Sugarfoot Rag was first recorded as an instrumental by guitarist Hank Garland, and scoring him a hit at the age of 18. He went on to be one of the top session guitarists in Nashville, working most notably with Elvis Presley (that’s him on “Little Sister”) along with a who’s who of the top country […]
SOTW: Sunshine Of Your Love
Cream’s “Sunshine Of Your Love” has one of the most familiar and distinctive guitar riffs in classic rock, played by a young Eric Clapton. The song is a great place to start exploring the 60’s blues-rock style. The song follows a modified 12-bar blues form. A standard blues structure might go something like this: 1 […]
Lead Guitar 101: Phrasing and line
Say you’ve been practicing your scales diligently. You know your formations up the neck and can play a major scale in any key in any position. Maybe you’ve moved on to modes, and maybe you’ve even fully absorbed those too. Or maybe you’ve never played a lick of lead guitar in your life. Either way, […]
SOTW: Guy Clark’s “LA Freeway”
Guy Clark’s “LA Freeway” is a classic of the Americana genre, and a great example of what we might call the Texas folk picking style. Unlike what many people think of as a traditional “folk pick” with alternating bass strings, this part brings in a blues element by thumping roots notes in the bass against […]
Song of the week: Boom Boom
John Lee Hooker’s “Boom Boom” has everything that makes his music so compelling. To quote from another of his classics “Boogie Chillun”: One night I was layin’ down / I heard mama and papa talkin’ / I heard papa tell mama let that boy boogie-woogie / It’s in him and it got to come out […]
Do you practice music like you mow the lawn?
The way you mow the lawn might teach you something important about how to practice. Everyone has a method. Do you start at one side and make repeating alternate passes, or circle the perimeter until you get to the center? Either way, it’s a straight line: a job with a beginning and end and a […]
