ISSUE 353 } NOVEMBER 2023 READY TO

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Here are a few of your regular
GT tuition experts...
SIMON BARNARD
Simon is a graduate of ACM and The
Guitar Institute, holding a Masters
degree in music. He teaches, examines
and plays everything from rock to jazz.
DECLAN ZAPALA
Declan is one of the UK’s top classical
guitarists and teachers. He is a Master
graduate of RCM and his solo
arrangements are sublimely creative.
JON BISHOP
Jon is one of those great all-rounders
who can turn his hand to almost any
style. He’s also rock legend Shakin’
Stevens’ touring and recording guitarist.
MARTIN COOPER
A tutor at BIMM Brighton, Martin’s Rock
columns show an incredible breadth of
technique and style. His 2006 album
State Of The Union is out on iTunes.
CHARLIE GRIFFITHS
Charlie is a well studied guitarist who
specialises in high-end rock playing and
plays with top UK metal-fusion band
Haken. His debut album is Tiktaalika.
JAMIE HUNT
Jamie is Principal Lecturer at BIMM
Bristol. He also leads performance
workshops, plays in metal band One
Machine and is endorsed by ESP guitars.
PHIL HILBORNE
The UK’s original magazine guitar tutor,
Phil is something of a legend. A great
player, he’s got the Phil Hilborne Band
back together so catch them if you can.
ANDY G JONES
As well as being Head Of Guitar at LCCM
Andy has played with innumerable top
musicicans, from Sir Van Morrison and
Sir Brian May, to Sir Cliff Richard & more.
JACOB QUISTGA ARD
Quist has been with GT since 2009.
Currently Bryan Ferry’s guitarist, his
YouTube channel is viewed by millions
and he creates our monthly jam tracks.
STUART RYAN
Stuart Ryan is great at all styles but best
known for his superb acoustic work. He
was Head Of Guitar at BIMM Bristol and
has many top tuition books to his name.
WELCOME
ONE OF THE BIGGEST TOPICS we hear
from readers of Guitar Techniques is
either how to sound like someone, or how
to get better. Two very understandable
routes to deepen one’s connection with the
guitar. We run a lot of the first topic in
every issue - you can almost guarantee
we’ve covered one or more of yours during
any 12-month period (unless it’s a
particularly niche player). We also run a
regular improve your… series which is
aimed at the lower and upper intermediate
musician who has some ability with an
approach, but wants to take the next step.
This issue we thought it would be good to
look at the whole gamut of blues-rock
guitar playing, figure out the important
musical strands that are constants and
then create a feature that focuses on vital
elements to get you sounding both
authentic and professional. Quite an
ask, isn’t it? Take a look through
though (it begins on page 14), and
you’ll soon clock that it’s crammed
full of ‘the good stuff’ and will
indeed enrich your chops
and vocabulary. You’ve got
approaches from alternate
to hybrid picking, slinky
legato flurries, high-
fretboard wailing with
bends and vibrato,
bluesy turnarounds and
intros, string bending
strategies, and from ‘close
voiced’ to juicy 7th and
beyond chords. What a
direct.com
collection of insights, tips and boosters to
get you charged up for the next open mic
night, blues jam or Saturday gig!
If you need more to pump you up (if that’s
even possible), Phil Short has filmed four
videos in the style of this year’s hottest
rock guitarist, Nuno Bettencourt. With
Extreme’s latest album Six featuring hit
single Rise, Nuno’s songwriting and guitar
bravado is as good as ever - and I say that
as a huge fan back during my Uni days
listening to Pornograffiti. With two riff
and two solo studies to watch and learn,
it’s an involving dive into a special
musician who combines tasty music with
staggering guitar technique.
But there’s even more: US blueser Philip
Sayce shows us six favourite licks; we have
two Buddy Guy solos that celebrate his
greatness; riff and solo like Lynyrd
Skynyrd’s late, great guitarist Gary
Rossington; Kirk Fletcher soloing
insights; Josh Smith’s
phrasing tips on blues
soloing; and finally,
shred like DragonForce’s
Herman Li. As always, we
hope you enjoy it all. So, until
next issue: keep happy, keep
listening and keep playing!
Jason Sidwell, Editor
Jason.sidwell@futurenet.com

ANDY SAPHIR
Andy is a stunning guitarist in all styles,
but his country-rock licks are fabulous;
DON’ T MIS S OUR A M A Z ING DIGI TA L EDI T ION
he’s smooth, fast, and very musical.
Check him out on Jamtrack Central.
Try GT’s digital edition on PC,
DAV ID GERRISH
David teaches at BIMM in London across
Mac, Laptop, Desktop or Tablet!
many styles and is a busy performing
and recording guitarist. His jazz-blues-
Tap the links Finding your way around the magazine is easy.
pop leanings are very impressive.
Tapping the feature titles on the cover or the contents page, takes
you straight two the relevant articles. Any web and email links in
JOHN W HEATCROFT the text are tappable too
A phenomenal guitarist, John is a
master at many styles but a legend in Animated tab & audio All the mag’s main lessons have
Gypsy Jazz. His latest album First Light the audio built in with a moving cursor that shows you exactly
is out now on iTunes and Amazon. where you are in the music. Simply tap the ‘play’ button and
you’re off - you can fast-forward or scroll back at will.
Guitar Techniques, ISSN 1352-638, is published monthly with an extra issue in July by
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Rockwood House, Perrymount Road, Haywards Heath, West Sussex, RH16 3DH. UK.

November 2023 3
 GT USER GUIDE
You can get more from GT by understanding
our easy-to-follow musical terms and signs...
œ œ œ
READ MUSIC & œ
MUSICAL STAVE TAB Under the musical stave, Tab
The five horizontal is an aid to show you where to put
Each transcription is 2nd string
3rd fret
2nd string
1st fret
3rd string
2nd fret
4th string
Open lines for music notation your fingers on the fretboard. The
broken down into 1E
2B
3G
3 1
2
show note pitches and
rhythms and are divided
six horizontal lines represent the six
strings on a guitar – the numbers on
two parts... 4D
5A
6E
0
by bar lines. the strings are fret numbers.

GUITAR TECHNIQUES: HOW THEY APPEAR IN WRITTEN MUSIC...

PICKING
Up and down picking Tremolo picking Palm muting Pick rake Appeggiate chord

œ bœ nœ n œœ w ˙ ggg # ˙˙˙
& œ œ & œ
@
œ
@ @ @ & # œœœ œœ & ¿¿
¿
& gggg ˙˙˙ ggg # # ˙˙
œ œ œ œ œ ggg # ¿˙ gg ˙
rake g
ggg 00 ggg
PM PM
E E E 5 E 4

gg 22 gg
E
B B B 8 8 X 5

@ @ @ @
B B

ggg X2 ggg
G G 5 4 7 8 G 7 7 G X G 4
D 7 5 D D 6 6 D X D 4

≥ ≤
A A A 7 7 A A 4
E E E 0 0 0 0 0 E E 5

n The first note is to be n Each of the four notes are n Palm mute by resting n Drag the pick across the n Play the notes of the
down-picked and the last to be alternate picked (down- the edge of picking-hand’s strings shown with a single chord by strumming across
note is to be up-picked. & up-picked) very rapidly and palm on the strings near the sweep. Often used to augment the relevant strings in the
continuously. bridge. a rake’s last note. direction of the arrow head.

