Learn how to play everything from Britpop to blues and beyond.
Did Clapton Peak Too Early?
Jon MacLennanWhen it comes to Eric Clapton's guitar style, there is no shortage of masterful guitar techniques to dive into and study. In this article we'll focus specifically on his guitar style during the mid- to late-'60s around the formation of the band Cream.
8 Ways to Nail the IV Chord
Dan SmithLet's talk about momentum. It's an essential part of any great solo, and when you're ripping over a 12-bar blues, the first spot to really demonstrate your mastery of the harmony is when the IV chord pops up. In this lesson, I'll demonstrate how to create some … fourward momentum … in your next solo.
The Basics of Britpop
Shawn PersingerWhen considering the many bands that fall under the term “Britpop”–Oasis, Blur, Suede, Elastica, Radiohead’s early work, and more–it’s clear that the genre is more an attitude than a specific musical style. Still, there are a few guitar techniques and approaches that abound in the genre, many of which have been “borrowed” (the British music press’ friendly way of saying “appropriated”) from earlier British bands of the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s.
Nuno Bettencourt’s Hyper-Speed Arpeggios
David SchneiderThis lesson is all about shred guitar—specifically Extreme axeman Nuno Bettencourt's inventive approach to tapping arpeggios. Let's jump right in.
Jim Croce’s Fingerstyle Tricks
Kirby JaneIt's great to have polished songs memorized note-for-note and stored neatly in your gigging repertoire, but there's probably just as much value to being able to fly by the seat of your pants and pull an arrangement out of thin air. Knowing the building blocks of fingerstyle guitar is a great way to accomplish this.
Double-Stops for Days
Matthew LeeIn this lesson, we are going to cover a super important and very common technique. Double-stops are one of the pillars for defining a country guitar sound. I'll break down ways to approach this technique from an intervallic standpoint. If you feel it will require too much theory, don't worry… we won't go down that rabbit hole very far.
Why Was ’90s Country Guitar So Cool?
Matthew LeeMainstream country music in the '90s was a guitar-lover's dream. Nearly every tune on the radio was full of tasty fills and ripping—but short—solos. The most prominent session player during this time was Brent Mason, whose car primer gray Tele became as iconic as the parts he crafted.
The Secret to Connecting Chords
Marc SchonbrunWe're going to look at a simple jazz progression and talk about the struggle to make sense of some of these moves in the context of music theory. I want you to leave this lesson with new ways to think about chord progressions, and perhaps a different way to think about music theory.
UnCAGED Fretboard Hacks
Andy GibsonDo you feel confined within the same scale shapes or set of frets every time you go to rip a solo? If so, this lesson is for you. Or, if you're confident in your ability to move both horizontally and vertically around the fretboard, this lesson might help you to see the fretboard even better.
A Creative Approach to String Bending
Andy GibsonBending strings is one of the main pillars of rock, country, and blues playing. Imagine if B.B. King, Brent Mason, Brad Paisley, or Jimi Hendrix played without using any bends. It would be strange, right? The main bending techniques used by those four (and nearly every other person to pick up an electric guitar) will take you pretty much anywhere you need to go as a guitarist, but there are a few approaches to bending that will take you down roads less travelled.
- Nuno Bettencourt's Hyper-Speed Arpeggios - Premier Guitar ›
- Pluck 'Em! A Crash Course in Country Guitar - Premier Guitar ›
- Top 10 Lessons of 2020 - Premier Guitar ›
- Maybe Don't Practice Like Petrucci? - Premier Guitar ›
Keith Urban has spent decades traveling the world and topping global country-music charts, and on this episode of Wong Notes, the country-guitar hero tells host Cory Wong how he conquered the world—and what keeps him chasing new sounds on his 6-string via a new record, High, which releases on September 20.
Urban came up as guitarist and singer at the same time, and he details how his playing and singing have always worked as a duet in service of the song: “When I stop singing, [my guitar] wants to say something, and he says it in a different way.” Those traits served him well when he made his move into the American music industry, a story that begins in part with a fateful meeting with a 6-string banjo in a Nashville music store in 1995.
It’s a different world for working musicians now, and Urban weighs in on the state of radio, social media, and podcasts for modern guitarists, but he still believes in word-of-mouth over the algorithm when it comes to discovering exciting new players.
And in case you didn’t know, Keith Urban is a total gearhead. He shares his essential budget stomps and admits he’s a pedal hound, chasing new sounds week in and week out, but what role does new gear play in his routine? Urban puts it simply: “I’m not chasing tone, I’m pursuing inspiration.”
Wong Notes is presented by DistroKid.
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