Being a phenom lead player is all well and good, but it’s one’s rhythm chops that keep the phone ringing off the hook. Rhythm Mojo’s musical focus is in the swe...
Popularized by players like Doc Watson, Norman Blake and Tony Rice, flatpicking was developed by guitarists arranging old-time American fiddle tunes on the guit...
Years ago Steely Dan recorded Aja, and the opening song is called “Black Cow.” Larry Carlton is one of the guitarists featured on the record. The riff he used i...
Developing the requisite technical skills, mastering key expressive techniques, and learning how to perform songs are the rites of passage that every guitarist ...
In this study, we’ll be focusing on behind the nut bending phrases along with some lines using harmonics, while playing over the familiar progression of E, A7, ...
In this musical study, I’ll overview our target technique (bluesy double stops) over the rhythm track and then perform a solo designed to showcase them in a rea...
This tune is a 12-bar blues in the call-and-response vein and, instead of a slow blues, we’ve got a more up-tempo groove, in the jump blues vein. Jump blues was...
Jazz Rock fuses the tone, feel, bends, hammers and other rock-centric embellishments and expressions with the sophistication of jazz harmony and improvisation. ...
The first time I heard Kenny Wayne Shepherd was on his break-out record Deja Voodoo, and I’ve composed a solo around the changes and groove of the title track o...
This is the end progression for the song “Hummingbird” that BB solos over. It’s a very common progression that can offer some cool ways to use chord tone soloin...
In this solo study, we’ll look at the legendary Angus Young from AC/DC. Their appeal cuts across genres, with hits in 2 different decades. What’s interesting is...
Every bass player needs to know how to play walking bass lines. It’s THE foundation of jazz bass playing and dates back to the 1800’s when the sound was used by...
Probably the most recognized open tuning, DADGAD, has permeated Celtic, American roots, blues, and fingerstyle genres, just to name a few. Many trace the tuning...
I was a fan of Adrian Legg’s music long before I had the opportunity to see him perform live, which finally happened at a crowded and absurdly noisy NAMM conven...
I smile every time I hear his music. Heck, I smile anytime I hear or see his name. Tony McManus has that effect on his audience, peers, friends, and even total ...
It’s 1972 and you’re driving across the United States in your Oldsmobile Cutlass convertible with the top down. FM radio stations come and go, but you can pick ...
Austrian-born bassist Ariane Cap is a busy musician! And that is just the way she likes it. From gigging with multiple bands and teaching, to sitting on the boa...
Doing an acoustic gig should be as much fun as a band gig and could potentially be better money. It also comes with its own set of challenges that can severely ...
In this second installment of StudioWire, I’ll share a few updates about the new studio construction and some of the surprises we’ve encountered since we’ve bee...
Here ye, here ye! Audiophiles, guitar aficionados and enlightened children of the ‘Fire — prepare thy ears and hearts for magical music from the artists and...
All good guitar players have one thing in common – they make it look easy, in fact, they make it look effortless. That is because, for them, it is easy. But wha...
George Gershwin's "Somebody Loves Me", written in 1924, is one of the greatest of all the Standards. In this chord melody arrangement you will notice diatonic m...
Hello TrueFire students and guitar fanatics! It’s been a while since my last Riff Journal lesson from the inaugural issue where we explored neo-classical style ...
I often get asked about picking when teaching a student a lick. As in “what is the best way to pick that?” Many times the answer is, “it depends.” I know that s...
