About Bill Palmer

BILL PALMER is a guitarist, composer/musician and an educational author. His style is a mix of rock tones, ambient sound-scapes and jazz-influenced harmony.

Along similar stylistic lines to Joe Satriani and Eric Johnson but with a voice all his own, Bill’s debut self-recorded album “Outlines” (ToneFreak records 2007) has garnered much critical acclaim from both music industry press and insiders and has been described as:

“Classic Satch style shred…” Australian Guitar Volume 64
“Face melting runs, complex arpeggios…” Rave Magazine 2008
“Your material is awesome, really great stuff…” Mark Holden – Aust. Idol Judge
“Great playing, writing and arranging – awesome!” T.J Helemerich (LA based producer)
“Bill Palmer’s “Outlines” is a guitar pickers heaven…” Manly Daily
“Tone, control and melody – epic sounding….” Australian Guitar Volume 64
“Plenty of heat, the songs are both catchy and original…” Manly Daily

Follow this link to reach Bill’s Website

Download Bill’s Songs from iTunes!

Chord Melody Solo Techniques

Hi again! In this video, I’m breaking down how to play the chorus to “Tears in Heaven” as a chord/melody solo piece; It’s a continuation of the first instalment. If you haven’t checked that out yet, please do so here:
http://www.learn-acoustic-guitar.com/chord-melody-solo-techniques

As previously stated, the primary concern to bear in mind when you’re attempting this kind of thing is to give the listener the impression that both chords and melody are happening at the same time. So, if applicable, learn the chord shapes first and then the melody after-the-fact. Then, you need to fit them together so that the melody is finding it’s voice from within the harmony. While it takes a little time and patience, it’s not nearly as hard as you may initially think.

I’ve included the melody in the text below and as stated in the video, have deliberately moved the first 3 bars of this up an octave. Why you ask? Well, as this is being played on guitar, we don’t want the melody to get lost in the chords so moving it to a higher octave helps it “cut through” a little more and I feel, gives it some clarity.

I’ve also included the chords and as clarified in the video, have changed the voicing of the original chords in order to facilitate the change in the melody. As an “FYI,” whenever you’re putting something like this together, you’re making an “arrangement” of the piece which is to say, you’re finding the best possible way to articulate the song for your particular style and instrument.

Also, please note that nothing is set in stone, this is just my beginners arrangement for this particular piece. As I sate in the video, I tend to vary things quite a bit here and there and may never play it same way all the time.
On that note, you’ll notice I’ve not included a note for note transcription of what I played either. I did in the previous instalment but not for this one. This IS intentional; I really do think the best way to learn is to take an “idea” and to try and make it your own. You can of course copy what I’m doing on the video but likewise, do feel free to modify and/or change parts to suit your own style. So long as you have the chords and the melody, the rest is really interpretation.

(Click Image For Larger View)

As always, please do feel free to comment or to get in touch. Catch you next time for some more on this piece!

< < Back to Part 1 | VIEW PART 3 OF THIS SERIES ON CHORD MELODY SOLO TECHNIQUES >>

Content Written Exclusively For:
http://www.learn-acoustic-guitar.com/

Questions? Comments?
Email – bill@billpalmer.com.au

About Bill Palmer

BILL PALMER is a guitarist, composer/musician and an educational author. His style is a mix of rock tones, ambient sound-scapes and jazz-influenced harmony.

Along similar stylistic lines to Joe Satriani and Eric Johnson but with a voice all his own, Bill’s debut self-recorded album “Outlines” (ToneFreak records 2007) has garnered much critical acclaim from both music industry press and insiders and has been described as:

“Classic Satch style shred…” Australian Guitar Volume 64
“Face melting runs, complex arpeggios…” Rave Magazine 2008
“Your material is awesome, really great stuff…” Mark Holden – Aust. Idol Judge
“Great playing, writing and arranging – awesome!” T.J Helemerich (LA based producer)
“Bill Palmer’s “Outlines” is a guitar pickers heaven…” Manly Daily
“Tone, control and melody – epic sounding….” Australian Guitar Volume 64
“Plenty of heat, the songs are both catchy and original…” Manly Daily

Follow this link to reach Bill’s Website

Download Bill’s Songs from iTunes!

Chord Melody Solo Techniques Part 1

Developing the ability to play melodies whilst also playing the chords to a piece is a very impressive skill-set to get under your fingers. And contrary to a lot of guitarists belief, it’s not necessarily as hard as it may initially appear.
Typically, whenever a “punter” (muso-speak for a non-musician!) asks you to play something by yourself, at times, without even realising it, they are expecting you to do this very thing. I guess it’s a little like ordering a meal at a ritzy restaurant – would you give a second thought for how difficult it is for the chef to make? Probably not, you just like the sound of it from the menu.

Anyways, onto the lesson. To begin with, get the melody under your fingers and very importantly, ensuring the rhythm is accurate. Feel free to embellish it with a slides, hammer-ons or pull-offs as well.

