Photo/Guitar Mashup

Here is a video of my playing over a backing track. Enjoy.

Triads and Improvisation "3+3"

When I talk to other players about improvisation, either in a rock, blues, or jazz context, I always try to stress melody. Can you hear a melody over the chords? If you can hear a melody, you can play a melody. Alot of players skip this step and either start blowing scales or familiar licks when its their turn to solo. Even worse, they try to combine a whole bunch of familiar licks, one right after the other, and call it a solo. What I advise, is to think of a melody, and then find that melody on the fingerboard. In order to facilitate this, one must be familiar with the chords in the songs, and at least the basic scales: major/minor pent, blues scale, major/minor scale and the dorian and mixolydian modes. It also helps to know triads, which I like to simplify into "3+3." I use 3 shapes for major triads, and 3 shapes for minor triads. Not a lot to memorize there. The triads, both major and minor, are derived from the open D, open A, and F chord shapes, and of course, consist of the 1, 3, and 5 tones.

I have heard solos from Pink Floyd to Metallica to the Allman Brothers to Django Rheinhardt that all start with a triad sound, and build melodically from there.

Triads are safe, but could get boring if you don't vary the order of the notes or develop an interesting rhythmic phrase.

Song Recorded on iPhone

iPhone makes great practice tool.  The voice memo app seen below is a great recorder.  You can record a baking track or song idea, email it to yourself, then edit it in Garage Band.  The Peterson Strobostomp app is well worth the $9.99, and there are several free apps that have chord charts, metronomes and loop makers.  

My #1 Strat

Yes, I guess this does signal my return to the blogospherical conundrum.

Shout out to Marty Schwartz

I just wanted to give a shout out to Marty Schwartz from YouTube. This guy is a great teacher and I've borrowed/stolen many ideas from his videos. I particularly like this chord progression because you can jam a straight minor pentatonic scale over it, then look for the outside notes that sound tasty over each chord.

Gov't Mule

Gov't Mule is my favorite band of the past ten years. Guitarist Warren Haynes is the consummate musician and an incredible live player. This is one of the best YouTube lessons I have seen, and a great introduction to the Gov't Mule sound. Enjoy!

Using Apple's Garageband

Garageband is an easy to learn, versatile recording program included with every new Mac. Use garageband to record your own guitar using either the built in mic, or a cheap USB interface like the Griffin iMic and a real mic. Create loops with simple chord progressions and improvise over them.

Ozzy!!!

While cleaning out a closet today I stumbled upon my wife's LP collection from the 1980s. I was simply blown away. Alongside the Duran Duran and Madonna junk, I was amazed to find many of the early AC/DC albums, David Gilmour, and this gem-Ozzy Osbourne's Blizzard of Oz. I remember first hearing Crazy Train when I was in summer camp on someone's boom box. I had not yet picked up a guitar, but Randy's playing struck a chord with me and he remains a favorite of mine to this day. Whenever Les Paul players fuss over the weight of their guitars, I tell them to think of Randy Rhoads.

FUNK!

Here is a great video by Leo Neocentelli of The Meters, showing the right way to play "Cissy Strut." I have seen so many cover bands and quite a few pros simply butcher this tune (playing B flat instead of A, adding extra notes, etc)- so here it is presented by the master:

Interactive Scale Generator

Here is a really useful practice tool: an interactive scale generator that show you all of the notes in a scale across the entire fretboard. As most of you know, there are five basic positions for the pentatonic scales, and seven for the diatonic scales. This website can be used for quick reference, but is no substitue for memorization! This site also shows chords across the entire fretboard as well.

http://www.notesonstrings.com/#formula=1_2_3_4_5_6_7&key=A

The fantastic Barber LTD Overdrive Pedal

David Barber makes some great pedals and, unlike other "boutique" builders, he doesn't charge a lot of money for them. I have owned his Direct Drive, Burn Unit EQ, and the LTD. The LTD is my favorite low gain pedal, it sounds and responds very naturally, "amp-like," you might say.

Boss Effects

When I started playing guitar back in the 1980s, I was a huge fan of Boss pedals. To this day, some of my favorite effect pedals are made by Boss. The original yellow OD-1, the CE-2, DM-2, etc. are classics in my book. My first boss pedal, the HM-2 Heavy Metal, was a complete revelation, and probably a severe headache for my parents, when I plugged it into my one-channel no name solid state amp in 1986. To think that I still own some Boss pedals from twenty years ago, is testament to their durability and appeal. From Les Paul and Jimmy Page to Jeff Beck and David Gilmour, most of the world's most famous guitar players have used Boss effects at one time or another. I still use the original OD-1 Overdrive, DD-3 Digital Delay, and FT-2-which is an extremely cool envelope filter.

My Students

I currently teach a handful of students, a job I enjoy tremendously. I have been teaching guitar, part-time, in some form or another, since my college days. I find the internet to be a wonderful resource for aspiring guitarists. Stay tuned for links to some of my favorite sites.

Hamer Standard!

Here is one of the best guitars I have ever played-a 1997 Hamer Standard Custom. This guitar literally plays itself. No cliche here, bending notes and fast runs are effortless. The action is nice and even from the low frets to the high frets. The finish is absolutely stunning. Hamer, without a doubt, hangs confidently along side the finest guitar builders in the world.

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