Rock School KC Method

Transcription

R OC K S C H OOL
M E T H OD
GUITAR METHOD
BOOK 1
C
Rock School
B e g i n n e rs
COMPLETE BEGINNERS WITH NO MUSICAL EXPERIENCE
WILL BE PLAYING SONGS WITHIN MINUTES NOT MONTHS
WITHOUT READING MUSIC. WITH MUSIC YOU LIKE, YOU CAN
PLAY THE GUITAR TODAY.
There is no other method like the Rockschool method. Designed for
complete beginners to advanced master class students, our books will
jumpstart your playing from any level.
Learn over 500 songs the first
week! You can play guitar
immediately, no sight reading or
traditional sheet music.
No complicated scales and theory
to get started. Absolutely anyone
can use this method no matter
their musical background.
I n te rm e d i a te P l a ye rs - B ook 2
S tyl e s cove re d : Delta Blues, Country Blues, Texas Blues, Chicago Blues,
East Coast Blues, West Coast Blues, Uptown Blues, Downtown Blues, Jazz
Blues, Funk, Soul, Gospel, Inspirational, Faith Based, Christian, Traditional
Worship, Traditional, Patriotic, Marching Band, Military Band,Ragtime,
Dixieland, Carnival, Polka and Bier Hall, Jazz, Bebop, Gypsy Jazz, Brazilian
Jazz, Modern Jazz, Classical, Flamenco, Celtic, Gypsy, Country, Bluegrass,
Swing, Western Swing, Skiffle and Mersey, Rockabilly, Singer Songwriter,
Folk,Rock, Blues Rock, Country Rock, Latin Rock, Tejano, Classic Rock,
Space Rock, Psychedelic Rock, Southern Rock, Disco, Punk, Punk Rock,
Glam Rock, Pop, Hair Rock, Sweater Rock, Grunge, Indie, Emo,Horror
Rock, Funk Rock, Rap Rock, Metal, Heavy Metal,Industrial, Death Metal,
Progressive Rock, Instrumental, Virtuoso, Shred, Neo-Classical, Flamenco
Metal, Experimental, Atonal, Hip Hop, Rap.
From Complete Beginners to Advanced Master Class Students - The First
and Last Guitar Method Books You Will Ever Need.
Free Content Updates Via Our Website - All Book Examples with MP3 audio
and or YouTube Video so you can them practice anytime.
Jumpstart your playing today.
Tired of playing the same few riffs
and chords, or using the same
stale pentatonic licks over and
over in your soloing?
Our styles books will get you out
of a rut!
Infuse some classical and
flamenco into your rock or metal,
broaden your blues based playing
with our 1 0 step jazz blues
program. Fuse your jazz with
gypsy.
Mix some country into your rock
or rock into your country or mix it
up with rockabilly.
Ad va n ce d P l a ye rs - B ook 3
Rock School
Method
Master Class Programs - Jazz,
Classical and Flamenco Concepts
- Blues, Rock, Country Master
Sessions
Sponsored By
INTRO
Rockschool Guitar Method
BOOK CONTENTS
PART 1
Ad d i ti on a l Vi d e o on ou r We b si te
Getting Started - Parts of the guitar - Basic chord charts
• The Blues - Advanced Styles Lessons
Pag es
1- 2
3- 4
5- 6
7- 8
9-1 0
11 -1 2
1 3-1 4
1 5-1 6
1 7-1 8
1 9-20
21 -22
23-24
25-26
27-28
• Pop/Rock - Advanced Styles Lessons
M a te ri a l
Getting Started
Guitar Anatomy
Picking - Strumming
More Chords
Wild Thing
Knockin Heavens Door
Time of Your Life
Teardrops
Tablature Guide
Single Notes
Movies, Tv. Melody
Movies, Tv. Melody
Movies, Tv. Melody
Sweet Child
• Country - Advanced Styles Lessons
• Hard Rock - Advanced Styles Lessons
• Metal - Neo Classical
• Classical - Quickstart Flamenco - Gypsy
• Jazz Blues - Comping - Soloing
• Faith/ Worship - Advanced Styles Lessons
R o c k S c h o o l M e th o d B o o k 2
PART 2
Pag es
29-30
31 -32
33-34
35-36
37-38
39-40
41 -42
43-44
45-46
47-48
49-50
51 -52
53-54
55-56
57-58
• Singer Songwriter - Composition/Performing
M a te ri a l
Sweet Child Cont.
Sweet Child Cont.
The Blues
The Blues Cont.
