Want to know the secret to making your guitar really sing?

Well, you won’t find the answer to this by learning a million pentatonic scale patterns – or cramming your head with theory. But you can start to unlock it by mastering string bending and vibrato. 

This is particularly important if you want to become a competent blues guitar player and develop your own voice. Vibrato is unique to every guitar player. Each one of us has what I call a “sound concept” inside our minds that is unique to us. In this post, I want to share with you 5 blues guitar vibrato mistakes I hear all the time starting with…

1. The nervous vibrato

The nervous vibrato is something that exposes an insecure beginner player right away. It comes about almost as an involuntary reflex. They hit a note, and are holding it. But then suddenly become extremely unconfident in this note. Almost as if they were caught naked in public and immediately began to shake the note. Often in an overly wide vibrato that sounds n...

Ever wanted to play the G blues scale on guitar?

This scale is a great scale to know whether you are a beginner or an advanced player. In this post, I’ll share two different ways to play the G blues scale on guitar. How to practice the G blues scale, and even songs that use the G blues scale. Plus we’ll also cover some music theory and a few other common questions about the G blues scale.

All right, no long blathering build-up.

Let’s jump straight in, starting with…

What is the G blues scale on guitar?

The G blues scale on guitar is a simple series of 6 notes in a row. It’s important to point out, when musicians say G “blues scale” 9 times out of 10 they mean the G minor blues scale. Which is what we are going to be covering in this lesson. It’s a way of grouping together a specific set of notes that can be used for solos, understanding chords, and music theory.

What notes are in the G blues scale?

The notes in the G minor blues scale are: 

G - Bb - C - Db - D - F - G 

The...

If you're looking for a song to play on guitar that taps into deep blues roots, but still keeps the sound mainstream… then this could be a perfect tune for you.

The song is a mix of blues, pop, and folk styles. Over the years, it’s appealed to a wide audience. Because of this, I think it’s a good one to add to your setlist or call at your local blues jam. 

So grab your axe and let’s dive into this “Give Me One Reason” chords and guitar lesson!

Who Wrote Give Me One Reason?

"Give Me One Reason" is a hit song written and performed by American blues and folk artist Tracy Chapman. She wrote the song in the 80s and began performing it live during her early shows. The bluesy groove resonated with audiences and by the time she went to record it – in the mid-90s – the song had already shown promise. 

(Playing live like this is a great litmus test for your new material. You can get an immediate gauge on whether or not a song resonates.) 

Sure enough, it became one of her most well-know...

If you’re looking to improve your blues rhythm playing and spice up your jams…then this post will show you a fun and powerful way to do that.

Many musicians like to focus a lot on lead guitar. But they often overlook the fact that behind (almost) every great lead guitarist you’ll find an incredible rhythm player. Take for instance, Stevie Ray Vaughan whose iconic blues shuffle rhythms changed the game. Or Jimi Hendrix, who was a master at blending soulful R&B sounds behind his singing.

Or Tommy Emmanuel who started as the rhythm guy behind his brother in a family band.

While many musicians think the blues is boring or limited. This just shows a lack of depth in their knowledge of it. 

So let’s get started with today’s blues rhythm guitar lesson.

For this example, we are going to be in the key of E. Let’s next take a look at the most common…

Blues Rhythm Guitar Chords

The three most common chords found in a blues progression in the key of E are E7, A7, and B7. These chords for...

There’s a dangerous myth out there that a lot of intermediate guitar players fall for…It’s a myth you don’t want to believe especially if you want to play amazing solos…

…because… it can kill your lead guitar progress fast. It can make you sound boring and stale.  

Like you’re constantly rehashing the same old patterns, solo after solo. Never sounding melodic, or new. Well, today I’ve got GOOD NEWS.

I want to warn you about this myth so you don’t get stuck. And also share a lesson that works like an antidote. 

So grab your guitar and let’s get started!

Myth: "I don't need to learn licks anymore" 

I see it all the time. Guitarists get to a certain level with their playing. They’ve learned some chords, scales, and arpeggios. They can even play through a few songs.

Next, they want to start soloing. They start learning about how chords and scales go together and get into a bit of a theory.

But then it starts to go downhill. They start thinking:

• Once I know the theory I’ll be...

If you're down and out, and you feel real hurt, here’s an epic blues groove to pick you right back up.

