https://tunein-toneup.com/

In guitar lesson 31, Dan reminds me about some of the approaches you can use when embellishing chords, including the use of double stops and different intervallic sounds. You will hear Hendrixisms, discussion on how to connect major scales, chords and intervals in your thinking and some interesting approaches to help make your rhythm playing more interesting. Finally we look at the different flavours created by a variety of intervals. We hope you enjoy this lesson and use it as a springboard to improve your own rhythm playing.

1:25 Our introduction and initial questions

1:58 Story about music course at Canterbury University with Big Jim Sullivan

3:04 Dan raises the issue of how there is a slight disconnect between lead and rhythm playing

4:40 Can you see how the two -chords and melody - link together?

5:34 Double stops are somewhere in between chords and melody

7:41 Look at chords in a key and write out the chords and notes

9:10 The chords and notes in any key go in a cycle

9:34 Relative minor and see the chords as part of a minor key

11:21 I pick a chord progression - Am Dm F and C

14:30 Build notes into chords as embellishments

15:11 Am chord embellishments

17:03 Dm chord embellishments at 10th fret

19:00 Dm chord embellishments at 5th fret

20:30 F major chord embellishments at 8th fret

22:06 C major chord embellishments

24:40 Analysing the added notes used in embellishments

28:11 Hendrix type playing - who's used this embellishment style

30:17 Discussion of old amps including the MAJOR 200W

32:35 Little Wing as a prime example of this emellishment style

34:04 Hendrix - Little Wing

35:07 E shape Hendrix type embellishments

36:00 Hendrix - Hey Joe

36:24 Double stop ideas in open chords which becomes Chris Rea's Road to Hell

37:54 Chris Rea - Road to Hell

40:00 rolling the fingers of the picking hand

42:06 Guthrie Trapp - Commodity

43:00 Demonstration of open chords with chord extensions

45:00 Using the notes of the chord to end your melodic runs

46:33 Me using this idea and creating a melody over some of Dan's rhythm playing

47:41 Double stops being used in thirds like in Brown Eyed Girl

48:40 Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl

50:00 Learn the scales not just as single notes but as intervals and double stops

51:25 Harmonising using 6ths

52:09 Integrating what we have learnt so far and using more than one tactic

52:52 Harmonising parts of a melodic solo as 5ths and utilising octaves to recreate phrases

56:23 Different styles and using this type of technique

56:39 Using 5ths to create a heavy rock or metal sound

58:23 flicking off to open strings for a split second to create a jagged rock sound

60:00 7ths for a jazzy or dominant 7ths for a bluesy feel

In guitar lesson 30, I go to Dan with three questions looking for his guidance. Dan picks up on some very important points about the big picture, maintaining enthusiasm, the importance of live work and how to push yourself towards being an advanced player. You will hear some jamming over a Danny Gatton style backing track, a blues shred idea and plenty of snippets from players as Dan shares the wisdom of his experience. Hopefully, you will be as inspired and motivated by this episode as I am.

02:22 - Introduction - I ask whether we can look at some questions around bringing your skills along

02:36 - Question 1: Advice on having the time to practice

02:55 - Question 2: What skills do you think you need to be moving along from intermediate to advanced guitar

03:14 - Question 3: What do you do to get you out of being in a rut?

05:34 - What causes the ruts? Sometimes caused by doing the same thing and sometimes caused by being on a plateau

07:34 - QUESTION 1: So how do you get out of a rut?

09:52 - Advice on how to gain motivation - get yourself a good teacher

11:12 - The Great Phil Hillborn

12:25 - Advice to find something which excites you - licks, riffs and styles

13:46 - Never forget that you're a student of guitar

13:50 - Never forget you can learn off anybody

14:32 - I mention my motivation being the challenge to see how far I can take it

15:54 - I talk about my 10 years of not playing guitar

16:27 - Advice on motivation - Guitar is therapeutic & a stabilising force

17:22 - The importance of live work and fun interactions with the crowd

18:34 - Losing your mojo and holding onto your childlike enthusiasm is not always easy

19:54 - 1) When you've not got a band to gig with, seek open mics

21:06 - 2) Sometimes buying a piece of kit can be invigorating

22:22 - 3) Trying another instrument

22:24 - 4) Get yourself a teacher

23:27 - 5) Changing things up - change where you are on the fretboard

23:44 - 6) Try a different style

24:09 - 7) Buy some techniques books

25:24 - 8) Go to a gig

27:57 - QUESTION 2 – what do you do if your practice time is limited?

28:55 - Big Jim Sullivan on styles and session work

31:50 - You have to immerse yourself in the style.