Back in Black
Classical
Flamenco
Teardrops
Tuning
Tuning Methods
Gear Tech
Resources
Performing Live
Lessoning Out
Additional Songs
Blues, Country, Rock, Pop, Punk, Metal, Grunge, Punk, Classical,
Flamenco and Jazz all in depth. Advanced Chords and Soloing - Bar
Chords, Moveable Chords, Songwriting, Effects Pedals, Whammy Bar,
Slide Guitar, Fingerstyle, Two Hand Guitar.
This book will take the skills we gave you in book 1 and absolutely take
you to the next level.
We e xa m i n e i n d e p th g u i ta ri sts of e ve ry styl e .
Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Van Halen, Brad Paisley, Steve Vai, Andres Segovia, Jimmy
Page, George Benson, Guitarists from Metallica, Ozzy, Pantera, Iron Maiden, Stevie Ray
Vaughan, Ramones, Robert Johnson, Pink Floyd, Dave Matthews,The Beatles, Aerosmith,
Disturbed, Korn, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Eric Clapton, Bob Marley, Pink Floyd, Dragonforce,
John Mayer, BB King, U2, Def Leppard, Bo Diddley, Foo Fighters, Kiss, Black Sabbath, Jack
Johnson,Jeff Beck, BB King , Paco De Lucia, Def Leppard, Joe Bonammasa,The Eagles,
Yngwie Malmsteen, Muddy Waters, Disturbed,Willie Nelson, Joe Satriani, Pat Metheny,
Django Reinhardt, Rolling Stones, Tool, Brian Setzer, Paul Gilbert, Elvis Presley,AC/DC... and
100's more
R
R
Resources
R o c k S c h o o l M e th o d B o o k 1
The Rock School Method Book 1 will get you playing guitar within minutes not months.
There is no other lesson book quite like it. It is designed for complete beginners and
guitarists who had a few lessons and didn't get anywhere.
Our jumpstart program has you playing songs the very first day you pickup a guitar.
Unlike other method books, we don't utilize sight reading from sheet music and the song
examples are actually songs you want to play.
If you like Green Day, Led Zeppelin, Taylor Swift, Metallica, Guns n Roses or even TV
and Movie themes like Mario, Pokemon and Halloween then this book is for you.
The book moves progressively along so that in the quickest time possible you are
jamming with friends, playing on stage, recording and sharing videos on YouTube.
Our method was designed from our Rock Band Performance Program which took kids
who didn't play guitar previously to playing on stage in 30 days and jamming with their
own band.
You will get out of the book what you put into it, all we ask is 1 5 minutes a day practice
time, and we even recommend you practice in front of the TV.
Designed for use with or without a lessons teacher, our step by step videos and mp3's
will guide you through every example in the book so that you can see exactly where your
fingers go and hear what the example should sound like.
We look forward to you sharing your videos with us on our YouTube channel and entering
our contests on our website www.rockschoolkc.com for free gear from Ibanez Guitars,
Tama drums and other sponsors and affiliates.
Rock School
Method
All Content Copyright 201 2 Rockschool KC© Book Chapters, Lessons, MP3,
Downloads and YouTube Link Content.
Our website
www.rockschoolkc.com will
have linked content and
additional lessons that will be
expansions off of the chapters
in this book.
Links to each musical style as
well as specific chapters on
the greatest guitarists in each
genre.
Our YouTube Channel will
have corresponding video
demonstrations of these and
1 00's of other Free Lessons
as well as gear
demonstrations and technique
tips.
Join us on Facebook and
Twitter for new updates,
clinics, classes and more Free
Content as well as give-aways
and drawings from our
Sponsors Ibanez, Tama and
other Affiliates.
G
GETTING STARTED
G u i ta r Ti p s
S a ve Costl y Re p a i rs
A guitar is wood, glue and
metal with electronics. It will
warp, break or short out, stop
working if mistreated, handled
poorly or stored carelessly.
Getting Started.
To get started, we will need a few basic tools that you will use throughout your entire
guitar career.
Each one will be explained in detail with lessons on how to use the electronic devices
such as guitar tuners and metronomes which will help you keep in time.
Guitars don't like rain, trunks
of cars, being left in the car
during heat waves and
blizzards. Rule of thumb, If
you wouldn't leave your pet in
the conditions, don't leave
your guitar.
When traveling, always use a
case or well padded gig bag
which will pay for itself in
saved repairs and give the
student a consistent place to
store their lesson books,
tuner, metronome, tuner for
lessons.
E l e ctri c G u i ta rs
Acou sti c G u i ta rs
You will need a guitar, either an electric guitar like the ones on the left or an acoustic guitar like the ones on
the right.
