https://acousticguitar.com lessons, music to play, and how-tos for all guitarists Mon, 26 Aug 2024 15:40:50 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://i0.wp.com/acousticguitar.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/AG_Favicon.png?fit=32%2C32&ssl=1 https://acousticguitar.com 32 32 103806923 https://acousticguitar.com/boost-your-bottleneck-slide-playing-by-focusing-on-chord-tones/ https://acousticguitar.com/boost-your-bottleneck-slide-playing-by-focusing-on-chord-tones/#respond Tue, 27 Aug 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=145215 Chord tones provide not only a solid foundation for expanding your slide playing but a template for soloing in general, with or without slide.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/boost-your-bottleneck-slide-playing-by-focusing-on-chord-tones/feed/ 0 145215 https://acousticguitar.com/open-strings-blues-basics/ https://acousticguitar.com/open-strings-blues-basics/#respond Sun, 14 Apr 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=143946 Here you'll learn a few cool licks that go beyond the minor pentatonic scale—and how to put them to use for your own leads and improvisations.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/open-strings-blues-basics/feed/ 0 143946 https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-you-gotta-move-ag-patreon-song-of-the-month/ https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-you-gotta-move-ag-patreon-song-of-the-month/#respond Tue, 05 Mar 2024 17:52:34 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=143986 Learn to play an African American spiritual as interpreted by the legendary bluesman Mississippi Fred McDowell]]> https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-you-gotta-move-ag-patreon-song-of-the-month/feed/ 0 143986 https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-when-the-levee-breaks-on-acoustic-guitar/ https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-when-the-levee-breaks-on-acoustic-guitar/#comments Tue, 06 Feb 2024 19:31:43 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=143632 As I write this, California is seeing historic atmospheric rivers and treacherous flooding and I can’t help but think of this song from the blues canon.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-when-the-levee-breaks-on-acoustic-guitar/feed/ 2 143632 https://acousticguitar.com/blues-soloing-basics-learn-to-improvise-on-the-12-bar-minor-pentatonic-scale/ https://acousticguitar.com/blues-soloing-basics-learn-to-improvise-on-the-12-bar-minor-pentatonic-scale/#comments Fri, 08 Dec 2023 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=142719 Understanding these few simple ideas will help make your blues playing more satisfying and musical.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/blues-soloing-basics-learn-to-improvise-on-the-12-bar-minor-pentatonic-scale/feed/ 3 142719 https://acousticguitar.com/learn-talco-girl-steve-james-rootsy-character-study-in-dropped-d-tuning/ https://acousticguitar.com/learn-talco-girl-steve-james-rootsy-character-study-in-dropped-d-tuning/#comments Fri, 30 Jun 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=135622 One of James' most popular tunes, “Talco Girl” is supported by a guitar accompaniment that would make a smart instrumental composition on its own.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/learn-talco-girl-steve-james-rootsy-character-study-in-dropped-d-tuning/feed/ 1 135622 https://acousticguitar.com/learn-mary-flowers-waltz/ https://acousticguitar.com/learn-mary-flowers-waltz/#respond Mon, 12 Jun 2023 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=112739 “Most of the time I have no idea how the music comes from my fingertips while writing. It’s not like I’m going for some genre or sound. It just happens!” ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/learn-mary-flowers-waltz/feed/ 0 112739 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-play-like-mississippi-john-hurt/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-play-like-mississippi-john-hurt/#comments Mon, 05 Jun 2023 13:25:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=106561 Although John Hurt’s style and repertoire are often imitated, his guitar sound is hard to duplicate. In this lesson, Steve James teaches you how to play like Mississippi John Hurt.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-play-like-mississippi-john-hurt/feed/ 3 106561 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-simple-acoustic-blues-tips-that-can-improve-your-bottleneck-slide-technique/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-simple-acoustic-blues-tips-that-can-improve-your-bottleneck-slide-technique/#respond Tue, 25 Apr 2023 21:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=100382 There are several things you can do to get a good slide sound: Set up your guitar with heavier strings, use an open tuning, try different kinds of slides, dampen the strings, and learn to properly intonate. Getting a good sound is often as much a function of proper setup as it is technique. ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-simple-acoustic-blues-tips-that-can-improve-your-bottleneck-slide-technique/feed/ 0 100382 https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-12-improvising-on-the-12-bar-form/ https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-12-improvising-on-the-12-bar-form/#respond Wed, 08 Mar 2023 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=128411 Learn how to use the form of the 12-bar blues as a roadmap for your improvising and give your blues solo a sense of logic and musical development.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-12-improvising-on-the-12-bar-form/feed/ 0 128411 https://acousticguitar.com/arranging-w-c-handy-the-father-of-the-blues-for-fingerstyle-guitar/ https://acousticguitar.com/arranging-w-c-handy-the-father-of-the-blues-for-fingerstyle-guitar/#respond Sun, 26 Feb 2023 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=134213 Guitarist and W.C. Handy scholar Jon Shain shares strategies for adapting ragtime pieces for fingerstyle guitar using the 1917 Handy song "Beale Street Blues" as an example.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/arranging-w-c-handy-the-father-of-the-blues-for-fingerstyle-guitar/feed/ 0 134213 https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-11-developing-satisfying-solos/ https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-11-developing-satisfying-solos/#respond Tue, 31 Jan 2023 16:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=128565 Learn to create a solo that has a certain kind of connectedness and unity, because it’s based around some related ideas instead of just whatever lick you happen to come up with at the moment.