FRETTING HAND

≠ ≠ ≠
Hammer-on & Pull-off Note Trills Slides (Glissando) Left Hand Tapping Fret-Hand Muting
~~~~~ n œœ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ œœ ¿¿ ¿¿
œ œ & œ œ œ œ
6
œ œ ˙ (œ œ) b˙ œ
tr

& & & œ & # œœ ¿¿ ¿¿ ¿¿ œœ ¿¿ ¿¿

œ œ œ œ œ

≠ ≠ ≠
tr ~~~~~
E E E E E

(7 5)
B B B 5 B B 8 X X X 8 X X
G 5 7 7 5 G 5 G 5 7 5 7 G G 7 X X X 7 X X
D D 8 D D 7 D 6 X X X 6 X X
A A A A 7 5 0 A 7 X X X 7 X X
E E E E 5 0 E

n Pick 1st note and hammer n Rapidly alternate between n Pick 1st note and slide to n Sound the notes marked n X markings represent
on with fretting hand for 2nd the two notes indicated in the 2nd note. The last two with a square by hammering notes muted by the fretting
note. Then pick 3rd note and brackets with hammer-ons and notes show a slide with the on/tapping with the fretting- hand when struck by the
pull off for 4th note. pull-offs. last note being re-picked. hand fingers. picking hand.

BENDING AND VIBRATO CAPO

Bend up/down Re-pick bend Pre bend Quarter-tone bend Capo Notation

n Fret the start note (here, the n Bend up to the pitch shown n Bend up from the 5th fret to n Pick the note and then n A capo creates a new nut,
5th fret) and bend up to the in the brackets, then re-pick the the pitch of the 7th fret note, bend up a quarter tone (a very so the above example has
pitch of the bracketed note, note while holding the bent then pick it and release to 5th small amount). Sometimes the guitar’s ‘literal’ 5th fret
before releasing. note at the new pitch. fret note. referred to as blues curl. now as the 3rd fret.

HARMONICS R/H TAPPING

Natural harmonics Artificial harmonics Pinched harmonics Tapped harmonics Right-hand tapping
‚ # ‚‚ ‚ ‚
‚ ‚ — — — ‚
‚ ‚ ‚ ‚

· · · ··
& & & &

··· ± ±± ···
NH AH16 AH17 AH19 PH TH17 TH19 TH17

E E E E
B 12 7 B B B
G 12 7 G 4 7 G G 4
D 12 7 D 5 D 7 5 D 5 7
A A A 7 A
E E E E

n Pick the note while lightly n Fret the note as shown, n Fret the note as shown, n Fret the note as shown, but n Tap (hammer-on) with a
touching the string directly then lightly place the index but dig into the string with sound it with a quick right- finger of the picking hand
over the fret indicated. A finger over ‘x’ fret (AH ‘x’) and the side of the thumb as you hand tap at the fret shown onto the fret marked with a
harmonic results. pick (with a pick, p or a). sound it with the pick. (TH17) for a harmonic. circle. Usually with ‘i’ or ‘m’.

4 November 2023
 C ON T E N T S
TUNE UP CONTENTS
Tap here for an
audio clip to help
you tune your
guitar

• I S S U E 3 5 3 • N OV E M BE R 2 0 2 3 • THE LEARNING ZONE

30-MINUTE LICKBAG 52
Bernard Sumner (Joy Divison, New Order),
Elliot Easton (The Cars), Keith Richards, Tal
COVER Farlow, Vince Gill, Jeff Loomis (Nevermore).

STORY BLUES
Phil Short brings you two solos in the style of
54
a guitarist that’s influenced both Eric Clapton
and Jimi Hendrix, blues giant Buddy Guy!
ROCK 58
Martin Cooper checks out the playing of a man
who sadly left us in 2023, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s final
founding member, Gary Rossington.
SHRED 62
Charlie Griffiths has five challenging licks to
learn in the style of DragonForce’s incredibe
Hong Kong-born guitarist, Herman Li.
TASTY SOLOING 66
Andy G Jones investigates the powerful and
authentic style of a highly respected modern
blues guitar master, the mighty Kirk Fletcher.
ACOUSTIC COUNTRY 70
Stuart Ryan shows how to play the Maybelle
Carter-influenced picking, and the bluegrass
soloing style of the irrepressible Dolly Parton.
JOSH SMITH MODERN BLUES 74
This superb guitarist talks you through the
various strategies that he employs in order to
make his playing sound fresh and vibrant.
IMPROVE YOUR... 78
Fretting-Hand Independence. Simon Barnard
has a series of exercises designed to give your
fretting hand greater strength and autonomy.

SCAN TO GET EXCLUSIVE VIDEOS!

Bolster your chops
OUR WEEKLY PLAY LIKE NUNO BETTENCOURT
His technique explored 26
with our Ultimate
Blues-Rock Workout!
NEWSLETTER With Nuno’s amazing solo on the Extreme
single, Rise, taking the internet by storm it’s
time to re-look at this amazing guitarist’s
skillset. Learn rhythm and lead with Phil Short.
FEATURES REGULARS PHILIP SAYCE
6 Hot Blues Licks! 34
WELCOME 3 The Welsh-born Canadian plays us half a dozen
C OV E R F E AT U R E Jason introduces our cover feature and more. of his most exciting blues-rock licks.
BLUES-ROCK WORKOUT JESSE DAYTON 6
Ultimate practice session! 14 The brilliant Austin-based guitarist answers
We have seven separate topics to hone your our legendary 60 Seconds With Q&A! AUDIO & VIDEO
skills in all areas including picking, fretting, INTRO 8
string bending, legato and a whole lot more to
get your blues-rock chops right up to scratch.
All your regulars including Justin, Mitch, Quist,
Phil, and Richard Barrett’s Substitute.
PLEASE NOTE…
All audio and video lessons are available
CORY WONG 12
S P E C I A L F E AT U R E The amazing funkster gets to grips with our online via a bit.ly link (see below) where
in-depth Instrumental Inquisition Q&A. animated tab versions of every lesson
THE CROSSROADS SUBSCRIPTIONS 36 can be found. What’s more, you can view
Lorne Lofsky 40 Great offers at www.magazinesdirect.com. these on any type of computer, making
This amazing jazz musician gives you
an exclusive video masterclass on harp BACK ISSUES 61 for a much more rewarding experience.
harmonics. John Wheatcroft is your guide. Missed a print or digital edition? Find it here! All the audio and video is also available
ALBUM REVIEWS 81 to download to your computer (hi or lo
SHLOMI PINTO/GETTY IMAGES

C L A S S I C A L TA B Six of the best new guitar albums reviewed res). Simply look for the red links on the
and rated by Jason Sidwell and David Mead. landing page. Type the bit.ly link below
MATTEO CARCASSI NEXT MONTH 82 into your browser to get to the GT page:
Etude No.7 Op.60 46 Fingerpicking The Blues! 10 cool patterns from
Declan Zapala presents a superb study by one the greats. Plus: Rocco Zifarelli video; SRV, Paco
of the founding fathers of classical guitar. De Lucia, Jimmie Vaughan, Mark Tremonti.

November 2023 5
INTRO INTERVIEW
JESSE DAYTON
A minute’s all it takes to discover what makes a great guitarist tick.
Before he jumped into his limo for the airport, we grabbed a quick chat
with the singer-guitarist from Austin, Texas.
GT: Do you have a type of pick that you
can’t live without?
JD: I play with .60 grade Jim Dunlop picks
because I can hold them in the palm of my
picking hand. I play with my fingers a lot to
get the tones I need.
GT: If you had to give up all your pedals but
three, what would they be?
JD: If I could only keep three pedals it
would be an original tube tape Echoplex
and the stock Reverb/Tremelo pedal from
my 1966 Fender Reverb.
GT: Do you play another instrument well
enough to do so in a band? If so, have you
ever done it?
JD: Yes, I’ve played drums and bass before
in bands. I also play piano, but I have to say
I’m no virtuoso.
GT: If a music chart were put in front of you,
could you read it?
JD: Yes, but it’s like a foreign language. If
you don’t use it, you lose it. The musician
Beck; his father is a renowned orchestra
arranger. I got to play on a few big sessions
in Los Angeles with him and my chops were
way better back then.
Jesse Dayton playing
his prototype King
guitar, custom built
by Jason Burns
ERIKA GOLDRING /GETTY IMAGES
6 Novemeber 2023
GT: Do guitar cables really make a difference?
What make are yours?
JD: I love being cordless on a big stage, but
I can hear the difference in my tone, so I use
Monster guitar cables.
GT: Is there anyone’s playing (past or present)
that you’re slightly jealous of?
JD: Jealous is a weird word because it
“I TOURED WITH DICK
DALE AND KEPT BREAKING
STRINGS. HE THREW A SET
OF 13-56 AT ME AND SAID, ‘I
TOLD SRV THE SAME THING’”
implies that you think you’re worthy of
their talent. I’m very inspired by Jeff Beck’s
touch, Buddy Guy’s emotion, Jerry Reed’s
fingerpicking, Keith Richards’ riffs, but I’ll
never be worthy of it!
GT: Your house/studio is burning down: which
guitar do you salvage?
JD: My 1982 Custom Martin D-45. Luthier
Wayne Henderson built only eight of them!
GT: What’s your favourite guitar amp and how
do you set it?
JD: My favourite amps are usually mid 60s
Fenders with reverb and tremolo. I put the
treble on 10 and bass and mids on 5. I’ll roll
off the highs on my guitar knobs if I need a
warmer and darker sound. I set the reverb
and tremolo accordingly to the style or turn
them off completely.
GT: What kind of playing action do you like to
have on your guitars?
JD: I like to fight my action a bit. If it’s too
low, I don’t feel like I can get underneath it
and control it. Also, if it’s a little high I can
play slide and get better intonation.
GT: What strings do you use?
JD: I toured with Dick Dale opening up and
kept breaking strings. He threw a set of 13
through 56 at me and said, “I told Stevie
Ray Vaughan the same thing!” So that’s
what I use. Billy Gibbons says, “You’re
working too hard kid!”
GT: Who was your first real influence to play
the guitar?
JD: Chuck Berry. I saw him doing the duck
walk on TV and I said I want to do that!
Then I heard his licks in everything from
Rolling Stones to Buck Owens. Make no
mistake, Chuck is the GOAT (Greatest Of
All Time).
GT: What was the first electric guitar you
really lusted after?
JD: A 1972 Telecaster Thinline. I mowed
yards, worked odd jobs, saved for nine
months to get it.
GT: What was the best gig you ever did?
JD: There’s been a lot. Playing guitar with
legends like Waylon Jennings, Danzig,
Johnny Cash, X, Lucinda Williams at the
Inaugural Ball all stand out. But playing for
50,000 people recently at Jazz Fest was
mind blowing.
GT: And your worst playing nightmare?
JD: Worst playing nightmare was one night
when all the gear broke. One amp after
another. Then the PA went out. I
apologised, walked out into the middle of

You can catch Jesse on
tour with Samantha Fish
in the UK, later in 2023
EBET ROBERTS / GETTY IMAGES
the crowd with my acoustic guitar and
finished the show. It wasn’t so bad!
GT: Do you still practise?
JD: Yes, I practise all sorts of things. Never
scales or tricks like some shredders do, but
mostly jazz stuff, open tunings for blues
songs, and bluegrass and finger picking. I
can already play fast. I’m more interested in
writing riffs and songs.
GT: Do you have a pre-gig warm-up routine?
JD: No, I don’t have a pre-gig warm-up.
Although I need to be more consistent with
vocal warm-ups because it actually helps
my singing when I do.
GT: If you could put together a fantasy band
with you in it, who would the other players be
(alive or dead)?
JD: My fantasy band would be me, Chuck
Berry and Billy Gibbons on guitar, Willie
Dixon on bass, Dr John on piano, Lloyd
Green on pedal steel guitar, Earl Palmer on
drums, Louis Armstrong on trumpet,
Trombone Shorty on trombone, Sonny
Rollins on saxophone, and Jimmy Smith on
organ. Yeah, that should do it!
GT: Present company excepted, who’s the
greatest guitarist that’s ever lived?
JD: That’s impossible to answer. Chuck,
Hendrix, Eddie Van Halen, Segovia, Danny
Gatton, Hank Garland, Robert Johnson,
Stevie Ray? It’s impossible!
GT: Is there a solo by someone else that you
really wish you had played?
JD: Yeah, it would have to be The Wind
Cries Mary by Jimi Hendrix. It has a
beginning, a middle, and an end that is
like no other.
GT: What’s the solo or song of your own of
which you’re most proud?
JD: There’s a bunch I’m proud of. I do this
solo on the Waylon Jennings record that
James Hetfield said was one of his favourite
JESSE DAYTON
things he’d heard. There’s guitar work I did
on Rob Zombie’s Devils Rejects soundtrack
that’s pretty out there. The slide on my song
Hurtin’ Behind The Pine Curtain sounds
like Billy Gibbons on steroids.
GT: What would you most like to be
remembered for?
JD: Being a guitar player who pushed the
boundaries of the instrument and didn’t
pander to a genre just for money.
GT: And what are you up to at the moment?
(Gigs, tours gear, etc)
JD: I’m actually backstage in my dressing
room about to go onstage with Samantha
Fish to sing and play songs off of our new
duets record, Death Wish Blues!
Jesse Dayton and Samantha Fish tour their
Death Wish Blues album in the UK from
October 19-28, 2023. Tickets are available
from www.jessedayton.com where you’ll find
more info on Jesse and what he’s up to.
November 2023 7
I NTRO FOOD FOR THOUGHT
JUSTIN SANDERCOE
The founder of justinguitar.com lends GT his insight as one of the world’s most
successful guitar teachers. This Month: The New Breed.
T
he next generation of guitar
players is reaching out to
new realms and making
interesting connections
between styles. And the
sonic palettes available now have
never been wider - blending
digital and analog sounds in ways
that are fresh and innovative.
Some contemporary players
have been able to abandon the
traditional approaches to guitar in
a refreshing way, while others
have embraced tradition but
incorporated a whole new
language and technique
development. There are many
incredible contemporary
guitarists out there making
incredible music, but two that
stand out to me, for very different
reasons are Tim Henson (of
Polyphia) and Mateus Asato.
I've had a bunch of requests for
lessons on some Polyphia songs
but, to be honest, I can’t play it, let
alone teach it. Tim’s approach to
the guitar is unique and he seems
to avoid the use of the common
‘blues guitar vocabulary’ that’s
present in most players. He
seamlessly blends hybrid picking,
sweep picking, finger tapping,
hammer-ons from nowhere, open
strings, impossible-looking finger
stretches, harmonics, slapping,
percussive hits… but he’s not just
some technical machine; he’s
making contemporary music art.
Rock music has traditionally
had one foot in the blues, but I
don’t hear any of that influence in
his playing, and it’s refreshing.
His arrangements are full of
unnatural patterns, things that
are so unconventional and
difficult to play it must have taken
100s of hours of practice to master
some of them. Respect! Some of
the insane riffs from his song
Playing God were derived from
copying an arpeggiator sequence
in Spectrasonic’s Omnisphere
synth plug-in, utilising technology
to further his creativity.
The sounds that he’s using are
also very fresh. I mean, he’s
8 November 2023
Justin waxes lyrical
about some of the
great new guitarists
he's heard recently
"IF YOU'VE FOUND YOURSELF LISTENING TO
THE SAME MUSIC FOR AGES, NOW'S A GREAT
TIME TO SEEK OUT SOMETHING NEW"
playing a nylon-string guitar with
a rock band. That’s just so wrong
that it’s perfect! The way he
manipulates his tones to be
punchy and full but also
embracing contemporary effects
and plugins to provide depth and
sparkle, gives him a very modern
sound. He also seems to seek and
embrace the artefacts and glitches
found in the digital domain.
There was a period where I was
worried about the future of guitar,
as ‘the kids’ seemed more into
electronic music production and
I encountered very few younger
players putting the hours in to
develop technique and musical
dexterity. Tim Henson and his
contemporaries are inspiring a
new generation to put in the effort
needed to push the boundaries
with technique, sound and art.
Another of my favourite
modern guitar heroes is Mateus
Asato. This Brazilian virtuoso
seems to have one foot in tradition
and the other taking a giant step
into taste, tone and melody.
I first encountered him, like
most others, playing solo in little
Instagram clips, but he packed so
much punch into this short space
it was jaw-dropping. His
technique is outstanding but his
superpower is his musicality,
touch and ability to play perfect
unexpected note at the right time.
His musical vocabulary has a
lot of blues and soul (and some
jazz) roots, but he is using fresh
new combinations. His technique
is so good that does things that
sound impossible with such a
relaxed time feel and fluidity that
one might mistake them as easy.
His harmonised lines are
incredible and must have taken
years of practice for them to come
out in improvisations so fluently.
And the way he uses them is
unconventional and sublime.
People have been doing string
bends since the beginning of
blues, but again he manages to
take things up a gear with big
bends and incredible accuracy.
When combined with great
dynamics and a truly sensitive
touch he reaches deep.
One of the fascinating things
about the world now is being able
to look back in time and see artists
develop. I recently did it for my
own channel and in the course of
writing this article looked back
over Mateus’ YouTube channel
where you can watch his unique
style develop. Ten years ago you
could watch him burn; seven
years ago you see his touch and
expression has formed into
something really special. Have a
look, it’s really interesting how
quickly he found his umami and
grew as an artist.
Tim and Mateus are very
different players but they’re the
future… and they’re not the only
ones. You have Yvette Young
pushing genres with math rock,
Matteo Mancuso stretching the
limits of shred fingerpicking,
Chris Buck blowing our minds
with emotive blues-rock, Molly
Tuttle tearing up the bluegrass
scene. We've featured several of
these players in GT over recent
years, but I’m sure there are many
more up-and-coming players that
we’ve simply not heard yet.
If you’ve found yourself
listening to the same music for
ages, now’s a great time to seek
out something new, as there are
amazing artists out there making
music that might inspire you!
BARBARA BUELEN
Get more info and links to related
lessons on all Justin’s GT articles
at www.justinguitar.com/gtmag
 JAM TRACKS

SUBSTITUTE
Pentatonic Superimpositions WITH RICHARD BARRETT

IF THERE WAS A WAY to use your existing Pentatonic scales and licks to play
over a variety of new chords – and sound more exotic while you’re at it – it
would sound too good to be true, wouldn’t it? Well, actually it is true…
In short, it is possible to play most of your favourite ideas over alternative
chords. The only ‘catch’, if there is one, is that you’ll need to understand how
the notes in the scale relate to the underlying chord. As you’ll see, this isn’t all
that complex – we’re using chords associated with the C Major scale (C/A
Minor/D Minor) to illustrate these ideas, but they can be transposed to any
key. We’ve thrown in a few different shapes of the pentatonic for variety, but
the concept remains unchanged.

œ œ œ
Example 1 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
THIS A MINOR Pentatonic is superimposed over a
C Major chord. You will find the same licks and lines that
œ œ
Am Pentatonic / C major
fit over A minor will fit over C Major the ‘relative major’.
We start with A, to reflect the root note of the chord, but E 5 8 5
B 5 8 8 5
G 5 7 7 5
you’ll see the root of the scale itself (A) is referred to at D 5 7 7 5
A 5 7 7 5
the end, before heading back to C. E 8 8 5 8

œ œ œ œ œ
Example 2 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
THE C MAJOR CHORD contains C, E and G (root, 3rd, œ œ
5th), so playing the Minor Pentatonic scale beginning
Em Pentatonic / C major
with the 3rd (E) means we still have a useable scale for
extra options. Start with standard E Minor blues licks, E 10 12 10
B 10 12 12 10
then notice how certain notes imply a more complex G 9 12 12 9
D 9 12 12 9
harmony than a basic C chords. A
E 12
10 12 12 10
12 10 12

œ œ œ œ œ œ
√
Example 3
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
THE UNDERLYING CHORD is A Minor, with a
root/3rd/5th of A, C and E. By using E Minor Pentatonic,
we’re ‘playing off the 5th’, resulting in a Pentatonic sound Em Pentatonic / A minor

that refers to the 9th and 11th – even though these E 12 15 12

B 12 15 15 12
aren’t present in the backing chord – adding depth and G
D 12 14
12 14 14 12
14 12
interest. We start and finish with G. A 12 14 14 12
E 15 15 12 15

œ œ œ
Example 4 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
STARTING and finishing with D, this A minor pentatonic œ œ
scale shape implies both the b7th and the minor 9th,
Am Pentatonic / D minor
giving extra melodic interest, while retaining the familiar
scale shape. Simplify this by reverting to shape 1, E
B 8 10
8 10 8
10 8
though some of the lower notes can sound a little G 7 9 9 7
D 7 10 10 7
A 7 10 10 7
dissonant if emphasised or left to ring. E 10 10 8 10

œ œ œ œ
Example 5 & œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
THIS LOW-REGISTER C Major Pentatonic shape fits
nicely over the D Minor chord, but demonstrates the
œ œ œ œ
C major Pentatonic / D minor
need for caution when experimenting with the lower
E 3 5 3
notes. Try all the C Major Pentatonic shapes and see how B 3 5 5 3
G 2 5 5 2
it can open up different harmonic ideas when combined D 2 5 5 2
A 3 5 5 3
with your existing repertoire. E 3 5 5 3 5

Example 6 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
PLAYING a G Major Pentatonic over a C Major chord œ œ œ œ
gives an alternative to the G Major scale – or the E Minor G major Pentatonic / C major
Pentatonic for that matter. We start and finish in D, as it’s
E 7 10 7
nice to use all six strings, though many will target the B 8 10 10 8
G 7 9 9 7
root of the chord (C) if playing round the lower reaches D 7 9 9 7
A 7 10 10 7
of the fretboard. E 10 10 7 10

November 2023 9
I NTRO SESSION SHENANIGANS
The studio guitarist’s guide to happiness and personal fulfilment, as related by our
resident session ace. This month: What Was It Like In The Olden Days, Grandad?
W
hen The Beatles
recorded Sergeant
Pepper’s Lonely
Hearts Club Band
(November
1966-April 1967) it was, as any fule
kno, a groundbreaking project.
The inherent brilliance of the
collaboration between George
Martin and The Fab Four is clearly
apparent. However, the technical
aspects of the production itself
and the innovations of engineers
Geof Emerick and Ken Townsend
are of major importance in
themselves. Fortunately for our
Parlophone Pioneers, time and
financial constraints were notable
by their absence. Which is just as
well. Because back then, if you
wished to ‘cut a record’, you would
need to pass through the hallowed
portals of a studio complex such as
EMI Abbey Road, cheque book in
hand. In modern day terms, the
equivalent of a four-figure sum per
day would have gained you access
to Studio 2. For six months. Then
there would be the engineer’s fees
plus those for assistants (‘tape
ops’), the reels of tape, hire fees for
instruments and outboard gear,
piano tuning. In this case there
would also have been the cost of
employing an orchestra, brass
section and individual session
musicians as required. Aside from
anything else, the studios and
record companies that paid ‘em
out of the artist’s future royalties
acted effectively as gatekeepers to
the industry. Put baldly, if you
weren’t a signed artist, you didn’t
get to make records.
Of course one can retrace one’s
studio steps even further back to
the primordial swamp of early
popular music, when the
engineers wore white lab coats and
recorded in two-track stereo.
Minstrels and troubadours were
expressly forbidden from entering
the holy of holies itself - the
control room. By the time our beat
combo heroes had stopped touring
to concentrate on their
experimental ‘concept album’,
10 November 2023
MITCH DALTON
"BACK THEN YOU'D NEED TO PASS THROUGH
THE HALLOWED PORTALS OF A STUDIO LIKE
EMI ABBEY ROAD, CHEQUE BOOK IN HAND"
they still had but four tracks to
play with. The eight-track machine
was only to reach commercial
application later that year. The
solution was to employ the
technique of track reduction - four
tracks mixed down to one, freeing
a further three for more recording.
And repeated as required. In
retrospect, the painstaking effort
expended and the time involved in
achieving the desired results
beggar belief. Later during the
Sergeant Pepper recordings, two
machines were linked using a
50Hz control signal. In this way
George Martin could sync the
band’s mix while recording an
orchestra on the second machine.
We can see in hindsight that the
now-taken-for-granted concept of
multi-track recording was being
born, even if it was as clunky as a
worn seatbelt. And let’s not forget
the implications of this for studio
musicians. While music was being
taped straight down to two-track
stereo, the prized qualities of a
'session player' were the ability to
Mitch discusses how
recording practices
have changed during
his years in the 'biz'
sightread your part and reproduce
the same performance with ultra
consistent accuracy. There was
neither the time nor the
opportunity to repair mistakes.
While still prized qualities in our
‘time is money’ world, the advent
of 16, 32, and 48-track recording
gave scope for overdubbing
sessions in which a fretting fiend
would be expected to offer a good
deal more creativity, coming up
with original ideas or 'hooks' to
help create a hit record. Mistakes
could be fixed quickly in the
pursuit of perfection.
The digital revolution that
followed blew many of the old
working practices out of the
window. Recording was now
democratised to the extent that
anyone could set up a home studio
with computer, software package,
a digital/audio interface and a
couple of microphones. At a tiny
fraction of the cost. Most
musicians are now required to
have at least basic computer music
techniques to produce demos, to
record their parts at home using
files sent through cyberspace, and
send ‘em back. Oh yes. And to play
their chosen instrument(s) to a
high standard. For much less
money. The lines have been truly
blurred, for good or ill.
All of which has been on my
mind as I set about completing
The Studio Kings’ second album,
rushed through 10 years after the
first. What would the pioneers of
yesteryear make of this schedule?
Step 1. Pop down to Red Kite
Studio in deepest North Wales
with David Arch, Steve Pearce and
Tim Goodyear. Record the basic
tracks in Martin Levan’s custom-
built facility, set in 200 horrid
rural acres with only stunning
views and birds of prey as
compensation. Three days of
residential riffing and in-(farm)
house dining. Step 2. Another
visitation to complete guitar
overdubs, some weeks later. Step
3. Er, Covid and lockdown.
Consequently, moving rather
slowly on to Step 4. Send the stems
to Stuttgart, home of the Grammy
award-winning SWR Big Band.
Step 5. Overdub the band using
their in-house arrangers in their
magnificent studios. Step 6. Back
to Red Kite to organise the files
and tweak to taste. Step 7.
Percussion, sax and keyboard
overdubs in London. Jeezaloo!
Come back the days of live,
straight-to-tape, two-track
sessions. All is forgiven!
FUTURE OWNS
For more on Mitch and his musical
exploits with the Studio Kings, go
to: www.mitchdalton.co.uk
 JAM TRACKS
PLAY 1 PLAY 2 PLAY 3 PLAY 4

Use your bluesiest

Joe Satriani licks
over jam track #4 JAM TRACKS TIPS
Use these to navigate our bonus backing tracks
➊ B Dorian Groove Jam
We start with a simple B Dorian
vamp, where you can mix B Dorian
mode (B-C#-D-E-F#-G#-A) and B
Minor Pentatonic (B-D-E-F#-A) for
some solid modal groove fun. It
comes from my album Groovin’
Through The Modes, Vol. 5.
➋ Super Slow Blues - C Minor
For this slow blues jam in C Minor,
C Minor Pentatonic (C-Eb-F-G-Bb) is
your friend. But try some of the
chord tones, too: Cm7 (C-Eb-G-Bb),
Fm7 (F-Ab-C-Eb), Abmaj7 (Ab-C-
Eb-G) and G7 (G-B-D-F).
➌ Sweet Groove Blues – D Minor
Here we have a very tasty groove
blues in D Minor (the saddest of all
keys?), where the D Minor
Pentatonic (D-F-G-A-C) and D
Minor scales (D-E-F-G-A-Bb-C) are
both great places to start.
➍C Lydian Vamp
We finish this month's blues
jamming with a C Lydian mode
(C-D-E-F#-G-A-B) track. It’s worth
remembering that C Lydian
contains the same seven notes as
the G Major scale (and indeed its
relative Minor, the E Minor scale).
Good luck, and happy jamming!

Visit www.Quistorama.com/
FRANK HOENSCH / GETTY IMAGES

jamtracks and subscribe to www.

youtube.com/QuistTV for more jam
tracks. Quist’s new album Garden
Beats is out now and you can find him
on Spotify, Apple Music and
Instagram, as well as on Patreon.
com/QuistJam for access to his
popular library of jam tracks, tabs

PHIL HILBORNE’S ONE-MINUTE LICK High-Register Artificial Harmonics Lick

©»¡¢™ ' ' O~~~~~

√ scoop
œ œ ¢˙ ~~~ £œj œ œ ¡ œ £œscoop ·
Am7 w/bar
œ œ ¢œ
w/bar
œ œ
'# ™œ ¡œ ‚ #‚ ‚
scoop

œ œ ¡œ ¡œ
& 44 ∑ œœ

····
3 3 3 FAST
AH AH AH AH

' ' ~~~ ~~~~~

PM

'
scoop scoop w/bar BU 29 26 27 29 w/bar
scoop
E 15 12 17 12 19 19 ( 20 ) 19 17 14 15 17
B 13 12 20 19 17 17
G 12 14 14
D 14 14
A 12 15
E SLOW
≤ ≥ ≥≥≤ ≤ ≥ ≤
The central focus of this month’s lick is its final at the ‘virtual’ locations of the 26th, 27th and 29th frets. As there are
four notes. These are all played as high-register no frets to reference it’s best to work out where these positions are in
artificial harmonics and they are all located past the relation to pickup screws, pole pieces etc. This will obviously vary from
end of the guitar’s fretboard. If you have not tried to play guitar to guitar but the point is that you try and find a location to relate
these before I would recommend that you practise the one of the harmonics to, and then it’s easier to work out the others in
technique first. They are played exactly the same as relation to that point. As to the remainder of the lick, bars 1-3 kick off
conventional artificial harmonics - ie with the pick with a sequenced A Minor 9 arpeggio followed by two bars of single-
held between your picking-hand thumb and second note lines using the vibrato arm to add colour, Alan Murphy style.
finger, and the first finger being used to lightly touch After working through this month's example, aim to develop
- and upon picking, quickly come away from - the similar ideas of your own. Listen to Eric Johnson's playing on tracks
appropriate ‘node point’ as indicated by the bracketed tab such as Trademark and Manhattan, to hear some masterful examples
numbers. In this example the node points are positioned of just how good this technique can get!

November 2023 11
I NTRO INSTRUMENTAL INQUISITION!
Guitar instrumentals have supplied some of music’s most evocative moments.
Jason Sidwell asks top guitarists for their take on this iconic movement. This
month: the modern hero of funk guitar.
GT: What is it about guitar instrumentals
that appeals to you?
CW: I like the idea of music that can be a
soundtrack to a moment or an image. The
guitar is such a versatile instrument. The
range of clean tones to dirty tones, dry or
effected, rhythmic and staccato vs melodic
and legato. I like to find guitar instrumentals
that really utilise things that are very specific
to the guitar, but it doesn’t feel so much like a
technique. It’s art created through the
instrument, rather than a technique
attempting to make art.
GT: What can an instrumental provide the
listener that a vocal song can't?
CW: Instrumental music allows the listener
to create their own story or imagery while
they’re listening. The story can even change
depending on the day or mood. Vocal songs
need to very clearly tell you the message or
story; but instrumental songs can be more of
a soundtrack to your day. That being said, it
doesn’t mean that it’s ‘background music’; it
can be the opposite. An instrumental can be
the thing that guides you to a new place.
GT: Any tendencies you embrace or avoid?
12 November 2023
CORY WONG
CW: A lot of instrumentalists tend to want
to show off certain techniques that they’ve
learned and it can sometimes take away from
the SONG or the ART of the music. I’m not
saying that you can’t make something very
profound with a lot of technique; I just think
you need to do it with a higher purpose than
letting people know that you know how to do
a certain trick on the guitar. I also tend to
embrace the rhythmic sides of the guitar
more than many other guitar-led
instrumental groups. I think there’s
something really interesting in the ‘lead-
rhythm’ realm. I also am not afraid to have
other instruments be the focal point or
melody of songs. I am confident and
comfortable enough in my own artistry and
voice on the guitar to know that sometimes
I don’t want so much GUITAR GUITAR
GUITAR. It’s often nice for the listener to
have some variation in the tonal qualities of
the focal point.
GT: Is a typical song structure always relevant
for an instrumental?
CW: No, absolutely not! What’s interesting
about instrumental music is that you can
often just tell the entire story with one
Cory Wong playing
his see-through
Sapphire Blue
Stratocaster
progression. If you have a compelling enough
melody/progression/energy arc, you can
accomplish a lot. I think the average listener
needs at least two sections to a song so
there’s some harmonic momentum. I also
think every instrumental song should have
something that really feels like a home base
or anchor, similar to a chorus in a pop song.
"PRINCE TOLD ME:
'SOMETIMES COME OUT
OF THE GATE SWINGING,
SO EVERYONE KNOWS THE
FOCUS SHIFTS TO YOU'"
GT: How useful is studying a vocalist's
approach for creating guitar melodies?
CW: For most people I think it’s important,
because the human voice is so primal and so
deeply ingrained in us as a species. The
inflections and tones of our voice have so
much nuance, so we can really shape the
emotion of the message just by tone alone.
For example, think about the word ‘what’.
With just one word, I can change the tone in
several really captivating ways to noticeably
change the message. What? WHAT!? ….
what… Whaaaat??? Wut… There’s
vernacular and there’s traditional ‘correct’ vs
‘incorrect’ ways of saying or writing it, but
they all get a different message across. Now
imagine that ONE note you can play on the
guitar in so many different ways to tell a
different story. Then put it in the context of a
melody and you'll see there are infinite ways
to play a song.
GT: How do you start writing one; is there a
typical approach or inspiration?
CW: I’m a rhythm section guy, so typically
things start with a feeling or groove and then
I go from there. I’ll often hear a melody in my
head and shape a groove around it, but it
typically starts with the feeling or groove.
GT: What do you aim for when your
performance is centre stage as it is when
performing an instrumental?
CW: I aim to be present in the moment. I try
to be aware of how the audience has been
 INSTRUMENTAL INQUISITION!

responding and what it is that they might Cory Wong, the

want from me, and how I can best deliver my modern hero of funk
guitar: "I'm a rhythm
art/vision to them. I’m also very aware of my
section guy," he says
band and how we’re interacting and
responding to each other.

GT: Many vocal songs feature a guitar solo

that starts low and slow and then finishes
high and fast. Is this approach also useful for
developing pace and dynamics over an
instrumental's duration?
CW: I think it depends on the general
energy arc of a song. Often guitar solos start
low and end high because the section before
the guitar solo was big and the arrangement
calls for an energy shift. So the dynamics
might come down and the solo needs to
match that energy, and the section after the
guitar solo might need to have some energy
momentum leading into it. I used to think
you had to start low and end high and then
Prince came and saw my band play one time
and he called me over after our first set and
said to me, “Sometimes you need to come out
of the gate swinging so everyone in the room
knows that the energy and attention needs to
shift to you. Make it obvious.” I guess I can
leave it at that…

GT: What type of guitar tone do you prefer

when playing instrumentals?
CW: That totally depends on the song. Some
songs call for a nice clean and warm guitar
tone, some call for a clean and punchy tone,
and others call for something that really
screams. I think it would be weird to have
that signature Vai tone on the Metheny
album, Secret Story, and the clean Metheny
sound wouldn’t carry over the top of a lot of
Vai’s catalogue. That very general example is
why both of those players have such versatile
palettes of tones to draw from. They’re both
brilliant at choosing the right tone for the
SONG. What does the music call for? That’s
the best tone to use.
GT: What about modulations into new keys? GT: What about harmonising melodies?
GT: Do you have favourite keys or tempos CW: I have two favourites: 1, going up a CW: I love to harmonise melodies. I do a lot
over which to play? half-step; 2; going up a Minor 3rd. of Pentatonic harmonising and also typical
CW: I wish I didn’t have an answer for this, 3rds and 6ths harmonies in my songs.
hahaha. I like Eb for emotional music. I like D GT: Do you view the backing band differently They’re pleasing to the ear and they help add
in general for seemingly no reason. I like than you would on a vocal song? some weight to the melody.
116-120 for funk. It’s the Minneapolis funk CW: Yes. In instrumental music, you need
ERIKA GOLDRING / PETER VAN BREUKELEN / GETTY IMAGES

tempo range.
GT: Do you find Minor or Major keys easier or
more satisfying to write in?
CW: Fortunately I’m at a place in my
playing and knowledge of both the fretboard
and music in general that it’s all the same at
this point. It’s really about the mood or
feeling I’m trying to portray.
GT: Do you have any favourite modes?
CW: Well, who doesn’t love the Dorian and
Mixolydian sound?!
to make sure that it’s very clear as to what the
focal point is at any given time. With vocal
music it’s really obvious to the general public
that they should be listening to the vocal as
the focal point. With instrumental music, I
think it’s even more important that the band
has PARTS that really complement whatever
should be the focus. That doesn’t mean that
it can’t be ‘in the moment’ or that you can’t
‘explore’; it just means that everyone needs
to be aware of how what they’re playing
either enhances or takes attention away from
the cetral focus.
GT: What three guitar instrumentals have
inspired you, and why?
CW: Cause We’ve Ended As Lovers, by Jeff
Beck; Affirmation, by George Benson; and
Always And Forever, by Pat Metheny.
I love them because they’re all examples
of really having a vision honed and
executing it in a way that feels pure.
Cory Wong has four dates scheduled for the UK
and Ireland during mid October 2023. For
more on Cory, merchandise, info and more,
please visit corywong.com

November 2023 13
 FEATURE } BLUES-ROCK VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

ULTIMATE
Blues-Rock Workout!
Is your blues playing giving you the blues? Fear not, as
Andy Saphir is here with the ultimate workout, designed
to build your chops and invigorate your practice routine.
ABILITY RATING Moderate ✪✪✪✪✪ This feature has been put together to
boost your blues-rock lead and rhythm
Info https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Will improve your… Chord vocabulary
playing by giving you a series of exercises
Key Various Tempo Various Techniques Blues lead vocabulary
and licks which focus on seven different
areas of the style. These will help you to

B
lues is one of those styles that most
guitarists love to play. There’s just
something about the sound of those
Pentatonic-based licks and riffs, and the
immediately identifiable musical structures
and rhythms that make it so satisfying.
As a player with relatively little
experience you can soon learn to play some
simple but authentic sounding blues
because, at its essence, the style is mainly
based around the Minor Pentatonic scale
(R- b3-4-5-b7) with additional notes
borrowed from the Major Pentatonic too
(R-2-3-5-6) which can be used to construct
some basic but authentic sounding licks.
However, it would be a glaring
misconception to assume that because of
this, it should be dismissed as an easy style
to play, because it isn’t. As with any genre,
there are harder things to play and easier
things to play; things that need a high level
of technical skill and musical ability, and
others that are simpler. Listening to blues
players like BB King, who characteristically
played quite conservatively but highly
emotively, and later players like Joe
Bonamassa whose blistering blues-rock licks
Later players like Stevie Ray Vaughan,
Gary Moore and Joe Bonamassa (to name
but a few) have added their own sound and
vocabulary to the genre, combining the
influences of traditional American electric
blues guitarists like BB King, Albert King,
and Freddie King, with blues-rock players
such as SRV, Clapton and Hendrix and have
come up with their own mix of soulful and
technically astounding blues-rock guitar that
“It would be a glaring
misconception to assume
that blues should be
dismissed as an easy style
to play, because it isn’t. As
with any style, there are
harder things to play,
and easier things”
has itself influenced generations.
improve both technically and musically, and
include: picking, legato, string bending,
chords, ‘wailing’ (high fretboard licks and
searing string bends), turnarounds and
intros. Each of these areas is vital if you want
to come across as a confident and authentic
blues guitarist. They transfer to other styles
like rock and country too, so should prove
very uselful to your skills overall.
We have come up with five distinct
exercises in each area, with some being
pretty demanding. In particular, go easy
with the string bends as these can require a
lot of fretting-hand strength and stamina,
especially with the larger interval bends.
The same with some of the legato and
picking exercises; take these slowly to begin
with. But most of all, have fun!
NEXT MONTH Stuart Ryan presents a fantastic
video lesson on Fingerpicking The Blues
7 5 5 6
4
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB

are jaw-dropping, will give you an idea of
how varied blues can be, and how technically
and musically demanding it can be, too.
In the 1960s, British guitar players and
blues devotees like Eric Clapton, Peter
Green, Jimmy Page and Keith Richards took
the sound of American blues and, using their
own prodigious talent (and some cranked
Marshall amps), gave the music a harder
edge and the recipe for blues-rock was born.
Add some amazing Jimi Hendrix to the mix
and there was enough there to captivate and
influence legions of guitarists ever since.
As a blues guitarist, there is an intensity
that has to be put over to the listener that is
utterly authentic, and firmly based on feel.
Yet in order to achieve this, you need to Either a single-coil or humbucker equipped
develop a high enough level of technical and guitar will be fine. Use an amp which has an
above all, musical skill to be able to convey it. overdrive channel or is low enough in power so
it can be naturally overdriven without being too
You don’t necessarily need to be able to play
loud; this can be tempered by turning down
super fast, for example (unless you want to
your guitar volume for cleaner sounds. Use an
be able to pull off those super flash lines), additional overdrive pedal to boost the amp to
but a good command of different techniques get a thicker, more saturated sound for solos,
combined with good fretboard knowledge but don’t make it too distorted. Reverb and
and musical understanding is essential to maybe some delay will add ambience.
help you to get there.

TRACK RECORD Try some of these albums, as they represent some of the best classic and modern blues, and different technical playing
levels. BB King, Live At The Regal; Freddie King, Texas Canonball; Cream, Wheels Of Fire; Jimi Hendrix, Experience Hendrix (The Best Of Jimi
Hendrix); Stevie Ray Vaughan, Texas Flood; Gary Moore, Still Got The Blues; Joe Bonamassa, Live At The Beacon; John Mayall, A Hard Road.

14 November 2023
 ULTIMATE BLUES-ROCK WORKOUT

Left-Right: Joe Bonamassa,

Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton,
BB King, Jimi Hendrix, Albert
King, Peter Green, Keith
Richards, Freddie King
CHARLIE GILLETT COLLECTION / MICHAEL OCHS ARCHIVES / STRINGER / PAUL NATKIN / AVALON / MICHAEL PUTLAND / SCOTT LEGATO / DAVID REDFERN / JOHN ATASHIAN / GETTY IMAGES

November 2023 15
 FEATURE } BLUES-ROCK VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

PART 1 PICKING
EXAMPLE 1 ALTERNATE PICKING
This ascending alternate picking line uses shapes 3, 4, 5 and 1 of the E Minor positions and take it slowly to begin with, ensuring correct co-ordination
Pentatonic scale (E-G-A-B-D). Visualise the patterns across the different fretboard between your picking and fretting hands.

©»¡™∞
E7 9 # E7
n œ œn¢œ £œj G˙ A
˙.
E7 9 # E7 G A

# nœ œ œ
j œ n œ œ~~~~~~
#
& # # 44 ∑ n œ œ œ œ œ nœ œ œ œ œ nœ nœ œ œ
œœ œ‰Œ
J
PLAY œœ nœ œ œ
E 12 15
BU BU ~~~~~~
B 12 15 15 ( 17 )
G 7 9 9 12 12 14 14 ( 16 ) 12
D 5 7 7 9 9 12 12 14 14
A 5 7 7 10
BACKING E 5 7
1
≥ ≤ ≥≤ etc

EXAMPLE 2 HYBRID PICKING #1

This example is based around an open E7 chord (E-G#-B-D). Use palm-muted third (a) fingers of the picking hand, either between the pedal sixth-string pedal
pick downstrokes on the sixth string, making sure you create a strong pedal tone tone notes. This a complex style if you’re unfamiliar with it, so take it slowly in
on each beat of the bar. The melody notes are played with either second (m) or small sections to try to nail the technique, as it’s a useful one to know.

©»¡™∞
#### 4 ∑
E7 9 # E7

nœ
' 1/4
G A E7 9 # E7 G A

œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ nœ œ nœ œ nœ œ
& 4 nœ #œ nœ
œ œ
Let ring thoughout
œ œ '
1/4 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
E 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0
B 3 3 3 3
G 0 1
D
A
E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
1 a m a a
≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥a≥ i ≥ a a a
≥ ≥a≥ m ≥a≥ a ≥ a ≥a a ≥ ≥
EXAMPLE 3 THIS EXERCISE DEVELOPS ALTERNATE PICKING ACROSS STRING PAIRS
The repeating triplet phrases in bars 1 and 3 are tricky because there are three with a different picking direction. Approach the exercise slowly, paying attention
notes being played across two strings, so each new group of three notes starts to picking accuracy and, again, hand-to-hand coordination.
#
©»¡™∞ √n œ ' œ ' œ ' œ '
E7 9 E7 G A G A

œ œ n œ œj œ œ œœj œ œ œ œj œ œ n œ ˙~~~~
1/4 1/4 1/4 1/4
j
#### 4 œœ œœ œœ œœ nœ
j œ œ œ nœ œ
. Œ
& 4 ∑
' ' ' '
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
1/4 1/4 1/4 1/4

E 15 12 15 12 15 12 15 12
BU
15 ( 17 ) 15 12
BU BU BU BU ~~~~
B 12 12 12 12 15 12 15 12 15 12 15
G 14 (16 ) 14 (16 ) 14 ( 16 ) 14 ( 16 )1412
D 14
A
E
1
≥≤ ≥≤ ≥ ≤ ≥≤ ≥≤ ≥≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤≥ ≤ ≥≤ ≥≤ ≥
EXAMPLE 4 HYBRID PICKING #2
This exercise incorporates hybrid picking in a melodic, lead line context. Based and third (a) fingers of the picking hand on second and first strings respectively.
around an open E Minor Pentatonic scale, note how in bar 1 this classic three- In bar 2, the second finger (m) of the picking hand plucks the string beneath the
string lick is played with a pick downstroke on the third string, but second (m) one that’s just been played with a pick downstroke. Take care with timing.

#
©»¡™∞ E7 #9 E7 G A
' E7 #9
~~~~~~~~~~
E7 G A

#
œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œ n œ œ œ n œ œ œ œ œ
1/4

& # # 44 ∑
3 3 3
j
3 3

nœ ˙ .
œ
nœ œ œ œ œ nœ j w
3 3 3 œ
~~~~~~~~~~
'
BU BU BU
E 0 0 0 1/4
B 0 0 0
G 2 (4 ) 2 (4 ) 2 (4 ) 2 0 2 0 2 0
D 2 2 2 0 0 0 2
A 2 2 0
E 3 0
1
≥ m a ≥ m a ≥ m a ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≥
16 November 2023
 ULTIMATE BLUES-ROCK WORKOUT

EXAMPLE 5 HYBRID AND ECONOMY PICKING

Another E Minor Pentatonic lick in shape 1, this exercise features two picking economy picking, as the first string is played with a downstroke and the second
approaches. In bar 1, use a pick downstroke on the third string, and your picking- string uses an upstroke. This ‘inside picking’ approach can be a more economical
hand second finger (m) on the first string, then another pick downstroke on way of picking between strings, and it’s employed by many great players in all

'
the second string followed by a pull-off. Bar 2 requires some particularly fast styles of guitar music.
E 7 #9 # #
œ ~~~~~~~~
1/4

~~~ n œ œ œ œ œ
E7 G A E7 9 E7 E7 9 G A

©»¡™∞ j œ œ nœ œ œj œ œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œ nœ
j w œnœ œ œ œ œ œ œ w w
#### 4 ∑ œ
& 4
BU
3

BU
3

BU
3

BU
3

BU ~~~
6 6
'
1/4

~~~~~~~~
E 12 12 12 12 15 15 15 15 17 15
B 15 12 1512 1512 1512 15 ( 17 ) 17 15 17 15 17 15 17 15 17
G 14 ( 16 ) 14 ( 16 ) 14 ( 16 ) 14 ( 16 )
D
A
E
1
≥ m ≥ ≥ m ≥ ≥ m ≥ ≥ m ≥ ≥ ≤ ≥≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥≥ ≥
PART 2 LEGATO
EXAMPLE 1 SPEEDY LICK WITH ‘BLUE’ NOTE
This exercise is a straightforward ascending and descending scale based on Bbm 1 and 2. Pay attention to the articulation between the notes, as the placement
Pentatonic (Bb-Db-Eb-F-Ab) with the b5th ‘blue’ note (Fb) at the top of the phrase. It of the hammer-ons, slides and pull-offs ultimately facilitate the fast-paced
utilises a classic linear pattern with a sixth-string root which goes over shapes 5, execution of the phrase.

b
©»¡£º B m7b
œ œ œ œ œ œ bœ œ œ œ œ
œ œ '
/ 14
~~~~~
& b b b b 44 œœœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ w PLAY
∑
œœœ
E
B 9 11
9 11 12 11 9
11 9
'
1/4
~~~~~
G 6 8 10 10 8 6 6 BACKING
D 6 8 8 6 8 8
A 4 6 8
E 4 6
1

EXAMPLE 2 REPEATING PHRASE

This example uses a repeating legato phrase using the higher strings of shape pattern, the way the note groupings fall against the beats of the bar creates a
5 of Bbm Blues scale (Bb-Db-Eb-Fb-F-Ab). Although played in a specific rhythmic displaced feel that adds an interesting lack of symmetry to the phrase.

©»¡£º b
œ n œ œ œ œ œ b œ n œ œ œ œ œ b œ œ œ n œ œ œ œ n œ b œ n œ œ œ œ œ b œ œ œ œ œ œ w~~~~
B m7

b b 4
&b b b 4 ∑

E 4 4 4 4
~~~~
B 4 5 6 6 5 4 5 6 6 5 4 4 5 6 6 5 4 5 6 6 5 4 4 6 4
G 6 6 6 3
D
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 3 SHAPE 3 LEGATO PHRASE

This shape 3 Bbm Pentatonic legato phrase uses a three-string grouping to create solo. You might want to experiment with different fingering approaches here, as
one of those flashy blues-rock licks that you might find in the middle or end of a shape 3 has a tricky transition between the second and third strings.

b
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ /' ~~~~~
œœœœœœœ œœœ œ
B m7

©»¡£º œ 14

b
& b b b b 44 ∑ œ œ w

E
B
11 13 11
14
11
14 11 11 14 11 11
1/4
' ~~~~~
G 13 13 13 10 10 13 10 10
D 13 13 13 11 11 13 11 13 11
A 13 13 13
E
1

November 2023 17
 FEATURE } BLUES-ROCK VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXAMPLE 4 REPEATING SEXTUPLET PHRASE

This is a shape 2 Bbm Pentatonic repeating sextuplet phrase. The lick in bar 1 is the lick is what makes this challenging. Take it slowly, making sure your hammer-

'
rhythmically symmetrical (it does the same thing each time), but the speed of ons and pull-offs are accurate and not messy.