The electric guitar can connect to an amplifier which "amplifies" the sound or volume of the guitar strings
through the pickups on the guitar. ( see guitar diagram )
Acoustic guitars tend to have a larger body which is hollow which serves to naturally amplify the volume of
the strings, though many acoustic guitars also have built in pickups for extra volume playing through an
amplifier.
Note: While any guitar body style or shape will work, some of the V shaped guitars can be almost
impossible to play while sitting down, very important as most practicing is done in this position.
Guitars come in all styles and shapes, find something that is comfortable to the body, not too big or small.
E l e ctri c or Acou sti c?
Either style of guitar will work,
electric guitars are generally
easier to play for beginners
with their thinner strings,
smaller body profiles and
smaller necks, important for
small hands.
Check with your instructor
before purchasing a guitar
with nylon or plastic looking
strings on an acoustic guitar.
These are classical guitars
and you will need to decide if
they are in the best interest of
your student.
Rock School
Color and look are very important to young students. It does not affect how the guitar plays, but will
directly affect how much the student plays and is willing to interact with other students.
E q u i pm en t
Picking out your first guitar. You will find guitars in all styles, shapes, sizes and colors everywhere from Wmart, Craigslist, Ebay, your local music store, garage
sales or maybe grandpa's old guitar that has been in the attic for 40 years.
Regardless of what type, they must be playable and in good working condition. A bargain is not a deal when you have to spend more in repairs to get it in
shape than the guitar is worth. A guitar is wood, glue, metal and sometimes electronics. All parts need to work smoothly in order to use them. Below are some
items to consider.
The guitar neck must be straight, wood does warp and this can be problematic with used guitars that have been stored incorrectly or mistreated. This will affect
the "action" or how high the strings sit above the fretboard, "high action" will make the strings very hard to hold down and learning new skills a challenge.
Conversely, bowing of the neck can also cause the strings to lay too low on the fretboard causing buzzing when played or note to "fret out" or not sound at all.
Both of these will also affect how well the guitar stays in tune, another important factor in learning the guitar as ear training is involved.
Do not start you student on a 1 /2 size guitar, these do not tune the same as a full size guitar and cannot be used in lessons, they are toys. 3/4 sized bodies can
be used, though keep in mind, most students will outgrow them at some point. Try playing the guitar sitting down, you will find that body size is not quite as
important, just that you can sit comfortably with the guitar. For right handed guitarists, the left hand should be able to reach up to top of the neck (not all the
way to the headstock, and right hand lay comfortably on the body to strum.) lefties will be just the opposite. Full size guitars can be found with smaller bodies
such as the Ibanez Mikro series and make great travel guitars with their compact size.
The electronics must all be in working condition, corrosion can lead to problems in older and used instruments. The tuners and their gears must move smoothly
and be free of gear slippage or rough edges, as this will cause the guitar to be constantly out of tune or excessive string breakage and very frustrating for
teachers and students in lessons. This is problematic on older tuners and most off brands.
E l e ctri c Ve rsu s Acou sti c
While the cost of an amplifier does add a bit for the student starting on an electric guitar, the electric guitar will be much easier to start on as the strings are much thinner and easier to
hold down, the bodies also tend to be smaller in profile and the necks aren't as thick which work well for small hands. That being said, as long as they have 6 strings and are in good
condition, most any student should be able to learn on an electric or acoustic without any problems.
O n l i n e - L o ca l D i s co u n t C h a i n s
Most music stores sell at MAP or minimum advertised price these days, you will find small stores and large at the same price. Shop where a salesperson you
are comfortable with and who is knowledgeable can assist you. Guitars at major discount chains are made for price, playability is not usually a consideration.
Brand names can be important. Quality of instruments can vary greatly even with just a $5 or $1 0 difference in price tags. You will also find that your trade in
value of a no name guitar can be little or nothing.
A fe w oth e r re q u i re d tool s - Strap, Picks, Metronome, Lesson Book, Tuner, amplifier and cable for an electric and a guitar stand. More guitars are damaged
while falling from being laid against a wall or amplifier when not playing, and in a short amount of time, the stress from this neck angle will cause the neck to
warp and a very expensive repair. You will also need a padded gigbag or case to transport the guitar, this will protect them from rain, heat, cold, dings and
dropping and be a storage place for the students gear and lesson materials.
Also handy to have will be a capo and a slide which will be discussed further in the book, a music stand and a polish cloth and guitar polish. Good habits start
early, and windex will eat the finish off a guitar and paper towels will scratch the finish, just like on a car.
Finally, the guitar will need to be in tune for your first lessons, your local music shop can help, this book will have many tutorials and videos and this is
something any guitar instructor will teach early on.
