Unison Blues - Guitar Solo in D w/tab

A guitar solo with tab and then some improv. We're in the key of D. The solo kicks of with some unison bends. Were leaving lots of space after they finish so note the rests in the guitar tab. I threw in a repeating lick using some 16th notes after that which I thought sounded cool. For the last part the solo really milks a repeating bending eighth note pattern. After that there is a few licks improvising mainly within the D Minor Pentatonic scales. I tried to use a few different patterns just to show you a few more lick ideas over different parts of the guitar neck. Have a great Saturday.

Pentatonic Blues Guitar Licks and Improv in C

Figured I'd finish out the week with another pentatonic based collection of blues guitar licks and a bit of improv. My ipod touch which I use to record a lot of these guitar videos took wee spill so if your patient enough you'll see my attempt to pick it up and keep playing at the same time. I left a lot of space between the guitar licks and tried to establish a bit of call and response. The guitar licks this time are in the key of C. I tried to make this one a bit more structured than the last video - aside from dropping the ipod. Anyway have ago at playing through with the tab the guitar is in standard tuning. Happy long weekend to everyone in the US and Canada. Be safe. Play guitar. Smile.

B Flat Blues Guitar Licks and Improv

Here are some blues guitar licks in Bb mainly using the Bb Pentatonic Scale. As with the previous few posts I've improvised after the written tab section. During the improv section I also drew on some pentatonic scales from the Eb Pentatonic Scale and F Pentatonic scale. The tab rhythm is a bit rough so please listen to the video for the phrasing. The improv section is not very coherent so please treat this as a collection of licks and not a solo. Hopefully it will give you some ideas you can expand on.

Beginner Blues Guitar Solo in D with Tab

Here is another blues guitar solo with tab in the key of  D. Again we are relying mainly on the pentatonic scale over this 12 bar progression but here we incorporate the third pattern of the pentatonic scale. I've played through the tab (roughly) as written twice then improvised a few licks over the progression just to give you a few ideas if you want to try expanding on the guitar part as written.  Questions, comments let me know. Here are the guitar tab and video. Cheers.

Beginner Blues Guitar Solo with Tab

Modern rock guitar wouldn't exist without the blues. So even if your into something a bit more modern that a standard 12 bar blues getting a fundamental grip on basic blues soloing will benefit you as a guitar player. Besides music at its core is about expressing emotion and everyone could learn a thing or two about that from some blues guitar greats. On this day in 1990 we lost one of the greatest guitarists ever Stevie Ray Vaughan. Stevie was a musical genius, one of those rare people that music seems to flow from their pores. I would recommend you check out his Live at the EL Mocambo DVD for a masterclass in guitar and sheer emotive playing.

To progress in your guitar playing though it is important to learn some basics. So today I've done a lesson on a 12 bar blues solo in the key of D. The guitar solo is based around the D Minor Pentatonic Scale in the first and second positions. After I play the guitar solo as written I improvise a bit over the progression a second time. If you don't know the first two shapes of the pentatonic scale learn those first before tackling this guitar solo. In the guitar tab as written I have not done any bends to makes this solo more accessible to a beginning guitarist. I've kept the phrasing pretty basic. Focus the first couple times through the solo on counting along with the video and note the rests in the 12 bar progression. If you have any questions you can message me on youtube or DM me on twitter @jimifan.

Guitar Practice - Pivot Lick

Today's guitar lick focuses on practicing pivoting the index finger to play multiple strings. The guitar is tuned down a half step. The lick is primarily 16th notes. Use alternate picking. Any questions or comments DM me on twitter @jimifan of leave me a message on youtube.

Quick Guitar Riff - Drop Tuning

Another quick riff popped into my head before heading out a guitar clinic this afternoon. Tuning is drop d down a half step C# G# C# F# A# D#. I liked the way this lick synced with the drums. It's pretty basic but sometimes simple is good. If your in a Zakk Wylde frame of mind feel free to throw in some pinch harmonics on the bend.

Guitar Lick - Hail to the Pedal Point

Today's guitar lick is inspired by the title track to the new Avenged Sevenfold album 'Hail to the King'.
It has been a long time since I heard a guitar lick I was so in love with that I had to sit down and learn it note for note.The last album I remember doing that with was Metallica's and Justice For All. Anyway I love the guitar lick that opens 'Hail to the King'. It runs throughout a lot of the song kind of like 'Thunderstruck" by ACDC does. It is a great sounding guitar lick and really tests your stamina.

In a similar vein I've come up with a guitar lick with a pedal point E note on the open high E string. My guitar is tuned C# G# C# F# A# D# which is drop d down a half step. The second part of the guitar lick uses a rhythm pattern similar to 'Hail to the King' but the intervals are quite different given the position change. The guitar lick is primarily 16th notes. I do not pick this strictly alternate.