And that’s something special about the blues. It often comes out of sad circumstances. But ironically when you listen to it or play it on your guitar. You feel better.

So grab your axe, that’s what we’re going to do in the post. 

I’m going to break down a classic from none other than the Velvet Bulldozer himself, in this “I’ll Play The Blues For You” Albert King guitar lesson. 

Who wrote I’ll Play The Blues For You?

"I'll Play the Blues for You" is a classic blues song written by Jerry Beach. It was made popular by Albert King though, one of the most influential blues guitarists and singers of all time. King’s recording of it was released in 1972 as the title track from his iconic album "I'll Play the Blues for You." 

The song’s lyrics talk about a musician promising to play the blues for someone who's feeling down or going through a tough time. The track was recorded at Stax...

Are you primarily a rhythm player but stuck with how to start moving into soloing?

Well… 

This post contains a very important message for you.

Every day I talk to guitar players in this exact spot. They have played some rhythm, but what they really want to do is…

SOLO

I mean, who wouldn’t want to be able to step out into the spotlight, be the star, and play a lead that makes the crowd go wild?

Or play expressively over jam tracks/looper pedal at home…

Well, over the past 25+ years of playing music for a living. Ripping solos on stages all over the world, and most importantly teaching others how they can too.

There is one place I’ve found to start, that works better than any other option you’ll find guaranteed. In fact, it can make all the difference in your solos. 

Why?

Because it’s simple. 

When you start with this it means you won’t get stuck with:

• Hearing common chord changes you need to know how to solo over
• Knowing how to solo over chords vs just playing scales 
...

Back in the day, I used to watch a lot of iconic performances on the Ed Sullivan Show.

Ed was a big deal. He was super charismatic and seemed to be able to connect with viewers of all ages. And you’ve got to give him credit for introducing a huge variety of acts to America. Everything from comedians and dancers to opera singers and rock and roll stars.

But one of the most impactful performances I saw, other than the Beatles of course, was Bo Diddley’s.

Apparently, the producers wanted Bo to perform the old country song “Sixteen Tons”. Ed also agreed and thought this would be a safe choice for his audience.

But Bo Diddley at the last minute went rogue.

Instead of performing “Sixteen Tons”. He played his own brand new song called “Bo Diddley”. 

Yup.

“Bo Diddley” by Bo Diddley

This was a bold move. He had some serious guts to defy the wishes of such a powerful television program at the time. In fact, some accounts of it say that Ed was so pissed he stormed off set during the mi...

One of my buddies texted me this awesome video that blew up on the internet… 

It’s about two guys who walk into a Walmart and become blues stars. It got over 10 million views.

It starts off with them just mozying around the aisles. Then they stumble upon this little red toy guitar. It’s a short scale guitar for kids and what happens next is quite shocking.

One of the guys picks it up (Clay Shelburn), and starts busting out these tasty Stevie Ray Vaughan-style blues licks in E. He’s slaying this mini guitar right there in the toy aisle, sandwiched between Barbie dolls and Legos.

He then comes in singing and does the first verse of “Pride and Joy” with a soulful tone. 

The camera guy, filming on his phone, leans into the frame and Clay says, “Catch the next verse?”

The camera guy says, “I'll do it.” 

And then he comes in and sings the next verse!

After that, Clay plays a little blues solo and then takes it out with a blues-ending lick.

The barbies go wild.

It's a great examp...

Years ago I was sitting in a music class with blues guitar grand puba Kenny Burrell…

He didn’t have his guitar with him that day. But he did have a grand piano in the room.

So he walked over to it and played the notes:

E 

G

A

Bb

B

D 

E 

In that order, slowly, he hunted and pecked at the keys. (Kenny isn’t a piano player. But, he would often use the piano to demonstrate certain sounds he was talking about.)

He then looked up at the class and said, “Do you know what that is?”

The room was silent. 

He said, 

“That’s the blues scale.”

Then he paused and said,

“Do you have that worked out? All over your instrument?...

…because if not, you’re going to want to do that.”

Decades later, I still remember this lesson. And as I became a more proficient musician. I’ve only seen MORE value in it.

You see, when I play lead guitar, in pretty much ANY style, I rely on knowing the blues scale on my instrument. The blues seems to always sneak its way into my soloing somewhere.

But ...