Jon MacLennan

My Library Blog FREE BLUES SCALE GUIDE Login

Guitar Warm Ups For Speed And Strength

In this lesson we are going to explore some guitar warm ups that use hammer-on and pull-off techniques. The goal with this type of exercise is to help you develop speed, dexterity, and strength.

As you all know I don't spend a lot of time doing exercises. In my own playing and here on the channel as well. Instead I like to focus on songs. I'll typically take songs and create exercises out of them. Then when I am done working on the exercise I get to make music with it. However, with that said I do have a few stretching exercises and some short things like this exercise today that I like to do to keep my chops up and keep improving.

Get Your FREE Blues Training Series (not on YouTube) with TABs + a PDF Soloing Guide Book

Continue Reading...

How To Play Summertime As Recorded By Willie Nelson On Guitar

Let's learn how to play "Summertime" as recorded by Willie Nelson on guitar. This song is a must-know standard. Now there are so many versions of this song but this version as done by Willie Nelson is a nice easy lesson to get someone started playing jazzier repertoire. I'll break the whole song down for you in today's guitar lesson using open position chords.

Here is the original Willie Nelson video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5xafQXg1yI&list=PLdgtgX6KRHwRnv6EMfP8p3lVF_QjkzaMk&index=31

Get Your FREE Blues Training Series (not on YouTube) with TABs + a PDF Soloing Guide Book

Continue Reading...

How To Play Start Me Up On Guitar | Rolling Stones Guitar Lesson + Tutorial

Let's learn how to play "Start Me Up" as recorded by the Rolling Stones on guitar. This incredible guitar part is in Keith Richards' most common electric guitar tuning, open G.

To play this song Keith would remove the 6th string of his guitar and tune the remaining strings from the 5th string down GDGBD, which is the same tuning as banjo players.

The shapes used in this song are a perfect example of what I call the Keith Richards rhythm style. This style has influenced generations of rock guitar players and can be heard in clubs, arenas, and recording studios every day around the world. Let's break it down!

Get Your FREE Blues Training Series (not on YouTube) with TABs + a PDF Soloing Guide Book

 

Continue Reading...

How To Play I Can't Explain On Guitar | The Who Guitar Lesson + Tutorial

Let's break down how to play "I Can't Explain" by the Who on guitar. This is fun rock song that uses some standard rock rhythm guitar chords. I'll show you how to play it just like the recording and also an easier way by just using power chords instead of bar chords to meet each player at different levels for rock guitar.

Get Your FREE Blues Training Series (not on YouTube) with TABs + a PDF Soloing Guide Book

Continue Reading...

How To Play Lady Marmalade On Guitar | Pattie Labelle Guitar Lesson + Tutorial

In today's video I am going to show you how to play "Lady Marmalade" as recorded by Pattie Labelle on guitar. This is a super fun song that is primarily based off a ii-V chord progression. Grab your guitar and let's break it down!

Continue Reading...

How To Play Willow On Guitar | Taylor Swift Guitar Lesson + Tutorial

Let's learn how to play "Willow" as recorded by Taylor Swift on guitar. In this lesson we won't be using a pick, we'll just playing the guitar fingerstyle. Let's break it down!

Get Your Fingerstyle Jumpstart PDF Cheat Sheet

Continue Reading...

How To Play Call Me The Breeze On Guitar | J J Cale Guitar Lesson + Tutorial

Let's learn how to play "Call Me The Breeze" by J.J. Cale on guitar. This song is a 12-bar blues chord progression in the key of F#, and I am going to use a capo on 2nd fret to play this song. Call Me The Breeze has a great groove to it, and is a perfect example of how the early blues players really influenced rock players. Let's break it down!

Get Your FREE Blues Training Series (not on YouTube) with TABs + a PDF Soloing Guide Book

Continue Reading...

How To Play I Put A Spell On You | Screamin' Jay Hawkins Guitar Lesson + Tutorial

Let's break down this haunting 16-bar blues in the key of Fm. I am going to break it down for you in two different sections of 8 bars at a time. Let's get started!

Get Your FREE Blues Training Series (not on YouTube) with TABs + a PDF Soloing Guide Book

Continue Reading...

How To Play Proud Mary On Guitar | Ike & Tina Turner Guitar Lesson + Tutorial

In today's lesson we'll learn how to play Proud Mary on guitar as recorded by Ike and Tina Turner! This is a classic song originally written by John Fogerty. We are going to start off with the slow groove as we move through the first section. After this we are going to ramp it up and head into the rocking up-tempo jam for the rest of the tune. Let's break it down.

Get Your FREE Blues Training Series (not on YouTube) with TABs + a PDF Soloing Guide Book

Continue Reading...

How To Play That's All Right On Guitar | Elvis Presley Guitar Lesson + Tutorial

Let's learn how to play "That's All Right" as recorded by Elvis Presley on guitar. This song was originally written by Arthur Crudup but we'll be referencing Elvis' version as we learn an alternating bass note strum pattern over the I,V, and V chords in the key of A. Let's break it down!

Get Your FREE Blues Training Series (not on YouTube) with TABs + a PDF Soloing Guide Book

Continue Reading...
Close

50% Complete

You're Seconds Away

Enter your best email address to get an instant download link + exclusive content direct to your inbox every week.