©»¡£º B bm7 '

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ w~~~~~
1/4 1/4

b
& b b b 44 ∑
b

' '
6 6 6 6
1/4 1/4

E 9 11 13 11 9 9 11 13 11 9 9 11 13 11 9 9 11 13 11 9 11 9 9
~~~~~
B 11 11 11 11 11 9 9 11 11
G 10
D
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 5 STRETCHY THREE-STRING SEQUENCE

This is an interesting Bbm Pentatonic shape 1 phrase that uses a three-string of the phrase on the first string has quite a wide stretch, so you might find that
forwards and backwards sequence that sounds great when played at a lively the whole phrase is easier to play in another key further up the neck, where the
tempo. Take it slowly in order to get to grips with the groupings. The initial part frets are closer together.

B bm7
©»¡£º ¢ œ ¡ œ ¢œ œœœœœœœœœœœœ ~~~~~
b
& b b b b 44 œ œœœœœœœœ œœœœœ w
∑ œ œœ

E 11 6 9 6 6 6
~~~~~
B 9 9 6 6 9 9 6 6
G 8 8 6 6 8 8 6 6
D 8 8 6 6 8 8 6 8
A 8 8 6
E
1

PART 3 STRING BENDING

With all of these examples, go easy and take numerous breaks as string bending requires considerable effort and stamina and can be fatiguing, so don’t overdo it!
Avoid bending with only one finger (unless it’s a first finger bend); always use any spare fingers for support. Usually, a ‘thumb over the neck’ with a wrist motion is
used to facilitate the bending technique.

EXAMPLE 1 CUT-OFF BENDS

Bars 1 and 2 use ascending tone-wide bends with a cut-off, where the sound is on top or underneath (depending on what you’re playing next). Bar 3 uses
cut off at the apex of the bend so you can take your fretting hand off the string ascending and descending bends. Ensure accurate pitching, as the different
with no descending bend. For the cut off, place the pick on the string either string tensions will affect the effort needed.

©»¡¡º qq=qce
j œ œ ˙~~~ j œ œ œjœ
œ œ œ œ ~~~~~
A7
j
4 j œ
œ œ
œ œ œ œj œ œ œ œj œ
&4 ∑ œ ‰ œ
J J w
PLAY 3 3 3 3

E
BU BU BU
8 ( 10 ) 8 5
~~~ BU BD
8 ( 10 ) ( 8 ) 5
BU BD BU BD BU ~~~~~
B 8 ( 10 ) 5 8 ( 10 )( 8 ) 5
G 7 ( 9) 5 7 (9 ) ( 7 ) 5 7 ( 9 ) 5
D 7
A
E
BACKING 1

EXAMPLE 2 CUT-OFF BEND WITH BLUES CURL

This exercise uses the cut-off bend approach but also employs a ‘blues curl’ quite a semitone) and is imperative to playing blues. Technically, you achieve it
on the b3rd (C note) of the A Minor Pentatonic scale (A-C-D-E-G) upon which in the same way as the cut-off bend. You often hear the curl on the b3rd, so it’s
it’s based. This ‘micro bend’ is pretty much a quarter of a tone (in practise, not important to get the feel of it and learn to hear it automatically on that note.

©»¡¡º qq=qce œ œ œ ' ˙ ~~~~ ' ~~~~ j3 /' ~~~~ j3 ~~~~~~~

A7 1/4

/
œ œ œ ˙
14

& 44 J
14

∑ J œ œ œ ˙ œ œ ˙.
' '
3 3

' ~~~~ ~~~~~~~

Pull string down
~~~~ ~~~~
/ 14
BU / (towards floor!) 14
BU / 14
E 10 ( 12 ) 8
B 10 BU
G 7 (9) 5
D 7 5 7
A 5 (7 ) 3
E 5
1

18 November 2023
 ULTIMATE BLUES-ROCK WORKOUT

EXAMPLE 3 THREE-FRET BEND (MINOR 3RD)

This exercise features wider bend intervals of a Minor 3rd, or tone-and-a-half. bend’. It’s not quite a b3rd interval as it’s a tone plus a curl! This is often played in
shape 1. The b3rd bend on beat 1 of bar 3 is another classic one in shape 3.

˙' ˙
Go easy, but aim to pitch the bends accurately. The bend in bar 1 is a classic ‘over

©»¡¡º qq=qce j œ ~~~~. œ œ œ œ œ

1/4
A7
j
œ
œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ w~~~~~
Œ Œ œJ
œ
& 44 Ó J J J
'
3 3 3 3 3 3
1/4

E
BU
8 ( 10 ) 8
BU ~~~~ BU
12 (15 ) 12 10
BU ~~~~~
B 5 8 10 10 ( 13 ) 10 10 13
G 9 9 (12 ) 9 7
D 10 7
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 4 DOUBLE-STRING BEND

There are two classic blues-rock bending approaches in this exercise. Bars 1 want this note going out of pitch. Ensure the second-string bends are accurately
and 2 feature second-string bends with static notes on the first string. The usual pitched though. The bend in bar 3 is a double-string bend where the third string
fingering for this is with the third finger fretting the bent string and the fourth bends a tone and the second string bends a semitone. I usually use the third and
finger fretting the first string. Keep the fourth finger firmly down as you don’t fourth fingers for this. It’s a tricky one, this, so again be aware of pitching.

©»¡¡º qq=qce œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
A7

œœœœœœœœ œ j œ œ œ œ œ # œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ
j
& 44
J
3

∑ J œ
J J œ ˙.
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
Let ring Let ring
BU BU BU BU BU BU BU BU BD
E 15 15 8 8 5
B 15 ( 17 ) 15 (17 ) 15 ( 17 ) 8 ( 10 ) 8 ( 10 ) 8 ( 10 ) 5 8 5 7 (8) ( 7) 5
G 7 (9 ) 7 ( 9) (7 ) 5
D 7
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 5 ALBERT KING-STYLE BEND

This is a very tricky but classic blues bending approach; the Albert King style first string still bent to pitch, re-fret a tone lower with your first finger, then let the
finger bend. The idea is to bend the string up with the third finger, and with the bend down. This is particularly difficult, but sounds great when done properly.

PART 4 CHORDS
EXAMPLE 1 G7 CHORD VOICINGS
This exercise gives various voicings of a G Dominant 7 chord (G-B-D-F). The blues. It’s vital to try these chords in different keys so you can recognise them all
Dominant 7th consists of root, 3rd, 5th and b7th and is one of the bedrocks of over the neck. Learn each shape properly before you try to put them all together.

©»¡™º qq=qce œœ. œœ.

œ.
G7 G7/B G7 G7/D G7/F
œ
œœ
œœ ‰ œœœ Ó œœ ‰ œœœ Ó œœœ. ‰ œœœ Ó œœ œœ
& 44 ∑
œœ œ J œ œ ‰ J Ó PLAY
J J
.
E
B
3
3 6
7
6
10
8 8
. 12
13
12
15
15
G 4 4 7 10 10 10 12 16 BACKING
D 3 5 5 9 9 12 12 15
A 5 10 10
E 3
1

November 2023 19
 FEATURE } BLUES-ROCK VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXAMPLE 2 G9TH VOICINGS

This exercise gives various voicings of a G Dominant 9th chord, or G9 (G-B-D- colour to the regular Dominant 7th. In particular, the voicings on beat 2& of bars
F-A). These chords are again used extensively in blues and, although they have 1 and 3 and on beat 1 of bar 4 are probably the most common, so make sure you
the same basis, the 9th interval gives a slightly more interesting and jazzy tonal know these inside-out.

©»¡™º œœ. œ
G9 G 9/B G9/B G9 G9/F G9 G9 G 9/F

j œ. œœœ
qq=qce
œœ œœ ‰ œœœ Ó
(no 3rd) (no 3rd)
œœ œœ
& 44 ∑ œœ
œ ‰ œœœ Ó œœ ‰ œœ Ó œ œ œ ‰ J Ó
œ. œ œ. J J
E 3 5 10 15
B 3 3 3 6 8 10 10 12
G 2 2 2 4 7 10 10 14
D 3 3 3 5 7 9 9 15
A 2 2 8 10 10
E 3
1

EXAMPLE 3 DIMINISHED AND AUGMENTED CHORDS

Diminished 7th and Augmented chords are more unusual and can sound weird consists of root, 3rd and #5th. Both of these chord types exist to provide tension
when isolated, but in context, they really can lift a blues chord progression. The between chords, and make your ear ‘crave’ the next ‘resolving’ chord that they
Diminished 7th (dim7) consists of root, b3, b5 and bb7, and the Augmented (triad) pull your ear towards (eg C#dim7 - G/D - D7 - G, or G - Daug - G).

©»¡™º
#
. œ. b b œœ. œœ.
# b
. œœ.
. œ.
# œœœœ
G dim7 C dim7 E dim7 Gdim7 Daug F aug B aug Daug

# œœ. œ. # bb œœœœ
qq=qce
œœ œœ œœ œ œœœ
& 44 ∑ b bb œœœ œ # œœ œœ b b œœœ œœœ œœ œœ œ œ ‹
# # œœœ œœœ œœ
œœœ œœ
œ. œ. . . . .
E
B 2 2 5 5
3
2
3
2
6
5
6
5 3 3
.7
.
7
6
7
6
7
10
11
10
11
G 3 3 3 3 3 3 6 6 3 3 7 7 7 7 11 11
D 2 2 5 5 2 2 5 5 4 4 8 8 8 8 12 12
A 4 4 5 5 9 9
E 3 3
1

Slash has a broad blues

rock vocabulary and enjoys
playing one of the most
iconic guitars of all time - a
Gibson Les Paul

SHLOMI PINTO / GETTY IMAGES

20 November 2023
 ULTIMATE BLUES-ROCK WORKOUT

EXAMPLE 4 & 5 ALTERED CHORDS

These exercises are slow bluesy progressions incorporating the previous chords have ‘alteration’ notes such as b5, #5, b9, #9. Again, these chords can sound a little
which help you to hear how they work musically together. In addition, these strange in isolation (although Hendrix’s E7#9 is an acceptable stand alone these
examples use Altered Dominant chords which are regular Dominant 7ths but days), but in a progression give extra tension to ‘pull’ the ear to another chord.

C #9 G b9 G7 # 5 b 9 D bdim7
©.»∞£ G7

œœ. # œj n œ .. œœ. b œj œ .
C9 G9

œœ. .. # œ .. b œœ # œœ œ .. œœ. ... b œ .

G 7 # 9 G7 # 5 # 9
C9 G7 Daug

# œœ .. n œ. œ. œ. œ. œ. œ.
& 128 ∑ n n œœœ ... œœ .. œœ . œœ œœ b œœ .. œœ . œœ .. œœ .. œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œ œ # œ œ œ œ
j
bœ œ # œœ b n œœ . œ b b œœ n œœ ..
œ. # œ n œ. bœ œ . œ. J œ bœ . . Let ring

E 3 3 3 4 6 3
B 3 4 3 3 2 3 3 4 4 4 3 3 5 5 6 6 6 6 6 6 3
G 3 4 4 4 3 3 1 2 2 4 4 4 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 3 3
D 3 3 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 2 2 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 4
A 5 4 3 1 2 3 4 4 5
E 3 3
1

. . . .G7
. . . . .
#
. . .
C7
œ .
b b b
©.»∞£ n œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ b œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœ .. b bb œœœ bb œœ nn œœ ... # œ b œ
C dim7
#
G9 A 9 G 9 G9 G7 9 C9 E dim7 G7 G 7 b G7 D 7 9 #

œœ. ... b œœ ... œœ. ... n œœœ ... b bb œœœ nnn œœœ ‰# œœ .. œœ ..
G7 9

# n œ . ‰ œ b b œœ n n œœ . œœ œœ ‰ œ.
& 128 ∑ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ # œ œ œ œœ b œœœ ... œœ . œœ . œœ . œ. œœ .. œœ ..
.
E 13 13 13 13 13 13 12 12 12 12 12 12 15
B 12 12 12 12 12 12 11 11 11 11 11 11 12 16 14 15 11 9 8 8 8 8 8 11 12 6 6
G 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 14 15 13 14 10 10 7 7 6 6 10 9 10 5 5
D 12 12 12 12 12 12 10 10 10 11 11 11 15 16 14 15 9 9 8 8 8 8 9 11 12 4 4
A 15 13 14 10 10 7 7 7 7 10 5 5
E
1

PART 5 WAILING
These exercises are licks that incorporate some of the techniques already seen, but use them at 12th fret and beyond higher pitches in licks that could be of the sort
that you could hear at the culmination of a blues-rock solo.

EXAMPLE 1 EXCITING E MINOR LICK

This lick uses the type of bend with static note as seen in Ex4 of the string depending on the type of guitar you have, the 22nd-fret bend can be awkward
bending exercises. In the key of E Minor, this lick can sound really exciting, but to reach comfortably so practise this in isolation first.

~~~
Em Am Bm Em

©»¡¢º qq=qce √
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
# 4 œ œ œ ~~~œ œ œ~~ œJ œ~~ œJ œ~~ œ œ
Hold bend
j
œ
& 4
PLAY
∑
Let ring Let ring
BU
RP
~~~ 15 ~~ RP RP
~~ ~~ RP
BU BU BU BU BU ~~~
E 15 15 15 15 22 22 22 22
B 15 ( 17 ) ( 17 ) (17 ) ( 17 ) ( 17 ) 22 ( 24 ) 22 ( 24 ) 22 ( 24 ) 22 ( 24 ) 22 ( 24 )
G BACKING
D
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 2 CLASHING CATCH BEND

Again in the key of E Minor, and using shape 2 of the E Minor Pentatonic scale 3 of bar 3, which is where you deliberately catch the second string under your
(E-G-A-B-D), this lick has a b3rd interval bend on the 17the fret of the second fretting finger when you bend up the first string, so you get a kind of ‘nasty’
string (E note) in bar 2, but also has a great ‘wailing’ blues-rock approach on beat dissonant sounding wail when the bend descends. Sounds great!

Em Am Bm Em

~~~~~ ~~~~~
√
©»¡¢º œœœœ œœœœ ~~~~ œ
'Catch' 2nd string under fingertip while bending

œ œ~~~~~~
n œœ
qq=qce j j
# j œ. j œ œ œœœ £œ œ £œ œœ
& 44 ∑ œ œ
J £œ J œ ˙
3 3 3 3
Let ring Let ring

E
~~~~~ ~~~~~ BU BU ~~~~ BD BU
17 ( 19 )
BD
( 17 ) 17 (19 )
BU BD
( 17 ) 15
B 15 15 15 15 17 ( 20 ) 17 ( 20 ) (17 ) 15 17 (18 ) ( 17 ) 17
G 16 16 16 16
D
A
E
1

November 2023 21
 FEATURE } BLUES-ROCK VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXAMPLE 3 RE-PICKED BENDS

Another E Minor Pentatonic shape 2 lick, this one not only incorporates blues raising it again. This is another tricky technique, as you need to be confident in
curls on the b7th (D note) as well as the b3rd (G note), but also a bending approach releasing and re raising the pitch of the bend mechanically, as you don’t hear the
where you bend up a tone but re-pick the bend a semitone lower in pitch, before sound of the re-picked descending or re-ascending note.

'œ œ œ ˙~~~~ œ. œ. œ. ˙ /'

Em Am Bm Em

©»¡¢º qq=qce √/ 14
j œ #œ œ j œ #œ œ j w ~~~~~
# 4 œ nœ œ
14

& 4 ∑

' '
3 3 3 3

~~~~ ~~~~~
1/4 PB PB PB PB
1/4
BU 17 17 BU 17 17 BU
E 15 15 17 15 17 ( 19 ) (18 ) ( 19 ) 17 ( 19 ) ( 18 ) ( 19 ) 17 ( 19 )
B 15 17 17 17
G
D
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 4 LICK WITH BIG BENDS

This lick starts with a repeating E note on the 17th fret of the second string. Make lick uses a b3rd interval wide bend in shape 3 E Minor Pentatonic and a Major 3rd
sure you dig in here and give it plenty of rapid blues style vibrato. The rest of the bend on the second string in that position. Proper wailing!

©»¡¢º qq=qce ~~~ /'

Em Am Bm Em
√
~~~ j ˙ œ œ œœ
. œ œ œ~~~~ œ œ œ œ . œ
œ~~~ œ . œ ~~~
14
œ j
# œ œ
J ˙
& 44 ∑ J J
'
3
Gradual bend release Gradual bend release

E
~~~ ~~~ ~~~~ ~~~ 1/4 BU
19 ( 22 )
BD
( 19 ) 17
BU BD ~~~
B 17 17 17 17 20 17 20 17 20 ( 24 ) ( 20 ) 17
G
D
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 5 LICK WITH 22ND-FRET BEND

This E Minor Pentatonic lick incorporates bends and short passages in shapes 1, (D note) and bending it a tone to E, which is pretty much as high as most guitars
2 and 3, but the fast legato section at the end involves fretting at the 22nd fret get. It can be super tricky but if it’s possible on your guitar, go for it!

˙ ' œ 'œ
j ~~~~
√
©»¡¢º qq=qce œ j œ ~~~ j œ. œ œ œ œ œ ˙
Em Am Bm Em
œ œ . œ œ œ œ œ
1/4
j
œœœ œ Jœ œœœ œ
1/4
j œ
# œ j œ
œ
& 44 Ó Œ ‰ J œœ œ
J
' '
3 3 3 3

~~~
3
BU
1/4 1/4
BU BU BU BU ~~~~
E 15 ( 17 ) 15 12 15 17 17 ( 19 )17 (19 ) 19 ( 22 ) 19 17 19 17 17 19 22 19 22 19 17 22 22 ( 24 )
B 12 15 12 15 17 17 20
G
D
A
E
1

PART 6 TURNAROUNDS
Turnarounds are usually the last two bars of a 12-bar blues progression where it cycles round and starts again (this is normally over the V chord). The turnaround
provides an opportunity for a catchy phrase which, with the chords that it’s played over, has the effect of creating an obvious ‘turning round’ point.

EXAMPLE 1 OPEN-STRING TURNAROND

All the exercises incorporate the last four bars of the 12-bar blues progression in borrows the Major 3rd (G#) and Major 6th (C#) from the E Major Pentatonic scale
order for you to hear the turnaround in context. In the key of E, this turnaround (E-F#-G#-B-C#). This is followed by a the B9 (V chord - the turnaround chord)
features a classic open-string blues lick which uses E Minor Pentatonic but which is approached from a semitone above with a C9 chord.

#
©#»ªº qq=qce B7
œœ
A7

nœ œ œœ nœ œ
E7
'
1/4 C9 B 9

œ b œ œ n œ # œ œœ b n œœœ œœœ ˙˙
j
& # # 44 nœ #œ
3

œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ n n œ
œ œ œ ˙˙
œœ œœ œ œ œœ œœ
∑
œœœœœ n œ œœ ˙
/'
PLAY

PM PM
3 œ 3 3
œ 14
Let ring
E 7 0 0 3 0 0 2
B 7 8 0 2 0 0 3 2
G 7 8 5 3 2 0 1 3 2
D 7 5 2 1
A 9 9 11 11 9 9 7 7 9 9 7 7 3 2
BACKING E 7 7 7 7 7 7 5 5 5 5 5 5 0 0
1

22 November 2023
 ULTIMATE BLUES-ROCK WORKOUT

EXAMPLE 2 DESCENDING TRIPLETS TURNAROUND

This is another classic turnaround in the key of E which uses a descending the b3rd G note (open third string) to the Major 3rd (1st fret, third string) gives a
chromatic triplet line on the third string from the 4th fret (B note) with an open classic blues flavour. Note that the final note of the lick is B, which is the root note
first-string E note pedal. The characteristic hammer-on and pull-off figure from of the B7 chord over which it’s played.

## # 4
©#»ªº qq=qce B7
œœ œœ œœ 3
A b7 A7

œœ œœ œœ '
1/4
E7

j œ
N.C.

œ œ œ n œ œ' ˙
B7
1/4

œœ œ œ œ ‰ b œ œ œ nœ œ bœ nœ œbœ œ œ œ
3
& 4 ∑
œ nœ #œ nœ #œ
. œ b œ œ. j
nœ #œ nœ œ
' '
3 3 3 3 1/4
1/4 Let ring Let ring
E 0 0 0 0
B 9 7 7 5 3 0
G 8 6 6 4 3 4 4 3 3 2 2 0 1 0 1
D 9 7 7 5 2
A 9 6 7
E 7 5 4 5 3 4 3 0
1

EXAMPLE 3 ASCENDING CHROMATIC TURNAROUND

This turnaround is similar to the last one, but an octave higher and the chromatic line is ascending chromatically from the Major 3rd of the E chord (G# note) to the
5th of the E chord (B note).

. /'
B7

©#»¡º∞ qq=qce
B7 A7
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ n œ ~~~ E7 14

# œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ j n œ œ b œ œ œ œ œ ~~ j
# œ œ œ œ b œ œ œ œ ˙
& # # 44 ∑ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ nœ #œœ œœ œ œ n œ

' ~~~
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3
3 3
~~
1/4

E 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 6 5 1212 12 12 12 12 12 10
B 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 5 8 85 8 7 5 8 9 9 10 10 11 11 12 12
G 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 5 6 6 6
D
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 4 BLUES SCALE AND MAJOR PENTATONIC TURNAROIUND

In the key of A, this turnaround uses a classic combination of A Minor Blues scale phrase. Again note the use of the root note of the V chord (E7) at the end of the
(A-C-D-Eb-E-G) and A Major Pentatonic (A-B-C#-E-F#) to create a catchy blues lick; in this case the E note played over the E7 chord.

©»¡º∞ qq=qce E7
œœ œ œ œœ.
D7
œœ œœ œœ œ œ.
A7

œ nœ œ
1/4
' ' ~~~~
E7

# # œœœœœ
1/4

œ œœ œœ œ j œ bœ œ nœ œ n œ # œœ
& # 44 œ nœ œ œ j
∑ œ
œ nœ œ ˙
œ. œ
œ. '
3 3 3

' ~~~~
1/4 3
1/4
E 9 7 9 7 5 7 5 5 8 5
B 9 7 9 7 5 7 5 5 7 5 5
G 9 7 9 7 5 7 7 9 8 7 5 5 6
D 0 0 7 7 5
A 7
E 0
1

EXAMPLE 5 RINGING THREE-STRING TURNAROUND

For this turnaround in A you need to fret little chord shapes, and let the notes Diminished triad followed by an F Diminished triad and lastly, what could be
ring. The first shape on beat 1 of bar 3 is a little A7 chord, the next shape is a Gb seen as a kind of E Diminished triad, but is really an A7 chord.

œ œ b œ œ œ b œ n œj # œ œ /' ~~~
b
©»¡º∞
E7 D7 A7 G dim Fdim A7 E7
qq=qce
œ
14

# # n œ œ œbœ nœ b b œœ n n œœ œ œ ˙
3

œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ
3

& # 44 ∑
œœ
œœœœœ œœœœœœœœ
' ~~~
3 3 3 3
PM PM Let ring
1/4
E 12 11 10 8 9 7
B 10 10 10 9 7 8 8
G 9 7 12 12 12 11 10 8 9 9
D 9 9 11 11 9 9 7 7 9 9 7 7
A 7 7 7 7 7 7 9 11 5 5 5 5 5 5 7 9
E
1

November 2023 23
 FEATURE } BLUES-ROCK VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

PART 7 INTROS
A blues intro is a memorable start to a piece, drawing the audiences attention. Often the guitar plays an important part in doing this!

