www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tx4cRw6TIIg

Well heres a couple of guys that worked it out without thumbs, or fingers or even elbows.  Check ‘em out:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=LX2f35ZjbMc

www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiDoYIflqAY

Now don’t you think you should stop feeling sorry for yourself, get out your guitar and practice?

And what better place for this illustrious event than Memphis, Tennessee? I had the honor of taking part in this awesome event in 2004. I got to play the blues on Beale Street right across from Handy Park. It was great!

If you are anywhere near Memphis this weekend be sure to check it out.

It brings a new meaning to “Boy that guitar sounds like shit!,” not to mention the comfort it will bring when you pray to the porcelain god.

If only it had a tuner….

Check them out at www.jamminjohns.com.

To tell you the truth it really gets on my nerves. I mean any somewhat motivated kid, with the proper instruction, can do what most of these kids do. The difference between most of these “child prodigies” and any other reasonably talented kid (with the right instruction) is overzealous parents.

I’m not trying to say anything negative about the kids. On the contrary, I think it’s great that the kids are working hard to master the guitar. My beef is with the adults.

A few years ago I had a 9 year old student that learned some Satriani licks from tab with his previous teacher. He played them sloppy and with no feeling, but he was hitting all the right notes. He had no idea what the notes were, and absolutely no sense of phrasing, but hell, the kid was 9.

The kids father thought that this kid was going to be the next Eddie Van Halen. And though he himself knew absolutely nothing about music or what it takes to play the guitar, he insisted on telling me what I should be teaching the kid. He sat in on the lessons and kept interrupting. He never let me do my job.

Needless to say, this was unacceptable and I we agreed that maybe he should find another teacher. It was a shame because I could have really helped that kid.

I did see them again about a year ago. The kid is a teenager now and still playing entirely off tabs. It’s a shame really.

I’m telling you all of this to give you a peek into my psyche. These are the things that go through my head when someone tells me about some kid on the internet or on TV who can really play guitar. All of this is what went through my head when a family member shot me an email about Lucciano Pizzichini.

Now, take a look at this:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=TChp3L1kZ4o

This time I gotta admit it…this kid can play guitar!

Driving to California this afternoon is out for me, and these days who the hell wants to fly? But you can still be part of the goings on.

The Dean “Live from NAMM” Webcast goes live this weekend and will feature nearly over 100 exclusive artist interviews, new Dean instrument spotlights, the lovely Dean girls and more. The Dean Guitars “Live from NAMM” Webcast is a groundbreaking production that gives viewers a backstage pass to this exciting music-industry only event.

OK, I stole that paragraph from the email Dean sent, I admit it. Sue me.

I’m speechless! You can be be part of the NAMM show in seconds, just follow this link:

Learn more about the NAMM foundation.

The guitar is a complicated instrument, and it’s very difficult to master. It’s hard to see all the notes, and most things can be played on the guitar in many ways. And I don’t mean different chord voicings or melodic ideas, I mean the exact same notes.

But if you look closer there is a way to simplify things. All you need to know are these basic chord shapes:

Each of these chord shapes is the basis for a basic chord form (or shape), and each of these basic chord forms can be moved up the fingerboard to play any major chord. For example, when you play the E shape on the 3rd fret (your basic barre chord) you are playing a G major chord. It can be thought of as the E form of the G major chord. In other words, it is shaped like an open E chord.

Each of these chord forms can be found somewhere on the fingerboard with any of the 12 notes as the root. And if you look closely you will notice a few things:

• When the root note is the same (for example, all C chords) for all the chord forms, the shapes lay out on the fretboard in this order: C-A-G-E-D. Of course, the lowest (closest to the nut) form varies. For example, the lowest form of the F major chord is the E form, and the lowest form of the G major chord is the G Form. The shapes then continue up the fretboard from there in the CAGED order. Note that the D form is followed by, and connected to, the C form.
• There are notes common to consecutive chord forms.
• The full pattern (all 5 forms) covers an entire octave and then starts over. (Notice in the chart below that the D form connects to the C form).

C A G E D Guitar Patterns in C Major

C A G E D Guitar Patterns in G Major

Notice that the G form in the chart above can also be played at the 1st position. It’s the basic open G chord.

This way of understanding the fingerboard has come to be known as CAGED theory. The great thing about CAGED theory is that everything we do as guitarists can be seen in the CAGED framework. After you can see the big shapes it is easier to understand how the scales are arranged in all the patterns. And chords are specific notes that we pick out of the scales.

CAGED theory is the framework upon which all of the scale patterns, arpeggios, and positions on this website are based. It is very important that you see the guitar fingerboard in this way.

Video Guitar Lesson

(From my other blog 100 Blues Licks)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_lYPR41auc

How To Master CAGED Guitar

Step 1

Play all the chord forms of the C major chord up the fingerboard. Some of them aren’t the most practical way to play a chord, but remember that the purpose of this exercise is to see the shapes and how they lay out on the fingerboard. Be sure to pay attention to how the patterns are connected, and that you know the location of the root notes in each pattern.

In order to do this you will need to know the notes on the E and A strings pretty well. If you need help with that take a look at this: Learn The Guitar Notes.

Step 2

Once you can do step 1 easily, play each of the forms in order (C-A-G-E-D) in every key (around the circle of 4ths) beginning with the C form. You will have to shift down the fingerboard for most keys.

Step 3

Play the pattern around the circle of 4ths beginning with the lowest chord form available on the fingerboard. All 12 major chords can be played in the 1st or 2nd position in one of the chord forms.