Next, get those chord shapes down pat. Make sure you can transition smoothly from chord to to chord before you try and put the piece together.

Once you’ve got steps 1 and 2 down, you now need to try and put them both together. The thing to bear in mind is that you want that melody to “pop.” Make sure you’re fretting things cleanly and that you’re being definite about the rhythm!

Lastly, you can add the embellishments such as the hammer-on at the beginning and any others that you think might be worthwhile. It’s important to START SLOW. Don’t rush – speed comes with time and practice.

Thanks for watching, hopefully you learnt something and I’ll catch you again soon for another instalment of this piece.

(Please Click Images For Larger Views)

VIEW PART 2 OF THIS SERIES ON CHORD MELODY SOLO TECHNIQUES >>

Content Written Exclusively For:
http://www.learn-acoustic-guitar.com/

Questions? Comments?
Email – bill@billpalmer.com.au

By Gary Fletcher
Running up and down a pentatonic scale is an easy way to get started playing blues guitar solos, but you soon realize that there’s more to it than that to create the sounds of blues players you listen to. Here are three secrets to help you extend your pentatonic skills and sound more like your blues guitar heroes.

Minor and Major

Instead of running around minor or major pentatonic positions, get into the habit of using both.

Many blues players use a mixture of both the minor and major scales as well as the blues scale. This one secret will give your solos a whole new dimension.

An easy way to do this is to use the pentatonic major scale over the I chord, and switch to the pentatonic minor on the IV and V chords. Pop on your favourite blues jam track and try this out.

If you play the major scale over the IV chord you’ll notice that it sounds kind of odd. The major third tone is the major seventh of the IV chord and clashes with the chord’s dominant seventh note. The minor third hits that dominant seventh and sounds way better.

Play Less Notes

A big mistake lots of novice blues soloists make is to play too many notes. Once you’ve learned the pentatonic or blues scales you’re usually eager to show off your knowledge by trying to go as fast as you can and play as many notes as possible in the least possible time.

Your licks and solos can be made much more effective, though, by limiting the notes you play, and their quantity. To develop this skill select at most three or four notes from the available scales and practice licks and whole solos with only those notes.

Throw In Some Chords

You can improve your solos by developing your skill with the blues scales, but another way to get ahead fast is to throw in a few chords from time to time.

As with any other trick, the skill here is not to overdo it. Don’t start playing chords on every bar, but punctuate your single note licks with chords or chord fragments from time to time and you’ll take your solos to new heights.

Of course, the other important trick with this technique is to hit the right chord. You can practice this by firing off one, two or four bar licks and ending each one by hitting the right chord for that bar. Again, use a jam track, or record a simple chord backing, so your mistakes will stand out.

Bonus: Getting Chromatic

Here’s a bonus secret for you, you don’t have to stick to the scales all the time. Throwing in out of scale notes builds tension in your solos that you release by ending on a scale tone.

Practice linking notes of the scale with chromatic runs. This technique works well as a lead in to new phrases. You can take the tension to its maximum by using out of time rhythms too.

The basic ingredients of blues guitar solos are quite simple to learn, the pentatonic scale positions can be learned and memorized relatively easily and quickly. But don’t stop there, there are plenty of different ways to apply them to create more interesting sounds. These three secrets will give you a good start, but keep on the look out for more to build your bag of blues solo tricks.

Guitar article writing: Gary Fletcher writes quality, original content for your guitar web sites. Learn about his guitar writing services for web sites, blogs and newsletters. Visit http://www.writescribe.com/guitar to learn more.

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By Ricky Sharples

In the late nineteen thirties a cowboy musician called Bob Willis introduced the electric guitar to his audiences. Nobody knows whether they noticed this historic innovation but ten years later a whole generation sat up and took notice when Arthur Smith released his recording of “Guitar Boogie”. This hit instrumental established the electric guitar as a musical force to be reckoned with. While the world of rock and roll moved to the music of Stratocasters it took a while for country musicians to move from the more restrained tones of the Gretsch archtop to the more “biting” Fender sound.

Many guitarists play their country solos on the Fender Telecaster with a Fender tube “Twin”, Super Reverb or Deluxe Reverb amplifier. On the other hand, if they are on a tight budget they have been known to settle for a Peavey tube amp. One piece of equipment you will not need is the whammy bar. It is not used in playing country music.

In contrast to other musical genres that use the electric guitar, country music does not employ a wide variety of electronic effects in guitar solos. Alot of country guitar players use a strictly clean sound, maybe sprucing the music up with a little reverberation. The only effect consistently utilized by country guitar soloists is compression which enforces limits on the sound waves produced by the guitar. This effect enhances the volume of the softer notes, and slightly mutes the louder notes. This makes the overall volume seem more even.