EXAMPLE 1 INTRO TO A QUICK CHANGE BLUES

This intro, in the key of Bb, starts as the first four bars of a ‘quick change’ blues. into the next part of the 12-bar progression which is the IV chord (Eb7) which is
This means that the first bar is the I chord (Bb7), the second bar is the IV chord where the vocal line might well start or an improvised guitar solo might take
(Eb7) and the third and fourth bars are the I chord again (Bb7). This pulls the ear over. (Many blues songs start with guitar solos).

©»ªº qq=qce b œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ. b œ œ œ œ œ œ œ. b œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ b œœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœœ

B b7 E b7 B b7

b b 4 ∑ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Œ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ Œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
PLAY
& 4
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

E 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13
B 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11
G 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13
D
BACKING A
E
1

EXAMPLE 2 INTRO WITH ARPEGGIOS AND LEAD LICKS

This intro is in the key of D and harmonically involves the same principal as Ex1, and 2, and then a nice biting, bluesy overdrive tone when the lead line comes in
but has a #4 Diminished 7th chord (G#dim7) after the IV chord (G7). Its important on beat 2 of bar 3. You can do this by pressing an overdrive pedal and flicking to

' œj œ œ œ
to get a relatively warm, clean tone on the arpeggiated chords section in bars 1 the bridge pickup from the neck.
j œ nœ
. œ b œ G #dim7
/
~~~~~~ œ
14

©.»§º j œ .. œœ j œ ..
D7 G /D
œ
D7
œ . œ . œ . œ œ G7
n œ œ
D6

# # 12 ∑ n œ n # œœ . œ n œ # œœ . œ n œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœœ ‰ œ
& 8 œ . œ œ œ . œnœ#œ œ #œ
'
PB

~~~~~~ 1/4 17
BU BU BD
E 10 17 (19)( 20 ) 17 16 15
B 10 12 10 12 12 12 15 15 15 15 18 15 (18 )(17)15 17
G 10 11 12 10 11 10 10 10 10 11 16
D 10 12 10 12 12 12 12 12
A 8 9 10 11
E 10 10 10 10 10
1

EXAMPLE 3 INTRO WITH 3RDS

This intro is in C and again, harmonically similar to the previous two exercises. with subtle differences, before launching into an ascending 3rds line which
In this example, the point is to create a catchy, simple motif which repeats itself creates an exciting lead into the upcoming section.

©»¡º∞ qq=qce œ œ œ œ œ ' œœ œœ œœ b œœ œœ œœ

C7

œ œ œ œ œ œ b ˙ /'
1/4

b ˙ œ œ œ
C6
œ 14
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œœ œœ œ œ œ
&44 ∑
3 3
'
1/4
3 3

'
1/4
3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3

E 8 8 8 11 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 12 12 12 15 15 15 18 18 18
B 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 13 13 13 17 17 17 20 20 20
G 8
D
A
E
1

EXAMPLE 4 INTRO WITH PENTATONICS AND DESCENDING 3RDS

In the key of G, this intro is very much like a turnaround, as it starts on the V to the V chord (D7). In effect this is just like the last four bars of the progression.

œ b œ œ œ /'œ œ œ œ œ~~
chord (D7), before going to the IV chord (C7) and then the I chord (G7) and back The phrases here use Pentatonic lines and chromatic descending 3rds.

©»¡º∞ qq=qce . œ b œ œ /'

n œœ œœ œœ # œœ œœ œœ n b œœ œœ œœ œ ' ~~~~
D7 C7 14 G7 D7

nœ œ ‰ bœ œ œ b œ
14
/
#4 ∑ œ œ
14

œ œ œ nœ
& 4 J œ ˙
' '
3 3 3 3 3 3

' ~~~~
3 3

E 5 4 3
1/4

10 9 8
1/4
~~ 1/4

B 3 6 3 8 11 11 8 11 8 10 8 6 6 6 5 5 5 4 4 4 3
G 4 8 9 9 7 7 7 6 6 6 5 5 5 4
D 5 3
A 5
E
1

24 November 2023
 ULTIMATE BLUES-ROCK WORKOUT

EXAMPLE 5 SLOW MINOR BLUES INTRO

Our final intro is similar harmonically to the last exercise since it’s also like the the key of Bbm. The intro phrase is really just some sparse and simple Bb Minor
last four bars of a 12-bar progression, but in this case it’s a slow Minor blues in Pentatonic (Bb-Db-Eb-F-Ab) lines. Playing with feel is the point here.

Gary Moore was one of the

most exciting and vibrant
blues rock guitarists ever!
FIN COSTELLO / STAFF / GETTY IMAGES

November 2023 25
 PLAY } STAR VIDEO
VIDEO MASTERCLASS
Nuno Bettencourt
In this special video feature Phil Short takes a deep dive
into one of the most iconic rock players of all time.
ABILITY RATING
Info https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Will improve your… Riffing and grooving
Key Various Tempo Various Legato and tapping Alternate picking and string jumps
E
xtreme was one of the most exciting
bands to emerge during the 1980s, and
among the most influential groups on
rock and metal. Guitarist Nuno
Bettencourt is one of the most technically
proficient players, not just of his generation
but in the world today. But just like many of
his heroes, what sets Nuno apart from the
rest of the competition isn’t merely his
technical prowess, although he does have
some of the greatest rock guitar chops on the
planet, but his songwriting, riffs, and
melodic and identifiable hooks. Even in his
flashier moments, Nuno has a distinctly
recognisable sound that’s musical, lyrical,
humorous, and aggressively fiery.
Nuno joined Extreme in 1985, and they
put out their first self-titled release in 1989.
The album’s final track Play With Me was
TECHNIQUE FOCUS
Legato
There are a number of techniques that Nuno
employs, but particularly for his lead playing,
whether that involves two hand tapping or
not, Nuno relies heavily on a robust legato
technique. A lot of his lines that sound picked
are actually palm muted legato lines. The
palm muting helps give the sound a more
percussive attack, and enables Nuno to play
more awkward string pairings that would be
tricky with traditional alternate picking. This
also means Nuno can break out of conventional
scale patterns to keep his playing fresh.
A great way to develop more fluid legato that
sounds even and controlled is to take a legato
phrase and displace it by a 16th note each
time. This will shift which fretting hand digit is
resolving onto the down beat, and will reveal
where your digits tend to rush ahead, or sit too
lazily behind the beat.
TRACK RECORD Extreme’s 1989 self-titled debut contains the Bill And Ted soundtrack number, Play With Me. The record’s follow-up,
1990’s stunning Pornograffiti is brimming with hits including Get The Funk Out, More Than Words, Decadence Dance, and He-Man Woman
Hater. It’s full of fabulous rhythm and lead guitar. But also check Nuno out on YouTube with Rihanna, for some great guitar moments!
26 November 2023
Moderate/Advanced ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪
used in the classic comedy, Bill And Ted’s
Excellent Adventure, giving the band instant
traction in gaining fans all around the world.
But Nuno’s most loved guitar work is found
on Extreme’s superb follow-up, 1990’s
Pornograffitti which featured songs like Get
The Funk Out, He-Man Woman Hater,
Decadence Dance, and their biggest
commercial success, More Than Words. The
record is full of riffs, solos and funk-inspired
rhythm guitar, all captured within
Bettencourt’s raw and aggressively
percussive rock tone. Nuno’s guitar parts are
rich with essentially blues-informed
vocabulary. One particular sonic approach
favoured is the use of 6ths, combining them
with pinch harmonics and vibrato to create
detailed and layered one-man guitar parts
that fill up the entire sonic space.
Another aspect of Nuno’s style is his
sophisticated use of two-handed tapping. A
whole raft of post-EVH players followed
Eddie down the tapping route, but it’s
important to highlight that Bettencourt did
what very few players of his generation
managed to do in regard to tapping, and that
is to sound original. Of course, Nuno was
and remains a huge Eddie Van Halen fan,
and still speaks about him with a great sense
of awe and wonder, despite becoming
friends with the guitar legend over the years.
So it’s to Bettencourt’s great credit that he
cultivated a personal and instantly
recognisable sound while embodying the
spirit of the rock guitar style that Eddie
himself had so brilliantly pioneered.
Nuno’s tapping tends to revolve around
arpeggio-based ideas that cross multiple
strings, as opposed to Eddie’s favoured
approaches that were more rooted in triads
VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj
ON VIDEO
or Pentatonic-based lines, with typically
wide intervals. Nuno also adopted Eddie’s
idea of using symmetrical fretting-hand
patterns, but re-worked the approach to suit
his own style, creating lots of interesting
rhythmical displacement ideas in the
process. This is particularly effective in
songs where he employs drop-D tuning.
There is one final element that helps
Nuno’s playing stand out, and that’s his
ability to combine traditional hard-rock
phrasing with Hindu Pentatonic (R-3-4-5-b7)
lines and blues-based tools like the
aforementioned 6ths. All these elements
combined, create a heavy metal fusion of
riffs and single-note phrases that wouldn’t
be out of place in a true funk band like Tower
Of Power. Get the Funk Out is of course the
ultimate example of this type of feel, but
Nuno’s funk sensibilities have informed the
Extreme DNA for decades and are evident
throughout the band’s fine catalogue.
The four pieces in this special feature
explore all of these elements, in two rhythm
workouts and two soloing studies.
NEXT MONTH Jon Bishop guides you through a
blazing jazz rock solo by Rocco Zifarelli
6 6
2 2 2
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
Nuno gets his tone from hi-output pickups and
a relatively hi-gain rock tone. His particular
secret is the use of a RAT distortion, with the
gain off and the level maxed out. This creates a
tight and percussive low end rather than
adding gain. Try a similar approach with your
own rig or a modeller. Keep reverb minimal for
an extra tight sound.
 NUNO BETTENCOURT { SPECIAL FEATURE

Phil Short’s video

provides great detail
on playing like Nuno

Nuno Bettencourt
has played Washburn
guitars for most of
his long career
MIKE COPPOLA / GETTY IMAGES

November 2023 27
 PLAY } STAR VIDEO VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

RHYTHM STUDY 1
This study is a great example of Nuno’s slower, heavier, groove-based riff writing. ideas typical of his style. A heavy down-picking approach will feel harder to play,
You’ll encounter the use of 6th intervals as well as some fiddly triplet/sextuplet but will help provide the punch and aggression required here.

D/F #
©»¡¡£ A5 C /G

### 4 j œœ .. œœ œœ~~~ œ œ œ œ œœ
3

4 Ó ‰ ¿j ¿¿ n œœ
3
& œ .. œ œ œ n œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ nœ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ . œ
VIDEO
¿
E
PM
~~~
B 5 7 7 5 3 5
PLAY G 5 7 7 5 4 5
D 2 2 2 0 4 5 4 5 4 5
A X X 0 0 0 3 5 3
E X X 0 3 5 5 5 5
1

D/F #
n œ~~~
A5 D C Gsus4 A5
œ
### œ œœœ œœœ œ
3
BACKING 3 3
& œ .. œ œ œ n œ œ œ .. œ œ
œ œ œ œ nœ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ . œ œ œ œ œ nœ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ .
E
PM
~~~ PM

B 3 5 7 13
G
D 2 2 2 0 4 5 4 5 5 7 7 12 2 2 2
A 0 0 0 3 5 3 0 0 0 3 5 3
E 0 3 5 5 5 5 0 3 5 5 5 5
3

### j œœ .. œœ œœ
A7
~~~ D /F # D7
œ œ n œj œ~~. œ # œ n œ œ
& n œœ
nœ #œ œ #œ œ nœ œ œ œ . œ œ
3
œ œ nœ œ b œ œ
œ œ œ
œ . œ œ œ nœ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ
PM

E
~~~ PM PM PM
~~
B 5 7 7 5 12 10
G 5 7 7 5 6 6 12 14 14 13 12 11
D 5 6 7 7 5 7 4 12 12
A 5 5 5 3 5 3 3 5 15 14 13 12
E 2 2 2 0 3 5 5 3 5
6

~~~ ~~~
# # œœ .. œœ œœ j œ . ~~~
œœ n œœ .. œœ œœ
j j
œ œ . œœ œœ
& # œ œ n œœœ œœœ œ œ nœ œ n œœ œœ
œœ œ
n œ # œ œ œ œœ œœ œ œ nœ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
~~~ ~~~ ~~~
PM PM PM PM PM PM

E
B 5 7 5 5 8 7 5 7 5
G 5 5 5 7 5 5 5 5 7 7 5 5 5 7 5
D 4 4 4 4 4 4
A 5 5 5 5 5 5 3 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 3 4 5 5 5 5 5 5
E
9

~~~
### œ . j n œ . œ~~~œ n œœ j
⋲ nœ œ œ #œ œ œ n œœ œœ œ . œ
œœœ n œœ œœ œ œ . œ œ
œ œœ
& œ
nœ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œœ nœ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
~~~ ~~~
PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM

E
B 5 7 5 5 8 7 13
G 5 5 5 7 5 5 5 5 7 7 12
D 4 5 4 5 6 6 7 4 4 4 4
A 3 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 3 4 5 5 5 5 5 5
E
12

28 November 2023
 NUNO BETTENCOURT { SPECIAL FEATURE

RHYTHM STUDY 1 CONTINUED…

#
# # # œœ œœ .. œœ~~~œœ
C 7 D7 A5

œ œ œœ
j
b œ œ n œ œ ⋲ n œœ œœ œ œ œ œ Œ Ó
& nœ nœ bœ œ nœ
# n œœ œœ œ œ
œ
~~~
PM

E
B [13 ] 5 7 5 8 7
G [12 ] 4 5 5 7 5 8 7 5 8 7 5 7 5
D 3 4 7 7 5
A 4 5 5 5 7 6 5
E 8 5
15

RHYTHM STUDY 2
This study explores Nuno’s tasty rhythmic single-note riffs and lines. Notice Mixolydian (R-2-3-4-5-6-b7) ideas to create a bluesy hard rock sound. It’s this
how he blends Minor Pentatonic (R-b3-4-5-b7), Hindu Pentatonic (R-3-4-5-b7) and freely associated ‘stacking’ approach that helps create his magic!

©
#### 4
»¡¡• #
n œœ .. œœ
E7 9
~~~ n œ .. œ
& n œ œ n œ
4 ∑ œœ .. œœ ‰ n œ b œ n œ œ œ œ œ n œ ‰ n œ # œ œ ⋲ œ n œ œ # œ œ n œ
n œ. œ ‰
œœ . œœ n œ b œ n œ œ œ œ œ n œ ‰ VIDEO

PM PM PM PM PM
~~~
PM

E
B 8 8 8 8
G 7 7 6 6 7 4 7 7 PLAY
D 6 6 6 7 5 5 6 7 7 5 5 6 6 6 6 7 5
A 7 7 5 6 7 7 5 5 7 7 5 6 7 7 5
E
1

A /C #

#### b œ n œ b œ n œ n œœ .. œœ ~~ BACKING
œ n œ œ n œ œ n œ
& n œ # œœ ⋲ ⋲ ⋲ ⋲œ ⋲ ‰
n œœ .. œœ n œ b œn œ œ œ œ œ n œ n œ # œ œ œn œ œ # œ n œ œœ .. œœ ‰ œ n œ œn œ œ œ œ œ ‰
‰ ⋲ œ
PM PM PM PM
~~
PM PM

E
B 8 8
G 6 7 8 9 7 8 9 7 7 6 6 7 4
D 5 6 7 9 6 6 6 7 5 5 67 7 5 5 6 7 7 5 75
A 7 7 5 6 7 75 5 4 4 4 5 7 75
E
4

A5 D7

#### n œ b œ n œ œ nœ #œ œ
& nœ #œ œ œ nœ
⋲ ⋲ ⋲ ⋲ n œœ œœ œœ n œ # œ œ œœ .. œœ œœ n œ # œ n œœ
nœ œ œ œ
n œ œ œ nœ œ œ œ
PM PM PM PM
E
B 8 9 10
G 6 7 8 9 9 5
D 5 6 7 2 2 2 2 2 4
A 0 0 0 3 4 0 0 0 0 3 4 5
E 0 3 0 0 0 3 0 0
8

nœ œ . œ
# # # # œ n œ œ œ n œœ œœ .. œœ
A7

nœ œ œ
& œœ n œœ œœ œœ J œ n œ # œ œ œ œ n n œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ n œ # œ œ
œ œ n œ œ œœ œ œ n œ # œ œœ
PM PM PM PM
E 8 8
B 7 7
G 5 5 7 7 7 7 5 5 4 2
D 4 4 7 7 5 5 4 2 2 2 2
A 5 5 7 8 9 3 4 0 0 0 3 4 0
E 0 3 0 0
11

November 2023 29
 PLAY } STAR VIDEO VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

RHYTHM STUDY 2 CONTINUED…

#### n œ œ .. œ D7 A5
œ œ
nœ œ nœ œ œ nœ œ . œ œ n œœ œœ œœ n œ œ œ œ œ
& ⋲. œ œ œ œ œ J n œ # œ n œ œ œ œ œ nœ #œ œ Œ Ó
œœ œ nœ #œ nœ œ nœ œ œ œ
œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ
PM PM PM
E 8 8
B 7 7
G 5 5 5 7 7 7 7 5 5 4 2
D 2 2 4 4 4 7 7 5 5 4 2 2
A 0 0 0 3 4 5 5 5 7 8 9 3 4 0
E 0 3 0 0
14

LEAD STUDY 1
This study begins with classic hard-rock vocabulary and then moves into a around over a pedal note to create different tensions. Beware at the end as
signature two-handed tapping arpeggio sequence. The key to playing this the fingering moves out of the triad-based information into Hindu Pentatonic
tricky-sounding section is that it’s the exact same ‘muscle memory’ shape moved vocabulary. This sets up some cool blues-rock ideas to finish with flair.

©»¡¡£ D /F # G
œ~~~ œ
A5
˙ ~~~~
.
‚ . œ œ~~ œ
j
### 4 j n˙ .
œ ˙.
3
j nœ
& 4 ∑ nœ œ nœ n— œ nœ ‚
VIDEO

PLAY
E
B
G
D
A
E
7
BU
8
(9 ) 5
PM

7 5
± PH

5
PM

7 5
±±
PH PH

7 ( 9 )
BU
5
~~
7
5
BU ~~~
8 (10 ) 10
~~~~

~~~~
### œ nœ œ œ ~~~~~œ
C5 D5 G5
œ nœ
nœ œ
1/4

nœ œ nœ œ œ
1/4

BACKING
& œ œ œ œ nœ œ bœ œ œ nœ œ œ . œ
3 3
œ

E 8
PM
8 5
PM
~~~~~
PM
1/4 1/4
PM
~~~~
B 7 7 8 7
G 5 5 7 5 5
D 7 5 7 5 7 5 7 5 5 7
A 7 6 5 7
E
4

#
# # # n œ œ b œ n œ b œ œ œ œ œ n œ b œ œ œ œ œ n œ b œ œ œ œ œ n œ b œ œ œ œ œ n œ b œ œ œ œ n œ œ n œ b œ n œ b œ œ œ œ n œ ˙~~~
D /F D5 C5 D7

& œ

E
PM
~~~
B 5 5 5 5 5 8 7 5 5
G 5 7 8 8 7 5 7 8 8 7 5 7 8 8 7 5 7 8 8 7 5 7 8 8 7 5 7 8 8 7 8 7 5 5
D 7

œ Lœ œ œ Lœ œ Lœ œ œ Lœ
A

L L L L
E
7

Lœ œ œ œLœ œ œ œ Lœ œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ Lœ œ œ œ œ Lœ
œ L œ œ
œ œ œ œœ œ
# # œœ
D

& # œœ œ œ

L L
6 6

L
6

L L L L L
6 6 6 6 6

E
B
G
D
A
E
9
11 12 19 L L L 11 14 19 14 11
19 12 11 12 19
11 14 19
10 14 17 14 10
19 14 11
11 12 19 L L L
11 14 19 14 11
19 12 11 12 19
11 14 19
10 14 17 14 10
19 14 11

30 November 2023
 NUNO BETTENCOURT { SPECIAL FEATURE

L L L L L L L L
LEAD STUDY 1 CONTINUED…

F/D
nœ n œ L L L œ
### nœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œn œ œ œ œ n œ
œ œ n œn œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ
œ œ œn œ œ œ œ
œœ L L L
&

L L
7 6 6 6 6 6 6

L L L L L L
6

E
B
G
D
A
L L L
15 14 15 22
14 17 22 17 14
22 15 14 15 22
14 17 22
13 17 20 17 13
22 17 14
L L L
14 15 22
14 17 22 1714
22 15 14 15 22
14 17 22
13 17 20 17 13
22 17 14

L L
E

L L L L L
11

E /D
L L L
n œ L
### bœ nœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ bœnœ œ œ œ
n œ œ œ œ œ œ œ E b/D
œœ
œ
b œ œ œ œ
b œb œ n œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ nœbœ œ œ œ
œœ L L L
&

L L
6 6 6 6 6 6

L L L L L L
6 6

E
B
G
D
A
L L L
13 14 21
13 16 21 16 13
21 14 13 14 21
13 16 21
12 16 19 16 12
21 16 13
L L L
12 13 20
12 15 20 1512
20 131213 20
1215 20
11 15 18 15 11
20 1512

L
E

L L n œ œ nLœ
13

# # # œ œ Lœ œ œ œ œ Lœ œ œ œ Lœ œ œ
œ œœ
œ œ œ j œ ~~~
˙ œ œ nœ nœ œ #œ nœ
œ
n œ ˙~~~
D7

& Ó

L L
6 6

LLL LL
6 6

E 10 17 14 10
BU ~~~~ 10
~~~
B 13 10 17 13 (15 ) 10 13 10
G 11 14 19 14 11 11 14 19 12 13 12 10
D 11 12 19 19 121112 19 12
A
E
15

Part of Nuno’s technical

expertise is how relaxed
his picking hand is when
he’s both palm muting
and picking fast
MIKE COPPOLA / GETTY IMAGES

November 2023 31
 PLAY } STAR VIDEO VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

LEAD STUDY 2
This study is an example of Nuno’s employment of symmetrical wide-stretched Again, by utilising the same fretting-hand pattern and moving it around the
patterns across multiple sets of strings to create a cascading arpeggio effect. It’s neck, we can imply a variety of different chords and slash chords while the bass
challenging to play so consider hybrid picking to help maintain energy and flow. guitar keep things sounding grounded, creative and less exercise-based.

©»¡∞º ~~~ œ ~~~ œj œ œ~~ j œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ~~~

D5
j œœ ~~ œ œ
œ nœ œ . œ
‰ —J — œ œ œ œœ
œ
4 J
VIDEO &b 4 ∑ nœ œ nœ œ œ

PLAY
E
B
G
D
A
E
1
13
12 (14 )
BU
± PH

10
~~
12 10
12
~~~ ~~~
10
12
BU

13 (15 )
~~ BU BD

15 ( 18 ) (15 )13
14
13 15 0 13 0 15 0 13 0 15 0 12
~~~
12

œ œ n œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ n œ œ # œ œ œ œ n ˙~~ œ # œ n œ# œ n œ# œ œ n œ# œ œ œ n œ œ œ œ œ œ # œ œ œ
BACKING
œ œ
&b
6 6 6

E
~~ 10 10 14 10
B 1310 12 10 10 13 1012 10 10 13 10 12 10 10 10 1213 1310 13
G 13 1310 13 1310 13 13 10 12 9 10 11 9 10 11 10 11 12 10 11 12
D
A
E
5

œ œ œ # œ œ œnœ
# œ ˙~~
D sus4 C6sus4

œœœ œ œ œ œ œ œœœ œ œ œ œ œ
&b œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœœ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œœ œ œ

E 10
~~
B 13 10 9 10 9
G 12 11 7 7 3
D 7 7 12 127 7 7 7 12 12 7 7 3 3 7 7 3 3
A 0 7 12 12 7 12 12 7 12 0 7 12 12 7 12 12 7 12 0 3 7 7 3 7 7 3 7
E
8
m m m m m m m m m

Bm

&b œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ nœœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ nœœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ

œœ œ œ œ œ
E
B
G 3 5 5
D 3 3 7 7 3 3 5 5 9 9 5 5 5 5 9 9 5 5
A 0 3 7 7 3 7 7 3 7 0 5 9 9 5 9 9 5 9 0 5 9 9 5 9 9 5 9
E
12 m m m m m m m m m

b #
B maj7 11 Asus4

œ ˙ ~~~ D5

œ bœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ
&b nœ œ bœ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ó
œ œ
E
~~~
B 15
G 8 12
D 8 8 12 12 8 8 8 12 12 16 16 12 12
A 8 12 12 12 12 8 12 0 12 16 16 12 16 16 16 12
E 5
15
m m m m m m m m

32 November 2023
 FEATURE } VIDEO MASTERCLASS VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

ON VIDEO

PHILIP SAYCE
Six Hot Blues Licks!
Welsh-born Canadian blues master Philip Sayce took
time out of his busy schedule to record us six, red-hot
Texas-style licks, with Jon Bishop as your guide.
ABILITY RATING Moderate/Advanced fretting hand to play notes and chords that
✪✪✪✪✪
would usually be quite awkward.
Info https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Will improve your… Blues-rock techniques
Philip’s phrases are tasteful and well
Key E and C Tempo Freetime Finger vibrato Classic blues vocabulary
chosen and come from a well-tested

I
n this feature we welcome blues-rock
master Philip Sayce. Philip has recorded
nine albums as a band leader and has
worked with many top artists including
Jeff Healey and Jimmy Barnes.
In the video Philip demonstrates all of his
licks in free time with no backing track or
click used. So we have opted for a 4/4 time
signature with all the rhythms being as
simple as possible to follow, in an easy-to-
use approximation of what’s implied.
In the video performance Philip is in Eb
tuning so all the strings are de-tuned by a
semitone (Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb). However, to
keep things simple we have notated the tab
fingerings as they appear in the video and
the notation is in regular concert pitch. If
you tune your guitar down a semitone and
play along with the tab and notation
everything will marry up like magic.
Licks 1, 2 and 6 are based around the E7
chord and combine the Major Pentatonic
(E-F#-G#-B-C#) and E Minor Pentatonic
scales (E-G-A-B-D) with some colour tones
added here and there. As the licks are
performed without a backing there is no
specific harmonic context, so we have used
the E Major key signature for the E7 type
examples and C Major for the examples
rooted around C. It’s worth noting it’s
common practice in the world of blues and
rock to mix the Major and Minor Pentatonic
scales over a Dominant 7 chord.
Throughout his licks Philip
demonstrates the use of several common
blues-rock guitar techniques including
string bending, finger slides and heavy
finger vibrato.
The main influences at play here are Jimi
Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Philip
references these two players as we go. In true
Hendrix style Philip often uses the thumb of
his fretting hand to play the notes on the
sixth string. This frees up the fingers of the
framework of Major and Minor Pentatonic
fingerings. All of the licks are played with the
plectrum, but the picking fingers are often
also included. If you are new to this concept
of ‘hybrid picking’ it is well worth trying, as
the fingers provide extra facility when plying
licks that involve crossing strings.
The notation contains all of the
articulations and phrasing from Philip’s
video performance, so we’d recommend
taking a close look at the way he fingers
and picks the phrases.
Remember Philip is tuned down a
semitone. If you are playing along in concert
pitch this can get a little confusing, so tune
down a semitone if you can. The Eb tuning
also reduces string tension and makes those
big bends a little easier to manage. Good luck
with these licks and the bends!
NEXT MONTH Jamie Humphries has five hot licks
in the style of the great Stevie Ray Vaughan
5 4
7
8 8

GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB

Philip used his heavily beaten-up vintage

Fender Stratocaster for his performance, but of
course any electric guitar will work well for this
month’s licks. Go for a bright, high-gain modern
blues tone, using an American style amp sound
or model, if possible. As Philip likes to do, select
your guitar’s neck pickup and experiment to
find guitar and amp settings that make the
Philip Sayce notes sing out, but without too much grit or
demonstrates his edginess to the sound. Naturally, a splash of
impressive string reverb or delay can be added to provide
bending technique
some welcome ambience.