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-11-developing-satisfying-solos/feed/ 0 128565 https://acousticguitar.com/add-some-swing-to-your-fingerstyle-blues-with-walking-bass-lines/ https://acousticguitar.com/add-some-swing-to-your-fingerstyle-blues-with-walking-bass-lines/#respond Sun, 25 Dec 2022 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=134225 In this guitar lesson you will learn to play a 12-bar walking-bass blues in the key of E major, adding some swing to your blues playing.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/add-some-swing-to-your-fingerstyle-blues-with-walking-bass-lines/feed/ 0 134225 https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-10-creating-contrast/ https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-10-creating-contrast/#respond Tue, 13 Dec 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=128575 Space can be good, but if you want to create a bigger sense of dimension, adding in chords as responses to single-note licks can give you a new depth and texture, while creating an additional level of call-and-response.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-10-creating-contrast/feed/ 0 128575 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-fingerpicking-on-the-blues-in-c-major/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-fingerpicking-on-the-blues-in-c-major/#respond Fri, 25 Nov 2022 17:31:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=115839 Here are three ways to play a 12-bar blues in C major on guitar, seen through the lens of the old blues masters.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-fingerpicking-on-the-blues-in-c-major/feed/ 0 115839 https://acousticguitar.com/exploring-the-open-tunings-of-robert-johnson-and-other-blues-guitarists/ https://acousticguitar.com/exploring-the-open-tunings-of-robert-johnson-and-other-blues-guitarists/#respond Fri, 18 Nov 2022 16:43:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=121835 This trio of lessons explores some of the open tunings most frequently heard in the blues: Vastopol, Spanish, open-C and open-G]]> https://acousticguitar.com/exploring-the-open-tunings-of-robert-johnson-and-other-blues-guitarists/feed/ 0 121835 https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-an-intro-to-bottleneck-blues/ https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-an-intro-to-bottleneck-blues/#respond Fri, 11 Nov 2022 17:08:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=102824 Learn the basics of acoustic slide guitar and start to find the notes between the notes where the range of human emotion runs.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/video-lesson-an-intro-to-bottleneck-blues/feed/ 0 102824 https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-9-playing-into-the-downbeat/ https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-9-playing-into-the-downbeat/#respond Thu, 10 Nov 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=128582 Look at how to play into the downbeat to create momentum in your fingerstyle blues soloing and explore different kinds of resolutions—short, long, and delayed.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-9-playing-into-the-downbeat/feed/ 0 128582 https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-8-adding-motion-and-color-with-jazz-chords/ https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-8-adding-motion-and-color-with-jazz-chords/#respond Fri, 07 Oct 2022 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=128604 Explore how you can add motion and color to your blues playing by using compact chord voicings inspired by the great jazz guitarist Freddie Green.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-8-adding-motion-and-color-with-jazz-chords/feed/ 0 128604 https://acousticguitar.com/which-alternate-tunings-are-most-commonly-used-in-blues/ https://acousticguitar.com/which-alternate-tunings-are-most-commonly-used-in-blues/#comments Thu, 22 Sep 2022 15:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=116818 The two principal open tunings used in blues guitar playing have old, vernacular American names: Vastopol and Spanish.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/which-alternate-tunings-are-most-commonly-used-in-blues/feed/ 1 116818 https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-7-building-call-and-response-patterns-with-western-swing-chords/ https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-7-building-call-and-response-patterns-with-western-swing-chords/#respond Thu, 08 Sep 2022 04:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=128598 Create call-and-response statements using Western swing chords. You’ll learn to play single-note licks on the I chord in the key of A major, answered by different combinations of sixth and ninth chords.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-7-building-call-and-response-patterns-with-western-swing-chords/feed/ 0 128598 https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-play-lead-bellys-version-of-the-blues-ballad-john-hardy/ https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-play-lead-bellys-version-of-the-blues-ballad-john-hardy/#respond Sun, 14 Aug 2022 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=132721 This guitar transcription of Lead Belly's blues murder ballad "John Hardy" uses the tuning of low-B from the 1940 Library of Congress recording.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-play-lead-bellys-version-of-the-blues-ballad-john-hardy/feed/ 0 132721 https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-6-harmonizing-a-scale/ https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-6-harmonizing-a-scale/#respond Thu, 04 Aug 2022 16:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=127354 Learn how to create interesting harmonies derived from a scale—specifically, the ascending form of A melodic minor (A B C D E F# G#).]]> https://acousticguitar.com/12-ways-to-play-better-blues-guitar-lesson-6-harmonizing-a-scale/feed/ 0 127354 https://acousticguitar.com/make-your-own-blues-using-classic-guitar-licks-and-phrases/ https://acousticguitar.com/make-your-own-blues-using-classic-guitar-licks-and-phrases/#respond Wed, 13 Jul 2022 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=131992 If you look to the masters for inspiration—without copying them note for note—you can produce blues verses and solos that sound fresh and exciting on guitar.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/make-your-own-blues-using-classic-guitar-licks-and-phrases/feed/ 0 131992 https://acousticguitar.com/playing-thumb-driven-monotonic-bass-lines-on-guitar/ https://acousticguitar.com/playing-thumb-driven-monotonic-bass-lines-on-guitar/#respond Wed, 06 Jul 2022 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=132005 In this guitar lesson, learn to play a monotonic bass line, then apply it separately to three chords in the basic 12-bar blues progression.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/playing-thumb-driven-monotonic-bass-lines-on-guitar/feed/ 0 132005