool…you’re building new licks by looking at what you can do with the starting note. With a little imagination the sky is the limit. You can create dozens or hundred of new repeating licks (and non repeating licks too). If you add the G string 7th fret back in then even more possible repeating licks emerge. How awesome is that?
Get creative, experiment and above all…have fun. See you next time!
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Guitar Soloing: The Secret of a Great Start To Your Solo!
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Get a powerful start to your rock guitar soloing every time with these 3 great tips. A powerful start to your solo will grab the listeners attention and make them pay attention to what you’re playing, a weak start to your guitar solo and they might not even listen at all.
Use these 3 tips for your guitar soloing which will make people listen and have more impact every time!
Guitar Soloing – 3 Tips for a Great Start to Your Solo!
Here’s what you learn in this guitar lesson:
00:50 A bad start to your guitar solo can spoil it from the start. Here I demo how lots of players start their solos. It doesn’t really grab the listeners attention and make them want to hear the rest.
1:21 When we play a guitar solo we need to ‘set it up’ and announce to the listener that a solo is coming. If we just stumble into our first lick then we’re not doing this. How can we do it?
1:39 Guitar Soloing Tip 1 – ‘Dig In’
We need to attack the notes and play them like we mean them! Commit to the notes you’re playing and deliver them with confidence and conviction. This alone will make a huge difference to your solos and how they start. Techniques like palm muting, and vibrato as well as decorative touches like sliding into your first note can help make your first phrase much more compelling.
2:24 Guitar Soloing Tip 2 – ‘Bending’
Starting your solo with a bend is an easy way to get a better start because bending can be one of the coolest sounds we can make on guitar. I’m soloing over a backing track in the key of A minor and I’m using A blues scale to solo with. Here I show you some common and powerful bending moves from this scale.
4:06 Guitar Soloing Tip 3 – ‘Pick Up Into Your Solo’
‘Picking up’ into your solo is a very powerful soloing tool. Instead of just ‘playing’ your first note you can ‘lead into’ it with a simple phrase that sets up or introduces your solo. Hear me demo this soloing tip this several times over the backing track.
Using a ‘pick up’ is something we hear in all the great players solos. It’s a simple device but it really works.
5:45 Remember there are no ‘rules’ to playing a great solo so don’t follow these guidelines rigidly! Just experiment with each one and see how you can use it. You’ll quickly hear a difference to the start of your solos if you’re not using these devices already.
Have fun and see you again next time!
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Blues Guitar Lesson: Killer Blues Licks with These 3 Tricks!
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In this lesson you’ll learn 3 simple tricks you can use for killer blues licks and better blues guitar solos. Let’s dive in!
0:40 Everything in this blues guitar lesson is shown in the key of G and uses these blues scale patterns shown. All the blues licks and ideas will work great over a 12 bar blues in the key of G but make sure you move it to other keys as well.
1:17 Killer Blues Trick 1
If there’s one must know string bend in blues guitar…it’s this! It’s up at the 8th fret in the key of G and comes from the top part of the sliding blues scale. You’ll recognise it from the kind of licks I play here.
It’s versatile and works at lots of different points in the 12 bar blues.
3:08 Practice using this bend and it will start to come out naturally in your blues licks and solos.
3:18 Killer Blues Trick 2
This awesome little blues slide will give your solos some ‘grease’! It comes from the 1st pattern of the G blues scale. I use my 3rd finger to play it. Find ways to ‘get in’ to the lick and ways to ‘get out’ of it and practice mixing it in amongst all the blues licks and tricks you do already.
4:54 Killer Blues Trick 3
Essential bending technique for awesome blues bends! This will make a huge difference to your blues licks and solos because we use bends all the time when we play blues solos. Use your picking hand to ‘cut off’ the bend before you release it rather than getting a ‘let down’ sound all the time (even when you don’t want it).
Also experiment with letting the bend so you do hear it. A mixture of these different bending techniques will make your blues solos and blues licks more interesting.
Have fun!
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Double Stops Moves: Essential Technique for Killer Rock Licks!
Learn some killer rock double stops moves and slip them into your solos. Create new licks with this awesome technique like the Rock guitar masters, such as Slash, Angus Young, Zakk Wylde and others!