34:48 - Andy Wood flatpicking

43:44 - Quick jam over a Country backing track in the style of Danny Gatton

48:41 - Playing the country rhythm

52:06 - QUESTION 3: How do make the leap to advanced and how do you recognise that someone is an advanced player

52:24 - Is Dave Gilmour an advanced player?

54:43 - Dave Gilmour: on the turning away

56:29 - Gary Moore: The messiah will come again

59:21 - Dave Gilmour: Sorrow

60:21 - An advanced player is someone whose personality comes through and they're instantly recognisable

61:48 - Dream theatre John Petrucci

62:10 - Jeff Beck

64:56 - Learn how to accept your playing is your unique sound

67:56 - Dan's take on the blues and Marty Friedman mucking up normal playing for interest

69:55 - Explaining the lick: Blues mixed with sixes rhythms

70:49 - Change the sound on your guitar to get a new idea

71:48 – Final advice summary: Only work on one thing at a time and immerse yourself

Webpage: https://tunein-toneup.com/2018/02/28/guitar-lesson-29-funk-groovy-note-durations/

First backing track: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwnEIWJG_g4

Second backing track: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-V5lB0n5Cbo

In Guitar Lesson 29, we decide to return to rhythm playing: this time looking at staying in time, feeling the pulse and playing rhythmically, with interest and in the groove. The lesson is divided up into three parts: Firstly, we look at playing funky grooves and using a metronome; secondly, we have a look at how to play Back in Black in time; finally we look at practising different note groupings and note durations over a couple of backing tracks.

1:25 Introduction - What is it about rhythm that gets missed?

5:12 Hot for teacher clip – Van Halen – to hear the rhythm playing in this song

6:00 Dan’s question: So what aspects of rhythm are tricky? My answer: Making it interesting and groovy.

7:45 We start with a classic funky groove demonstrated by Dan and destroyed by me ;)

9:00 What does it mean to make something groovy? Your audience should feel the need to move from your groove.

9:45 Where is the beat? The importance of tapping your foot

10:50 Get it nice and funky - sitting nicely in that groove

12:00 Keep it really simple on the left hand so you can concentrate on the beat and strumming

14:00 Using a metronome to assist your inner pulse and feel the beat.

18:00 Thoughts on locking in, feeling the pulse and playing naturally

24:50 Duran Duran – Notorious

28:20 What other rhythms can we take a look at today? I suggest ACDC, Back in Black

29:15 Guitar swap

29:53 ACDC – Back in Black

30:20 Step one: Get the chords in the right place

30:45 An initial look at the guitar lick fills

32:05 The importance of slowing stuff down to learn it. Compare to singers' soul vocal fills, learning bends

39:15 Dan’s question: Any other rhythms causing pain. My answer was note groupings in soloing

40:25 Trying different groupings and note durations over a backing track

44:05 Some shapes lend themselves well to different note types

45:00 Second backing track in B Minor

49:30 Still over the backing track in B Minor but fitting the phrasing into the groove and thinking like a horn player

52:00 Still over the backing track in B Minor but fitting the phrasing into the groove and thinking like a horn player

54:00 use phrases that are a rhythmic thing in themselves

Chris Green's website - http://www.chrisgreenmusic.com/

Chris Green on 'emusicworkshop' with Rick Beato - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-g37WOXC17U&list=PLb4x6Fj6B5zzs1Bm5EA8HJadYxnZqhblA

The Guitar Guru Network - https://www.facebook.com/groups/513586505353886/

Tune in Tone up - https://tunein-toneup.com/

In our second interview with a musician we are really pleased to be able to introduce Chris Green of Tyketto from Atlanta, USA. If you’ve not already heard his stylish playing and excellent musicianship, then you should definitely check it out along with his lessons on YouTube. In the interview, among other things, we talk about some of his projects, what wisdom he has gained over the years and what it was like to go to the NAMM show earlier this year in LA.

01:26 Introduction to the interview with Chris Green from Tyketto, Rubicon Cross, Furyon and Pride

02:11 What are you working on and how can our listeners hear more?

04:14 Discussion about Furyon

06:49 Furyon - Disappear Again

07:28 Rick Beato and Chris Green’s lessons on Rick’s YouTube channel and emusicworkshop.com

09:02 What first got you into playing, what was your first guitar and what was it like started out?

12:00 The Shadows – Apache

15:30 Aztec Camera – Somewhere in my Heart

17:02 What guitars and amplifiers do you choose for certain gigs? Which are the go-tos?

19:40 Chris Green – Unveil (the title track from his solo album)

20:40 What do you wish you’d done more of when starting out? Could you have done things which would have fast-tracked your skills?