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January 201 2
2
P
GUITAR ANATOMY
G u i ta r P a rts
You will notice many of the
guitar parts are named like
parts of a person, the head,
neck and body.
Parts of the guitar.
To get started, we will identify the parts of the guitar.
Electric guitars like the one on the left that require an amplifier for sound, and an acoustic guitar
like the one on the right that make plenty of sound on their own and are very similar.
Head/Headstock
Tuners
Nut
Neck
Fretboard
Frets
Fret Wires
Position Markers
Body
Strap Pins
Soundhole
Pickups
Volume Tone Controls
Whammy/Tremolo Bar
Bridge
Bridge Pins
Bridge Saddle
Electric guitars can be heard in a very
quiet room without an amplifier,
generally speaking they will require an
amplifier or "amp" and cord or cable.
While there are many parts to
an electric or acoustic guitar
and a few differences, most all
guitars are basically the same,
the electronics in an electric
guitar and body size of an
acoustic being the main
differences.
The head or headstock, the
neck and body are the most
important parts to know for the
early lessons.
The parts on them will be
mentioned throughout and
diagrams provided.
The neck has many parts,
fingerboard lying on top of it,
with fret wires dividing the
fretboard up into fret areas
which we number and position
markers on some of them
which work like roadmaps on
top of it, and finally the strings
laying over the top of all of
them. Learn these names
well.
TI P - You will find position dots
or bars on the fingerboard at
the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th and 1 2th
frets on most every guitar as
well as repeating the
sequence higher on the neck.
Those position markers act as
roadmaps and guides as to
where to place your fingers.
Rock School
Always picture the guitar headstock at the top of our
diagrams and the guitar as if it was facing you. Notice that
in the diagrams the thick bass strings will always be on the
left.
The fretboard is divided up by fret wires, we refer to the fretboard area
by numbers, 1 st fret, 2nd fret, this is the area you will hold down the
strings in. Generally you will hold the strings down in the middle of the
fret area.
1 st F re t
2 n d F re t
3 rd F re t
Hold down strings with the pads of your fingers. Your thumb should be
positioned in the middle of the back of the neck at all times.
Do not wrap your thumb all the way around the neck like you are
holding a baseball bat.
Loosen up on your grip, it takes much less pressure than you think to
hold down guitar strings.
G e a r N ote : Wearing a guitar strap even when sitting
down to practice will help keep the guitar balanced
and make playing and learning much easier.
We will start out playing sitting down in a comfortable chair, with good posture and the
guitar comfortably balanced on your outer thigh.
WEBSITE CONTENT
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January 201 2
4
P
PICKING STRUMMING
P l a yi n g Ti p s
Keep your hands relaxed
while playing, you will soon
find that it doesn't take a white
knuckle grip to hold down the
guitar strings.
P i cki n g a n d S tru m m i n g .
Ch e ck You r Ch ord s
You will hold the pick between your thumb and index finger, with a moderately firm
grip, just hard enough so that it doesn't slip out when you strum up and down
across the strings.
The hand holding the pick will be
referred to throughout the book as the
"picking hand".
Note: We are just working on the strumming hand
right now, your left hand won't be holding down any
strings on the fretboard.
The motion should come from the elbow, like a
pendulum on a clock. The wrist will move a bit too.
It varies with each individual, like everything else
with the guitar, make sure it feels natural and
comfortable to do.
Using a down motion, strum the pick across the
strings, this should feel natural and rotate the wrist
for a nice even strum.
A good habit to get into,
especially as we add more
fingers to hold strings down is
checking your chords.
The easiest way is to strum,
but slow the strum way down
so you can hear each note as
you go down each string and
then back up.
If you hear "dead" or muffled
notes, you are either not
pushing down quite hard
enough on a note or one of
your fingers is touching a
string other than the one it is
playing, try different finger
angles until you find the right
angle.
a r· p e g · g i o. noun \är-ˈ pe-jē-
ˌ ō, -ˈ pe-jō\. plural ar·peg·gios.
1 . : production of the tones of
a chord in succession .
By playing the notes of a
chord 1 at a time instead of
strumming, you just played
your 1 st arpeggio.
Next try strumming down and then striking the strings back up, it will take a bit of
practice, you want a nice even motion where the strings ring out at the same volume on
both the up and down strokes.
Now try slowly strumming up and down, while counting 1 , 2, 3, 4 each time you strum.
We will use this pattern to start with. Strum Down on 1 , Strum Up on 2, Strum Down on
3, Strum Up on 4. Repeat this many times, this will be our basic strumming pattern.
Sometimes it helps to have someone else count for you at first. Make sure it is a nice
even strum count.
