Lick Of The Week series consists of lessons on specific licks you can add to your vocabulary and make use of in soloing and improvising. We will cover licks from specific guitarists and discuss how it is used and why it works.
In this lesson we will learn a bluesy rock riff you can use to practice call and answer improvisation. Call and answer is the practice of playing a riff and then answering with an improvised lead riff. Great way to practice improvisation.
In this lesson we will be studying a short excerpt from a John Mayer Sugaree solo with Dead And Company. The focus is on analyzing the notes he chooses to play relative to the chord progression. This is an important improvisational concept called Chord Tone Targeting
Lick starts at 4:36 – Video
Billy Strings is one of the best flatpickers in the world! In this lesson we will be deep diving into a Billy Strings style lick. The lick is a great example of combining the Blues Scale with the Country Scale.
In this lesson we will be studying the intro to Snow by Red Hot Chili Peppers as a Lick of the Week lesson. This piece of music is a great exercise in cross string picking and pick hand work in general. Not to mention it sounds cool and is really fun to play!
In this lick of the week lesson we will be learning the main riff to Mark Knopfler’s Money For Nothing. The lesson is taught using a fingerstyle method just like Knopfler played it. Classic rock riff using power chords and inversions of power chords.
In this lesson we will be discussing the concept of jamming by yourself with a call and answer blues riff. The riff is based around an E pentatonic Hendrix style riff.
In this lesson we will be studying the intro to Texas Flood. The intro has a lot of great blues licks that would add to your improvisational vocabulary. New ways to use chords, bends, and more
In this lesson we will be covering a Billy Gibbons style lick taken loosely from the ZZ Top song La Grange. The lick is in C and uses the c Pentatonic scale.
In this lesson we will be studying some Steve Cropper licks from the song Soul Man by Sam and Dave. We will be covering 2 specific licks that are common in R&B and Soul tunes. The use of 5th and 3rd intervals and using different chord voicings to vamp on the a single chord progression.
In this lesson we will focus on a lick from the outro solo of Blue On Black. The lick is in the key of D. He uses D pentatonic minor blues scale. Concepts covered are playing just one or two notes with added articulation and repeating licks to make an emotional impact.
In this lesson we will study a Lynyrd Skynyrd style boogie woogie blues riff. The riff is taken from the song I Know A Little and revolves around an A power chord. The riff can be applied to a standard 12 bar blues progression and moved to D and E chords as well.
In this lesson we will be learning a Vince Gill style country lick in the key of C. The lick starts with a hybrid picked arpeggio outlining the notes of a C9 chord. The lick ends with a tasty descending run using primarily pentatonic major with a flat 3rd and some chromatics to spice it up.
In this Lick of the Week lesson we are going to study a country style hybrid picking lick that aims to highlight the chords of the progression underneath. The lick involves playing double stops with pull offs that make the chord a dominant 7 giving it a great country sound. The chord shapes are movable making it easy to play in any key and make your own licks.
In this lesson we will be studying a common country blues style lick that involves holding a bend on the B string while playing other notes on the high E string. The lick is played out of the 3rd pentatonic major shape, also known as the B.B. King box. We will demonstrate with a jam track that is also provided in the lesson.
In this lesson we will be studying a specific aspect of Garcia’s guitar playing. Jerry frequently plays runs that seem to randomly climb up and down modes or scales. The request for the this lesson referred to it as “ladders” because of the up and down direction of the scale runs. We will be covering this concept and exploring some ways you can approach this sound using your knowledge of scales and modes.
In this lesson we will be studying an acoustic blues lick from the song Before You Accuse Me. The lick is played over the first 4 bars of a quick change 12 bar blues in the key of E. The lick uses E pentatonic minor.
In this lesson we will be studying a lick from the tune Have A Cigar. We will be covering the lick itself, but also the chord progression to see how Gilmour’s lead relates to the chords underneath. A big part of Gilmour’s style is playing melodic lines following the chord progression.