25:00 Skid Row – Youth Gone Wild

26:28 Where do you draw your motivation and inspiration from in your in your guitar playing?

30:04 Which players do you find inspirational?....

31:40 Eric Johnson – Cliffs of Dover

35:05 Pink Floyd – Echoes

36:15 What is your desert island guitar? For example, your house is burning down – which ONE do you take with you?

37:40 Do you have any other advice for aspiring guitar players?

41:10 What do you think guitarists do well that other musicians aren’t as good at and what weaknesses do they often have?

48:16 What are your thoughts about songwriting? What works for you and how do you go about finishing and arranging your songs?

54:03 You’ve just come back from NAMM 2018 in LA haven’t you? What was the most exciting thing you saw or heard there? Who did you see playing or get chatting with? What’s it like to be at the hub of all things guitar?

61:53 What future projects, concerts and gigs should we be looking out for from you?

Tune in Tone up! Interview 1 with Dan Davies

In this first interview with a guitar player, Gary asks Dan Davies for his thoughts on some questions about what the guitar means to him. We are aiming to include lots of other players in the future and ask t hem similar questions too. With questions about how he first came to play guitar, what his motivation and inspiration is and how he gets past stagefright and nerves, these interviews will enlighten, educate and entertain.

3:30 What first got you into playing the guitar?

8:30 What do you wish you'd done more of when starting out?

12:33 Where do you draw your motivation and inspiration from?

18:47 What advice do you have for others interested in pursuing a career in music?

21:57 What do you think guitarists do well that other musicians aren't as good at?

25:23 What weaknesses are there particularly for guitar players over other musicians?

29:55 What are your thoughts about songwriting?

35:09 What genres, styles and techniques do you want to improve in your playing?

39:03 What's your advice for gigging and your nerves when performing?

In guitar lesson 28, Dan and I look at how to arrange and develop the song we began to look at last lesson. We thought it would be useful to develop the guitar parts of this song and look further at how to arrange it. With lots of suggestions to support songwriters, we particularly focus on lead-ins, harmonising vocals and guitar parts, palm muting and using intervals to create dynamics.

3:30 Guitar parts and arranging

7:05 The opening riff and building in dynamics by doubling parts

9:45 Remember to strip back for the verse to make the chorus big

10:25 Lead-in, harmonised vocals & palm muting – The Foo Fighters, Pretender

13:50 Breaking up the verse to allow the song to breathe

14:30 Some ideas for skinnying the riff out

15:30 Thicker notes on thicker strings or more strings

16:00 Using intervals to harmonise two guitar parts

20:00 Quick recap

25:10 Developing a spacious and pretty guitar part for the verse

30:20 Tremolo pedal effect to create shimmery tone

32:10 Developing the chorus part

33:30 Explanation on the tweaking of the rhythmic part

37:00 Coming up with some lyrics for the chorus

38:40 The result of Dan’s lyric and chorus

40:15 Alice in Chains type harmonies

41:30 Final thoughts on songwriting in general

47:45 Prince as a songwriter

50:30 Discussion about Tune in Tone up and a reminder to get in touch

Website: https://tunein-toneup.com/

Post: https://tunein-toneup.com/2017/12/31/guitar-lesson-songwriting-tips/

In guitar lesson 27, Dan and I look at the thorny topic of songwriting and arranging original songs. Starting with a riff I wrote a long time ago and with lots of background discussion about how to write songs in general, Dan develops my idea and gives me some options for second guitar parts and song structure. By the end of our lesson we really have something which I can take away and work on. We hope you like this lesson and will look forward to some further developing of our song next lesson.

5:14 Gary’s riff and the basis for our song lesson

8:30 Discussion of famous songs and an examination of what makes a good song

12:30 Tweaking the main riff

14:30 Starting to consider a melody which will work over the riff

18:05 Exploring the chorus and finding a way back into the key of the main riff

20:31 A potential melody as a hook

26:46 A review of what we’ve done so far

29:33 Further work on the melody for the verse and chorus

31:49 Using palm muting for dynamics

35:51 A bit of harmonic analysis on the chords we are using

37:15 Harmonic analysis of Bruce Springsteen’s chromatic run in ‘Born to Run’

How to play 'Born to Run': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfZAColCjbs

41:10 Using shared chords to move between keys

44:14 Adding interest to arrangements / second guitar parts

50:19 Explaining ideas for using octaves and repeating licks

Website: https://tunein-toneup.com/

Post: https://tunein-toneup.com/2017/12/10/guitar-lesson-country-rock-rhythm-licks-petty-campbell/

You can see my fan post on Tom Petty here: https://tunein-toneup.com/2017/12/10/tom-petty-music-heartbreaker-mike-campbell/

In guitar lesson 26, I ask Dan for his advice about playing in the Country / Rock / Pop genre with the aim of supporting both rhythm playing in the style of Tom Petty and lead playing in the style of his guitarist – Mike Campbell. In this lesson Dan begins by choosing a chord progression with a Tom Petty-like rhythm, then looking at incorporating bass runs, arranging songs for dynamic interest, adding some country bends and soloing using double stops. The lesson ends with us looking at a series of licks and how to incorporate these into our chord progression; a quick study of mixing the major and minor pentatonics and a final challenge to play changes up the fretboard as a useful practice idea.