Your left hand fingers will all be assigned numbers from 1 -4 with
the thumb labeled T. (Right hand fingers for lefties)
Middle finger pushes down
string at third fret, in
between the wires
1 st F re t
2 n d F re t
3 rd F re t
To make your first chord, press down at the 3rd fret using the pad of your middle finger. It will take less pressure than you think once you get it
down. Anchor your thumb so that it is in the middle of the back of the neck, no baseball bat grip here.
With your pick, strike that string and make sure a nice clear note rings out. If not apply a bit more pressure and try rotating the angle of your
finger.
Al wa ys I m a g i n e H e a d stock
a t th e top of n e ck d i a g ra m
Below is roughly what your hand position will look like.
Now with the strum we practiced early, while holding down the string at the
3rd fret, strum all the strings together going straight down. YOU JUST
MADE YOUR FIRST CHORD - G Major
E AD G B E
The letters at the top E A D G
B E are the names of the
strings
Blue dots at top indicate the
strings are to be played "open"
which just means no fingers
holding them down.
The hand holding down the strings throughout the book will be
referred to as the "fretting hand"
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6
N
MORE CHORDS
P l a yi n g Ti p s
M e m ory Tri ck
N e xt a re th e C a n d D ch ord s.
You are on your way to your first song. The tune we are working on now is in the
style of Wild Thing, a Classic Rock song by the Troggs and used in lots of movies,
TV shows and commercials.
C Ch ord
E AD G B E
A good way to remember
things can be using an
acronym. Use the first letter
to represent a word. The
strings of a guitar can be
remembered this way.
Below are some mnemonic
acronyms, or memory aids,
used by our students to
remember the string names.
We are still using the same finger, the middle finger and
playing on the 3rd fret. We are just going to move our first
finger down to the next string, the A string and repeat
everything as we did before with the G chord.
EAD G B E
Hold the note down, pick it to make sure you have a clear
note, and then strum downward hitting all the strings below the blue dots at the top on the white bar (the nut) indicate that
these strings are to be strummed.
E lephants And D onkeys G row
B ig E ars
Remember, using down motion, strum the pick
across the strings, this should feel natural and rotate
the wrist for a nice even motion.
* This chord is named C because of the
note we are holding down is a C note
located on the A string. The lowest note
we are holding down will be the chord
name.
Remember G was the first chord and this
is a C chord.
Strings Going From Bass to
Treble
E at Apples D aily G rown B y
E ve
E ddie Ate D ynamite, G ood
B ye E ddie
E lvis Always D ug G ood
B anana E ating
E at Apples D aily G row B ig
E ars
Did You Know? A standard
guitar and bass have the
same top strings E A D G , so
Just like the G chord, strum up and down, while counting 1 , 2, 3, 4 each time you strum.
Sometimes it helps to have someone else count for you at first.
Rock School
Don't forget to "check" your chords to make sure all the notes are clean and clear, strum down very
slowly one note at a time to make sure they ring out.
Remember, your fingers all be assigned numbers from 1 -4 with the thumb labeled T.
D Ch ord
E AD G B E
1 st F re t
For the next chord, we are changing things up. We are moving everything
to the 2nd fret and we are now going to use our index finger or #1 finger to
hold down the note now on the G string.
2 n d F re t
We are moving down 2 strings this time and we need to move back one
fret to the 2nd fret to hold the string down.
3 rd F re t
The blue dot indicates where your index finger should be holding the string
down.
Lets go through all 3 chords now. Strum each chord twice.
Strum the G chord 2 times, move down to the C chord and strum 2 times, then move down
to the D chord and strum 2 times.
G Ch ord
E AD G B E
C Ch ord
E AD G B E
D Ch ord
E AD G B E
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T
WILD THING
P l a yi n g Ti p s
S on g wri ti n g
P a rts of a son g :
Th e fi n a l ch ord i s th e E ch ord , th e e a si e st ve rsi on .
I n tro - usually there isn't any
singing, just a recognizable
catchy part to start things off.
We will just strum all the strings open without holding anything down. That is the
last chord of the song.
Ve rse - often a story like part
that lets you know what the
song is about.
E Ch ord
E AD G B E
This chord is just made by strumming straight down 1 time
without holding any strings down.
Remember, blue dots above a string mean it is to be played
"open" without any fingers holding it down. This chord has all
blue dots above the strings so strum all of them.
* This chord is named E because the
lowest sounding note is an E. The thicker
strings will always be the lowest sounding
notes.
Remember, using a down motion, strum the pick
P re Ch oru s - A transition part,
like going from a road, the
verse onto the exit ramp, the
pre-chorus which leads us to
the highway, the Chorus.
