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...

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...

A few decades ago I was down at this ginormous record store in Hollywood, California called Amoeba Music.

I’d spend hours in the listening rooms and thumbing through records.

One day I stumbled upon this bundle of Eric Clapton’s Unplugged concert.

It was both a DVD and a CD. I bought it and listened to it...a LOT...

Like every day.

And I learned every song on it…

This album was incredibly instrumental in teaching me a ton about the rhythm and lead blues guitar. Today, I'd like to share with you 3 killer blues licks from Eric Clapton's Unplugged Record.

If you want to learn the patterns and scales behind these classic licks. Get your hands on my blues scale PDF guide at the link below:

Jon MacLennan

Not long ago, I read this crazy story in a book. 

It was about an anthropologist who went to live among tribal people with little to no contact with the modern world.

The anthropologist wanted to share some of the wonders of modern technology with these isolated folks. And so he took a photo of the chief and his wives.

When the Polaroid picture was processed and shown to the chief. He was unable to recognize the blotches of black, white, and gray as an image of himself. He had never learned to translate two-dimensional images into recognizable three-dimensional shapes.

Yet at the same time. This chief could look at a patch of grass and say what kind of animal had walked on it and how long ago. He could do that as easily as you and I can tell the sun from the moon.

Playing music works the same way.

Most guitarists haven’t learned to see the patterns below the surface. It’s like they are living in isolation and can’t recognize themselves in a photo. 

They...

There’s so much information out there nowadays for learning guitar.

But most of it is a bunch of horse pucky.

That’s why in this post I want to share with you a 3 min trick that works better than 60 minutes of practicing.

I’ll be applying this trick to soloing. But, it can work for becoming a good rhythm guitarist as well. (I’ll save that for another lesson.)

Here’s the thing…

Most guitarists don’t really want to spend years training to become professional musicians. I mean who would? Wouldn’t you rather just be able to play like one without all the agony and mindless practice?

In fact, the majority of my students in my programs are older players who don’t want to join a band. They just want to be able to sit at home and play some good solos (perhaps with a backing track). They don’t have time to sort through all the nonsense online. And don’t want to stay up late at night wondering if they’re doing it...

A little while ago I learned a new word: 

“Blatherskite.”

It essentially means nonsense talk. Gibberish.

Kind of like when a guitarist cranks up their amp, launches into a solo, and just spews out a bunch of blatherskite.

Or maybe in a band, suddenly the lead singer cuts the solo short. When they realize it’s just spiraling into blatherskite with no feeling. 

There’s really only one reason for this.

You see, often players have learned their scales, they’ve maybe even tried them in different keys all across the fretboard.

But when they solo there’s still something missing. They don’t know where to go from there. Using the tools they have keeps resulting in solos lacking melody and feeling. I was stuck here too for a while until blues master Kenny Burrell showed me how to break free.

If this describes your solos, and you would like to change them to captivating solos dripping with emotion and feeling.

Go to:

...

I was listening to an interview with the great Tommy Emmanuel the other day and heard something really fascinating…

The interviewer asked him about what his practice sessions are like.

Let’s be honest, as guitarists we want to know these things. We want to peek inside the minds of these legends. Learn their hacks and get their secrets. There’s got to be some mystery or magic behind the curtain that we’re missing, right?

Many times there is. That’s why it’s super important to be careful who you listen to. But anyway, despite what many people might think Tommy would say like: 

Well, it’s 20 minutes of ear training, then it’s 15 minutes of major scales… blah blah blah

No…

What Tommy actually said was, he puts his guitar strap on, stands up, pretends there’s an audience in front of him, and just plays songs relentlessly without stopping.

His practice is like a show.

You see, there is this awesome feeling that you...

There’s this mind-blowing video one of my students sent me of Stevie Ray Vaughan breaking a string onstage.

It’s from his concert film Live in Austin. Which I would consider required viewing for every aspiring blues guitar player.

He’s in the middle of wailing a solo on the song “Look At Little Sister”. The band is digging in. Stevie’s at the helm playing breathtaking licks. He's commanding the stage with a thunderous presence.

But then suddenly... something happens…

SNAP

You see, a tiny flashing glare from a steel string going haywire in the air. 

If you’ve ever broken a string…you know…it just SUCKS. There’s no other way to put it.

So what does Stevie do?

He switches to the other strings and keeps on shredding! Pushing and pulling on the notes to bend them and compensate for any tuning issues that often arise when you break a string.

Then his brilliant guitar tech, René Martinez, deserves a massive...

Ever wanted to be able to play screamin’ blues solos anywhere on the neck?

Well, one of the keys to becoming a blues guitar master is learning how to solo and tap into specific sounds on the guitar neck. 

Now I often use the words sounds and scales interchangeably. This is because I think of each scale as a sound. For example, the major scale has a specific sound to it. While the blues scale has a very different sound.  

If I used a painting analogy these scales are like colors I can paint with. Sometimes I want green. Sometimes I want bright blue. If I have these sounds worked out on my instrument. I can dial them up and express whatever I want. 

And so that’s what I’m going to share with you today in this lesson, where I walk through the 5 blues scales every guitarist should know. Including one at the very end that I’m sure you’ve never heard of. 

I’m going to show you the scales, talk about the theory behind them, and...

Today I want to share with you a soulful and heart-wrenching song from the king of the blues B.B. King.

It’s a minor blues progression and only uses 3 chords.

You’ll discover how to play those chords, a fun fingerstyle groove, and even how to solo over the progression like B.B. King.

So grab your guitar and let’s get started!

Who wrote Chains And Things?

"Chains And Things" was written by B.B. King and Dave Clark and appeared on the 1970 album Indianola Mississippi Seeds. The song was produced by Bill Szymczyk and featured notable contributions by Carole King on piano, Bryan Garofalo on bass guitar, and Russ Kunkel on drums. 

It peaked at No. 45 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 6 on the R&B chart, earning praise for its haunting piano riff and dramatic string arrangement. 

The lyrics have a bluesy melancholy vibe to them. Singing of despair, longing, and hope, with B.B. King's emotional vocals and guitar solo capturing the essence of the song.