Index Reference
The whole notion of this warmup is to use your index finger as a reference and find frets based upon it. This particular feeling of having your index …
Archives: Lessons
You Hoser
Man oh man, is a lick in store for you today!!! This lick in the key of G has two things going for it. The first is that it is as bluesy as they come,…
Great White North
Triplets, the rare mythical beast that they are, come into sight again today. Today you will learn a G minor pentatonic scale across the G string and …
Elsinore
The chord progression today is one in the key of G and it has a very cool bass technique that you can integrate into your playing nearly immediately. …
KC11 in Em Major
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
Shutout
Today's technique solely revolves around improving your sense of rhythm and timing. Since this week is dedicated to finger picking and particularly th…
Two Pad Stack
Mississippi Hill Country Blues is the genre this lick finds itself most at home. You will be using your new found sense of timing and control in conju…
Puckstopper
Two single string scales paired with a steady bass pulse will open up a world of bluesy opportunity for you today. The scale is a basic pentatonic sca…
Butterfly Slide
Minimalism and sparseness, two words not commonly associated with rhythm guitar... but they should be. When you truly edit your rhythm guitar playing …
Glove Save and a Beaut
Using single notes to transition from one chord to another is really cool... Using single notes to transition to and from chords with the blues is rou…
Index Reference Speed Challenge
The whole notion of this warmup is to use your index finger as a reference and find frets based upon it. This particular feeling of having your index …
Bob Barker
This lick is a beautifully resonant one in the key of Em. For this lick, you will use a single string descending scale sequence in conjunction with a …
Pat Sajak
What do you get when you cross a single string scale, a drone string, and a steady fingerpicking pattern… pure awesomeness that's what. Today's scal…
Alex Trebek
The chord progression on the menu for today is one that doesn't involve too many chords, but it packs a huge technique punch in the key of Em. What yo…
KC11 in Em Accidental
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
Eighth Note Turnaround Speed Challenge
This warmup is one that reaches into the banjo trick bag and pulls out a technique that is very much applicable to guitar. This will help you focus on…
Burt Reynolds
Today’s lick has a few things going for it, but before I even get to why this lick will change your perspective of guitar I have to tell you about t…
Groucho Marx
What happens when a banjo and a guitar collide??? This scale, this scale is exactly what happens. For today’s G major scale you will embrace open G …
Tom Selleck
The chord progression in store for today is one that will utilize open G tuning with banjo picking hand techniques. What you will learn today is actua…
KC11 in Em Mixed
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
Blues Jitter Bass
Bass is the name of the game today. You'll be using an eighth note pulse to play a bass pattern on your guitars low strings. While this sequence may h…
Triple Threat
Playing a blues shuffle is satisfying, useful, and it can get any foot tapping. The problem that sometimes arises is the thought that a blues shuffle …
Kodachromatic
Chromatic sequences are quite the ear catching thing, but how on earth do you integrate them into your playing? Today you find out. You'll be using a …
Shape Shifter
Your fretting fingers have an easy day ahead of them... well kind of. Today's 12 bar blues in A has you using the same exact shape for all of the chor…
Funkified Blues
Wowza!!! Today is a day to get funky with the blues. You'll be using pieces of chords, hammer-ons, and even muted strums to achieve a bit of funk flav…
Mixed Values and Strings
Deceiving is the one word I would use to describe this warmup. Today’s warmup will mix up strings as well as rhythmic values of notes. Due to the in…
Ricki Lake
Using portions of the C major pentatonic scale you will learn a lick today that really emphasizes phrasing. The beauty of this lick is that it is simp…
Geraldo Rivera
A C major pentatonic scale is on the docket today and you will actually delicately balance two shapes during this lesson. The C major pentatonic scale…
Jerry Springer
Palm muting and mini chord shapes combine today to form one awesome rhythmic technique. For this chord progression you will use small “two note chor…
KC12 in G (Barre) Major
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple of reas…
Pinch Study
The pinch study is something that will elevate your timing, technique, and your overall fingerpicking confidence. The pinch study mixes note values an…
Ditka
Ok, so this lick is one that may sound very familiar. It is from a song that I loved growing up and still love to this day… I will just leave that t…
Coach Q
The scale that you will learn and use today is in the key of D major and it is a harmonized scale. By taking the 1st and 3rd degrees of each chord in …
Phil Jackson