TRACK RECORD Any and all of Philip Sayce’s album releases provide scintillating listening. His songs are brimming with super-hot licks and
solos as he willingly references players like Jimi Hendrix and SRV. That said, we’re big fans of his 2010 album, Innerevolution!

34 November 2023
 6 HOT TEXAS-STYLE LICKS { PHILIP SAYCE

LICK 1 MAJOR KEY ENDING PHRASE (E FLAT TUNING)

Don’t forget, Philip is in Eb tuning on the video. This lick combines some classic Major key phrasing with high neck position string bending. Philip starts each example
with a dramatic sounding muted slide up and down the sixth string. The finger slides help to link the phrases and add extra excitement to the lick.

√E 7 j ˙ ~~~ œ
#### 4 ∑ jœœ œ œ œ œœ
œ œ œ œ œn œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ~~ Uœ ¿~~U
Freetime
j
¿ ˙˙ œ œœ œ PLAY
& 4
Neck pickup œ 3 3 3 3 ˙
With overdrive
BU ~~~ BD BU RP BU ~~ ~~
E 0 19 21 21 ( 24 ) ( 21 ) 19
B 0 17 19 21 21 19 17 19 17 20 ( 22 ) ( 22 ) 19 ( 21 ) 17 19 17 17 17
G 18 18 18
D
A
E X 0 X 0
1

LICK 2 LEAD LICK WITH OVERBENDING (E FLAT TUNING)

The Eb tuning slightly reduces string tension which helps when going for larger string bends. The third string also has the lowest tension of all the strings so is a prime
target for doing the big five-fret (4th interval) bend at the 13th fret. That said, be sure to warm up before attempting this type of fretboard gymnastics.

œ œ~~ œ /' œj œœ j ~~~~

œ~~œ œ
j
#### 4 ∑ j œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Ó
Freetime 3 14
œ
& 4 œ œ œ œ
œœ
PLAY
¿
Neck pickup

~~ ~~ ' ~~~~
With overdrive
BU BU 1/4 BU BU
E 9
B 12 9 12 9
G 9 11 ( 13 )13 ( 18 ) 11 9 11 ( 13 ) 11 ( 13 ) 11 9 11 9
D 9 11 11 9 11 9 11 11 9
A 11 11 9
E
1
X

LICK 3 PICK AND FINGERS LICK (E FLAT TUNING)

In this lick Philip plays a fast string-skipping lick using the 12th fret of the third can concentrate on down picking the 12th fret of the third string, leaving the
string as a pedal tone. The hybrid picking technique makes this type of lick a lot second finger of the picking hand (m) free to pluck the notes on the second and

'
easier to play as it cuts out the need to skip strings fast with the pick. The pick first strings. Hybrid picking is well worth adding to your technical armoury.

œ œ bœ b œ œ b œ œ œ œ ~~~œ œ
j j
œ bœ œ bœ
1/4

bœ . œ bœ œ œ œ œ
C7
œœ œ
Freetime

& 44 ∑
¿.
b¿ PLAY

'
Neck pickup

E
With overdrive 1/4 BU
11 13 (15 )
BU
13 ( 14 ) 11 11
~~~ 11
B 11 13 13 9 13 13 13 11 13
G 10 12 12 X 12 12 12 12
D
A
E X

œ œ œ b œ œ b œ 'œ œ
≥ m≥m≥ m≥
'
1

U~~
1/4

œ b œ
/ 3 14

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ bœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
j œ œ
œ œ bœ œ bœ œ bœ œ bœ œ bœ œ œ Ó
3

& bœ œ œ

E 13 15 13 11
'
1/4
BU
8
1/4
' Use thumb to
fret bass notes
~~
B 13 11 13 11 8 11 8 8 8 8
G 12 12 12 12 12 12 10 8 10 8 10 ( 12 ) 10 8 8 8
D 10 10 10 8 10 10 8
A 10 9 8 10 8
E 11 8 8
4
m ≥m≥m≥ m≥m ≥ m ≥
November 2023 35
 FEATURE } VIDEO MASTERCLASS VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

LICK 4 BENDING THE LOW STRINGS (E FLAT TUNING)

Although it’s not a particularly common technique, Philip likes the sound of string bending on the wound strings (fourth, fifth and sixth). The technique here is to
pull the strings down towards the floor. Large bends like these require a fair bit of finger strength with often one or more used to support the finger doing the bend.

~~~ œ œ' U~~~

Freetime C7 1/4

b œ œ
3
4 œ
&4 œ œ bœ œ b¿ œœœ œœ œœ œ
œ œ bœ
PLAY
∑

'
Neck pickup Use thumb to
With overdrive fret bass notes
BU BU BU BD 1/4 ~~~
~~~
E
B
G
D 10 13 ( 17 ) (13 ) 10 13 12 10 10
A 10 10 12 12
E 8 8 11 [11 ] (15 ) 11 ( 13 ) X
1

Uœ .~~~ ~~~
œ œ œ bœ œ œ œ nœ œ
j
œ œ œ bœ œ bœ œ œ œ œ œ ¿ Ó
& bœ œ œ œ œ

E
~~~ BU BD ~~~
B
G 12 14 12 10 8 10 8 9
D 12 14 14 10 10 8 10
A 10 9 8
E
4
11 [11 ] (14 ) ( 11 ) 8 X

LICK 5 TREMOLO PICKING WITH FINGERS (E FLAT TUNING)

For this lick a double-stop bend is tremolo picked with the fingers of the picking hand, and not the pick. The technique is the same for each of the double-stop bends
so it’s just a case of moving it up the fretboard in the required steps. Don’t dig in too hard at first or the results can be painful!

j ˙.
√
j b˙ j ˙ œ b˙. œ œ
œ b˙
j
j bœ j œœ ˙˙ j ˙ œ ˙
#œ œ œ œ b˙
C7
Freetime œ
@@
PLAY & 44 ∑ ¿
œœ
@@ @@ @@ @@ @@ Œ Ó
Neck pickup Use thumb to Tremolo pick with m and a fingers
œ
With overdrive fret bass notes BU
BU BU BU BU BU BU
E 20 ( 23 )
B 11 11 13 16 18 20
11 ( 12 ) 11 ( 12 )
@@
12 ( 13 )
@@ @@
16 ( 17 ) 17 ( 18 )
@@ @@
19 ( 20 )
G
D
A
E X 8 8 0
1

LICK 6 RHYTHMIC ‘BOUNCE’ STRUMMING (E FLAT TUNING)

Philip’s final lick is inspired by players like Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan. As they both did, the thumb of the fretting hand is used to play the notes on the
sixth string. This helps to free up the fingers to play the top of the 7#9 chord. It also allows for trills to be added to chords, as Jimi often did.

E 7#9
n ‹ œœ .. œœ .. n ‹ œœ .. F7 # 9 b œœ .. E7#9
n ‹ œœ .. œœ ..
#### 4
Freetime

PLAY & 4 ∑
œ. œ œœœœ œ œœœ œ nœ œ œ œ œœœ œœœœ œ
Neck pickup Use thumb to
With overdrive fret bass notes

E 15 15 15 16 15 15
B 15 15 15 16 15 15
G
D
A
E 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 13 13 13 13 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12
1
≥ ≤ ≥ ≤≥≥≤ ≥ ≤
36 November 2023
 6 HOT TEXAS-STYLE LICKS { PHILIP SAYCE

LICK 6 RHYTHMIC ‘BOUNCE’ STRUMMING (E FLAT TUNING)

n ‹ œœ œœ œœ œœ n ‹ œœ .. œœ .. n ‹ œœ .. F7 # 9 b œœ ..
####
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ nœ œ œ œ

E 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 16
B 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 16
G
D
A
E 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 13 13 13 13
4

E7#9 n ‹ œœ œœ œœ œœ n ‹ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ n ‹ ˙˙
#### Œ
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ
E 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
B 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 15
G
D
A
E 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 0
7
≥ ≤ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≤ ≥

Philip Sayce and

his gig enduring
Fender Strat!

November 2023 37
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 FEATURE } HARMONICS
THE CROSSROADS
Lorne Lofsky’s Harmonics
VIDEO
This month John Wheatcroft looks at the incredible
natural and false harmonic techniques of this Canadian
jazz virtuoso, with help from British guitarist Nigel Price.
ABILITY RATING
Info https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Will improve your… Natural and artificial harmonics
Key Various Tempo 100bpm Ability to blend approaches Chord/melody integration
L
orne Lofsky is a phenomenal jazz
guitarist with a glittering career spanning
over 40 years. Highlights include
working with legends such as Oscar
Peterson, Chet Baker and Ray Brown, and
for many years Lorne had a successful
quartet with another amazing Canadian
guitar virtuoso, the great Ed Bickert. An
in-demand educator, Lofsky has also
enjoyed an equally successful parallel career
teaching at various respected institutions,
hosting masterclasses across the globe and
in recent years moving into online teaching
and mentoring. Along with an extensive
resume as a live performer, Lorne has an
TECHNIQUE FOCUS
Consider your options
When approaching any physical challenge on
guitar, it’s a good idea to consider your options
from a technique perspective. As you can
see from the video footage, Lorne articulates
these natural and artificial harmonic ideas
beautifully with a combination of thumb-pick
and fingers, with nails on the picking hand.
This is also the same approach adopted by
the great Lenny Breau. One big advantage to
this option is that you now have every finger
available. If you’re usually a plectrum based
player, then this might be a considerable
adjustment to your regular technique, so you
could choose to go the ‘hybrid’ picking route,
adopting a combination of pick and fingers,
although the first finger of the picking hand is
now tied up with holding the pick along with
the thumb. Of course, you could ditch the pick
altogether and use just fingers and thumb,
although volume and clarity might now be an
issue, especially with the bass notes. As always,
experimentation is the key when trying new
techniques. Consider how each new technical
concept, approach or idea fits in with all the
other things you already use when you play
in your own personal style and in keeping
with any musical scenario in which you might
find yourself, such as a solo, duo or ensemble
40 November 2023
Advanced ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪
equally impressive portfolio of recordings as
sideman, collaborator and solo artist. It’s our
great pleasure to feature his video interview,
alongside another incredible jazz guitarist
and long-time friend of GT, Nigel Price. This
coincides with a run of live dates in the UK
for this pair of exquisite exponents - visit
Nigel’s website for more details.
In this first video (a second is in the next
issue), Nigel quizzes Lorne on his use of both
natural and artificial harmonics, inspired by
the legendary Lenny Breau. As Lorne states,
“Lenny Breau got it from Chet Atkins and
then took it to the other end of the universe.
I guess maybe I’ve added a couple of other
“Lenny Breau got it from
Chet Atkins and he took
it to the other end of the
universe. I guess maybe
I’ve added a couple of
other things.” Lorne Lofsky
things.” Needless to say, he certainly has and
over the course of this video Lorne
showcases a huge variety of natural and
artificial harmonic ideas, as well as blending
these sounds with regular fretted notes, held
bass tones, high trills and combining
conventional chord melody ideas with these
beautifully chiming and ringing overtones.
As Lorne is essentially improvising one
great idea after another, we’ve adopted a
slightly different approach this month.
Rather than transcribe these freeform and
flowing concepts in action, we’ve used each
technique or concept in the video and
composed an associated musical exercise
and/or excerpt, with both audio and
notation to help you to solidify each
approach. Naturally, these should be
considered as an introduction to each idea,
VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj
ON VIDEO
as the fun starts when you incorporate these
techniques into your own playing. With this
in mind, don’t feel the need to rush through
all of the examples or a need to master every
approach in a single sitting. This should be
an ongoing learning curve.
In keeping with our regular Crossroads
articles, next up we see a selection of
harmonic ideas, as used by a cross-section of
historically significant players, many of
which have no doubt influenced Lorne with
their pioneering use of harmonics, including
Django Reinhardt, and of course Chet and
Lenny. We complete this section by looking
at two significant contemporary players, Pat
Metheny and Biréli Lagrène. Then we round
off our study with a short contextualised
piece that incorporates many of the
techniques we’ve looked at here, but in a
more blended and musically incorporated
way. Again, this is indicative of just one
musical solution from an infinite range of
potential options, but by learning this short
etude exactly as written, at least to begin
with you will give your playing focus and
direction. You might also find that your
confidence in incorporating new and
exciting techniques and approaches into
your own arrangements and improvisations,
will improve as a result. Good luck!
NEXT MONTH Lorne and Nigel return for some
Herbie Hancock style Triad Extensions
5 5 4
3 3
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
Lorne favours a vintage Ibanez Roadstar with a
balanced warm tone, so go easy on the highs
and remember that Lofsky uses a combination
of thumb-pick and fingers. He mostly favours
the neck pickup, but as demonstrated in the
video, switching to the bridge pickup makes the
harmonics beyond the end of the fingerboard
clearer and technically easier to achieve.
 LORNE LOFSKY { THE CROASSROADS

Lorne Lofsky demonstrates in

the video how he achieves chord-
based natural harmonics with
his first and third fingers

TRACK RECORD Lorne’s most recent album, This Song Is New, is full of amazing guitar with some beautiful ensemble interaction. Also
the Ed Bickert and Lorne Lofsky Quartet’s self-titled release, and to hear Lofsky with the legendary Oscar Peterson, try 1990’s Oscar In Paris.
You can find out more about Lorne’s background, album releases, gigs and educational work by visiting his website, lornelofsky.com.

November 2023 41
 FEATURE } HARMONICS VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXAMPLE 1: BASIC MOVES

We begin by outlining a selection of Lorne’s favourite harmonic approaches, as shapes (1d-Ih). We even see harmonics and regular notes mixed with pull-offs
indicated on the accompanying video examples1a-1o. They range from simple and trills (1e-1l). These are definitely techniques where it’s easier to just watch
artificial harmonics using just strings (1a), mixing harmonics with regular notes how it’s done, rather than go into a lengthy verbal description, so we’d suggest
(1b-1c-1m-1n -1o), moving this idea to incorporate fretted notes and chord you look at the video closely in conjunction with these examples.

1a) Open string natural harmonics 1b) Harmonic/open-string mix

©»¡ºº ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚
‚ ‚ œ ‚ œ
E m11 E m11

4 .. ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ..

·
&4 ·. ‚
‚ œ œ

· ·
‚
∑

· · ·
PLAY

··· ··· · · ·
Let ring Let ring

E
. 12
. . 0

. . .
B 12 12 0
G 12 12 0 12
D 12 12 0 12
A 12 12 12
E 12 12 12
1, 3 6, 8

1c) Harmonic/double open-string mix

E m11

& ‚ œ ‚ œ ‚j œ . .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. œ ‚ œœ ‚ œœ .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
‚ œœ ‚ œ

··· ·· ··
Let ring Let ring

E
. . 0
.
. . .
B 0 0 0 0
G 0 0 0 0
D 12 0 0 12
A 12 12 12
E 12 12
11, 13

1d) One-fret transposition 1e) Pull-offs

b‚ œ b‚
Fm11 E m11

. b ‚
& . ‚ bœ bœ
b ‚ œ œ b ‚ b œ ‚j . .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. ‚ # œ œ ‚ # œ œ ‚ œ œ ‚ # œ œ ‚ # œ œ ..
bœ

· · ··· ··· ··
Let ring

· ·
AH AH AH AH AH AH AH

. . . .
13 13 13 13 13 13 13
E 1 2 0 2 0

. . . .
B 1 1 2 0 2 0
G 1 1 1 12 2 0 12
D 1 1 1 1 12 12
A 1 1 12
E 1 1
16, 18 21, 23

ggg OO
1f) Treble to bass harmonics 1g) Treble to bass following chords
F13 # 9
E m11
‚ ‚ F 13

‚ ‚ j ggg OO
√‚ #‚ ‚
¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. ‚ ‚ ‚ b ‚ ..

·····
& ‚ ‚. gO b‚
‡gg

.···· ··· · .
·
Let ring Let ring
Let ring AH AH
AH AH AH AH
15 16 AH AH

. ggg .
15 14 13 15 14 13
E 12 12 3 4

.
12
ggg 12
. .
3
.
3
B
G 12 12 2 2
12
g 12 1 1
D

‡gg
A 12 12
E 12 12
26, 28 31, 33

Gmaj 7 · .
1h) Root in regular register 1i) Held notes and harmonic combinations
b
·· .. # ·· .. œ # ‚‚‚ ... œ b bn ‚‚‚ ...
G6 D maj 7 D7 Cadd9

·. œ ·
¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. J J œ ‚ œ ..
&
œ œ

··
Let ring Let ring Let ring
Let ring Let ring
AH AH AH AH

. . . .
19 18 17 17
E 12 19 8 8 8

. . . .
B 12 19 7 6 5
G 12 19 7 6 5
D 7 6 5
A 5
E 3 3
36, 38 41, 43

42 November 2023
 LORNE LOFSKY { THE CROASSROADS

EXAMPLE 1: BASIC MOVES CONTINUED

1j) Bass/harmonic combinations 1k) 8ve and 12th natural harmonics

gg # ···
G bmaj9 # 11 Gmaj9 # 11
. ggg b ‚‚‚ gg n # # ‚‚‚
Œ ggg ··· .. Œ gggg ‚‚‚
F maj 7 E m11

g ·
&
¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. ‡gg ‡ggg
b‚
‡gg
gg n ‚ . ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
. .. ‡g ‚ ‡gg
w AH bœ nœ w
AH AH

gg 11
NH NH
gg 22
13
gg 01
12/13 14

. gg 1 gg 2 . . gg 1212 gg 1919
‡gg 0 g 12 g 19
E

. ‡gg 1 ‡gg 2 . . ‡gg 12 ‡gg 19

B
G
D
A
E 1 2 3 0
46, 48 51, 53

gg ˙˙˙
1l) Trills, harmonics & open strings

gg # œœœ
E m11
g˙
Œ ggg œ
‡ ‡gg .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
œ
.. # œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
≠
& ‚œ ‚ ‚œ
‚œ

· · · ·
w Let ring
NH NH
ggg 1919 ggg 2424 . . ≠
5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2
g 19 g 24
E

‡gg 19 ‡gg 24 . .
B 0
G 0 0
D 0 12
A 12 12
E 0 12
56, 58

1m) Lenny Breau/Chet Atkins double-stop technique

B bm11
œ‚ b œ‚ b ‚œ
Am11

œ # œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ‚
œ b b œ‚ b b œ‚
& ‚œ ‚œ ‚ ‚œ .. .. œ‚ œ‚

· · · · · · · ·
Let ring Let ring

· ··
AH

·
AH

. .
17 18
E 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 5 2 7 8

. .
B 0 5 6
G 0 0 5 5 6 6
D 0 12 5 5 6 6
A 12 12 5 6
E 12 5 6
61, 63

1n) Bass string harmonic/double-stop mix

# œ‚ b œ‚ b ‚œ n ‚
Bm11 Cm11 G m11

# ‚
œ œ b‚
& œ‚
œ‚ bœ .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. ‚ b œ ‚ œœ ‚ œ
œ

· · · ·· · ·
Let ring Let ring Let ring

· ·
AH

· ·
AH AH AH AH AH
20

. .
19 15 15 15 15
E 9 10 5

. .
B 7 8 3 3
G 7 7 8 8 3 3 3
D 7 7 8 3 3
A 7 8 3
E 7 3
66, 68

. ggg ··· ...

A bm11
ggg # # ··· ..
1o) Open string pedal
E 6/ 9 F 6/ 9 / E

b œœ b ‚ b œœ n ‚ .. ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ g #· .
‡gg
g ·.
b
& b‚ b œœ b ‚ .. ‡gg ..
œ œ

· ·
Let ring

· ·
AH AH AH Let ring AH Let ring AH
AH

ggg ggg
19/18 20/19

. . .
16 16 16 16
E 6 7 8
4 4
. . g 7
g 8
.
‡gg
B

G 4
D 4
A 4
E 4
‡gg
4 4 6 7
4 6 7
0 0
71, 73

November 2023 43
 FEATURE } HARMONICS VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXAMPLE 2: HARMONIC PIONEERS

Next up we’re going to look at how various contemporaries from the world of
jazz use harmonics. We start with a Django-inspired line that uses artificial and
natural harmonics in E Minor that Reinhardt would articulate with a plectrum,
rather than Lofsky’s thumb-pick technique. Example 2b displays a Chet Atkins-
style double-stop line that transposes the lower note up an octave, so what feels
like 6th intervals actually become inverted 3rds against a G7 tonality. In 2c we
look at a Lenny Breau line that uses ideas similar to Lorne’s, such as the hammer-
ons and pull-offs against C Major. The final two ideas, from Pat Metheny and
Biréli Lagrène, showcase the ringing potential of natural harmonics. Biréli’s line is
inspired by electric fretless bassist Jaco Pastorius’s solo piece, Portrait Of Tracy.

·
2a) Django

©»¡ºº Em
√‚ ‚ ‚ ‚
#4
‰ J ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ œ œ ‚ ‚

···
& 4 œ
∑ œœœ

· · · · · · · · · ··· ·
PLAY

AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH
3
AH AH AH AH
œ Let ring
19 21 20 19 21 20 21 21 21 21 20 19 18
E 7 9 7 12
B 8 8 12
G 9 9 9 8 7 6 9 11 12
D 9 9 9
A 7 9 10
E 0
1

‚ b‚ ‚ ‚ ‚œ ‚œ # # ‚œ ‚œ
n ‚œ ‚œ b ‚œ œ œ œ ‚œ œ ‚œ b ‚œ ‚ n ‚ ‚
2b) Chet Atkins G7

# ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ œ œ ‰ œ Œ ‰ J Œ
& J

· · · · · ·· · · · · · · ·· · ·
AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH
15 17 15 17 18 17 15 17 17 15 17 15 15 16 17 18 19
E 3 5 6 5 3 5 3 3 5 6 7
B 3 5 5 5 3 3
G 3 5 6 5 3 5 3 4 5 6 7
D 3 5 5 5 3 3
A
E
4

2c) Lenny Breau

b #
Dm11 D 9 11 C
‚ œœ ‚ œ ‚ œ œ ‚
¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
‚ œ ‚ œ‚ œ œ b‚ bœ ‚
œ
‰ J œ ‚ œ ‚ œ œ
& œ œ b‚

· · · · · ·
Let ring Let ring Let ring

· · · · · ·
AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH
17 17 15 16 16 15 17 17 17 17 17 17
E 3 3 7 5 5 7
B 5 4 6 5 5 6
G 5 4 5 5 5
D 3 3 3 3 5 5
A 5 4 5 5
E 5 4
8

‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ··
2d) Pat Metheny
E m9

# ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚
·

· · ·· · · · · · · · · · ··
& ‚
œ œ
Let ring
E 12 12
B 7 12 7
G 5 7 12 5 7
D 7 12
A 7 12
E 0 7 0
13

2e) Biréli Lagrène E7 9 # √‚ # ‚ n ‚

# ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ #‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚ ‚
& ‚ #‚ #‚ ‚ ‚ #‚
œ
· ·· · · · · ·
· ·· · · · ·· ·· ·· ·
Let ring
E 5
B 4 5
G 3 5 5
D 3 4 5 4 5
A 3 4 5 3 4 5
E 0 3 4 3 4
17

44 November 2023
 LORNE LOFSKY { THE CROASSROADS

EXAMPLE 3: INTEGRATED TECHNIQUES

We round up this introduction to some of Lorne’s harmonics ideas with a short chord fragments, Lenny and Lorne-inspired pull-offs, and even some Chet and
etude based around a typical jazz progression in the key of F, but starting on Django-influenced double-stop and single-note action to end. As always, treat
the IV chord, Bbmaj7 (Bb-D-F-A). We’re using a combination of fretted melodic this study as a springboard for your own ideas and adventures and, as always, be
statements answered with harmonic chords, some chiming two-note ringing patient and persistent - your efforts will be generously rewarded.

œ. œ. œ œ . œ. œ.
b b
©»¡ºº B maj 9

‚ ‚œJ ‚œ
B m6
#‚ ‚
F maj 7

œ œ #œ . œ‚ .. œJ œ œ‚ ‚œ
Swing

& b 44 J œ‚ Œ J
J
∑

·· · · · ··
PLAY Let ring Let ring
AH AH AH
17 17 17
E 5 8 5 8 5 5
B 6 6 6 6 6 6 5
G 5 5 6 6
D 5 5 5 5
A 5
E
1

‚œ ‚œ ‚œ ‚œ ·˙ b· b·
b b
‚œ ‚œ Am7 5

‚œ ‚œ ˙
D7 9

# œ‚ ‚œ ˙
‚
œ‚ œ
3

&b Œ Œ Œ

· · · · · ··· ···
3 3 3 3

· ·
Let ring Let ring Let ring

··
AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH AH
16 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 16 17 17 16
E 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
B 5 5 5 4 4
G 5 5 5 5 5 5
D 5 5 5 5 4
A 5
E 5
5

b
b‚ œ œ b‚ œ
G m7 B m9 Am9
‚ nœ œ ‚
j œ ‚ œ œ b‚ bœ #œ œ ‚ œ
3

& b ‰ œ ‚ ‚ b œ. ‚ œ
œ ‚ .