Th e Ch oru s is the catchy part
that everyone remembers,
what can be termed as the
"sing along part". Everyone
knows the Chorus.
S ol o - Most guitarists favorite part
of a song, when the spotlight
moves from the singer or diva to
the guitarist for a solo moment.
Air guitarists everywhere are
familiar with all the proper "solo
spot" moves - Guitar Hero and
Rock Band were invented on this
concept.
Th i s E ch ord wi l l on l y b e stru m m e d on e ti m e i n th i s son g .
Rock School
Le t' s P u t i t Al l Tog e th e r N ow
Below are all 4 chord grids in order, G C D and E.
There are just 2 parts to this song. Strumming the G C and D chords two times each using a down strum. This repeats 8
times. The next pattern is to strum the G chord times times, the E chord or all strings open 1 time and then the G chord 1
more time. Repeat that twice
Then back to the G C and D chords strumming 2 times each chord. That's it
P a tte rn #1 - S tru m E a ch Ch ord 2 ti m e s
G Ch ord
G Ch ord
C Ch ord
P a tte rn #2
D Ch ord
E Ch ord
1. Strum G Chord Twice
2. Strum E Chord Once
3. Strum G Chord Once
Go Back up to Pattern #1
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10
T
KNOCKIN ON HEAVENS
DOOR
P l a yi n g Ti p s
F o l l o w T h e D o ts
T h e n e x t s o n g i s i n t h e s t y l e o f a n o t h e r a l l t i m e c l a s s i c Kn o c k i n g o n H e a v e n s
D oor.
Originally written by Bob Dylan for the movie Pat Garret and Billy the Kid, it has been
covered by Eric Clapton, Guns N Roses, U2 and Avril Lavigne just to name a few.
The same chords as the last song G C and D played in the same order, we just leave out
the E chord, add a different strum pattern and add another finger to the chord.
G Ch ord
E AD G B E
Add index or 1 st finger to hold down the A string at the 2nd fret.
Strum chord down up and get ready for the next chord
Most all guitars have dots or
rectangles called position
markers on the fretboard and
on the side of the neck.
These visual markers are like
road signs and help you
quickly get your fingers where
they need to be. You will find
these position markers at the
3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th and 1 2th
frets.
The 1 2th fret position markers
are usually double dots or
rectangles to signify the notes
of the guitar are starting over
again and the dot pattern
repeats further up the neck.
So if you want to play
something at the 11 th fret, it is
simple to find the double dot
and move backwards one fret.
This will be important later on
in the book
* This chord is named G because the
lowest sounding note is an G. The thicker
strings will always be the lowest sounding
notes.
Remember, using a down motion, strum the pick
F u n F a c ts
Most toilets flush in E Flat,
good to know later when we
are down tuning the guitar or
you lost your tuner.
Rock School
M a ke su re th e u p stroke n ote s sou n d a s l ou d a s th e d own stroke , a com m on m i sta ke
e ve n a m on g a d va n ce d p l a ye rs i s to h a ve a " we a k" sou n d i n g u p stroke .
Ad d on to th e C a n d D Ch ord
D Ch ord
C Ch ord
Add ring or 3rd finger to hold down the B string at the 3rd fret.
Strum chord down up
Add index or 1 st finger to hold down the D string at the 2nd fret.
Strum chord down up
P a rt # 1 Strum G chord down up , Strum D chord down up , Strum C
chord down up, back up to G chord and strum down up.
P a rt # 2 Which is the Chorus is identical - that is it for the whole song! Below are the chords in order
G Ch ord
D Ch ord
C Ch ord
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F
TIME OF YOUR LIFE
B e D i ffe re n t
Re a l M e n Cry
F or th e n e xt son g i n th e styl e of G re e n D a y' s (G ood Ri d d a n ce ) Ti m e of
You r Li fe , we a re g oi n g to j u st a d d a cou p l e th i n g s to wh a t we h a ve
a l re a d y l e a rn e d .
We will use the same chords G C D and E and just add another finger to the
chords to make them sound fuller and closer to what you hear on the album.
(Good Riddance) Time of Your
Life was almost not released
by Green Day, a punk band
known for loud, fast guitars.
Punk rock had a formula, fast
power chords, short songs,
aggressive lyrics and no guitar
solos.
Billy Joe Armstrong was a
modern punk and well versed
in classic punk rock such as
The Ramones and early
Clash. This strummy ballad
showed that Billy, like all great
musicians had a wide range of
influences outside of his genre
of music's self imposed
limitations.
