In today's video I am going to give you 3 reasons why you should learn blues guitar! This is a question that comes up pretty often, and so I wanted to make a video about some of my thoughts on why I think musicians should learn to play the blues.

As a guitarist who has played countless gigs, and learned thousands of songs let me save you some time and say if you want to fast track your guitar learning curve be familiar with some blues repertoire.

Blues is the common ground between rock, country, folk, r&b, jazz, bluegrass and more. Let's discuss in today's video!

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In today's video I am going to give you three different approaches to soloing over a I to IV chord progression.

For this example I am using the song "Respect" as recorded by Aretha Franklin, which I already have a lesson up on the channel right here: https://youtu.be/O_6vNDk9b-Q

"Respect" is primarily built around a I to IV chord progression, and the three different approaches we will learn about in today's video are:

1. A blues/minor pentatonic sound
2. A major pentatonic sound
3. Combining them both to outline the changes

Unlock the guitar fretboard and learn to solo with my FREE book download - "Melodic Expressions"

Let's breakdown this classic blues shuffle in the key of A. We are only going to use three chords: A, D, and E. Make sure to play this along with the original recording as well for more practice.

Don't forget to download your free book about soloing here!

Learn a descending bass line pattern as we go through the chord progressions for "By Your Side" as recorded by Sade on guitar. I'll break down each section for you using a capo on the 4th fret and playing this song in the key of G. Have fun working on your strumming!

Don't forget to download your free book about soloing here!

How to play Day Tripper on guitar by the Beatles with TABs on-screen!

Learn to play one of the most iconic rock riffs of all-time in today's Beatles guitar lesson. This song starts off loosely based on a 12-bar blues form with the progression moving from the I to the IV chord but using a riff that outlines the chord shapes. This song is a great example of the influence of the blues on rock and roll. I'll take you through how to play the whole thing note-for-note with TABs on-screen as well!

Unlock the guitar fretboard and learn to solo with my FREE book download - "Melodic Expressions" 

How To Play 3 O' Clock Blues By B.B. King And Eric Clapton On Guitar! Learn a slow blues in the key of B that uses what I call sliding triads to give you a classic blues sound. This guitar style comes out of the T-Bone Walker school of blues rhythm guitar.

If you like this lesson you might also like this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FsDtl102DtI

How To Play Wait On Guitar | Beatles Guitar Lesson Rubber Soul Series #12

"Wait" starts off with a very typical George Harrison style guitar part that uses double stops in a 3-bar phrase. Then we're going to move into playing some classic Beatles style chord shapes that strum us through the chorus. Then finally in the bridge we will use power chords. I am going to break it all down for you step-by-step so you can get playing this song today just like the recording.

Unlock the guitar fretboard and learn to solo with my FREE book download - "Melodic Expressions" 

The blues scale is a 6 note scale and the sound of this scale is all over every iconic record from musicians like B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, and so many more.

The blues scale contains a minor third, but it is often played over major chords, and of course minor chords as well.

But it's typically not played just straight on the note it's often bent. In today's video I'll share a story about a lesson I got from blues master Kenny Burrell and we'll address the question, "is the blues scale major or minor?"

How to play Down Home Blues on guitar! Today we are going to learn a classic called "Down Home Blues"! Now there are a lot of versions of this song but the version we are going to be referencing in today's lesson is by James Cotton and Junior Wells. The song is a blues in the key of G, and the guitar part is a really fun little rhythm part based off a 6th interval and some triads. I'll break it all down for you in today's blues guitar lesson!

Unlock the guitar fretboard and learn to solo with my FREE book download - "Melodic Expressions" 

How to play Chain Of Fools on guitar! The guitar part on this song is either a guitar tuned way down or it's a baritone guitar. For today's lesson I grabbed my Jerry Jones baritone guitar to breakdown how to play this classic as recorded by Aretha Franklin. The song is in the key of C so I have my baritone tuned down to C, and I'm playing the song in the key of E with regards to the guitar chord shapes.

Unlock the guitar fretboard and learn to solo with my FREE book download - "Melodic Expressions"