Today I’ll show you:
- Double Stop lick 1. Using the common double stop we hear on the top 2 strings. It’s using a common bend and double stop combination before finishing with a little blues scale run.
- Double Stop Lick 2. This one is one of Angus Young’s favorites. You can find it in a lot of his solos. You’ll notice that it’s using a note which isn’t in the blues scale shape but normally works great when we add it in.
- Double Stop Lick 3. This one is very used by Slash, Zakk Wylde and a lot of other great guitar players. Watch the fingering on this and use whichever option seems best to you.
- Double Stop Lick 4. It takes a little practice and strength to get this bend happening but it’s worth the effort. Notice how I’m re-picking the bend whilst holding it up and also damping it off to stop it ringing out too much.
With these double stop moves, you can experiment and create some new cool licks. They will help you to power up your solos and make them sound cooler!
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Create killer rock guitar licks with these essential double stops moves! Perfect for high energy rock and metal solos. This double stops guitar lesson will show you exactly how to do this using double stops from Slash, Angus Young, Michael Schenker, Zakk Wylde and others!
Double Stops moves Guitar Lesson for Killer Rock Guitar Licks!
Here’s what you learn in this guitar lesson:
00:07 Hear me jamming using some of the double stops I’ll show you in this lessons.
0:35 Double stops – what are they? A double stop is simply two notes played together on the guitar, kind of like a ‘mini chord’. They give a chordal sound to your rock solos and break up the sound of ‘single note’ licks and runs to create cool contrast.
1:00 Let’s look at a set of essential double stops and a sample lick from each one to give you some ideas for double stop licks of your own.
1:15 Here’s a reminder of how to play the A blues scales down at the 5th fret.
1:32 Double stop lick 1. Using the common double stop we hear on the top 2 strings. It’s using a common bend and double stop combination before finishing with a little blues scale run. A favourite of most of the great players from Chuck Berry to Vai!
3:48 Double Stop Lick 2 – This is a favourite of Angus Young! It’s using a note which isn’t in the blues scale shape but normally works great when we add it in. Try throwing this into your solos…it’s got a wicked punchy sound to it.
5:55 Double Stop Lick 3. Here’s a cool double stop bend which will be an awesome addition to your lick library. Watch the fingering on this and use whichever option seems best to you. Once you get used to using this double stop try digging in to create a gritty, aggressive sound to it.
6:48 Double Stop Lick 4. Check out this common double stop bend. It takes a little practice and strength to get this bend happening but it’s worth the effort. Notice how I’m re-picking the bend whilst holding it up and also damping it off to stop it ringing out too much.
9:20 Double Stop Lesson Tips
Learning these licks is a good start but make sure you take each double stop out and experiment with jamming out some of your own ideas. This is essential! Also notice where the double stops are found in the scale so you can easily find them when you move the scale around to different keys.
Have fun with ’em and see you next time!
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Classic Jimi Hendrix Style Lick: ‘Watchtower’
Jimi Hendrix Style Lick: Watchtower
Learn a classic Jimi Hendrix style guitar lick similar to what Hendrix plays at the end of his classic ‘All Along the Watchtower’ solo. This lick uses many classic Jimi Hendrix style moves and is a cool addition to your guitar lick bag. So let’s jump in and check out the this Jimi Hendrix lick!
0:15 Here’s the Jimi Hendrix lick you’ll learn in this guitar lesson.
0:29 The lick comes from the C# blues scale played up around the 9th fret. Here’s the scale pattern Jimi Hendrix is using for this particular lick.
0:45 Jimi Hendrix used to tune his guitar down one fret remember! So if you hear this lick played on the recording to ‘All Along the Watchtower’ it’ll sound 1 fret lower than it does here (because I’m in standard tuning!)
0:55 Jimi Hendrix Lick chunk 1. Here’s how to play the first part of the lick.
1:30 Jimi Hendrix lick chunk 2. Here’s how to play the second part of this guitar lick. Notice all the cool bends…take ’em and make sure you’re using these in your own playing.
2:09 Jimi Hendrix lick chunk 3. Here’s how to play the next part of this guitar lick. Notice the cool blues scale runs here. Take these and experiment with making up your own guitar licks using these as a starting point!
2:33 Here’s the complete lick played slowly.
2:43 Here it is played over the backing track.