G M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
Ring finger holds down B
string 3rd Fret
It became one of their biggest
hits and opened the door for
punkers everywhere. Billy
Joe Armstrong and company
scored again with When
September Ends, another
ballad by a punk rock group.
C M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
Ring finger holds down B
string 3rd Fret
We will strum both chords 3 times each. This time we will strum up and down.
Strum down, up then down on the G chord, Strum down, up, down on the C chord.
So gentlemen, find your
sensitive side, sometimes the
best way to be a true rocker is
not to rock too much.
Never rule out any type or
style of music or be limited to
rules of how anything "should"
sound.
Rock School
Make sure when you strum up it is just as loud as when you strum down.
N a m e Th a t Ch ord
So far we have just named our chords G C D and E, which is correct, but just like people, all chords have last names (not
Madonna and Prince of course).
Our G C and D chords are Major chords. Major chords tend to sound happy and uplifting. Our E chord is a minor chord
and they tend to sound moody and darker.
In the next book we will discuss a few more chord types.
D M a j or Ch ord
Middle finger holds down
E string 3rd Fret
E M i n or Ch ord
We will hold down the A string with the middle
finger at the 2nd fret and the D string with the
ring finger at the 2nd fret.
We will use the same down up down strum pattern for the chords that we used in Louie Louie.
S on g stu ctu re si m i l a r to (G ood Ri d d a n ce ) Ti m e of You r Li fe
Intro - G C D
Verse - G C D
Pre Chorus - Em D C G Em D C G
Chorus - Em G Em G Em D G
Before we move on to our next song, go back to Wild Thing and Louie Louie and practice them with the new fuller chords we
just learned, they should sound even better.
A g re a t cou ch p ota to e xe rsi ce i s to p ra cti ce m ovi n g a rou n d from ch ord to ch ord , G C D E wh i l e wa tch i n g tv. You d on ' t e ve n
n e e d to stru m , you a re j u st b u i l d i n g m u scl e m e m ory a n d tra i n i n g you r fi n g e rs to d o n e w th i n g s a l l wh i l e g e tti n g q u a l i ty tu b e ti m e .
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F
TEARDROPS ON MY
GUITAR
P l a yi n g Ti p s
S o n g S ty l e s
F or th e n e xt son g , i n th e styl e of Ta yl or S wi ft' s Te a rd rop s on M y G u i ta r, we
wi l l u se th e e xa ct sa m e ch ord s a s (G ood Ri d d a n ce ) Ti m e of You r Li fe b u t
a d d a fi n g e r a n d m a ke th e m fu l l e r sou n d i n g .
G M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
We are still using the same chords as (Good Riddance) Time
of Your Life, we are just adding the pinkie on the high (thin) E
string at the 3rd fret on both chords.
Pinkie finger holds down
E string 3rd Fret
C M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
You will start to notice as we
go along that the same chords
are used in most every music
style. All of these styles are
related in some way.
Country, Pop, Rock,
Faith/Worship, Blues,
Rockabilly, Jazz.
Blues, Country and Gospel
came first. Soon, artists like
Chuck Berry and Elvis Presley
were combing these elements
into early rock n roll and
rockabilly styles which
morphed into hard rock, heavy
metal, grunge, punk, emo.
Faith and Worship were in the
earliest Blues and Country
songs and still resonate today
influencing Pop, Rock,Soul
Music.
Blues is the basis for early
jazz and elements of both can
be intertwined.
Rap music samples from
every one of the above styles
to create a truly unique mix.
Pinkie finger holds
down E string 3rd Fret
This is still a C Major chord, it's technical name is Cadd 9
Rock School
D M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
For the D chord, we are still using the index finger to hold
down the G string at the 2nd fret and the 3rd finger the
ring finger to the hold down the B string on the 3rd fret.
Add the middle finger to hold down
the high (thin) E string down at the
2nd fret.
Our E minor chord remains the same as
it is now complete with just the 2 fingers.
E M i n or Ch ord
E AD G B E
Index finger holds down A string 2nd Fret
Middle finger holds down D string 2nd Fret
Finally, try putting the chords in order and try strumming both with down strokes and
upstrokes.
As you practice more, you will notice your fingers remember where to go to make the
chords much quicker and your mind visualizes the shape. Muscle memory and mind
memory.
Below is the order of the chords in the songs. On the next page we will work on the
strumming patterns in these songs so that you can play along with your mp3 or cd which
is the perfect way to practice your songs with a full band.
