technique
Guitar Soloing Tip: Only To Be Used for Kick Ass Solos!
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Guitar Soloing Tip: It’s weird…but will get you kicking butt when you solo!
In this guitar lesson you’ll learn a super powerful way to master using a scale by ‘zooming in’ on each pair of strings. With a little practice you’ll see a big difference to how you use the scale and the sound of your rock solos. Try it – it really works!
Rock Guitar Solo Tip (guitar lesson breakdown)
0:05 Random, rambling guitar solos a problem? Not sure what to play when you step for a solo? Just feel like you’re mindlessly ‘running up and down scales’?
0:15 In this short lesson I’ll show you how you can start to change this…and it works every time.
0:40 I’m going to demo the exercise using the A blues scale at the 5th fret.
0:55 Instead of using the whole scale shape ‘zoom in’ on a pair of strings and practice playing a solo only using these 2 strings. Weird? Maybe…but it’ll help you kick butt with your solos!
1:00 Why practice this way…because you wouldn’t perform a solo at a gig like this? Sure… you wouldn’t. But think how much better you’ll know the scale after doing this for a bit. You’ll have explore every little part of it and you’re soloing vocabulary will expand massively over time.
1:45 I’ll demo this now over a rock backing track in A minor. I’m only soloing on the D and G strings of the guitar.
2:05 Work on the other pairs of string as well. Here I’ll demo it on the G and B strings.
3:00 This works for any guitar scale…even those ‘weird’ jazz scales! In fact I got this from studying jazz guitarists and some of the exercises they work on to improve their knowledge of the guitar neck. So use it in your practice and you’ll see some results if you’re consistent.
Have fun!
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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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Nail Sweep Picking Technique
with this awesome lesson & workout
Learn how to sweep pick and how to practice sweep picking plus loads of monster sweep picking tips.
Here’s a summary of what’s in the video:
0:37 Why you need to get the basics right and three super common sweeping triad shapes.
2:15 What is sweep picking? Here you’ll find a basic explanation of the technique and why you might use it. Discover the advantages of sweep picking over alternate picking when playing certain types of passages and how overcome many problems guitarists encounter when they start trying to learn how to sweep pick.
3:22 How to start sweeping in one continuous down or up pick with the plectrum. We don’t want our sweep to be several small up or down picks. It needs to be a single smooth ‘glide’ or ‘sweep stroke’ with the pick. This takes a little practice to feel natural, but once it does you’ll find the technique comes together quite quickly.
3:55 Essential picking hand guidelines for sweep picking. Your hand should be relaxed and free of tension and try to pick from the wrist rather than elbow or arm. Pick firmly enough to get a clear, solid note from the string but don’t pick too hard or you’ll get a harsh and ‘unmusica’sound.
4:30 Some guitar players like to angle the pick slightly as they sweep as they find it helps them cross the strings more easily. I don’t really do this but feel free to experiment and find the pick angle that you prefer the most!
4:46 Often with sweep picking players put a lot of emphasis on their picking hand but the fretting hand has a crucial role to play if you are to develop great sweeping technique. Your fretting hand fingers need to ‘roll on and off’ the notes as the pick passes through them. Don’t hold down a fixed or locked chord shape and sweep across it or the notes will ring together and be unclear. This will only come from slow and accurate practice.
6:14 Let’s take a look at some three string ‘sweep arpeggio shapes’ and fingerings for A minor, G major and C major.
9:10 One of the best ways to practice sweeping these shapes is to break them into two parts. Then you can focus on perfecting each half before joining them together. Use a metronome and focus on getting your sweeping really in time. Check the notes are lining up with the click of the metronome so that you know you’re getting it right!
13:40 Now we’ll join up the two parts of the sweep to play the entire shape. Watch your timing and cleanliness here – it is absolutely crucial!
14:45 How can you build up speed in your sweeping? Here I’ll show you how to using a simple practice method to help you really supercharge your sweep picking big time! Take your time with this and increase the speed of your metronome more gradually than I do here!
18:20 Here’s a complete sweep picking study or practice exercise for you to learn and use to hone your sweep picking chops! It uses only the three shapes we’ve seen so far but we’re going to move them around a bit to get F major and Bb major triads as well.
23:30 Here I demonstrate the etude at a few different tempos taking care to stay in time with the metronome at all times.