Experiment with this lick to see how you can make it work in your playing and remember the most important thing is to create variations of your own.
Have fun!
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Learn This Classic Jimi Hendrix Double Stop Lick!
Jimi Hendrix Style Double Stop Lick: ‘Double Stopper’
Lesson 2 in my Jimi Hendrix guitar licks series. This is similar to what Jimi Hendrix plays at the start of his classic ‘All Along the Watchtower’ solo. This lick uses trademark Jimi Hendrix double stops and is a cool addition to your guitar lick bag. So let’s jump in and check out the this Jimi Hendrix lick!
0:15 Here’s the Jimi Hendrix lick you’ll learn in this guitar lesson.
0:29 The lick comes from the C# blues scale played up around the 9th fret. Here’s the scale pattern Jimi Hendrix is using for this particular lick.
0:45 Jimi Hendrix used to tune his guitar down one fret remember! So if you hear this lick played on the recording to ‘All Along the Watchtower’ it’ll sound 1 fret lower than it does here (because I’m in standard tuning!)
0:59 Jimi Hendrix Lick chunk 1. Here’s how to play the first set of double stops at the start of the lick.
1:52 Jimi Hendrix lick chunk 2. Here’s how to play the second part of this guitar lick. Notice all the cool double stop bends…take ’em and make sure you’re using these in your own playing.
2:09 Jimi Hendrix lick chunk 3. Here’s how to play the next part of this guitar lick. More double stops! Take these and experiment with making up your own guitar licks using these as a starting point
2:28 Here’s the complete lick played slowly.
2:51 Here’s the Jimi Hendrix lick played over the backing track now.
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Jimi Hendrix Lick: Learn a Killer ‘Hey Joe’ Style Hendrix Lick!
Jimi Hendrix Licks – Killer Jimi Hendrix Lick Lesson!
Learn a classic Jimi hendrix style guitar lick similar to what Hendrix plays at the end of his classic ‘Hey Joe’ solo. This lick uses many classic Jimi Hendrix style moves and is a cool addition to your guitar lick bag. So let’s jump in and check out the this Jimi Hendrix lick!
0:12 Here’s the Jimi Hendrix lick you’ll learn in this guitar lesson.
0:24 The lick comes from the E minor pentatonic scale played up around the 12th fret. Here’s the scale pattern Jimi Hendrix is using for this particular lick.
Jimi Hendrix used to tune his guitar down one fret remember! So if you hear this lick played on the recording to ‘Hey Joe’ it’ll sound 1 fret lower than it does here (because I’m in standard tuning!)
0:34 Jimi Hendrix Licks – chunk 1. Here’s how to play the first part of the lick.
1:07 Jimi Hendrix Licks- chunk 2. Here’s how to play the second part of this guitar lick. Notice all the cool bends…take ’em and make sure you’re using these in your own playing.
1:50 Jimi Hendrix Licks- chunk 3. Here’s how to play the next part of this guitar lick. Remember why we learn guitar licks: to gather together ‘structures’ and ideas to use for making up our own licks and solos! Take these and experiment with making up your own guitar licks using these as a starting point!
2:25 Here’s the complete lick played slowly.
2:40 Here’s the Jimi Hendrix lick played over the backing track now.
As always take this and see how you can use it to make up cool licks of your own. Have fun and catch you next time!
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Bending Vibrato Guitar Lesson: How Do I Vibrato String Bends?
Vibrato can sound awesome on string bends and it’s a sound we hear all the killer rock and blues guitar players use in their solos!
But how can you do it without the bend just, er…fizzling out completely when you vibrato it?
In this lesson I’ll show you
- The right way to add vibrato to a bend (for a big, exciting and punchy sound!)
- The No.1 problem guitarists have with this technique (and how you can fix it…easily!)
- 3 things you need to make your vibrato go from ‘so so’ to awesome !
So dive in and find out how this technique can literally transform the sound of your licks and solos!
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Bending Vibrato Guitar Lesson – How Do I Add Vibrato To String Bends?
0:23 Hear a demo of what vibrato sounds like with string bends. Notice how it makes bends so much more expressive and energetic!
0:48 Bending Technique and hand Position
If you’re getting a poor sounding string bend to start with…then no amount of vibrato will get it sounding good! Here we look at some key pointers for solid bending technique. I suggest putting your thumb firmly over the top of the neck when you bend and make sure you use the next door fingers to help push the string. This makes it easier to move it as well as providing much needed stability and strength.