When it comes to technique you can start off as a flatpicker but many country guitar players will use a thumbpick in combination with the index and ring finger. This naturally increases your level of versatility more than somewhat. There is a technique called “chicken pickin” which involves popping the guitar strings with your fingers. It is a little hard to describe in writing but you can see plenty of examples on YouTube, but to get the general idea, try this experiment: hold your right hand over the guitar strings, then mute your E (sixth) string by resting your index finger on it down towards the bridge. Next, pluck the string with your thumb. This will give you a “thuck” sound. To complete the chicken pickin move, pluck the open string with the nail of your index finger. This move is repeated until it comes naturally.

Country solo playing can easily begin in the first position on the guitar. When you begin to play country guitar solos just play over the chords. Do not go looking for a “country scale”, although the blues scale is quite handy in country guitar playing. The trick is to practice with whatever chord shapes you have at your stage of playing and see what kind of riffs, licks and tricks you can get out of each of them. It is a very interesting way to learn because every chord has its unique character. Start with your basic chords like C, D, E, G, and A.

So if you want to learn to play country guitar solos which guitar players do you listen to? Listening to Chet Atkins will teach alot to a guitarist in any genre. He is largely responsible for the smooth Nashville sound which is so attractive to many music lovers. Chet owes his style to Merle Travis, using his thumb to pick bass notes and other fingers to play the melody and fills. And do not forget to look for music recorded by Merle Travis himself. Another guitar great is Jerry Reed. A guitarist with boundless energy and enthusiasm, he played on the Elvis Presley single of his own compositions “Guitar Man” and “US Male”. This list could go on and on, so let us finish by mentioning Albert Lee, a British guitar player admired by many other famous guitarists.

Do you want to learn to play the guitar? Learn How To Play A Guitar For Free is a constantly updated blog which contains all the resources you need for: learning to play solo guitar, how to learn guitar chords, how to learn to read and play easy acoustic guitar tabs, finding a free online guitar tuner, looking for free guitar lessons online, and how to learn guitar scales.

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By Ricky Sharples

To be a lead guitar player, you will need a knowledge of scales, arpeggios, riffs and licks. This short article is for the beginner guitar student who maybe knows some basic chords but wants to branch out to lead playing. Of course it is not always necessary for the lead guitar player to play solos. The lead and rhythm guitarists can work together to complement the singer’s vocals. For instance the lead guitarist could play the same chords as the rhythm guitar only in a different position on the fretboard.

The most obvious and also the most freely available guitar teaching resource on the internet is guitar tablature. You can start reading guitar tab in a matter of minutes, and the more esoteric symbols used in tabs can be learnt over time as your guitar technique improves. The guitar student who aspires to being a lead guitarist should augment their tab collection with some time spent trying to work on learning material by ear. If you find picking up lead guitar solos by ear heavy going, then work on whatever you can pick up from tabs but keep plugging away at learning lead guitar by ear.

One thing you should search for in tab archives is guitar scale patterns. You can usually start with a scale in one position and work out where to play in other positions for yourself. Again, supplement your tab learning with developing your ear. Arpeggio patterns can also be found in tab form. The most important scales to learn for a beginning lead guitar player are the five shapes of the pentatonic scales. The pentatonic scales are easy to learn and guitarists find that audiences love listening to improvisations on the pentatonic scales. The favorite pentatonic scale shape is the minor pentatonic at the fifth fret on the guitar’s neck:

Pattern One:

E—————————————5–8—-

B——————————–5–8———–

G————————-5–7——————

D——————-5–7————————

A————5–7——————————-

E——-5-8————————————-

Not quite so easy to play is this one:

Pattern Two:

E————————————-8—10—-

B——————————8—10———–

G————————-7–9——————

D——————-7–10———————–

A————-7–10—————————–

E——-8–10———————————–

But what you gain with this shape is the facility to move up the fretboard in a sneaky and guitaristic way.

The next three pentatonic shapes are a bit more challenging, but if you find yourself balking at the extra hard work remember how cool it looks playing way up the top of the neck.

Pattern Three:

E————————————-10–12—-

B——————————10–13———–

G————————-9–12—————–

D——————-10–12———————-

A————-10–12—————————-

E——-10–12———————————-

Pattern Four:

E————————————-12–15—-

B——————————13–15———–

G————————12–14—————–

D——————-12–14———————-

A————-12–15—————————-

E——-12–15———————————-

Pattern Five:

E————————————-15–17—-

B——————————15–17———–

G————————14–17—————–

D——————-14–17———————-

A————-15–17—————————-

E——-15–17———————————-

Some people find practicing lead guitar alone difficult because the presence of the other band members helps to get the creative juices flowing. Playing along with CDs is a great way to practice improvisation. You need to know when to put the metronome and scales away and do some good old bedroom grandstanding. You could also play along to drum machines. Or you could play along to some music that is not familiar to you. Take a moment to find what key you are playing in and start jamming. Practicing like this will help you stay out of the rut of playing the same material all the time.

Do you want to learn to play the guitar? Learn How To Play A Guitar For Free is a constantly updated blog which contains all the resources you need for: learning to play solo guitar, how to learn guitar chords, how to learn to read and play easy acoustic guitar tabs, finding a free online guitar tuner, looking for free guitar lessons online, and how to learn guitar scales.

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