Have fun with this lesson and take your time to get the basics of the technique right. It will pay off big time!
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Get That Sweet Blues & Country Rock Sound
…with this major pentatonic scale pattern!
The major pentatonic scale a really useful scale to learn on guitar. It is used extensively in blues, rock and especially country and country rock guitar playing – It’s a great way for beginners to start learning how to play lead guitar solos in major keys. Many guitar players struggle when they have to play a guitar solo in a major key, simply because they don’t have this scale under their fingertips. But not you! The scale shapes I’ll show you are quick and easy to learn and you will use them all through your career as a guitar player.
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:21 Why you need to learn the major pentatonic scale and how it is a commonly used scale in rock, pop and country music.
0:42 How to play the A major pentatonic scale shape. Complete with description and fingering guidelines.
1:54 How and why this major pentatonic scale pattern is similar to minor pentatonic scale pattern you’ve seen. This will be covered in more detail in an upcoming guitar lesson.
2:49 How to play the major pentatonic using an alternative scale shape. I call this one the ‘sliding’ shape because it features a slide in the middle. Complete with description and fingering guidelines. This fingering is great for covering more of the guitar neck.
4:08 Notice these two scales contain the same notes and can be used together at the same time. They are totally interchangeable.
4:30 Check out my other videos to learn how to put the scale into other keys and how to use it to improvise and create licks (coming soon if not up yet)..
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Bust Out Of Blues Scale ‘Shape 1’
…with this Sliding Blues Scale pattern
Do you feel like trapped within the same notes from the pentatonic scale while playing your solos? Well, in this lesson I’m gonna show you a really awesome little trick to really extend and expand your playing. Improve and expand your solos with this sliding blues scale.
Lots of classic blues and rock licks can be found in this scale shape. Licks used by Slash, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan and many others.
The blues scale is one of the most important scales to learn on guitar. It is used extensively in blues, rock, metal, country and jazz guitar playing – in fact it’s hard to play almost anything without it.
In this lesson you’ll learn how to extend the basic blues scale shape to the Sliding Blues Scale and cover more of the guitar fingerboard. This will help you to learn to solo using more of the guitar neck. This one simple trick can transform you blues and rock guitar soloing! Why? Because there are so many awesome guitar licks nesting in the top part of this scale. You’ll be amazed at what you’ll find.
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:35 Why you should know the extended minor pentatonic scale before learning the extended blues scale pattern. Why the blues scale is an essential part of learning how to play guitar solos and licks and how to improvise.
1:04 Recap on how to play the basic blues scale shape. Demonstrated in the key of A. Complete with description and fingering guidelines. I also demo the blues scale with the added extension.
2:22 How to add the extension onto the basic blues scale shape to work your way along the guitar neck. Fingering guidelines and scale description included.
4:30 Lots of classic blues and rock licks can be found in this minor pentatonic extension. Licks used by Slash, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan and many others. Experimentation is the key to learning to use any scale. Here I suggest some ways you can start to experiment with this blues scale pattern in your playing.
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Solo Over More Of The Guitar Neck
…with this ‘sliding’ minor pentatonic scale pattern
The minor pentatonic scale is one of the most important scales to learn on guitar. It is used extensively in blues, rock, metal, country and jazz guitar playing – in fact it’s hard to play almost anything without it.
In this lesson you’ll learn how to extend the basic minor pentatonic scale shape and cover more of the guitar fingerboard. This will help you to learn to solo using more of the guitar neck. This one simple trick can transform you blues and rock guitar soloing! Why? Because there are so many awesome guitar licks nesting in the top part of this scale. You’ll be amazed at what you’ll find.
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:30 Why extending the minor pentatonic scale is an essential part t to learning how to play guitar solos and licks and how to improvise.
0:49 Recap on how to play the basic A minor pentatonic scale shape. Complete with description and fingering guidelines.
1:14 How to add the extension onto the basic scale shape to work your way along the guitar neck. Fingering guidelines and scale description included.
2:40 Lots of classic blues and rock licks can be found in this minor pentatonic extension. Licks used by Slash, Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan and many others. Here I demo a few of these licks for you to hear.
3:25 Tips for fingering the sliding minor pentatonic pattern. By using this fingering your fingers will be in a good position to use the scale creatively when you improvise. Otherwise licks and scale runs could be more awkward to play.