1:41 Adding Vibrato to a Bend.
To add vibrato to a bend you basically let the bend down a fraction then bend it back up to pitch. This takes a little control to get sounding good! Only let the string down a very small amount before bending it back up again.
2:05 Vibrato and Bending (Tips for Success!)
So that’s the mechanics of how it’s done. Now let’s look at some crucial tips you need to know about to get your vibrato on your bends sounding good.
2:15 Vibrato Tip 1- Make your vibrato sound rhythmic.
Give your vibrato a rhythmic ‘pulse’ so it sounds musical, controlled and polished.
2:45 Vibrato Tip 2 – Bend the String Back to Pitch
Out of tune vibrato is not good! After you let the bend down make sure you bend it all the way back up again. If it’s ‘in between’ then it’ll sound like an out of tune bend…not good.
3:14 Vibrato Tip 3 – Even ‘Let Downs’
Try to let the string bend down the same amount each time. This will make the tone and pitch of your bending vibrato consistent and smooth. If you’re doing this and making your vibrato rhythmic at the same time then you’re on your way to getting great vibrato and string bending technique.
3:50 Vibrato Tip 4 – ‘Pin’ the String
As you bend and vibrato you need to keep pressing the string ‘into’ the fingerboard of your guitar. If you release the pressure here then you’ll lose the sound and note. So it’s essential to keep a strong grip on the string even though you’re pushing it up and down.
4:40 Bending Vibrato Practice Exercise
One of the best ways to practice your bending vibrato is to take a common scale like the minor pentatonic and practice adding vibrato to the most often used bends from the scale. I demo this using the A minor pentatonic scale.
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How to Play Pinch Harmonics on Guitar
Would you like to master pinch harmonics technique and give your solos that magic ‘pro’ touch?
Stay tuned to discover what they are,how to nail the technique and how to make them sound awesome for powerhouse rock and metal solos!
In this lesson you’ll discover
- What are pinch harmonics?
- Secrets for where to hit the string to get them sounding full, fat and awesome!
- Powerful exercises to get you nailing them every time!
- It’s what you do with them that counts! Discover awesome tips to bring them to life (and get them sounding like your heroes.
After watching this lesson, you’ll be able to master this awesome technique and get your harmonics sounding as cool as Steve Vai, Eddie Van Halen, Zakk Wilde, Billy Gibbons and many more.
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How to Play Pinch Harmonics on Guitar
0:23 Check out this intro jam to hear a demo of what pinch harmonics sound like. In this guitar lesson you’ll learn what pinch harmonics are, how to get them and how to make them sound awesome. Let’s jump in!
0:30 Pinch harmonics…what are they?
If you don’t know what pinch harmonics are, well you’ve definitely heard them before! They’re what guitar players use to get that ‘squealing’ sound on a note.
0:45 Pinch Harmonic Technique
Want to know how to play pinch harmonics on electric guitar? Let’s look at the techniques you need. It sounds easy when you break it down but does take a little while to get the hang of.
The basic technique for getting pinch harmonics is striking the string with the pick and your thumb, sort of at the same time (at least that’s what it feels like). This sounds easier than it is! Don’t be frustrated if your pinch harmonics a little inconsistent to start with…with practice you’ll get those ‘squealies screaming’!
1:40 Pinch Harmonic Tips
1:45 Try picking along the length of a string playing a pinch harmonic. Notice how they come out a bit easier at some points than others. If you target these ‘sweet spots’ it can help you to learn the technique. Notice where these areas are and hit the string there when you want one! As a guideline, around the neck pickup area on your guitar is often a good spot to target.
2:45 Pinch harmonics are possible with a clean sound, but they’re much easier to get with a distorted guitar sound. Crank up the gain a little and use your bridge pickup to make them easier.
3:15 If you just use this technique then it doesn’t sound like much…but add some vibrato or a bend and they come to life. So think about how to ‘manipulate’ the harmonic – this is the secret to getting awesome sounding pinch harmonics in your licks and solos!
3:55 So there you go. You know what pinch harmonics are, how to get them, and how to use them as an awesome guitar effect in your playing.
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