You will welcome a new technique into your home today with this lesson. This chord progression is in the key of D and it utilizes a bare hand strummin…
KC12 in G (Barre) Minor
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple of reas…
Nice List, Naughty List
Today, you break the rules... well, first you'll follow the golden rule of flatpicking and then in nearly the same breath you will proceed to break th…
Sleigh Bells
Today's lick will keep you coming back for more. This is a blues turnaround in the key of E, that will show how the use of repetitive down pick stroke…
Milk And Cookies
Two blues scales that just so happen to be next door neighbors is what you'll be exploring today. These two scale shapes will expand your knowledge of…
Santa’s Brother, Seventh Claus
The use of percussion and seven chords will be copious today. Nothing says the blues like some ear friendly dissonance and that's what you'll be impar…
Blitzen Blues
Taking what you learned yesterday, you'll add two different styles of chord transitions. One will be a short smooth transition and the other will be a…
Pinch Study Speed Challenge
The pinch study is something that will elevate your timing, technique, and your overall fingerpicking confidence. The pinch study mixes note values an…
Hrothgar
The lick that will be under your fingers after today’s lesson is in the key of A and it is a bluesy one at that. This lick is a classic blues turnar…
Beowulf
The scale for your playing and listening pleasure this week is an A blues scale. It will be performed out of an open position, and the technique that …
Grendel
This chord progression is in the key of A and it truly is a thumb workout of epic proportions. This chord progression is a standard 12 barre blues, bu…
KC12 in G (Barre) Mixed
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple of reas…
Knuckle Puck
Today’s chord progression combines strumming and fingerpicking… yes it can be done and it will be done. This key of D progression will reinforce t…
KC7 in B Major
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple of reas…
KC7 in B Minor
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
KC7 in B Accidentals
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
KC7 in B Mixed
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
Goldberg
The scale on the menu for today utilizes not one but two drone notes. Yes, two drone notes will be employed today and you will use them with a single …
Inside out
This flatpicking warmup is one that you will no doubt benefit from… think of it as a sort of fretting finger gymnastics. The warmup, if you so choos…
Oingo Boingo
This scale is one that is more of a mutation than a true scale shape. The scale you will learn today is in the key of G and is oriented in a "horizont…
Flippety Doo
A chord progression in the key of G that targets the high 3 strings is in-store today. At first listen you might think, "just three strings, how can t…
Inside out Speed Challenge
This flatpicking warmup is one that you will no doubt benefit from… think of it as a sort of fretting finger gymnastics. The warmup, if you so choos…
Traveling Pairs
A dual purpose warmup awaits you today. This fingerpicking warmup involves and works not only the fretting hand but the picking hand as well. The fret…
Traveling Pairs Speed Challenge
A dual purpose warmup awaits you today. This fingerpicking warmup involves and works not only the fretting hand but the picking hand as well. The fret…
Mashed Potatoes
Blues is on the menu today and it comes in the form of this awesome ending lick in the key of E. This E blues lick starts out with a familiar sounding…
Buckets of Butter
Adding a percussive beat is the name of the game today. This chord progression is one that isn’t necessarily that difficult, in fact there are only …
Trampoline Accident
Open strings are the name of the game today. In fact not only are there open strings, there are pull offs a plenty. This lick is in the key of D and i…
No Whammy No Whammy
Combinations, combinations, combinations. Today is all about combinations (if you couldn't tell). Today I present to you three different D major scale…
Bankrupt
This chord progression is one that utilizes only two strings but has big time sound. But how can that be ?!?!? Enter the magic of palm muting. By usin…
Flying V
What a lick for this fine Tuesday!!! This lick is in the key of D, it incorporates the technique of the backward roll and it includes the flat seventh…
Connecting Pairs
This warmup is truly a double whammy… almost a triple whammy even. This warmup will give you confidence in your alternating picking pattern, and als…
Connecting Pairs
This warmup is truly a double whammy… almost a triple whammy even. This warmup will give you confidence in your alternating picking pattern, and als…
Connecting Pairs
This warmup is truly a double whammy… almost a triple whammy even. This warmup will give you confidence in your alternating picking pattern, and als…
Connecting Pairs
This warmup is truly a double whammy… almost a triple whammy even. This warmup will give you confidence in your alternating picking pattern, and als…
Punching Bag