4:30 Recap on the scale pattern for the sliding or extended minor pentatonic scale shape.
4:50 Tips about using this scale at the same time as the basic pattern. Because they contain the same notes they can be used at the same time. They are the same thing and are totally interchangeable.
5:50 How to learn to use the scale shape through experimentation and jamming!
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Quickly Learn This ‘Must Know’ Guitar Scale
The main tools you need to play guitar (and any instrument) solos are the scales, and today I’m gonna show you one of the more important scales: The Blues Scale. This scale shape is used extensively in blues, rock, metal, country and jazz guitar playing. I’t very easy and most of rock, blues and metal licks come from it.
Learning this scale shape is a great way for beginners to start learning how to play lead guitar solos. So, today we are going to recap how to play the A minor pentatonic scale, learn the Blues scale shape and why it’s so important.
The blues scale is one of the most important scales to learn on guitar. It is used extensively in blues, rock, metal, country and jazz guitar playing.
Learning the blues scale is a great way for beginners to start learning how to play lead guitar solos. The scale shape is quick and easy to learn especially if you already know the minor pentatonic scale on your guitar. Like the minor pentatonic, the blues scale is a scale you will use all through your career as a guitar player.
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:21 Why the blues scale is so important if you want to learn how to play guitar solos, licks and how to improvise.
1:10 Recap on how to play the A minor pentatonic scale shape. Complete with description and fingering guidelines.
1:41 How you can easily turn the minor pentatonic scale into the blues scale simply by adding one more note to it to create a six not scale. Complete with description and fingering guidelines.
3:24 Important tips for fingering the scale when soloing and improvising.
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Learn To Play the Most Important Guitar Scale Ever!
The minor pentatonic scale is one of the most important scales to learn on guitar. It is used extensively in blues, rock, metal, country and jazz guitar playing – in fact it’s hard to play almost anything without it. It’s a great way for beginners to start learning how to play lead guitar solos. The scale shape is quick and easy to learn and it is a scale you will use all through your career as a guitar player. Millions of great guitar licks and solos have been played using this simple 5 note scale we call the minor pentatonic.
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:21 Why the minor pentatonic scale is a great place to start when you want to learn how to play guitar solos and licks and how to improvise.
0:42 How to play the A minor pentatonic scale shape. Complete with description and fingering guidelines.
2:12 Check out myother videos to learn how to put the scale into other keys and how to convert it into another essential scale: the blues scale.
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Here’s How Easy It Is
…to move your scales into all keys
How To Change Key of a Scale Shape on Guitar
If you want to improvise or play and make up your own guitar solos or licks then it is crucial that you can move your scale shapes around into different keys. When you can do this your guitar playing will take a massive step forward and you’ll be able to play and express your ideas more fluently than ever before on your guitar.
In all the guitar lessons I’ve done (over 17,000!) I’ve seen this basic skill hold up more players than almost anything else – the lessons I teach you in this video are essential!
Here’s a breakdown of what you learn in this video:
0:21 Why you need to be able to move your scales around into other keys to play any music – blues, country, rock, metal – anything!
0:47 Step 1 is to learn some of the notes along the low E string on your guitar. This basic step is super important and not knowing them can have a disasterous effect on your guitar playing and soloing! So here I show you the notes, complete with description and fingering guidelines.
2:20 How to use the root note in the scale pattern to figure out where to play the scale on the neck to be in the right key. Here I demonstrate it with C minor pentatonic and G minor pentatonic. Note that the scale pattern stays exactly the same – we’re just playing it at a different fret.
4:20 How to use the root note to move the A blues scale into the key of D to turn it into D blues scale.. Complete with description and fingering guidelines. This fingering is great for covering more of the guitar neck.
5:00 Watch these videos if you haven’t seen these two guitar scale shapes before.
5:10 Summary of what we’ve learned so far and how it can help your guitar playing.
5:50 How to move the major pentatonic scale around to other keys. Hee the root note is played by the little finger. I demonstrate this here by moving A major pentatonic up to the 12th fret to become E major pentatonic.
7:20 Here I show you how to move your scale shapes up above the 12th fret to get the scale up an octave.
8:05 Summary of what we’ve studied in this video lesson.
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