Another Drop Tuning Guitar Riff

Just a quick drop tuning guitar riff before heading out to the PEI jazz and blues festival.
The guitar is tuned C# G# C# F# A# D#. Watch  and listen to the guitar tab and video for the muting and the rests. Have a great weekend. Cheers.

A Crunchy Rhythm Guitar Riff

A funky little guitar riff tuning is C# G# C# F# A# D#. Note the muted 16th notes and try to mute unwanted strings in the single note eighth note run.

Can't lift this (Guitar) Riff.

Ok maybe not quite that heavy. But we stick in an ultra heavy guitar Drop D tuning down a half step:
C# G# C# F# A# D#. Pretty straight forward playing some more palm muting on the marked passages. The eighth notes are mainly down strokes and the 16th note passage is alternate picked. Here's the guitar tab and video.

Palm Mutalicious 2 - Guitars Revenge

A couple more guitar riffs using the Drop D Tuning down a half step. Note the rests in the video and guitar tab. The first guitar riff uses palm muting especially on the low C# open 6th string. The next riff also uses a lot of palm muting. In contrast the final riff is played with no or only a little palm muting. Note the repeating three note sequence but in an eighth note feel.

Palm Mutalicious Drop D down a half step Guitar Licks

Palm muting is a great way to "heavy" up some guitar licks and when combined with a drop tuning it can yield some cool sounds. Today we are using a lot of palm muting and tuning down to Drop D down half a step:
C# G# C# F# A# D#. There are four guitar licks played in sequence. Please ignore the black space between the two clips. The first guitar riff starts with a reverse gallop rhythm and throws in some power chord shapes that take advantage of the drop tuning. The second and third lick throw in some 16th notes to speed things up a little. The fourth guitar lick uses 6th note groupings of 16th notes called sextuplets. Here is the guitar tab and video.

Drop D Guitar Intro - Lost and Alone with tab

Today's guitar riff is the intro to a song called "Lost and Alone". It is in Drop D tuning. This is standard tuning but with the low E string dropped down a whole tone to D. Let the notes ring into each other in this piece. The second half of the riff uses some barre chords shapes so its makes a great guitar exercise if you are working on those. In the second part of the video I overdubbed a lead part. I did not tab out the rhythm for the lead but did include the notes I was playing.

Don't Poke the Scarebear

The internet can be a great tool for guitarists and a great burden. If you can avoid the time sucking, attention draining information overload aspects of the net you can really find some great things to improve your guitar playing. You can also find some very cool musicians and tracks for collaboration. In that vein I've hooked up with a cool track from Jason Brown -  @scarebear on twitter and on the web at  http://www.scarebear.org/. You can listen to the full track here on soundcloud:
I improvised over the rhythm track Jason laid down. I thought the intro guitar part was pretty cool so I wanted to tab it out and post a video of it. The first two bars repeat three times then the next bar repeats and then the whole sequence is played again. The guitar lick incorporates a repeating open B string and is based primarily on an eighth note pattern that moves down the fretboard.

A Metal Riff.

A bit of metal riffage for today. I was working on a guitar lick over a track by @scarebear and got distracted by a post of his on twitter for the new Avenged Sevenfold song -  the title track to their new album "Hail to the King". I haven't listened to a lot of Avenged Sevenfold but I I really liked the guitar on this track.
Anyway today's guitar lick is in the same tuning as this song as I was in the middle of practicing the main lick.
The tuning is a drop d down a half step. So from low to high the notes are C# G# C# F# A# D#.  The riff opens with a 16th note palm muted section then a half time slower part followed by an "Orion" inspired section. Here's the guitar tab and video. Have a great weekend.

Groovin on a slow bend

Happy Friday! Today's guitar lick starts with a slow bend. Throw in a trill and some repeated 16th note sextuplets and you've got a lick. If your more technically advanced and speedier than I am try to pick up the pace and double time the sextuplet lick. Two awesome players who have used this style guitar lick are Randy Rhoads and Zakk Wylde. Both Randy and Zakk have lots of examples especially live of taking this type of pentatonic scale pattern and moving it up the fretboard.

5/4 Guitar

Today's guitar lick starts off with a lick in 5/4 that shifts position on the neck and then finished with a legato run. I haven't analyzed the notes for scale choice but the small intervals to me suggest phyrgian or locrian. I'll leave it to more advanced guitar theory buffs to correct me. I just thought the guitar lick had a cool exotic sound. Here are the guitar tab and video. Cheers.

Acoustic or Electric Guitar - its all good.

Some guitar licks and riffs are really only meant for an electric guitar or acoustic or vice versa. This guitar intro to a song called climb works well with both acoustic and electric guitars. The guitar part starts off with some natural harmonics. Then a shaped based around the open G is played. This is followed by a bluesy lick meant to emulate a slide guitar. The final part is a walk up moving the root note up the fretboard. I've tried to notate the guitar tab accurately but please listen for the correct rhythm.