In this lesson we are going to take a close look at an Eric Clapton style blues turnaround. The excerpt is taken from the Unplugged record and the song Before You Accuse Me. The lick is played in the key of E and uses primarily E pentatonic minor with a major 3rd added at the end.
Lick of the week – Joe Bonamassa style dom 7 or 9 chords involve an inversion playing just the 5th and 3rd intervals of the chord, creating a heavier sound.
In this lesson we will study a common BB King style blues lick using notes from the pentatonic major scale. Great intro lick and can be used to lead back to the I chord in a 12 bar blues pattern.
In this lick of the week lesson we will be studying a Warren Haynes inspired lick using the A pentatonic minor / blues scale. The lick comes from a live version of Whipping Post and can be applied to any chord changes in Am.
This lick, in the style of SRV, uses an open E pentatonic minor / major blues scale. Great lick to add to your blues vocabulary.
In this edition of Lick of the Week we will study a Chuck Berry style blues lick.
In this lick of the week lesson we will study a jazzy sounding major blues lick using a variety of slurs and double stops. The example is in A but can be easily transposed to any key.
In this lesson we will be studying the use of Jazz chords in a blues context. Specifically we will be studying a jazzy way to transition from the I chord to the IV chord in a 12 bar blues.
In this lesson we are going to study some ways to color the E7 and A7 chords for an acoustic blues progression. It involves moving the up the neck using different fingerings to create extended E and A chords.
Learn some cool licks and tricks you can do within a Dominant 7 or 9 chord.
We will be studying a lick in A pentatonic minor in the style of Angus Young from AC/DC.
In this lesson we will study a bluesy country riff with a little Brad Paisley twist at the end.
In this lesson we will cover another Clapton style blues lick in the key of A. The excerpt is indicative of Clapton’s use of quick hammer ons and pull offs. The lick serves well as a turn around over bars 11 and 12 of a 12 bar blues.
In this lesson we will cover a Clapton style blues lick in the key of A. The excerpt is from the first solo of a live version of Crossroads. The lick combines several positions of the pentatonic scale and showcases his use of vibrato and quick hammer on and pull off techniques.
Youtube version of Crossroads – Eric Clapton Crossroads video
In this lesson we will be studying a blues lick that combines major and minor pentatonic notes. This is a great way to spice up your soloing and add a little sophistication. The lick works best over the I and IV chords in a 12 bar blues. Practice with the jam track
In this lesson we will be studying some specific Garcia licks from a live version of Franklins Tower. We will start by reviewing the theory behind the chord changes of Franklins Tower so we have a better idea of what tools we can use to improvise over these chord changes.
In this lesson we will be studying the ascending pentatonic minor lick in the style of Jimmy Page. The lick comes from the song Good Times Bad Times and incorporates a fast ascending triplet run. This is common in Page’s style throughout his career especially the early records.
In this lesson we will take a close look at an excerpt from SRV’s solo in the song Tightrope. The lick embodies several of his techniques and serves as a great study to grasp a bit of his style. The lick is in Bb Pentatonic minor. It incorporates bends, pull offs, hammer ons, and raking.
In this lesson we are going to study a funky blues groove using a 3 note dominant 9 chord shape.
In this lesson we will be studying a lick from Hey Joe. The lick uses many of the articulations common in Hendrix’s style, including bends, unison bends, double stops, hammer ons and pull offs. While we wiil be focusing primarily on this specific lick, I will also cover the chord progression to Hey Joe.
In this lick of the week lesson we will study an Albert Lee style country lick. This lick uses bends and holds to outline the chords underneath, a common country technique. We also have a nice descending lick using 6th intervals and pull offs to the open E string giving it a pedal tone type sound.
In this lesson we will be studying a flashy bluegrass lick in G that spans several positions on the fretboard. The lick combines many elements of Bluegrass improvisation including pentatonic major, minor, and some mixolydian. It applies several articulations as well. Slides, hammer ons, pull offs are all incorporated into the lick.