Today's technique challenge will bring together a few different pieces of the puzzle. First on the menu, a fretted pull off. This will find you fretti…
Punch It
Today's challenge will find you adding a solid musical exclamation point to your repertoire. You'll be learning this bluegrass lick in the key of G an…
Upper Cut
Pull offs and hammer ons are the key to today's improvisation challenge. There are some other goodies thrown in too like some blues as well as some dr…
Speed Bag
The rhythm guitar challenge for today is one that will help you with quick chord changes, and add a little giddy up to your current rhythm guitar offe…
Against The Ropes
Today's chord transition challenge is the culmination of what you have been working on all week long. You'll be adding a quick fill in between chord c…
Alternate Picking
Today's warmup is one that will aid in fretting finger articulation, as well as flatpick control while performing alternate picking. This warmup not o…
Alternate Picking Speed Challenge
You will get another crack at the warmup from week 1 of this month today, but this time the tempo will be increased :-) The warmups are designed to bu…
Blockbuster
middle fingers on your picking hand to play adjacent strings. Focusing on only three strings at a time will allow you to hone in your string accuracy,…
Alternate Thumb
The absolute core of fingerpicking is the ability to manage the thumb alternating from string to string. This exercises trains that very movement as w…
Synchronized Success
The lick for today is one that you can access by just making a chord. The beauty of this lick is that all you have to do is hold down a C chord and yo…
Fastforward
Blues, blues, blues, and blues. The lick on tap for today is an extremely useful one. You can deploy this lick as a fill or an ending for any blues in…
Sweet Spot
One of the hard parts about playing up the neck is getting back to play the chords, when you switch from “solo mode” to “rhythm mode.” This li…
Roller Skating Rink
The lick for today will show how the forward roll (both with the ring finger and without) can be incorporated into a lick. This lick is a fun one in G…
Chord Shape Conundrum
Magical improv day is here and you will be playing in the key of C, using the C major scale… but you will be soloing from the chord position that mi…
Sweeter Spot
The scale you will go through today is a G major scale that accomplishes the goal of the week rather well… it is an up the neck/closed position scal…
Be Kind Rewind
Today you will open a can of improvisation worms. On the agenda for today's challenge are 3, count 'em 3, single string E minor pentatonic scales. Alo…
Falcor Flies Again
A scale that contains double stops in the key of G is in order for today, but there is a beautiful thing that lies within todays scale… the use of t…
Smoke and Mirrors
The magical C shape will be used today, and not only will it be used… it will be just plain abused. Using the C shape, you will perform a magic tric…
Block Party
Open chords are wonderful it’s true, I dearly love them with all of my heart… but what happens when you can’t get away from up the neck in time?…
VHS Fever
The three string parade continues today. You will be taking the three string groups that you have been using all week, combining them with a muting te…
Merlin’s Mutant Brother
So often the forward roll is associated with a driving, almost momentum building effect, but today you will see a side of the forward roll that is muc…
KC1 in C (Major)
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
New Releases
Simple can be extremely effective, and that very lesson lies at the heart of the chord transitions you will be using in today's chord transition chall…
KC1 in C (Accidental)
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
KC1 in C (Mixed)
Today's lesson is focused on helping you roadmap keys with common chords that you will likely run into. This category is designed for a couple reasons…
Adjacent Strings
The warmup on the schedule for today is one that will begin to help you maintain proper pick direction even when picking two different strings. This e…
Ménage à Trois
Harnessing pull-offs and triplets is the name of the game today. The goal for this challenge is two-fold: One, you will have a chance to work on your …
String Awareness
The warmup for today is a little one, but it will go a very long way in helping your fingerpicking fingers find the strings they are looking for. Usin…
String Awareness Speed Challenge
You will get another crack at the warmup from week 2 of this month today, but this time the tempo will be increased :-) The warmups are designed to bu…
Ace Up Your Sleeve
Nothing is better than a standard sounding lick with a tweak at the end. Today's lick fits that bill to a T. Placed in the key of A, this licks starts…
Dungeon Master
What happens when you pair a backward roll with drop D tuning… pure magic… pure magic is the answer. This lick uses the low strings and sounds dar…
Head Over Heels
This lick has an almost tumbling or rolling effect due to it's descending direction and the free use of pull-offs and triplets. You'll see two things …