· ·
3 3 3 3 3

· · · ··
3
Let ring Let ring

· ·
Let ring

· ·
AH AH AH AH AH AH AH
15 15 15 18 18 18 18
E 5 8 6 7 5
B 3 8 6 7 5
G 3 6 6 5 5
D 3 3 6 6 5 5
A 3 6 5
E 3 6 5
9

b
A m9
b‚ œ bœ b‚
Gm7

j
C7 √ b‚ b‚ ‚ ‚
bœ b‚ bœ j
‰ œ ‰ œ œ bœ nœ ‰ ‚ ‚ ‰ J

·
&b Œ

·
J

·
‚ ‚. b ‚ n ‚
·
‚

· · · ·
3 3

·
Let ring

· ·· ··
AH AH AH AH
AH AH AH AH AH 23 21 20 23
16 16 16 20 21
E 6 4 11 9 8
B 4 4 5 11
G 4 4 3 5 7 9
D 4 8
A 4 2 3
E 3 5 6
12

n¥
#
√F7 ‚ F7 11 √
b ‚ ‚ n ‚j b ‚
&b ‰ J b‚ ‚ b‚ j
b‚ n‚ ‚ ‚ b ‚ ‰ j n œœœ ˙˙˙ n ·

E
B
G
D
A
E
· · ··· · · · ·· · · ·
1
4 1
4 3 1
3 1
1
AH AH AH AH
13 15 14 13

2
3 2
œ

1
1
Let ring

0
2
1
· ·
12 24

15

November 2023 45
 PLAY } CLASSICAL VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

MATTEO CARCASSI
Etude No.7 Op.60 ON VIDEO

This month Declan Zapala brings us another fiery

miniature from the Italian king of etudes. Perfect as a
piece to play live or as an excellent technique booster.
ABILITY RATING Moderate ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ instrument ever since as there have been no
significant developments from that time to
Info https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Will improve your… Broken chord arpeggiation
this. Nearly 200 years later de Torres’ guitar
Key A Minor Tempo Various Tremolo Descending slurs
is one of the most popular instruments in the
world, and is widely played by hobbyists,

T
his month we return to the classical
guitar treasure trove that is ‘Tour de
Force’ Matteo Carcassi’s 25 Études
Melodiques Progressives Op.60. Over
the last two years I have explored Etude No.1
(GT331) and No. 23 (GT342) which covered
a myriad of core techniques including
scale-based melodies, slurred and cross-
string descending arpeggiation, as well as
efficiency of fretting-hand finger placement.
Etude No.7 is a bootcamp for tremolo and
broken chord arpeggiation so with that in
mind the accompanying exercises focus on
the plucking hand, building up a smooth and
stable tremolo technique.
Carcassi wrote hundreds of pieces for
professional concert artists, and street
Matteo Carcassi lived musicians the world over.
during a golden age
To learn a Carcassi etude is to tap into the
of the classical guitar
and its repertoire origins of the classical guitar since this music
is ultimately what was being written at the
beginning of the instrument’s rich history,
while de Torres and other luthiers of the
time were busy developing and refining.
Even if you are a player from another
discipline such as jazz or blues, by learning
the etudes you can expect an enhanced new
layer of technical proficiency in your fingers,
but ultimately learning any work by Carcassi
is an opportunity to connect with the
understated and sometimes fiery beauty of
our classical guitar ancestors.

“To learn a Carcassi etude
is to tap into the origins
of the classical guitar
since this music was being
written at the beginning
of its rich history”
guitar in his life but his 25 Études
Mélodiques Progressives, Op.60 in
particular show off his brilliance as a
composer as well as an educator, since not
only are these 25 short pieces technically
challenging, covering classical technique
from early intermediate through to
advanced, they are musically rich and can
show off a player’s sensitivity as well as their
virtuosity. As such they are at home both on
NEXT MONTH Declan dives into flamenco with a
feature on the legendary Paco De Lucia
19th-century Europe, though for we players
this period was very much the ‘Guitar
Renaissance’. A huge portion of the classical
guitar’s repertoire came into existence
during this time from many of Carcassi’s
peers including Ferdinando Carulli,
Fernando Sor, Mauro Giuliani, Dionisio
Aguado, and Johann Kasper Mertz to name
but a few. All the while the ‘final form’ of the
nylon-strung concert or Spanish guitar, the
TECHNIQUE FOCUS
Four-Note Tremolo With
Three Fingers?
If you watch the accompanying video for
this month’s piece you will see me using the
repeated pami finger pattern for the tremolo
bars (check out bar 1). While this is an effective
pattern for achieving a smooth tremolo it can
be slightly jarring in this study because of the
way adjacent bars frequently switch between
this tremolo pattern and a broken chord
pattern played with pimi (as in bar 3). As such
many players prefer to simplify the plucking
hand by just using pimi for both the tremolo
and the broken chord patterns. While this
approach isn’t for everyone, if the challenge
of the frequent changing from pami to pimi
is slowing down your progress, you may find
HISTORIC IMAGES / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO

the concert stage as well as in the classroom. Antonio de Torres design, emerged to adopting this alternative tremolo method gets
Carcassi was an active composer during replace its ancestor, the Baroque guitar. The the piece off the ground more quickly.
what was the Classical period of music in prefix ‘classical’ has stuck with the

TRACK RECORD A bumper book of both Casrcassi’s Guitar Method Op.59 and 25 Etudes Op.60 is available through the publisher Carl
Fishcher, and comes with an accompanying CD of all 25 etudes from Op.60 performed by French guitarist Philippe Bertaud. Brazilian guitarist
Edson Lopes’s YouTube channel ‘Matteo Carcassi Studies’ consists of 25 videos of the 25 etudes, all brilliantly executed.

46 November 2023
 MATTEO CARCASSI { ETUDE NO.7 OP.60
VIDEO VIDEO (SLOW) PLAY

PLAYING NOTES
A good rule of thumb when approaching arpeggio and tremolo-based music is you get to the final beat of [bar 4] as this will stabilise your fretting hand while
to minimise finger travel in the plucking hand since this allows for much higher the other fingers move between their notes. In [bar 10] when shifting to the
tempos. In [bar 2] if switching between pimi and piai causes the plucking hand D Minor chord on beat 3 hold the high F with a two-string barre which makes
to experience excessive tension then try just playing everything pimi. When you the change to the proceeding D7 chord on beat 4 far simpler, since it allows
add the third finger onto its note on the final beat of [bar 2], don’t release it until the first finger to remain static.

©»¡ºº
Am Am/C F Am/E Dm Am/C E 7/B Am

¡œ
approx

4 œ ¢
œ # œ œ œ £œ œ œ
™œ ¡
&4 ∑ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ™œ œ œ
œ œ £œ
œ £ ¢ ¡ ™œ ¡ œ

E 1 0
B 3 1
G 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 2
D 3 2 0
A 0 3 3 2 0
E
1 p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p i a i p i a i p i a i p i a i

Dm6 B7/D # E sus4 Fadd # 11 Am/E E sus4 E Am A m/C F Am/E

œ
& œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
™ ¢
œ œ œ

E 0
B 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
G 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
D 0 1 2 3 2 2 3 2
A 0 3
E 0 0
3 p i m i p i m i p i m i p i m i p i m i p i m i p i m i p i a i

Dm Am/C E 7/B Am Dm6 B7/D # Am/E E Am

œ
œ
œ œ
œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ Œ
& œ œ #œ œ œ #œ œ #œ
œ œ œ œ˙

E 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 5
B 3 1 0 0 1 0 1 4
G 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2
D 0 0 1 2
A 3 2 0 0
E 0
6
p i m a i i m a

C C /E Am C /G Dm/F A 7/E Dm D7

¢œ ¡œ œ ¡ ™
& .. œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ™œ
¢œ
œ œ #¢œ œ œ nœ #œ œ
£œ £
œ œ

E
. 0 1 2

.
B 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 3 2 2 3 3 1 1
G 2 0 2 2
D 2 3 2 0 0
A 3
E
9
29

G A 7add13 G 7/B C G /D C/E C F A7/E Dm D 7/F #

¢œ œ #¢œ n¡œ ¢
œ œ £ £œ ¡
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ £ œ ™œ œ œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ œ # œ n œ œ œ
™œ œ ™œ £ ¡ ¢

E 3 3 2 1 0 0
B 0 0 3 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 1 1 1
G 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 2
D 0 2 3 2 0 4
A 0 2 3 3
E 3
11
31

November 2023 47
 PLAY } CLASSICAL VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

PLAYING NOTES
In [bars 16 and 18] accent the slurred notes in to give a stronger sense of where yourself a millisecond pause at the end of [bar 22] to get there (record yourself
the main beats lie, since this bar can be challenging to ‘feel’ due to its technical playing it like this and you will be surprised how seamless and not-at-all jarring
complexity. The accents also add a little musical drama to the bar. The leap to the this sounds). To simplify the piece’s ending for your fretting hand, when you add
barred Bb/D chord at the start of [bar 23] is quite a challenge, so imagine giving the third finger at the start of [bar 26], don’t release it until beat 4 of [bar 27].

G B7 b 5 E E 7/G # Am Dm6 D #dim E

¢
# ¢œ œ œ œ œ œ n¢œ œ œ ¡œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ¡œ
œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ¡
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
# œ œ œ œ™ # œ
£
œ ¡
& œ nœ #œ
™ ™œ ¡ £ œ œ Ó

E 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 7 0 0 0
B 0 0 0 4 4 4 3 3 3 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
G 0 1 2 2 2 2 1
D 3 2 0 1 2
A 0
E
14 p i m a i m i a m i a m i
34

Am/E E 7/D E A m/E E 7/D

œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
™œ
œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œ #œ Ó
˙ ˙
E 5 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 7 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 4 3 1 0 0 4 3 1 0
G 2 1 2
D 2
A
E 0 0
17 a m i m p i p i p i p i p i
37
p

E /G # E7 Am A m/C F Am/E Dm A m/C E 7/B Am

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœœ œœ œœœ

& #œ œ œ #œ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ œ
# œ
œ œ œ œ

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
B 3 1
G 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 2
D 3 2 1 2 0 3 2 0
A 3 2 0 3 3 2 0
E
20 p p i p i p i p i p i p i p i
40

B b/D A 7/E Dm/F A/C # Dm A5 D #dim/F # E /G # E7

™ œ
¢ ¡ ¢ ¢
¡
¡œ b œ #™œ œ ™ œ ™ œ ™ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ nœ œ œ
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ £ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ ¡ #œ œ
£ ¡ £ ¡ ™ £
¢

E 0 1 0 0 0 0
B 2 2 3 4 4 4 4 4 4 3 3 3
G 3 3 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1
D 3 3 3 3 2 2 3 0 2 4 2
A 5 5 4
E
23
43

Am E F A m/C D m6 B 7/D # Am/E E Am

œ
& £œ
¡œ œ œ œ œ œ œ £œ œ œ £œ ¡œ œ £œ œ œ £œ œ œ £œ ¡œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ # œ œ Œ ..
™œ ¢ ¢œ œ #œ ™
œ
œ˙
¡ œ
E 0 0 1 0 0 5
.
.
B 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 4
G 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 1 2
D 2 3 0 1 2
A 3 0
E 0
26
46

48 November 2023
 MATTEO CARCASSI { ETUDE NO.7 OP.60
EXAMPLES

EXERCISE 1 PLUCKING-HAND STABILITY DURING ALTERNATING TREBLE AND BASS

This exercise prepares us for the descending alternating pipi pattern in [bars above the strings while you let the fingers and thumb do all the work. Since this
17, 19, and 20]. It is recommended to keep your plucking hand forward and is a plucking-hand only exercise you can utilise your spare fretting hand to hold
floating over the strings and to avoid any movement in your hand and wrist. your plucking hand in place. As mentioned previously, minimise your finger
What you should be aiming to see is your first finger knuckle remaining static travel to allow for easier access to the higher tempos.

4 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
&4 œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 0 0
G 0 0 0 0
D 0 0 0 0
A 0 0 0 0
E 0 0
1 p i p p i p p i p p i p p i p p i p p i p p i p

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
w
œ œ œ œ

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 0 0 0
G 0 0 0 0
D 0 0 0 0
A 0 0 0 0
E 0 0
5 p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p i p

EXERCISE 2 PLUCKING-HAND STABILITY DURING TRIPLET TREMOLO

In this free stroke plucking-hand exercise we are building ourselves up to the With that in mind keep your hand forward to give the fingers easy access to
four-note tremolo of the etude by first becoming proficient at playing the these repeated high E notes, and simply open the thumb back nice and wide
simpler triplet tremolo. In order to create a consistent rhythmic feel to the to its notes, being careful to not to pull your plucking-hand position back in
repeated high E notes it is important to keep your plucking-hand position still. doing so, as this will disrupt the flow of your fingers.

6 œ œ Œ. .
œ. œ Œ . œœ Œ
.
œœŒ
. œœ Œ
.
œœ Œ
.
& 8 œœ . œ. œœ œ œœ . œ . œœ . œ . œœ . œ .
œœ . œ.
E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 0 0
G 0 0
D 0 0
A 0 0 0 0
E 0 0
1
p i m i p m i p p m i p p m i p p m i p p m i p

œ œ Œ. œ œ Œ .. œœ .œ œ œœ .œ œ œœ .œ œ œœ .œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œœ . œ . œœ . œ œœ . œœ . œœ . œœ .

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 0 0
G 0 0 0 0
D 0 0 0 0
A 0 0
E
7
p m i p p m i p p m i p m i p m i p m i p m i p m i p m i p m i

November 2023 49
 PLAY } CLASSICAL VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXERCISE 2 PLUCKING-HAND STABILITY DURING TRIPLET TREMOLO CONTINUED

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ˙.
& œœ . œœ . œœ . œœ .
œœ . œœ . œœ . œœ .

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 0
G 0 0
D 0 0
A 0 0
E 0 0
13 p m i p m i p m i p m i p m i p m i p m i p m i p

EXERCISE 3 PLUCKING-HAND STABILITY DURING TREMOLO (ALTERNATIVE FINGERED PIMI PIMI)

This exercise explores the open-string technical approach to the four-note also explore playing the repeated tremolo pattern as pimi instead of pami in
tremolo pattern frequently employed in this month’s piece. Once the full case the latter causes issues when switching between tremolo bars and the
repeated pami pattern kicks in at [bar 9] work at achieving a consistent pulse pimi broken chord bars. Be sure to explore this exercise slowly, and as relaxed as
on the main beats with the thumb while listening out for an even and legato possible at first, increasing your tempo incrementally (no more than +10bpm at
distribution of the high E notes. As mentioned in the Technical Focus you can a time is recommended, and +2bpm for higher tempos).

œ œ œ Ó˙ œ œ œ Ó œ œ œ Ó œ œ œ Ó
& 44 œ˙ œ˙ ˙ œ˙ ˙ œ˙ ˙

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 0 0
G 0 0
D 0 0
A 0 0
E
1 p a m i p p a m i p p a m i p p a m i p

œ œ œ Ó œ œ œ Ó œ œ œ Ó œ œ œ Ó
& œ˙ ˙ œ˙ ˙
œ˙ ˙ œ˙ ˙

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B
G 0 0
D 0 0
A 0 0
E 0 0
5 p a m i p p a m i p p a m i p p a m i p

œ œ œ œ˙ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œ˙ œ˙ œ˙ œ˙ œ˙ œ˙ œ˙

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 0 0
G 0 0
D 0 0
A 0 0
E
9 p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i

œ œ œ œœœ œ œ œ œœœ œœ œ œœœ œœœ œœœ w

& œ˙ œ˙ œ˙ œ˙
œ˙ œ˙ œ˙ œ˙

E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
B 0
G 0 0
D 0 0
A 0 0
E 0 0
13
p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p a m i p

50 November 2023
 The No.1 website for musicians

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 LESSON } Quick Licks VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

30-MINUTE LICKBAG
Brought to you by…

EXAMPLE 1 BERNARD SUMNER (JOY DIVISION, NEW ORDER, ELECTRONIC)

This riff features a short 1 bar phrase that repeats three times and then ends with second repeat and ending phrase are played an octave lower, on the sixth string.
a subtle variation on the fourth repeat. To bring variety and momentum to the To get the sound, use your bridge pickup, a moderate amount of gain, and add a
sequence, the first and third repeats are played on the fourth string, while the long reverb or delay if you prefer.

©»¡¢º A5

.. œ œj ‰ œ œ ‰ j j j‰ ' ..
/

& 44
14

∑ j ‰ ‰ œ œ œ œ œ ‰ j
PLAY œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
E
.
'
1/4

.
. .
B
G
D 5 7 7 5 5 7 7 5
A 3
E 3 5 5 3 3 5 3 5
1
≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥
EXAMPLE 2 ELLIOT EASTON (THE CARS)
This rhythm figure takes two notes from an E, B, and A5 chord shape, to create a changing between octave string skips and double-stops on neighbouring
flowing, melodic sequence that provides a clear sense of the chord progression. strings. Let the notes ring over each other during bars 1, 2 and 4, and mute the
Focus on picking-hand accuracy, as It’s easy to mis-judge the spacing when strings during the rests. Use a clean middle position tone and add reverb.
©»¡™º E B A5 B E
#### 4 ..
& 4 ∑ ‰ j ‰ j ‰ œj ‰ j ‰ j ..
œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ
œ œ œ œ
œœ œœ œ œ
PLAY œœ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œ
Let ring Let ring
E
. .
. .
B
G
D 2 2 1 1 2 2 2 1 1 1 2 2
A 2 2 2 2 2 0 0 0 2 2 2
E 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
1
≥≥≥≥ ≥ ≥≥ ≥≥≥≥ ≥ ≥≥ ≥≥ ≥ ≥≥ ≥ ≥≥≥≥ ≥ ≥≥
EXAMPLE 3 KEITH RICHARDS
This sequence outlines the IV- I chord change in the key of G, with C Major with your thirrd finger, and include your first and second fingers for additional
Pentatonic over the IV chord (C) and G Minor Pentatonic, with added Major 3rds, support. To get the sound, use your middle pickup position, dial in a bright tone
brings a country-blues flavour over the I chord (G). Perform each full-tone bend from the amp, and add in enough overdrive for some bite.

©»¡£º œ
C
œ œ j œ œ œ œ œ œ j œ œ œ œ œ œœ
# œ œ
& 44 Ó Œ. J J ‰ J ‰
PLAY

BU BU BU BU BU
E 10 (12 ) 10 8
B 10 (12 ) 8 10 ( 12 ) 10 ( 12 ) 10 8 8 8
G 9 7
D
A
E
≥ 1
≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≥ ≥
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
œœ~~~ b œœ n œœ œ b œ
G
j j
# œœ œœ œ
œ œ ‰ œ
œ œ œ
j
œ œ
œ œ bœ nœ œ w w ˙
˙ Ó
& J

E
RP BU BU BD ~~~ 10
BU ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
B 8 8 8 8 11 ( 12 ) 8
G (9 ) ( 9) 7 ( 9 ) 7 ( 9 ) (7 ) 5 12 13
D 12 10 8 9
A
E
3
≤ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≥ ≤
52 November 2023
 30-MINUTE LICKBAG

Jamie Hunt of BIMM Bristol brings you

another varied selection of licks at easy (green),
moderate (orange) and advanced (red) levels.

EXAMPLE 4 TAL FARLOW (JAZZ LEGEND)

This lick uses double-stops from the A Half-Whole scale (A-Bb-C-C#-Eb-E-F#-G), While a hollowbody jazz guitar would be ideal, you can emulate the tone by
which creates a tense, Diminished tonality over the A7b9 chord. The sliding notes using your solidbody’s neck pickup, rolling the tone control down on your guitar,
while changing position helps to build speed while keeping the phrasing fluid. setting a warm, clean tone on your amp, and strumming near the neck.

©»¡§º qq=qce b
œœ œœ b œœ n œœ œœ œœ œœ n œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ b œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œ n œœ œœ œœ œœ œ œ
### 4
A7 9
œ
& 4 ∑ œ
nœ b nœ œ
PLAY

E
B
G 6 9 9 8 9 9 12 12 11 12 12 15 15 14 15 15 12 11 6
D 5 8 8 8 8 8 11 11 11 11 11 14 14 14 14 14 11 11 5
A
E
1
≥ ≥≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≥≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥
EXAMPLE 5 VINCE GILL (COUNTRY SUPERSTAR, THE EAGLES)
This hybrid- picked country lick uses double-stops on the second and third Keep your picking-hand palm resting on the fourth string, so you are ready for
strings, pull-offs to the open third string, and palm-muted notes on the fourth every palm-muted note. Use your bridge pickup, set your amp bright and clean,
string. It’s in C Mixolydian but includes the Minor 3rd (E b) for extra character. and add reverb. Compression (if you have it) will even out the picking dynamics.

©»¡™º C7
œ œ œ œ
& 44 ∑ .. œœ ⋲ œœ œ b œ œœ œ œ b œ œ œ n œœ œ œ œœ œœ œœ ⋲ œœ œ b œ b œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ n œœ .. ˙˙˙ ... Œ
PLAY
PM PM PM PM PM PM PM PM
E
. .
. .
B 5 5 5 8 5 3 5 5 5 8 10 8 3 5 5
G 5 5 0 5 0 8 0 5 0 3 5 5 5 0 8 0 10 0 8 0 3 5 5
D 8 8 10 8 8 10 10 10 5
A
E
1, 3 a a a a a a a a a a a a 5 a
m m m m m m m m m m m m m

EXAMPLE 6 JEFF LOOMIS (NEVERMORE)

This sweep-picking extravaganza alternates between Am7 and Am7b5 run at the midway point of each arpeggio. These keep up the momentum, while
arpeggios. The looping three-note sequences bring melodic and rhythmic allowing the picking hand to reset for the ascending sweeps that follow. To get
interest to the beginning and end of each arpeggio. Look out for the legato scale the sound, use your neck pickup, a decent amount of gain, and add delay.

©»¡∞º œœœœœœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ bœ œ
Am7 F/A Am Adim

œœœ œ œ œ œ
& 44 ∑ .. œœœœœ œœ
PLAY

E
. 12 8 12 8 8 12 8 13 8 12 8 11 8

.
B 10 10 10 10 10 10
G 9 9 12 9 12
D 10 10 10
A 12 10 7 10 12
E
1, 5 ≥ ≤ ≥
≤ ≥ ≥≥ ≤ ≤ ≤ ≤
≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≥≥
b j Awm ~~~~~
Am7 5

bœ œ œ œ œ # œ œ
œ œ bœ œ œ
œ œ bœ œ œœœœ œ

œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ # œ œ b œ # œ ..
&
BU ~~~~~
E 11 8 11 8 8 11 8 17 14 14 11 8 11 8
. 15 ( 17 )

.
B 10 10 10 10 16
G 8 8 11 8 11
D 10 10 10
A 12 10 9 10 12
E
3, 7 ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≤ ≤ ≤ ≥≥ ≤ ≥ ≥≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ 9 ≥
November 2023 53
 LESSON } Blues
BUDDY GUY
This month Phil Short delves into the playing of
a blues icon who balances old-school authenticity
with a fiery and cutting-edge modern approach.
ABILITY RATING
✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate
Info Will improve your
Key: Various Major Pentatonic vocabulary
Tempo: Various Hammer-ons and pull-offs
https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Blues turnarounds
B
uddy Guy is one of the most influential
and important Chicago bluesmen in the
history of blues, and of guitar playing in
general. He’s influenced generations of
players including many of the world’s most
iconic names including Hendrix, Clapton,
Jimmy Page, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jeff Beck,
and as up-to-date as John Mayer.
Guy was born and raised in Louisiana in
the mid 1930s. By the time he hit his early
20s he was performing in local bands while
holding down a day job. But Guy had his
sites on bigger goals and so made the move
to Chicago. Here he fell under the influence
of Muddy Waters, and in 1958 won a
TRACK RECORD Buddy has released 19 solo albums over his extensive career, as well as 17 others in collaboration with other artists.
His 1967 release, Left My Blues In San Francisco, is brimming with his heartfelt blues guitar phrasing, Crazy Love featuring some great lead
and rhythm work in an R&B setting, while I Suffer With The Blues is a great example of his more traditional 12-bar blues approach.
54 November 2023
Buddy Guy wringing
out every drop of
expression from
his trusty Strat
competition hosted by Magic Sam and Otis
Rush, gaining him his first record deal. Not
long after this, he signed with Cobra Records
which led to even more opportunities.
Ike Turner helped Buddy make his
second record, contributing rhythm guitar
work and composing some of the material.
From there he went from strength to
strength and stepped up with a new record
deal with the legendary Chess Records.
Sadly this particular move didn’t work
out too well for Buddy. He wanted to make
records that captured the power and
excitement of one of his shows, but the label
tried to force him down a different artistic
route. His way around this was to release
music with Delmark Records under the
pseudonym Friendly Chap. But he was able
to earn money with Chess records as
sideman for Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf,
Little Walter and other stars of the time.
Buddy is often associated with the
Chicago blues style, but he has a very eclectic
VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj
Brought to you by…
approach and loves to explore all
expressions of the blues. This in part will
have been what’s made him a success for 50
years and enabled him to maintain a busy
touring schedule even to the present day.
Buddy has accumulated many awards
“Buddy has a very eclectic
approach and loves to
explore all expressions
of the blues”
over the years. He’s won eight Grammys
throughout his career and has also been
granted the Lifetime Achievement award. As
well as these prestigious accolades he was
inducted into rock and roll’s Hall Of Fame by
no less than Eric Clapton and BB King.
Buddy’s playing covers a broad range of
approaches. Our first study explores his
tradional 1950s 12-bar Major Pentatonic
based approach, including some great
turnaround phrases. The second example
utlises more Major Pentatonic playing but in
a much funkier R&B setting. There are lots of
great licks to learn here, but make sure you
play them with Buddy’s fire and passion.
NEXT MONTH Phil deep dives into the restrained
and authentic playing of Jimmy Vaughan
6 4 6
7
2
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
Buddy is best known for playing Fender Strats.
His tone is aggressive and precise, most likely
due to using Fender Bassman or Twin Reverb
amps turned up extraordinarily loud, to give his
tone that clear but gnarly edge. To achieve this
kind of attack, a very mild overdrive or clean
DAVID WOLFF - PATRICK/REDFERNS/GETTY
boost pedal can be used, alongside a touch of
slap-back delay or reverb.
 BUDDY GUY
PLAY BACKING

STUDY 1 50S-STYLE BLUES SHUFFLE

This study is great 12-bar shuffle with some large bends and 50s-style double-stop phrases. Approach the lines in this with a ‘Minor Pentatonic visulaisation’
approach, but replace the b7 on the second string with the 6th interval, and focus on the Major 3rd on the third string for the Major Pentatonic sound.

