https://acousticguitar.com lessons, music to play, and how-tos for all guitarists Sun, 29 Dec 2024 19:48:49 +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/inside-the-songwriting-and-guitar-craft-of-gillian-welch-and-david-rawlings/ https://acousticguitar.com/inside-the-songwriting-and-guitar-craft-of-gillian-welch-and-david-rawlings/#comments Sun, 29 Dec 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=146442 Rawlings and Welch go deep about the writing and recording of their latest songs and the vintage guitar discoveries that helped shape them.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/inside-the-songwriting-and-guitar-craft-of-gillian-welch-and-david-rawlings/feed/ 2 146442 https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-connect-chords-with-bass-runs/ https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-connect-chords-with-bass-runs/#respond Wed, 27 Nov 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=146316 We’ll start off with a series of examples that use a bass run to connect two chords, and then we’ll try out bass runs in a few classic progressions.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-connect-chords-with-bass-runs/feed/ 0 146316 https://acousticguitar.com/review-audigo-wireless-microphone-and-app/ https://acousticguitar.com/review-audigo-wireless-microphone-and-app/#respond Wed, 30 Oct 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=145718 Audigo lets you record and sync audio and video, use EQ and effects, and share the final product—all on your phone. ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/review-audigo-wireless-microphone-and-app/feed/ 0 145718 https://acousticguitar.com/pat-metheny-explores-baritone-guitar/ https://acousticguitar.com/pat-metheny-explores-baritone-guitar/#comments Sun, 27 Oct 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=145848 The groundbreaking guitarist goes deep on his latest solo ventures—and why every one of his 50-plus releases feels like a single album.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/pat-metheny-explores-baritone-guitar/feed/ 1 145848 https://acousticguitar.com/add-a-blues-flavor-to-your-rhythm-with-simple-chord-embellishments/ https://acousticguitar.com/add-a-blues-flavor-to-your-rhythm-with-simple-chord-embellishments/#respond Wed, 09 Oct 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=145783 In this lesson we’ll work with some "blue" notes that you can use to add bluesy colors to open chord shapes. ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/add-a-blues-flavor-to-your-rhythm-with-simple-chord-embellishments/feed/ 0 145783 https://acousticguitar.com/play-kacey-musgraves-dreamy-ballad-too-good-to-be-true/ https://acousticguitar.com/play-kacey-musgraves-dreamy-ballad-too-good-to-be-true/#respond Fri, 04 Oct 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=145209 This intimate song is built on layers of acoustic guitar, with fingerstyle parts that are so closely entwined it’s often hard to pick out the individual instruments.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/play-kacey-musgraves-dreamy-ballad-too-good-to-be-true/feed/ 0 145209 https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-use-sus-and-add-embellishments-with-open-chord-shapes/ https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-use-sus-and-add-embellishments-with-open-chord-shapes/#respond Sun, 04 Aug 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=145271 Sus and add chord voicings are used all the time to add variety to rhythm patterns and create riffs.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/guitar-basics-how-to-use-sus-and-add-embellishments-with-open-chord-shapes/feed/ 0 145271 https://acousticguitar.com/review-ryan-david-green-off-and-running/ https://acousticguitar.com/review-ryan-david-green-off-and-running/#comments Fri, 19 Jul 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=145331 Green’s playing throughout is crisp and clear, with attention to the fine details of tone and articulation.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/review-ryan-david-green-off-and-running/feed/ 1 145331 https://acousticguitar.com/i-know-you-rider-learn-the-grateful-dead-classic/ Sun, 07 Jul 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=144734 This arrangement takes some cues from the Dead, but uses dropped-D tuning for more low end punch and adds a bunch of flatpicking fun.]]> 144734 https://acousticguitar.com/decorating-open-chords-with-hammer-ons-and-pull-offs/ https://acousticguitar.com/decorating-open-chords-with-hammer-ons-and-pull-offs/#respond Sun, 23 Jun 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=144766 This basic lesson focuses on using hammer-ons and pull-offs with open chords—creating classic sounds heard throughout roots, country, and rock guitar styles.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/decorating-open-chords-with-hammer-ons-and-pull-offs/feed/ 0 144766 https://acousticguitar.com/acoustic-grateful-dead/ https://acousticguitar.com/acoustic-grateful-dead/#respond Sun, 16 Jun 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=144834 Sam Grisman Project, Andy Falco and Travis Book, Wake the Dead, and Grahame Lesh share thoughts on what the Dead's songbook means to them, and how they approach it as a living tradition.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/acoustic-grateful-dead/feed/ 0 144834 https://acousticguitar.com/review-fishman-loudbox-micro-acoustic-amp/ https://acousticguitar.com/review-fishman-loudbox-micro-acoustic-amp/#comments Sun, 05 May 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=143849 Whether I fingerpicked, played bluesy lead lines, or dug into percussive strumming, the Micro delivered a clean and detailed sound.