While the acoustic guitar is less commonly associated with rock than the electric, the acoustic has always had a strong presence in this genre—whether as a songwriting tool or the bedrock of a recording. These lessons cover a range of styles — from oldies and classic rock to punk, funk, and the pop of today.
With tight harmonies, sturdy twin guitar strumming, thoughtful lyrics, and a bit of vocal countermelody, the song has all the hallmarks of the duo's style.
This guitar lesson is based on Little Feat’s original recording of "Willin'," a duet with George on vocals and acoustic guitar and Ry Cooder on bottleneck electric guitar.
This classic song captures the ethos of the early hippie era and is played in the key of A minor, with a capo at the fourth fret causing the music to sound in C# minor.
Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” has nary an acoustic guitar in its swirling arrangement, but the song, in the guitar-friendly key of E major, lends itself nicely to an acoustic treatment.
Developing your sense of time and rhythmic vocabulary won’t just make you a better rhythm player, it will make you a better lead player, and a better musician overall.
The title track of Larkin Poe’s 2020 album Self Made Man is a blues rock banger, with crunchy electric guitar by Rebecca Lovell & scorching slide by Megan Lovell.
The goal of good fingerpicking accompaniment is to support the song you’re playing the best you can. Short fills between vocal lines, like the one in Example 9, can be a nice contrast to straight pattern picking.
Cockburn originally recorded the song in a rock-band setting, flush with electric guitars and synths, but when he stopped by our studio, he stripped the song down to just guitar and voice.
George Harrison's electric riffs work just as nicely on the acoustic and though this may be a challenging arrangement, it's worth practicing to achieve a properly rocking groove.
![Cover artwork for the ablum 'Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1]](jpg/traveling-wilburys-vol-1ca0c.jpg)