#
©.»¡£º n œ . œ œ~~~~~~~~
A 7 1/4

˙. œ n œJ œ œ n œ œ œ œ œ œ ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~
# n œ . œ œj œ . œ ‰ œ œj œ . ˙ .
1/4

& # 128 ∑ J nœ
œ

E 8
1/4

5 5
~~~~~~~~ 8 7 5
1/4 ~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~
B 8 7 5 5
G 7 5 7 5
D 7 7 4 7
A 7
E
1

œ nœ
~~~~~~~ œ œ œ n œj # œ
j
j . ~~~~~
œ nœ ~~~~
j D7 A7

### œœ j œ ˙ . œ nœ œœœœ œ œ œ . œ œj n œ œ œ j
J nœ
J J J J J J œ n œ # œ
& J J œ œ.

E 7
BU BD
(8) (7) 5
~~~~~~~ BU BD
10 (12 ) ( 10 ) 8 9
BU
~~~~~ BU BD
~~~~
B 8 10 8 10 8 10 ( 10 ) (13 ) 10 10 7 (8) (7 ) 5
G 9 7 5 6
D 7
A
E
5

œœ. œ. œœ œ œœ. œ. œœ œ ~~~~

E7 D7 A7

# # # # œœj n œœ œœ œœ œœj œœ œœ œœ œœj œœ œœ œœ œœj œœ œœ œœ œ n œ # œ œ n œ # œ œ . œ j œj n œ œj

& J J œ œ

E 5 5
~~~~
B 7 8 8 8 7 8 8 8 7 8 8 8 7 8 8 8 5 7 5 5 7 5
G 8 9 9 9 8 9 9 9 8 9 9 9 8 9 9 9 7 5 6 7 5 6 5
D 7 4 7 7
A 7
E
9

œ. n œ # œ œ n œ œ. n ¿ œ œ
# # # œ j n œ # œ ~~~~~
E7 D7 1/4

j nœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ œœ
j j j
# œœ œ œœ œ ¿ œ œ
& œ œ ˙. J J

~~~~~
1/4

E 10 8 9 X 8 5
B 7 8 8 8 7 8 8 8 7 8 8 8 7 8 8 8 10 8 10 X 7 5
G 7 5 6 8 9 9 9 8 9 9 9 8 9 9 9 8 9 9 9 9
D 7 7
A
E
12

# # # œœ œœ n œœ œœ œœ œœ œ œœ
œ ~~~~
A7 1/4 1/4

œœ œ œj n œ œ œ
J œ
j œ. œ œ nœ #œ
˙. Œ. Œ.
& J J J J J

~~~~
1/4 1/4
BU BD BU
E 5 8 5 5 8 5 5
B 5 7 5 5 7 5 7 (8 ) ( 7) 5 5
G 7 (9 ) 7 5 6
D 7
A
E
15

November 2023 55
 LESSON } Blues VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

PLAY BACKING

STUDY 2 R&B-STYLE BLUES

This study builds on a thematic idea that grows and expands over the solo. Again we’re drawing on the Major Pentatonic vocabulary here to outline the sounds of
the chords. The key to this study is getting the rhythmic elements really locked in, so pay close attention to the note lengths to make the solo sound authentic.

©»¡£• œ
E7
~~. œj # œ
œ nœ œ œ . .
œ œ œ œ œ œ n œ ~~~~~
#### 4 œ nœ œ œ
1/4

Ó ‰ nœ
j
Ó Œ ˙.
& 4 ∑ J

~~ BU 1/4
1/4
~~~~~
E 12 12 14 (16 ) 15 12
B 12 14 14 12 14 14
G 12 14 12
D 12 14 14
A
E
1

~~~ œ ~~. œj # œ
œ nœ œ œœ œj n œ
#### œ j œ nœ œ œ
œ œ œ n œ œ~~~~~~
1/4

Œ ‰ J
n œ Ó Œ J
‰ ‰ J œ œ œ
&

~~~ ~~ BU( BU 1/4

~~~~~~
E 12 12 14 16 ) 15 15 12
B 12 14 14 14 12 14 (15 )
G 12 14 12
D (14 ) 12 14 14
A 14
E
4

~~~
~~ œ n œ~~~œ œ n œ œ n œ œ œ œ n œ œ œ œ . œ
j
# # # # œ œ n œ œ œ~~~~
1/4 A7 1/4

œ œ œ œ œ J
&

E
1/4 ~~~~ ~~ ~~~ BU BD ~~~ 1/4

B 12 14 ( 15 ) (14 ) 12 14
G 12 12 12 14 12
D 11 14 14 14 11 14 14 12 14
A 14 14
E
8

~~~~~~~~~~ E7

nœ œ œ œ
#### œ œ œ œ ˙ œ Œ ‰ n œœœ œœœ œœœ
˙˙
˙ Œ ‰ n œœœ
˙˙
˙ œ
‰ J
& J J

E
~~~~~~~~~
B 12 14
G 11 11 11 13 11 13 12 14
D 14 11 14 (14 ) 12 12 12 14 12 14 14
A 14 12 12 12 14 12 14
E
11

n œœ œœ œœ nœ œ œ
1/4

œ œ. j œ œ œ œ œœ
⋲ œ
nœ
#### Œ ‰ J ‰ J J ‰ Œ Ó
& ⋲

1/4
BU
E 12 12 15 15 15 14 12 12 12
B 14 14 15 ( 17 ) 15 12 12
G 14
D
A
E
15

56 November 2023
 LESSON } Rock VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

GARY ROSSINGTON
Brought to you by…

This month Martin Cooper checks out the

instantly recognisable sound of a southern rock
icon, Lynyrd Skynyrd’s sadly departed guitarist.
single-note lines from that scale.
Gary Rossington’s You’ll find a typical bluesy Minor 3rd to
style fused blues,
Major 3rd move (G-G#) on several
rock and country in
a compelling mix occasions, and a Minor 3rd to Major 2nd
(G-F#) as well. Additionally, another staple
of the Skynyrd sound is the Minor 3rd to

“Songs like Sweet Home

Alabama and Free Bird
are the calling card for an
entire musical genre”
Major 3rd to root note movement, and this
can be heard over the A Major chord, with
the notes C-C# followed by a high A.
The solo is constructed around the E
Minor Pentatonic scale (E-G-A-B-D) for the
most part, but then switches to A Minor
Pentatonic (A-C-D-E-G) over the A chord.
It also makes use of notes from B Major
Pentatonic (B-C#-D#-F#-G#) over the B
chord . You’ll notice a country-style 6ths
phrase that moves up the scale on the third
and first strings. This is another indication of
the blend of styles that can be heard in
Gaines, and backing vocalist Cassie Gaines. southern rock, which took shape by
ABILITY RATING
However, the band’s legacy had been firmly combining rock, blues and country.
✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate set in place with songs like Sweet Home
Info Will improve your Alabama and Free Bird becoming the calling NEXT MONTH Martin investigates the fluid style
Key: E Major Pentatonic phrasing card for an entire musical genre. Many of Journey’s stunning six-stringer, Neil Schon
Tempo: 92bpm Use of double-stop 6ths groups have taken inspiration from
https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Country-blues lines Rossington and Lynyrd Skynyrd, including 5 6
the Black Crowes, and perhaps less

G
7 7 3

ary Rossington was one of the founding obviously so, Metallica.

members of southern rock legends
Lynyrd Skynyrd. His legacy will survive
for many years after his recent and
untimely death in March 2023.
Born in Jacksonville, Florida in 1951
Rossington swapped a love of baseball for
music, when as a teenager he heard The
Rolling Stones. At the time of his death, he
Skynyrd are regularly placed in lists of the
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
greatest and most influential artists of all
time, and have gone on to sell almost 30
million records in the USA alone.
Unsurprisingly they have also been inducted
into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. Rossington was primarily a Les Paul player, so a
Rossington himself was inspired by humbucking tone is the best place to start. That
said, a Strat or Tele will work to good effect for
artists such as Muddy Waters, Eric Clapton
the Lynyrd Skynyrd sound. A Fender or Marshall
JASON MOORE/ZUMA PRESS/ALAMY STOCK PHOTOS

was the final surviving member of Lynyrd
Skynyrd, a band that had suffered many
losses including a plane crash in 1977 that
devastated the line-up, claiming the lives of
lead singer Ronnie Van Zant, guitarist Steve
and Buddy Guy and it’s these blues-rock
influences that can be heard in this month’s
track. It’s a 12-bar chord progression in the
key of E Major (E-F#-G#-A-B-C#-D#) and
the main rhythm guitar parts are built using
amp tone with enough grit to rock but not too
much preamp saturation is the way to go, with
minimal effects save for a touch of reverb and
perhaps some tape delay style echo.

TRACK RECORD The debut Lynyrd Skynyrd album titled Pronounced Leh-‘nerd Skin-‘nerd released in 1973 features the classic southern
rock songs Free Bird and Simple Man, while the follow-up, Second Helping, opened with the equally legendary Sweet Home Alabama. If you
want to hear how Synyrd sounded live, One More From The Road from 1976 includes many of the classic songs and is full of great guitar.

58 November 2023
 GARY ROSSINGTON
PLAY BACKING

LYNYRD SKYNYRD RHYTHM

You’ll notice a blend of rock aggression but also some restraint and finesse in this style of guitar playing, so don’t hit the strings too hard on either the rhythm or lead
parts. There’s also some hybrid picking (pick and fingers) in bars 5, 6 and 9 so work on this technique if it’s new to you.

©»ª™
#### 4 ∑
E

& 4 œ
⋲ œ œ
œ
⋲
œ œ œ
⋲
œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ
RHYTHM GUITAR
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ n œ œ œ œ œ œ
E
B
G
D 2 2 2
A 2 4 2 2 4 2 2 4 2
E 0 0 2 4 0 0 2 4 3 2 0 0 2 4
1

A E

# # Œ Œ n œœ # œœ œ œ œ Œ ⋲ n œœ ⋲ œœ n œœ ..
& # # œ œ œ œ
œ œ
œ ⋲ œ œ œ
⋲
œœ
œ œ œ œ œ œ n œ # œ œ œ œ œ œ œœœ œ œ œ
E
B 5 7 7 5
G 2 2 5 6 2 2 7 7 5
D 2 2 2 7 2 2 2
A 2 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 4 2
E 0 0 2 4 3 4 0 0 2 4
4

####
B
œ œ œœœ œ E

& œœ œœ ‰ . œJ œ œ œœ œœ Œ Œ œœ œœ ..
œ˙
⋲ œ œ
œ
œ œ œ œœ
œ œ  œœ
œ œ œ œ œ œ nœ œ
E 7 9 11
B 4 2
G 4 4 6 8 8 9 9 11 4 4 4 2
D 2 4 4 4 4 2
A 2 2 2 2 2 2 4 2
E 0 0 2 4 0 0 2 4 3 2
8

####
A
Solo enters

& œ˙ Œ Œ‰ Œ Ó Œ Œ ‰ Œ Ó œœ œœ Œ Œ ‰
œœœœœ œœ nœ #œ œ œ œœ nœ #œ œ œ œœ nœ #œ
E
B
G 2 2
D 2 2 2
A 2 0 0
E 0 0 2 4 0 0 3 4 0 0 0 0 3 4 0 0 3 4
12

####
E B E

& œœ œœ Œ Ó ŒŒ‰ Œ Ó œœ œœ Œ Ó œœ œœ Œ Ó ŒŒ‰ ŒÓ ŒÓ

œœ œ œ nœ #œ œ œ œœ œœ œ œ nœ #œ œ œ œœ
E
B
G 2 2 4 4 4 4
D 2 2 4 4 4 4
A 0 0 2 2 2 2
E 0 0 3 4 0 0 0 0 3 4 0 0 0 0
18

November 2023 59
 LESSON } Rock VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

SOLO

LYNYRD SKYNYRD SOLO

There’s nothing too tricky in the solo but make sure the hammer-ons from Major to Minor 3rd are executed cleanly, and that your bends reach their target pitch
accurately. Although quite jaunty, you’ll need to maintain a relaxed and laid-back feel here and, as always, avoid rushing!

j .
˙ . ~~~~ œ n œ œ œ ˙ ~~~
©»ª™ j E

#### 4 12
nœ
œ
j œ œ n œ~~ œ
j œ œ œ
& 4 Œ Œ Ó
LEAD GUITAR

E 12 BU ~~~~ BU BD ~~ BU
12
BU
15 (17 ) 15
~~~
B 15 (17 ) 12 12
G 14 (16 ) (14 ) 12 14 (16 )
D
A
E
13

nœ œ nœ œ j œ œ œ A

####
œ
œ nœ nœ
j w ~~~~~ j œ œ n œ~~ Œ
& J ‰ Œ nœ Ó

E 15 12 12
BU BD BU ~~~~~ BU ~~
B 15 15 (17 ) (15 ) 12 8 (10 )
G 14 12 7 ( 9) 7 5
D
A
E
16

#### œ~~~
E

& nœ œ œ œ œ nœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ .
œ œ nœ œ œ œ. œ œ

E
~~~
B
G 7 7 7 7 9
D 5 7 9 9 9 9
A 5 7 5 7 5
E 5 7 7 7
19

œ
j œ
B
œ œ œ
j œ œ œ œ
j œ œ œ œ
j œ œ œ œ œ
j œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ~~~
####
& Œ

E
BU
14 14
BU
14 14
BU
14 14
BU BD BU BD ~~~
B 14 (16 ) 14 ( 16 ) 14 (16 ) 14 (16 ) (14 ) 12 14 (16 ) (14 ) 12 12 14 12 12
G 14 14 14
D
A
E
21

j w ~~~~~~~~
E
j œ œ nœ œ œ œ n œ œ~~~ Œ
nœ
#### œ
& ∑

E
BU ~~~~~~~~ BU BD ~~~
B 15 (17 )
G 14 (16 ) ( 14 ) 12 12
D 14 14 12 14
A
E
23

60 November 2023
 NEVER
MISS
ANOTHER

BACK ISSUES
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OCTOBER GT352 SEPTEMBER GT351 AUGUST GT350

POWER PENTATONIC LICKS
Beef up your solos with 40 licks, Jimmy Page,
Gary Moore, and Eric Johnson style! Plus: Oz
Noy & Terry Syrek videos; Josh Smith, Dimebag
Darrell, Jimi Hendrix & Tom Verlaine studies;
and Joao Pernambucco’s Sons de Carrilhoes.
PAUL GILBERT - SOLOING
The rock legend joins GT for a 37-minute video
masterclass on expressive soloing. Chris Duarte
plays his favourite Texas blues licks. Plus: 6 Latin
American rhythms, 2 Albert King solos, Bonnie
Raitt, John Mayer, Michael Romeo & more!
ROCKIN’ AND A-ROLLIN’!
Learn 10 solos in the style of the 1950s’ most
innovative rockers. The biggest names & some
less well-known players. Plus: Two Peter Green
solos from Remi Harris, BB King, Shane Theriot
video, Matt Schofield, Nickel Creek & more!

JULY GT349 JUNE GT348 MAY GT347

MO’ BETTER BLUES!
Inspired by Joe Bonamassa and six of his
cohorts, we show you how to solo like these
greats! Plus: Larry Carlton, Steve Lukather, Chris
Rea, Jared James Nichols, Martin Taylor, Andy
Wood, Metheny, Hendrix, SRV, Lady A & more!
ERIC CLAPTON
Learn five superb pieces that evoke different
eras from Slowhand’s career: Beano, Cream,
Layla, Journeyman, & Unplugged. Plus: Napo-
leon Coste’s Barcarella, Richie Sambora, Robben
Ford, Plini, Martin Taylor, The Shires, & more!
DAVID GILMOUR
Fifty years on from Pink Floyd’s Dark Side Of The
Moon we look at the playing of David Gilmour.
Plus: Brett Garsed honours Allan Holdsworth;
Troy Redfern slide licks; T-Bone Walker, Hubert
Sumlin, Thin Lizzy, Tim Henson & tons more!

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Please do not call or email the magazine directly as we cannot deal with subscriptions or back issues. We regret that we cannot photocopy transcriptions from back issues.
Each back issue costs (including postage and packing) UK: £6.25

November 2023 61
 LESSON } Shred VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

HERMAN LI
It’s maximum fire, flames and fret-melting as
Charlie Griffiths brings you five scary licks
from DragonForce’s Hong Kong-born shredder.
triads with a Major 3rd, or as Diminished
Herman Li in the triads with a flattened 5th.
throes of another
Our third example is a single-note riff
spectacular solo
that’s played across two strings and features
palm-muted alternate picking. Again, avoid
digging deeply into the strings with the pick
by using just the tip; let your distorted amp
tone do the aggressive work, not you!
For example 4, we combine a picked scale
lick with pull-offs and some natural
harmonics. These are played by placing your
fretting finger directly over the fretwire,
picking the string then releasing the finger.
In this lick we use the whammy bar to add
some vibrato, but to get that brutal
DragonForce style you can abuse the bar
with as many dive-bombs as you wish.
Our fifth and final example is based on
sweep picked Major and Minor triads played
across the top three strings. Pay attention to
the picking directions for the smoothest
approach to playing these cleanly and
economically. Again, the idea is to gently
glance over the strings rather than digging in
hard with the plectrum.
Play each example starting slowly and
ABILITY RATING In this lesson we will look at each of these relaxed and gradually speed up in small
core techniques starting with some single- increments in order to build up the required
✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Advanced
string picking in Ex1. DragonForce music is dexterity over time.
Info Will improve your typically played at higher speeds so your
Key: Various Alternate picking picking hand will require training in order to NEXT MONTH Charlie brings you five licks from
Tempo: Various Two-handed tapping
maintain control. Rather than tremolo Creed and Alter Bridge’s Mark Tremonti
https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Sweep picking
picking as fast as possible, warm up by
playing 16th notes, 16th-note triplets and

H
ong Kong-born Herman Li is a
successful guitarist, streamer and
gamer best known as one half of
DragonForce’s two-guitarist co-op
alongside Sam Totman. Herman’s style
draws from power metal and speed metal
genres as well as video games. Li combines
these elements and lots of techniques to
create an effect akin to a high-energy arcade
game soundtrack meets virtuosic guitar
explosion. Herman combines fast alternate
picked scales, tapping, sweeping and
whammy bar harmonics, all performed in
quick succession to create an exciting and
32nd notes with a drum loop or metronome,
keeping the picking consistent in timing and
volume. Keep your arm relaxed by avoiding
excessive force to your pick strokes and
instead let just the tip of the pick pass across
the string. Example 1 is played with constant
16th notes at 180bpm with some melodic
3rds played with the fretting hand. As you
play along to the backing track, listen to the
harmony guitar and blend your part with it.
Example 2 is another two-guitar harmony
part, this time played with tapping. Here we
are using Minor triads played as 1, b3 and 5
intervals from low to high. You can
4 5 6
8 2
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
Ideally you’ll need a guitar with a vibrato, and a
modern tube distortion tone with plenty of
gain. Set the EQ relatively evenly for a
consistent tone across the fretboard. Use an
overdrive pedal as a boost in front of the amp,
with the gain at zero to help tighten the
palm-muting sections, then add a delay effect
low in the mix for some extra dimension.
STEVE THORNE/REDFERNS/GETTY

exhilarating salvo of notes. experiment by turning these into Major

TRACK RECORD The debut 2003 Valley Of The Damned unleashed the DragonForce sound, cementing them as the UK’s premiere power
metal band. Worldwide acclaim came in 2005 with Inhuman Rampage and the song Through The Fire And Flames, which featured on the
Guitar Hero III game. The latest album Extreme Power Metal features pyrotechnics aplenty with no sign of the band slowing down.

62 November 2023
 HERMAN LI

EXAMPLE 1 STRETCHY 16TH-NOTE LICK

Use your first and fourth fingers to fret these Major and Minor 3rd stretches and repeat the same melodic shape within each position. Use alternate picking to
articulate the 16th notes evenly throughout.

©»¡•º
Ex 1
√Eœ5 œ œ œ
#### 4 .. œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ PLAY

& 4 ∑

E
B . 16 16 16 16 12 12 16 16 12 12 16 16 12 12 12 12
G
D
A
.
E
1
≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ continue sim

(√)# B5œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ A5
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
Play 4 times

## # ..
&

19 19 19 19 16 16 19 19 16 16 19 19 16 16 16 16 17 17 17 17 14 14 17 17 14 14 17 17 14 14 14 14
.
E
B
G
D
A
.
E
2

EXAMPLE 2 MINOR TRIAD LICK

Picking-hand tap the 19th fret with your first or second finger and use the first and fourth digits of your fretting hand to execute the legato notes. Play the B Minor
triad melody on the second string, then move to the first string and repeat it as an E Minor triad.

©»¡§º
L L L L L L L L L L
B5 E5 Play 4 times

#
√
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ
& # 44 .. œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ .. PLAY

L LL LL L LL LL
∑

E
B . 19 15 12 15 19 15 19 15 12 15 19 15 19 15 12 15
19 15 12 15 19 15 19 15 12 15 19 15 19 15 12 15
.
G
D
A
. .
E
1

EXAMPLE 3 ALTERNATE-PICKED TWO-STRING LICK

This riff is based in the key of D Minor (D-E-F-G-A-Bb-C) and played on the fourth and third strings. Use the side of your palm to mute the strings near the bridge and
use alternate picking to keep up the momentum.

©»¡∞º D5
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
A5
œœœœœœœœœœ
4 .. œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ
&b 4
PLAY
∑
PM (throughout)
E
B .
G
D
A
. 10 10 12 12 12 12
14 14 14 14 12 12 10 10
14 14 10 10 12 12 12 12
14 14 14 14 12 12 17 17 17 17

E
1
≥≤≥ ≤ continue sim

November 2023 63
 LESSON } Shred VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXAMPLE 3 ALTERNATE-PICKED TWO-STRING LICK (CONTINUED)

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œPlayœ 4 times
G5 C5 A5

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ ..
& b

E
B .
G
D
A
10 10 12 12 12 12
14 14 14 14 12 12 10 10
14 14 10 10 12 12 14 14
10 10 14 12 10
14
12 10
14 12 .
E
3

EXAMPLE 4 PULL-OFF LICK WITH WHAMMY BAR ENHANCED HARMONICS

This lick begins with an E Minor scale (E-F#-G-A-B-C-D) pattern, followed by a natural harmonic at the 17th fret coupled with some whammy bar vibrato. Next, use
pull-offs to descend the first string and finish with a sustaining harmonic at the 17th fret.

©»¡¢∞ œ œ œ ¤
E5 B5

# 4
√
.. œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ ‚ ~~~
& 4 œ œœ œ œ œ œ

·
PLAY ∑
NH
~~~
E
B . 10 12 13
12 15 14 12
15 13 12 13
17 15 14
17 15 13 17
14 19 17 15
G
D
A
. 9 9 11 12 17

E
1
≥ ≥≤ ≥ ≤ ≥≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥≤ ≥≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥ ≤ ≥≤ ≥ ≥

√œ
#
A5

œ œ œ
G5

œ œ œ œ O
D/F #
¤ ~~~~~~~~~~ Play 4 times
..