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/review-fishman-loudbox-micro-acoustic-amp/feed/ 1 143849 https://acousticguitar.com/chris-eldridge-revisits-his-bluegrass-roots-with-mighty-poplar/ https://acousticguitar.com/chris-eldridge-revisits-his-bluegrass-roots-with-mighty-poplar/#respond Wed, 03 Apr 2024 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=144060 “Critter” chats about his bluegrass travels, lessons learned from Tony Rice, and the discovery of his holy grail guitar.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/chris-eldridge-revisits-his-bluegrass-roots-with-mighty-poplar/feed/ 0 144060 https://acousticguitar.com/a-rare-solo-demo-of-joni-mitchells-help-me-shows-intriguing-musical-differences/ https://acousticguitar.com/a-rare-solo-demo-of-joni-mitchells-help-me-shows-intriguing-musical-differences/#comments Wed, 21 Feb 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=143495 While details of Mitchell's playing are tough to discern on the original, this newly released solo demo is especially illuminating.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/a-rare-solo-demo-of-joni-mitchells-help-me-shows-intriguing-musical-differences/feed/ 1 143495 https://acousticguitar.com/fingerstyle-composer-peppino-dagostino-connects-the-steel-and-nylon-string-guitar-worlds/ https://acousticguitar.com/fingerstyle-composer-peppino-dagostino-connects-the-steel-and-nylon-string-guitar-worlds/#respond Sun, 28 Jan 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=143450 D’Agostino uses unorthodox tunings, percussion, and other techniques to open up new vistas on the instrument. Yet his compositions feel driven by melody.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/fingerstyle-composer-peppino-dagostino-connects-the-steel-and-nylon-string-guitar-worlds/feed/ 0 143450 https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-use-a-partial-capo/ https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-use-a-partial-capo/#respond Tue, 09 Jan 2024 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=142675 Like a magic trick on your guitar, partial capos hold down some strings while leaving others untouched, changing the intervals between open strings.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-use-a-partial-capo/feed/ 0 142675 https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-play-the-indigo-girls-folk-rock-anthem-closer-to-fine/ https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-play-the-indigo-girls-folk-rock-anthem-closer-to-fine/#respond Sun, 10 Dec 2023 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=142672 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.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/how-to-play-the-indigo-girls-folk-rock-anthem-closer-to-fine/feed/ 0 142672 https://acousticguitar.com/nickel-creek-the-acoustic-guitar-podcast/ https://acousticguitar.com/nickel-creek-the-acoustic-guitar-podcast/#respond Wed, 29 Nov 2023 12:20:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=142914 Catch up with one of your favorite bluegrass bands! ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/nickel-creek-the-acoustic-guitar-podcast/feed/ 0 142914 https://acousticguitar.com/review-joni-mitchell-archives-vol-3/ https://acousticguitar.com/review-joni-mitchell-archives-vol-3/#comments Sun, 12 Nov 2023 14:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=142481 New Rhino set spans a time when Mitchell made multiple musical breakthroughs—as a songwriter, guitarist, and bandleader.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/review-joni-mitchell-archives-vol-3/feed/ 3 142481 https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-tracy-chapmans-groundbreaking-hit-fast-car/ https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-tracy-chapmans-groundbreaking-hit-fast-car/#respond Fri, 27 Oct 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=141863 Thirty five years after its release, this powerful narrative, with its distinctive guitar part, feels as vital as ever.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/learn-to-play-tracy-chapmans-groundbreaking-hit-fast-car/feed/ 0 141863 https://acousticguitar.com/explore-double-dropped-d/ https://acousticguitar.com/explore-double-dropped-d/#respond Tue, 10 Oct 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=141082 Lowering your first and sixth strings from E to D opens up enticing new possibilities on both the low and high ends of the guitar.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/explore-double-dropped-d/feed/ 0 141082 https://acousticguitar.com/john-lennon-a-songwriters-legacy/ https://acousticguitar.com/john-lennon-a-songwriters-legacy/#comments Mon, 09 Oct 2023 17:32:19 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=142240 What gives this music such vitality and allure, even for those who didn't grow up with Beatlemania in the 1960s?]]> https://acousticguitar.com/john-lennon-a-songwriters-legacy/feed/ 1 142240 https://acousticguitar.com/the-milk-carton-kids-deepen-their-sound-and-songwriting-on-i-only-see-the-moon/ https://acousticguitar.com/the-milk-carton-kids-deepen-their-sound-and-songwriting-on-i-only-see-the-moon/#respond Sun, 27 Aug 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=141195 Joey Ryan and Kenneth Pattengale, aka the Milk Carton Kids, discuss the creative process behind what is perhaps their strongest set of songs to date.]]> https://acousticguitar.com/the-milk-carton-kids-deepen-their-sound-and-songwriting-on-i-only-see-the-moon/feed/ 0 141195 https://acousticguitar.com/review-paul-simon-seven-psalms/ https://acousticguitar.com/review-paul-simon-seven-psalms/#respond Wed, 16 Aug 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=141002 It’s remarkable to say that even after all these decades of exploring all sorts of sonic and stylistic terrain, ‘Seven Psalms’ is unlike any other Paul Simon creation. ]]> https://acousticguitar.com/review-paul-simon-seven-psalms/feed/ 0 141002 https://acousticguitar.com/sean-watkins-shares-guitar-parts-behind-nickel-creek-songs/ Sun, 13 Aug 2023 13:00:00 +0000 https://acousticguitar.com/?p=139352 Watkins has developed a guitar vocabulary quite different from the classic boom-chuck.]]> 139352