3:35 Chord progression, with a little chat about tone – Bm A / A G D (Dsus4)

7:53 Incorporating bass lines / connecting runs using bass notes

9:40 Dynamics: e.g. start mellow and build up, changing your chord voicings

13:53 Country bends, including chordal bends and double string bends

18:05 Dan demonstration of ideas so far, with Gary playing rhythm

19:18 The importance of not conceptually separating lead and rhythm playing

25:19 Major and minor 6ths double stops

26:35 Demonstration of double stop soloing over our chord progression, Dan first and then my attempt

34:35 Some soloing ideas for country rock with demonstration of licks

36:59 Lick 1

37:10 Lick 2

37:28 Lick 3 (outlining the D chord)

37:48 Lick 4

37:59 Lick 5

39:20 Mixolydian lick / mixing the major and minor pentatonics

41:34 Demonstration of soloing ideas over our chord progression

42:28 Further ideas on mixing the major and minor pentatonics

44:13 A final challenge to find backing tracks which change from two scales; e.g. minor to major / dorian to aeolian and play up the fretboard with the changes

In guitar lesson 25, Dan and I improvise over a Blues backing track in G (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5r_KSLxYkg) and then we examine some of the licks and approaches which add some oomph into someone’s style and playing. Dan patiently breaks down a few of his licks for me and hopefully, after some practise, I will be able to inject them into my own playing to give it some clout. All our improvisations over the backing track have been left in warts and all so you can learn from my mistakes as well as Dan’s playing and hints.

I've been going back over the riffs Dan shows me In this episode and thought it might be helpful if I shared the timings on this episode in case you, like me, want to go back over some of these riffs to try to commit them to memory and file them away in the old trick bag! In minutes and seconds:

4:30 jam 1 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5r_KSLxYkg)

13:35 double stops

14:20 riff on top strings

15:10 same including blues note symmetrical

16:30 same staggered pattern across 5 strings from A string 12th fret to E string 15th fret

19:35 descending riff and played chicken pickin' at 22:30

23:40 trill Gary Mooreism B string 3 and 6th frets slide to 2nd and 5th frets

24:10 trill idea plotting path up fretboard

25:10 trill and yank string behind trill to modulate

26:45 country style rolling trill lick with moved pattern at 27:55 and slightly alternative lick based on same idea at 29:00

31:00 Eric Johnson inspired descending lick straight from the pentatonic scale

34:40 jam 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5r_KSLxYkg

44:20 jam 3 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5r_KSLxYkg

Website: https://tunein-toneup.com/ As always, we welcome your engagement and would love to hear from you through our website (https://tunein-toneup.com/contact/) or Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/tuneintoneup/) if there are any lessons you would like to hear us cover, or want to start a dialogue about anything guitar-related. The number of listens we receive inspire us to keep doing what we are doing, so we hugely appreciate all your shares, likes and support.

Post: https://tunein-toneup.com/2017/11/19/guitar-lesson-24-blues-identify-chops/

In Guitar Lesson 24, Dan suggests that we go back to look again at my Blues playing in order to identify areas which I ought to work on and potential weaknesses in my improvisation skills and techniques. Bearing this in mind we take a Blues backing track in E and play over it in turns, then look at some things which I should work on and also some tips and guitar hacks to assist. During the episode there are some suggestions about playing rhythmically, note choice using the blues note and borrowing from a couple of the modes and practicing some riffs and phrases to be better prepared.

Be kind to me on this one :)

Listening back to this I really was not happy with my playing on this lesson and will definitely be prioritising playing over a 12 bar blues over the next few weeks and months. Dan's excellent suggestions have inspired me to really work on licks I can use for each of the changes and get my chops honed and in time. I plan to use a metronome and have just purchased a Digitech Trio (a pedal which acts as an automatic drum machine and bassist)to further help with this. A Looper might also be useful looking forward to Christmas. I really want to get my improvisations sounding confident, rhythmically and in their phrasing and note choice. I hope Dan's suggestions were as useful to you as they were to me and that you forgive my playing and learn from the mistakes which I find myself making.