Step 4

Choose a 5 fret area anywhere on the fingerboard. Limiting yourself to that area, play all 12 major chords around the circle of 4ths.

Eventually you will be able to see how everything you play fits into the CAGED guitar system, and you will be able to navigate all areas of the fretboard easier than ever before.

George Fullerton Dies

In the 70’s,  Leo fender, along with George Fullerton and Dale Hyatt founded G&L Musical Instruments.  These guitars continued the concepts invented by Leo Fender, and took them further.

I once owned a G&L Telecaster style guitar.  Boy do I regret selling that one! (Take my advice…never sell a guitar! If you are tired of it just put it away for a while and play another one.  If you sell it you will eventually want it back).  Especially since the guy I sold it to chopped it up to install a Bigsby tremolo that doesn’t really work right.

Anyhow, it’s the death of another legend.  Rest in peace George.

www.glguitars.com

So when I stumble across new music that is not only cool, but absolutely 100% free, it is a gift from the music gods. Hallelujah!

Daytrotter is a recording studio in downtown Rock Island, Illinois. Daytrotter.com is their website, which is not merely cool, it is unbelievably cool. What these fine people do is invite musicians into their studio for one day, record them and make 5 songs available online for free. Simple, and beautiful.

And to make it even better, at least to me, is that these recordings “…are all live, no overdubs, straight to tape. What you hear is what happened in the room that day.”

In these days of computerized tweaking, overproducing, soul sucking sterile recording it is so refreshing to really hear the band, not the technology. I like to hear the room, the interaction between musicians, the musical event.

Daytrotter.com has so many great free music downloads that you will need to buy a new hard drive just to store them. The daytrotter.com home page shows that they have posted over 7 million songs. At the time of this writing, the daytrotter archive page had 614 awesome artists, some of whom are well known, like Aimee Mann, Death Cab for Cutie, and Ani DiFranco, others awaiting your discovery.

But wait, the audio is not all. They also have a limited number of performance videos. And the way cool art on their website makes it a really nice place to be.

Do yourself a favor and when you check out daytrotter.com be sure to subscribe to the daytrotter.com feed so you don’t miss a thing.

• The Guitar Pick

The first thing you need to start sweep picking is the right guitar pick. I really like the Dunlop Jazz III, and I’m not alone. A couple of years ago I did see an article in a guitar magazine (I can’t remember which one) that asked the question “Can this pick make you a better player?” The answer was yes. Also notable shredders John Petrucci, Alexi Laiho, Mick Thomson and Joe Bonamassa all use them.



It may take a little while to get used to these picks because they are quite small, but it’s worth it. Once I started using them my accuracy and speed increased dramatically.

• Holding The Pick

Opinions on this vary, but I have found the best way to hold the pick is between the thumb and the side of the first finger, with the point of the pick sticking out sideways from the thumb.



When you put your hand up to the guitar the pick is in the perfect position relative to the strings when you hold it this way. Also, even though it has nothing to do with sweep picking, it’s easy to use your other fingers in combination with the pick, something I do all the time. And I find that it’s easier to control the pick when there’s only a little bit sticking out, especially when playing single note lines.

• Drive That Guitar?

Sweep picking is easier if you use a lot of distortion due to the compression. It’s easier to get an even sound, and it’s probably more fun too. But if you want to get really good you should spend some time practicing with a clean sound. This will force you to learn to control your pick in more subtle ways, and prevent you from hiding behind the dirt and compression.. Of course if your goal is to play a style of music that uses a distorted guitar tone it is important to practice that way.

• Begin Sweep Picking

This first sweep picking lick is a D minor 7 arpeggio.  Set your metronome at a moderately slow pace , around 120 bpm, and play one note per beat.  To begin with go nice and slow. Focus on getting an even sound and playing in time with the metronome. Gradually increase the tempo over time. Remember, if you practice sloppy you will play sloppy.

Your hand should be in the 5th position (your first finger is at the 5th fret of the guitar).  This lick consists of 4 notes, the first 3 are played as down strokes and the last one is an upstroke. See the bottom of this page for an explanation of the picking pattern.

|-----5-8-----5-8----|
|---6-------6--------|
|-7-------7----------|
|--------------------|
|--------------------|
|--------------------|

Picking pattern: d d d u

Listen:

Sweep Picking Exercise 1

The next sweep picking lick takes the first one a little farther. This time you will play the notes of the arpeggio descending with a pulloff and upstrokes. Once again, be sure to start out slow until it gets easy and increase speed gradually.

|-----5-8-5-------|-5-8-5------|
|---6-------6---6-|-------6----|
|-7-----------7---|------------|
|-----------------|------------|
|-----------------|------------|
|-----------------|------------|

Picking Pattern: d d d u p u

Listen:

Sweep Picking Exercise 2
The last lick of this lesson is an A major arpeggio. It is in the 9th position on the guitar neck, playing the C shape of the A major chord. (I am referring to the CAGED guitar shapes here. If you don’t know what that is don’t worry, just follow the exercise).

|------------9-12-9--------------------9-12-9------------|
|---------10--------10--------------10--------10---------|
|-------9--------------9----------9--------------9-------|
|----11------------------11----11------------------11----|
|-12------------------------12---------------------------|
|--------------------------------------------------------|

Picking Pattern: d d d d d h p u u u

Listen:

Sweep Picking Exercise 3

• In Conclusion

Sweep picking is a very cool technique that really isn’t as hard as it may seem once you get the hang of it. Like anything else with guitar it just takes practice and determination. Soon I will post the next in this series of guitar lessons. Tell me what do you think so far?

Picking Pattern: d=downstroke u=upstroke h=hammer-on p=pulloff