·
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
~~~~~~~~~~
NH

E
B
20 0 19 0 17 0 15 0 19 0 17 0 15 0 14 0
17 .
G
D
A
.
E
3
≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥ ≥

EXAMPLE 5 SWEEP-PICKING LICK WITH ARPEGGIOS

Start this sweep-picked example with an upstroke, then a pull-off, followed by another upstroke. Next, glide your pick downwards across the three strings to ascend
the arpeggio. Maintain this picking approach as you play through the progression.

©»¡∞∞
C5 F5 G5 Play 4 times

œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ ..
√
PLAY 4
&4 ∑ .. œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ

E
B . 15 12
13 13
12 17 12 15 12
13 13
12 17 12 20 17
18 18
17 20 17 19 15
17 15
13 17
.
G
D
A
. 12 12 17 16 14
.
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64 November 2023
 ON
SALE
NOW
GE T T HE NE W I S SU E F RO M W W W .M A
G A Z I NE SD I RE C T. CO M
 LESSON } Blues VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

TASTY SOLOING Brought to you by…

This month, Andy G Jones investigates the tasty
and authentic-sounding playing style of one of the
leading exponents of modern blues guitar.
Our track this month is a simple one-
Kirk Fletcher here chord New Orleans groove on C7. Kirk has
with a Telecaster, but
covered Louisiana native Sonny Landreth’s
you’ll just as likely see
him playing a Les Paul track Congo Square on record, so it’s quite
appropriate. However, his easy-going style is
deceptive, so he makes a lot of technically
demanding lines sound easy. Therefore
some of these moves need care and finesse if
you are to pull them off properly.
Many of the ideas in our solo exploit both
the Major and Minor 3rd, and this straddling
of the line between the two is a staple of
blues playing. Kirk often slides into notes for
more expression and these, along with bends
and legato, give his solos their vocal quality.
Speaking of string bending, for most of the
bends in our example you’ll need to have
more than one fretting-hand finger on the
string, both to provide support to your
fingers, but also to keep the bends in tune.
As far as rhythm goes, the use of triplets
and sextuplets adds variety. Sextuplets are a
useful subdivision of the beat where the
tempo is too fast for 32nd notes but where
1/16ths might seem somewhat pedestrian.
Once you have these ideas under your
fingers, try generating a few variations of
your own. The more you do this, the more
you too will start to sound like an original.
ABILITY RATING Fletcher is also great pals with Joe
Bonamassa and is featured on the DVD Live NEXT MONTH Andy looks at the incredible slide
✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate
From The Greek Theater, the exposure from playing of the awesome Derek Trucks
Info Will improve your which brought him to the attention of
Key: Various Legato technique audiences worldwide. 5
Tempo: Various Classic blues phrasing 4 4 6 4
Kirk’s style is modern and vibey, but with
https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Solo building
enough evidence of his lineage to keep him
in the blues purists’ good books. His

T
his month we’re looking at the playing of
leading modern blues guitarist Kirk
Fletcher. Kirk spent a lot of time in his
younger years with the great Robben
Ford. Unsurprising then that his style,
particularly his rhythm playing, is informed
by Robben’s deep sense of harmony.
Fletcher was also the guitarist in the well
established blues band The Fabulous
Thunderbirds, the seat once held not only by
the great Jimmy Vaughan, but also Duke
Robilliard and Doyle Bramhall II, too.
phrasing is classy and he always makes great
use of space among the killer licks. It’s clear
too that Kirk has studied the heritage of
modern electric blues guitar, and you’ll often
hear him referencing such greats as BB King
in interviews. He obviously has the Albert
King and Stevie Ray Vaughan language
down, too. But while many players spill out
musical quotes from famous players
willy-nilly, Kirk has created his own sound, a
personal and unique blend of influences that
combine with his own creative spirit.
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
Kirk exploits several different types of setup,
using guitars with humbuckers and single-coil
instruments. However, one constant is that
you’ll need an American style amp sound.
Reverb will be essential. You’ll also need some
overdrive. For rhythm, a good rotary speaker
emulation pedal (or model), or perhaps a classic
tremolo might come in handy.
PHOTO BY ADAM GASSON

TRACK RECORD All of Kirk’s albums are worth checking out. He is obviously very knowledgable about gear and how to use it, so his
records are a tonehound’s dream. His superb CD My Turn was produced by the great blues and fusion guitarist Michael Landau, and if you
want to hear what Kirk sounds like on a a gig, check out El Medio Stomp from his excellent Live At The Baked Potato, Burning Blues disc.

66 November 2023
 KIRK FLETCHER

EXAMPLE 1 BLUES SCALE LICK WITH BENDS

Our first example uses the Minor Pentatonic, embellished with b5s. Be careful with the bends - prep by checking the sound of the fretted note before bending to it.

PLAY

EXAMPLE 2 SUPPORTING THE BENDING FINGER

On the first bend you’ll need to support the bending finger. If you bend with the third finger, also get the first and second digits behind the string to add power.

PLAY

EXAMPLE 3 POSITION CHANGES USING SLIDES

This example slips and slides from the third position to the eighth, the slides helping to navigate the position changes.

PLAY

November 2023 67
 LESSON } Blues VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXAMPLE 4 BREAKING OUT OF BOX SHAPES

This lick starts around the 10th fret area, again shifting positions to break out of the usual and predictable Minor Pentatonic box.

PLAY

EXAMPLE 5 SOLO
The sample solo takes the above ideas but weaves in and out of them using other lines to create a flow. You’ll note that the solo has much more of a mix of major and
minor 3rds. Be careful to get the bends in tune. Have fun!

PLAY

68 November 2023
 KIRK FLETCHER

EXAMPLE 5 SOLO CONTINUED

November 2023 69
 LESSON } Acoustic Country
DOLLY PARTON
This month Stuart Ryan shares the style of a
worldwide celebrity, superstar, campaigner, and
perhaps the most famous country musician ever.
ABILITY RATING
✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Easy
Info Will improve your
Key: A Alternating bassline picking
Tempo: 134bpm Basic country rhythms
https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Simple bluegrass soloing
T
he long-reigning queen of country, Dolly
Parton’s career is astonishing when you
put it into numbers: over 3000 songs
penned including mega-smash I Will
Always Love You, made doubly famous by
Whitney Houston in the film The
Bodyguard. A true crossover artist, Dolly has
taken country into the mainstream charts
with hits Jolene and 9 To 5, which many a
function guitarist will have had to master.
Dolly’s glittering, rhinestone-laden
onstage image belies her humble beginnings.
She was born in Tennessee and raised in a
one-room shack, but music proved to be an
early way out of poverty. By age 10 she was
TRACK RECORD Dolly Parton has released many albums over her career – solo studio work, live albums, a series of albums with Porter
Wagoner and a plethora of releases with artists including Willy Nelson, Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt, and of course Kenny Rogers.
Try 1971’s Coat Of Many Colours – the title track (which is a true story) is one she often plays live and is a good showcase of her guitar style.
70 November 2023
Dolly Parton often
plays guitar in
open tunings and
using a capo
performing on local radio and, staggeringly,
by 13 she was appearing on the legendary
Grand Ole Opry stage. After leaving school
the obvious move was to Nashville where she
became a professional songwriter, penning
hits for other artists and raising her profile
with weekly appearances on country star
Porter Wagoner’s TV show. She gained her
first big hits duetting with Wagoner before
going solo and earning success with 1973’s
chart-topper Jolene, and I Will Always Love
You which hit the top spot in 1974 (again in
1984) and her first Grammy in 1979.
As with many artists in the country and
pop worlds the parts you hear on record are
typically played by studio musicians.
However, watch Dolly live and she plays
guitar, banjo and dulcimer. While her guitar
playing usually serves the role of simple
accompaniment, she will often play short,
bluegrass inspired solos the like of which I’ve
included here. It’s a great example of
melodic, scale-based country playing and is
VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj
ON VIDEO
a good way into the genre if you are new to it.
Dolly’s playing is driven by the Maybelle
Carter style ‘thumb and flick’ approach and
the Hank Williams/Johnny Cash alternating
bassline style. You can play this with a pick
but if you opt for the Carter style then the
picking-hand thumb plucks a bass note
followed by the first finger flicking down to
sound the corresponding chord. Aim to
strike the strings with the nail on the finger
“Dolly Parton’s playing
style is driven by the
Maybelle Carter ‘thumb
and flick’ approach”
for a more percussive characteristic.
While there are few demands on the
fretting hand here, as Dolly mostly plays
simple open-position chords, you may find
the picking-hand thumb needs some work so
as to ensure you strike the correct bass notes.
For the first-finger flick, make sure you have
sufficient power to strike the strings but not
so much that they overshadow the bass
notes. It’s a balancing act between thumb
and finger to get this sounding right.
NEXT MONTH Stuart focuses on another country
superstar, the legendary Waylon Jennings
6
3 7 7
2
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
You will often see Dolly perform with her
custom Taylor GS Mini and her Martin 5-18 Terz
WADE PAYNE/INVISION/AP IMAGES/ ALAMY STOCK PHOTOS
– she is a fan of small scale guitars. Typically
within this style though you’ll want to use a
larger bodied instrument, although of course
this isn’t vital. I recorded this month’s column
with a Martin Custom Expert 1937 D28 and a
Soyuz 017 fet microphone.
 DOLLY PARTON
VIDEO PLAY

PLAYING NOTES
[Bars 1-16] Classic country strumming is very easy on the surface but there are to sound uneven, and if you catch the wrong string you will really hear it! All of
elements that make it a challenge. Timekeeping is the obvious one but you also this becomes even more real when you perform this stuff with a bassist as they
have to be really accurate with the alternating bass notes otherwise things start will typically be playing the same basslines as you, albeit in a lower register.

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November 2023 71
 LESSON } Acoustic Country VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

PLAYING NOTES
[Bars 17-32] Dolly has a great and practical approach to soloing that just works (root, 3rd , 5th, etc). Add the typical country/bluegrass rhythmic phrasing of
– she generally builds licks around chord shapes, in this case triads. Using this mostly quavers and crotchets along with some legato (hammer-ons and slides in
method means you can’t really go wrong as you are always hitting chord tones this case) and you have the perfect, melodic country solo.

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72 November 2023
 Find Your
Perfect Tone
Every issue, Guitarist brings you the best gear,
features, lessons and interviews to fuel
your passion for guitar

Guitarist magazine is also available on iOS and Android

Also available to order online at www.magazinesdirect.com/guitarist-magazine

 LESSON } Blues VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

MODERN BLUES
SOLOING PT 2
Brought to you by…

In the second instalment in this mini-series

Josh Smith reveals various jazzy concepts
that he uses to freshen up his blues soloing.
We can even treat the I chord (Bb7) as a V
Josh talks about chord (belonging to the key of Eb), and add
borrowing from other that Mixolydian flavour to our solos.
tonalities, and using There are other aspects of my playing that
chromatic notes
borrow ideas from jazz. The first is to add
chromatic passing notes into my lines.
Chromatic notes are ones that don’t belong
to the key signature. Why do we add them?
When we want to play longer, more complex
lines, we soon run up against the limitations
of seven-note scales, especially if we’re
playing eighth or 16th-note passages. Adding
passing notes is a way of ‘filling out’ a lick, so
we can play uninterrupted, flowing lines.
If you’ve never got into this idea in a big
way, a good place to start is to play a chord
shape, then locate all the parent scale notes
around it that are within easy reach. Now
notice the notes that you didn’t play, which
don’t belong to the parent scale, but are
within easy reach of the chord shape - these
are your passing note options.
So, as an exercise, try playing a chord,
then inventing a lick that uses mostly scale
tones, but with a passing note or two. You’ll
soon begin to see there is scope to create
many interesting ideas.
as a Dominant chord (7th, 9th, etc), and
ABILITY RATING
something I like to do, to introduce more NEXT MONTH Josh reveals more inner workings
✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate/Advanced interesting sounds into my solos, is to view behind his playing in Modern Blues Pt3
Info Will improve your each of the three chords as a V chord. I’ll
Key: B b Blues vocabulary demonstrate this idea in the examples that 6 6 4
Tempo: 126bpm Harmonic knowledge follow, but here’s the theory behind this idea. 7
https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Soloing over changes We’re in the key of Bb here, so our three 8

chords are Bb7, Eb7 and F7. Eb7 is chord IV in

E
arly on in my playing career, I was drawn
to the ideas of jazz guitarists as a way of
spicing up my blues playing and finding
my own voice. Last month, we looked
briefly at the idea of implying chord changes
in a three-chord blues. In essence, this is the
idea that we can play melodic phrases that
spell out additional chords that could be
used to enrich the harmony, even though
they’re not written on the lead sheet. This
time we’ll expand on that idea.
It’s common to play every chord in a blues
the key of Bb, but what if we view it as a V
chord? When you play example 5, you’ll see I
use the Eb Mixolydian scale (Eb-F-G-Ab-Bb-C-
Db) over the Eb7 chord. Eb Mixolydian is mode
five in the key of Ab, so the lick implies that
for the Eb7 bars, we’ve temporarily changed
key to Ab. It’s a really cool sound.
Taking a quick snapshot of another
tonality helps us create more interesting
lines and introducing some tension and
release. Many jazz players apply this kind of
modal thinking to their playing.
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
Josh favours primarily single-coil guitars. For
higher gain sounds he prefers overdrive pedals
rather than distortion tones, ideally with a
built-in boost to go from crunching rhythms to
searing leads. New to the market is Josh’s Poly
Effects Flat V Signature Overdrive, so if you’re in
the market for a new toy and enjoy his sounds,
then check it out. Just add reverb or delay.

TRACK RECORD Josh’s albums all show his eclectic, jazz-tinged approach. Robben Ford, too, incorporates such ideas. Check out the stellar
OLLUY CURTIS

Help The Poor from Yoshi’s ’95 (Live Oakland). It’s an historic live recording with The Blue Line that’s only just been released. The band’s blues
pushed the boundaries, and you’ll hear Robben soloing freely with the Half-Whole Diminished, chromatics and more. Josh would approve!

74 November 2023
 MODERN BLUES SOLOING PART 2

EXAMPLE 1 CREATING CONTINUITY

Last month we explored how to invent quick motifs that carry through a line. fret. Throughout the lick I keep returning to that Bb as it anchors everything that
Here’s one based around just one note, the Bb root on the second string, 11th happens around it. It’s an effective way of creating a sense of continuity.

PLAY

EXAMPLE 2 BREAKING OUT

For this idea I continue the idea from example 1, keeping the Bb note theme half of bar 3 and bar 4. Take care to cleanly articulate the triplets in this lick, as
going for a while longer, before allowing myself to break out of it in the latter they really help the line to swing.

PLAY

EXAMPLE 3 CHROMATICS AND ENCLOSURES

For the turnaround part of the blues I’m using F Mixolydian (F-G-A-Bb-C-D-Eb) harmony. Often, I play these as enclosures. The idea is to have a chord tone in
over the F7 chord and I’ve included the jazz idea of adding chromatic passing mind, then target it by playing chromatic notes either above or below it or even
notes between some of the scale tones to create a line that weaves around the sometimes both. You’ll find this in the playing of many jazz guitarists.

PLAY

EXAMPLE 4 ANTICIPATING CHORDS

The next example begins with a quick call and response motif. Bars 4-5 have a notes come from a hybrid Pentatonic scale that blends together both Bb Major
faster 1/16th-note lick for you to learn. Watch out for the timing; sometimes I like and Bb Minor Pentatonic scales. In blues it’s common to blur the lines between
to ‘interrupt’ a 1/16th-note run with an 1/8th note to break up the rhythm. The Major and Minor tonalities.

PLAY

November 2023 75
 LESSON } Blues VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

EXAMPLE 4 CHROMATICS AND ENCLOSURES... CONTINUED

EXAMPLE 5 IMPLYING HARMONY

Here’s the idea referred to earlier. Over the Eb7 the lick comes from Eb Mixolydian often followed by a Diminished 7 chord a half step (semitone) above, before
(Eb-F-G-Ab-Bb-C-Db), as though we’re briefly playing in the key of Ab Major. In bar returning to the I chord. The lick hints that the underlying chord could be Edim7.
2 we encounter another implied harmony idea. In a jazz-blues, the IV chord is Do you like the way these ideas add spice to otherwise ordinary licks?

PLAY

EXAMPLE 6 TENSION AND RESOLUTION

For the turnaround we return to F Mixolydian to spell out the sound of the F7 Pentatonic ideas and end with a bluesy phrase. When travelling momentarily
chord (V chord), then return to the home chord of Bb and pull out some Bb Minor ‘outside’ it’s nice to return ‘home’ (resolve) to something more familiar.

PLAY

76 November 2023
 MODERN BLUES SOLOING PART 2

EXAMPLE 7 CREATING THEMES

This lick uses a simple, repeating motif on the second and third strings. Notice that in bars 2-4 the idea is delayed by an 1/8th note each time, so that the idea is
displaced and sounds less predictable.

PLAY

EXAMPLE 8 DEVELOPING THE THEME

If the previous idea was the question, this lick is the answer. It takes the theme of the previous lick and embellishes it on the first string.

PLAY

EXAMPLE 9 BRINGING THE SOLO ‘HOME’

To end, here’s one of my favorite licks using a hybrid scale. Most of the notes Look out for it in the second group of triplets. The last few notes of the phrase
come from Bb Mixolydian (Bb-C-D-Eb-F-G-Ab), so we’re viewing the I chord as a transition back into the Bb Blues scale to bring things home. You can create your
V chord from Eb Major. Then I add a chromatic note to create some tension. own hybrid scales by adding chromatic notes to Pentatonics and other scales.

PLAY

November 2023 77
 LESSON } Technique Building VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

FRETTING-HAND
Brought to you by…

INDEPENDENCE This issue Simon Barnard presents five will improve your dexterity no end.
You may be familiar with an exercise
exercises and a study piece to improve and that’s often called the spider exercise, where
expand your fretting-hand finger independence. you play chromatically along each string. For
example, playing the 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th
frets on each string, using your first, second,
Yngwie Malmsteen’s third and fourth fingers. This is a useful tool
dexterity with both to help you warm up and develop speed, but
hands is legendary it’s predictable so doesn’t exactly challenge
your fingers. So why not re-order the
sequence of fingers? Instead of using your
first, second, third and fourth digits in
succession, explore something different such
as your first, fourth, second and third fingers
(example 1). There are many ways to change
the string or finger order to enhance your
independence, so why not experiment with
seeking out other patterns, too?
Another style of playing which might take
you out of your comfort zone is exploring
baroque inspired lines (examples 4 and 5
plus the study piece). These ideas, originally
written for harpsichord, are excellent finger
workouts, providing lines a little different
from what you may be used to. It can be
challenging to get them up to fast tempos, so
use a metronome to slowly build up speed.
With perseverance, your technique and
dexterity will develop greatly, ultimately
improving your guitar playing ability.
Have fun, and I’ll see you next month.

There are many ways of playing your NEXT MONTH Simon extends your workout
ABILITY RATING scales in different ways, opposed to simply regime with some Fretting-Hand Stretches
✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ ✪ Moderate ascending and descending the neck. You
Info Will improve your might find that you can play your favoured 5 5 5
6
Key: C Major/A Minor Fretting-hand independence shapes at rapid tempos along the fretboard, 3

Tempo: 100 bpm Coordination but what happens if you deconstruct these
https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Alternate picking and play them in different intervals? One
GAIN BASS MIDDLE TREBLE REVERB
way would be to play a scale in 3rds, where

G
uitarists often stick to tried-and-tested
scale shapes, finger positions and licks,
built upon years of muscle memory and
repetition. This can yield gratifying
results, but in order to build upon one’s
musicianship it’s good to move away from
these positions and try something new. Not
only will this enhance your technique and
fretting-hand independence, it will also open
your ears to new phrases and ideas, and
breathe new life into your playing.
you play the root note followed by the 3rd
degree of the scale. You would then play the
2nd degree followed by the 4th, then the 3rd
followed by the 5th, and so on (see example
3). If you’re not used to playing scales in this
way, it might be tricky at first. However, with
practice, it will improve your fretting-hand
independence and bring new creative life to
your playing. There are many ways of
playing scales that you should explore, such
as doing so in groups of three or four, which
As this is a technique-building article it’s best to
avoid extreme tones, with loads of distortion,
delay or other potentially intrusive sounds. So
go for a clean to very lightly driven tone, using
the neck pickup for a pleasing rather than
exceptional tone. Some light reverb won’t hurt,
and you can always crank things up once you
are more confident with these ideas.
ROB BALL/WIREIMAGE/GETTY

TRACK RECORD Yngwie Malmsteen’s Arpeggios From Hell showcases some of the techniques in this month’s article, as does the intro
to Anastasia by Slash. For something more extreme, check out Tosin Abasi, Allan Holdsworth or Julian Lage on YouTube. Larry Carlton plays
arpeggios using skipped intervals in It Was Only Yesterday from his eponymous 1978 album, and in the title track from Strikes Twice.

78 November 2023
 FRETTING-HAND FINGER INDEPENDENCE
PLAY BACKING

EXAMPLE 1 SPIDER EXERCISE

This is a great exercise for finger independence. Play this exercise across all six strings, moving up the neck one fret at a time. Once you are comfortable with this
exercise, and your picking is even, in-time and perfectly co-ordinated, re-order the sequence of fingers to create different combinations.

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1

EXAMPLE 2 DIATONIC ARPEGGIOS

This diatonic example uses triads in multiple finger positions. It’s perfect for challenging your fingers with shapes that you might not be accustomed to.

©»¡ºº C Dm Em F G Am Bdim C

& 44
¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœ ..
œœ œœ œ

E
B . 3 5 3 6 3 .
G
D
A
. 3
2 5 2
5
3
2
3 2 5
4
5 3
2 5 2
5
4 4 2 5 5 4 5
.
E
1 ≥≤ ≥≤
EXAMPLE 3 MAJOR SCALE IN 3RDS
Playing scales in 3rds is another way of improving fretting-hand finger independence. Once you are happy with this exercise, try applying it across two octaves as
well as using the same idea on other scale shapes that you know (Mixolydian, Dorian, etc).
©»¡ºº C

¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
& 44 ..
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œœœœœœœœ œœœœœœœ œ .
œ œœœœœœ .

E
B . .
G
D
A
. 8 10 8 12 10
9
12
10 9 12 10 10
12
9
10 12 8 10 8
.
E 8 12 10 12 12 10 12 8 10 7 8
1
≥≤≥≤
EXAMPLE 4 BAROQUE SEQUENCES
Baroque inspired lines are excellent for promoting finger independence. The study piece takes this idea further and is a great workout for your fretting hand.

©»¡ºº √ C œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ Am
¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ . œ œ œ œœœœœœœ œœœœœœœ.
& 44 . œ œ œ .

E
B . 13
17 15 17 13 17 15 17
13
17 15 17 13 17 15 17
10
13 12 13 10 13 12 13
10
13 12 13 10 13 12 13
.
G
D
A
. .
E
1

EXAMPLE 5 PEDAL-TONE LICK

This final exercise is another baroque idea aimed at facilitating fretting-hand independence. Use your third and fourth fingers to play the final three 16th notes on
each beat, while your first and second fingers navigate the descending scale.
#
©»¡ºº œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
¿ ¿ ¿ ¿ .. œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ .. œ Œ Ó
Am G dim F E Dm Caug Bdim Am A5

4
&4 œœ
.
E
B . 10 13 12 13 9 13 12 13 13 12 13 13 12 13 13 12 13 13 12 13 13 12 13 .
G
D
A
. 10 9
12 10 9
12
. 7
7
E 5
1

November 2023 79
 LESSON } Technique Building VIDEO & AUDIO https://bit.ly/45aYTTj

PLAY BACKING

STUDY PIECE FRETTING-HAND INDEPENDENCE

[Bars 1-8] build upon example four in the previous exercises. Aim for consistency choice though). This section is repeated so you can expand your technique and
with your tempo and dynamics, ensuring an even sound throughout. I would enjoy the sound of (mostly) A Harmonic Minor (A-B-C-D-E-F-G#).
recommend using alternate picking to play this section. However, the choice of [Bars 29 - 34] are a repeated pedal tone lick before a final scale run to bring the
whether to start on an up or down stroke is up to you (down would be a typical piece to a close. Again, aim for consistency with your phrasing and tone.

©»¡ºº Am #
G dim

.. œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ # œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
√
4 ¿ ¿ ¿ ¿
&4

E
B . 10
13 12 13 10 13 12 13
10
13 12 13 10 13 12 13
9
13 12 13 10 13 12 13
9
13 12 13 10 13 12 13
G
D
A
.
E
1, 9

(√) F E
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
& œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ

E 10 8 10 7 10 8 10 10 8 10 7 10 8 10 8 7 8 5 8 7 8 8 7 8 5 8 7 8
B 6 6 5 5
G
D
A
E
3, 11

b
bœ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ
E dim Dm

œ œ
&

E 7 5 7 4 7 5 7 7 5 7 4 7 5 7 7 5 7 4 7 5 7 7 5 7 4 7 5 7
B 4 4 3 3
G
D
A
E
5, 13

b
bœ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ ˙
E dim E sus4 E

& ..

E
B 4
7 5 7 4 7 5 7
4
7 5 7 4 7 5 7
5
7 5 7 4 7 5 7
5 .
G
D
A
.
E
7, 15

#
œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ œ #œ œ œ œ
Am G dim F E Am

& .. .. œ œ #œ œ
.
Play 3 times

E
B . 10 13 12 13 9 13 12 13 13 12 13 13 12 13 . 10 12 13 12 10 9
G
D
A
. 10 9
. 10 9 7
10 9 6 7
E
17, 18, 19 20

80 November 2023
 ALBUM } REVIEWS

NEW ALBUMS
solo album adds fuel to the power with rich-toned bridge
trio fire. On Twice Removed From humbucker action and screaming
Yesterday, Robin’s signature solo. The uptempo riffing of Light
guitar sound is there from track It Up is an album highlight; huge
A selection of new and reissued guitar one. With a Strat, a Marshall and a
Uni-Vibe washing the shores of his
rock guitars, pounding drums
and a rousing vocal that will
releases, including Album Of The Month sound, I Can’t Wait Much Longer sound huge in stadiums. Even
introduces the band in time- faster is the pulsing Hit The
honoured fashion. Aided and Ground Running which ticks all
ALBUM OF THE MONTH
abetted by drummer Reg Isidore the hard-rock boxes - great solo
NICK MOSS BAND and bassist/vocalist James Dewar, too! Ballad, Baby You’ve Changed
GET YOUR BACK INTO IT! Robin’s guitar races into the is a pleasing nod towards 80s
(Alligator Records) 10/10 limelight on classic tracks like Whitesnake from the gorgeous
Headed up by guitarist-vocalist Hannah, and the fragile ballad guitar arpeggiating through to the
Nick Moss and harmonica-vocalist Ballerina. The album has certainly tortured vocal delivery. Another
Dennis Gruenling, this celebrated stood the test of time. (DM) corker from Vandenberg! (JS)
Chicago band focuses on blues
styles heard during the 40s through BRIAN SETZER JOHN PIZZARELLI
to the 60s with an authentic vintage THE DEVIL ALWAYS COLLECTS STAGE AND SCREEN
sound and good-time feel. With 14 Surfdog Records 8/10 (Proper Music) 9/10
new songs, it’s a rich album with The devil, it John Pizzarelli
great interplay and rousing guitar seems, has the is a unique
playing that evokes T-Bone Walker best tunes! The guitarist; son of
and Muddy Waters among other revered icons. Opener, Bait In The thing about a renowned
Snare is a killer uptempo jump blues with joyful harmonica and new Brian jazzer Bucky
guitar solos, all geared up to get your feet tapping. Laid-back Setzer album is Pizzarelli, he
groover Aurelie is bluesy R&B, bubbling with a great riff soaked in that you think you know what (like dad) favours a seven-string
spring reverb. The title track is pure swagger with exclamatory you’re going to get, but somehow guitar for his rich approach to the
guitar work and strong vocal delivery. Another uptempo rouser is he surprise every time. This, of Great American Songbook as well
Man On The Move, just pure good-time vibes as the band motors course, is in no small part due to as music by The Beatles, Jobim
with verve and swing. If you like a Muddy Waters-style blues the virtuosity on display and it’s and Joni Mitchell. For this album,
tear-jerker, Living In Heartache is for you; it drips with feeling and the same story here. Right from many of the song choices come
authenticity. As for a dash of old-school jazz-blues, the the opening track, Rock Boys from his weekly livestream
instrumental Out Of The Woods is perfectly positioned with tasty Rock, you’re hooked into a world concerts on Facebook, covering
brass and guitar lines and cool changes. With all songs between of drive-ins, diners and hot-rods. both popular and lesser-known
three and four minutes long, a vintage style production, fantastic The album continues with movie and stage songs. With fresh
arrangements and great songs it’s hard not to give the Nick Moss riff-laden rockers like Black trio arrangements (guitar, bass
Band anything but full marks. Good-time old blues has never Leather Jacket and Girl On The and piano plus John’s vocals), the
sounded fresher! (JS) Billboard, with Setzer’s lightning- songs travel from classics like Tea
fast soloing well to the fore. Play For Two and As Time Goes By,
That Fast Thing (One More Time) through to Where Or When from
JOE BONAMASSA such is the power and range; he’s is a joyful tribute to the spirit of a Rodgers and Hart’s Babes In
BLUES DELUXE VOL 2 not treading water in any shape or 50s teenage jukebox-driven night Toyland, and Time After Time
(J&R Adventures) 9/10 form. Standouts include Twenty out, and the solo certainly doesn’t from It Happened In Brooklyn
Joe is pretty Four Hour Blues (stinging guitars disappoint. It all adds up to one which starred Frank Sinatra.
much king of with gorgeous string bending), heck of a rockabilly romp! (DM) With 12 tracks in all, it’s
modern blues Well, I Done Get Over It (band wonderfully vibrant and nostalgic
and it’s hard not sounds huge with brass section and VANDENBERG with outstanding performances
to be aware of an emphatic guitar solo), I Want SIN from John, Mike Karn (bass) and
him if you love To Shout About It (swinging (Mascot Records) 8/10 Isaiah J Thompson (piano). With
BB King, Clapton, Gary Moore, rhythm section, Joe’s vocals) and This is Adrian a clean jazz guitar tone, John’s
Eric Johnson, et al. Joe celebrates the Josh Smith penned closer, Is It Vanderberg palette is broad, with lovely
the 20th anniversary of his Blues Safe To Go Home (rich dynamics, and his band’s single-note and chordal phrasing.
Deluxe album with a second great guitar solo). Yep, there’s a fifth studio Opener, Too Close For Comfort
ALBUM REVIEWS BY JASON SIDWELL AND DAVID MEAD

volume that features two new
originals and eight covers (from
Bobby Bland’s Twenty Four Hour
Blues to Guitar Slim’s Well I Done
Got Over It, via Fleetwood Mac’s
Lazy Poker Blues and Albert King’s
You Sure Drive A Hard Bargain).
With Josh Smith and Kirk Fletcher
also on guitar the songs swing, chill
and emote with Joe at the centre
with great vocals and killer guitar
tones. This feels like fresh terrain
reason why JoBo is The Man! (JS) album, and
brims with nine
ROBIN TROWER emphatic rock songs. Thunder
TWICE REMOVED FROM YESTERDAY And Lightning opens and it’s a big
(50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION) one with crisp riffing, pounding
Chrysalis 8/10 rhythm section, blazing vocals
Originally and a singing solo (great vibrato).
released just House On Fire is a touch slower
two years after but still intense with an arresting
he left Procol riff (strong pinch harmonics) and
Harum, Robin big vocals from Matt Levin. Sin
Trower’s first features a Kashmir-esque rhythm
has a beautiful solo while the
instrumental, I Want To Be
Happy is jaw-dropping as he
burns up the ‘board with bop lines
and machine-gun rhythmic chord
precision. For a full appreciation
of his seven-string, Some Other
Time is guitar only with
exquisitely slow chord melodies
and a low end that evokes upright
bass. Tasty, feel-good jazz is
positively overflowing here. (JS)

November 2023 81
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82 GuitarTechniques August 2012
November 2015
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