S on g stu ctu re si m i l a r to Te a rd rop s on M y G u i ta r
Intro - G Em D C
Verse - G Em D C
Pre Chorus - Em C G D
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S
TABLATURE
Re a d i n g G u i ta r Ta b l a tu re (Ta b s)
Guitar tablature or tabs are simply the easiest way to read guitar music without actually reading music. Tabs are a simple system
using numbers to represent which fret to place your finger on and a 6 string grid just like your guitar so you will know which string or
strings to play the note on.
Guitar tabs can be found everywhere. Free resources like ultimateguitar.com have a database with 1 00's of thousands of songs in
tab absolutely free. (A quick note, these tabs are mostly posted by individuals and some can be very accurate while others are
useless.) Tab books can be found at many music stores or online and these are extremely accurate.
E AD G B E
N ote p l a ye d on l ow E stri n g a t th e 3 rd F re t
Our next example is all played on the low E string, first strike the note open
represented by 0, the next note is played by holding down the string at the
3rd fret and final note at the 5th fret.
S m oke on th e Wa te r I n tro
Our next example is an extension of the last tab example and in the style of Deep Purple's Smoke on the Water
S m e l l s Li ke Te e n S p ri ri t B a ss Li n e
Our next example is in the style of Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana. It is the bass line which is a simplified guitar part. The
x's across the string grid are "muffled notes" played by strumming back and forth across the strings with your picking hand
while lightly holding your fretting hand on top of the guitar strings without pushing any notes down creating a percussive drum
like muffled note effect.
Ta b Ch ord s
E AD G B E
C Major Chord
C M a j or Ch ord
Chords are also represented with tabs. Instead of having the notes going up and down the neck, all the numbers are in a
straight line indicating a chord. The C major chord we have worked with earlier in the book is represented in this tab piece.
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S
SINGLE NOTES
S i n g l e N ote Ri ffs
Riffs are the basis of a million great songs in almost every style of music. How do you know
if a riff is an "All Time Classic" ? Chances are your favorite rapper "borrowed or sampled a
riff or piece for one of their songs.
We are going to be adding a few cool things in this section.
First we will do some variations on Smoke on the Water to get you used to reading tabs on all
the guitar strings.
A riff is just another name you will hear a lot in music and Smoke on the Water is "THE RIFF".
It is just a cool sounding guitar, bass, keyboard or instrumental part, usually one or two notes
together that are used in place of chords for a section of the song.
Some great intro guitar riffs are Enter Sandman by Metallica, Whole Lotta Love by Led
Zeppelin, the intro to Purple Haze by Jimi Hendrix, Birthday by the Beatles, Come as you are
by Nirvana, Crazy Train by Ozzy Osbourne, Boom Boom by John Lee Hooker, Sweet Child of
Mine by Guns N Roses, Symphony of Destruction by Megadeth, Satisfaction by the Rolling
Stones and Beat it by Michael Jackson just to name a few.
We will be working on many of the above song examples and they are a great way to build
your left and right hand dexterity and coordination.
TAB N O TE :
You will notice on the rest of the examples in the book, the string names have disappeared. By
now you should know which string we are playing on and you will find that any tabs you find
online or in tab books you purchase will not list the string names. After a little practice, your
fingers will automatically go to the numbers you see on the correct strings.
You will also see some "Standard Notation" located above the tablature grid. Don't worry about
that, it is common with tabs to have this as well. We won't be using standard notation and the
tablature actually has advantages as it is very hard to represent all the special techniques
performed on a guitar in standard notation.
Rock School
P l a yi n g Ti p s
Wh i ch wa y to p i ck, wh e re to
p i c k, t o p i c k o r n o t t o p i c k, a n d
w h i c h p i c k t o p i c k?
While we start you out with
down and up picking to learn
the skills, you will find you get
different sounds when using
all down strokes or all
upstrokes.
A lot of punk rock uses all
down strokes in their chords
and James Hetfield from
Metallica uses all down
strokes when chugging out his
chordal frenzy.
The style, size and weight of a
pick you use as well as how
hard you pick can affect the
sound of the song, so
experiment with all of the
above.
When you pick directly over
the soundhole of an acoustic
guitar or over the middle of
the pickup area on an electric,
you get a moderate sound,
when you pick or strum closer
to the neck you get a warmer
bassy tone and when you pick
or strum closer to the bridge
you get a brighter trebly
sound.
Country guitarists sometimes
use 2 -4 picks attached to
their fingers called fingerpicks,
and classical guitarists grow
their nails long for their picking
action or use fake press on
nails.
Many guitarists go at it au
natural or in the buff, no pick
by using a combination of
their fingers or hand.
S m oke on th e Wa te r Va ri a ti on s
When a riff is this good, you gotta be able to play it on any string. The lesson here is also that there are only 1 2 notes on any guitar,
and the notes repeat themselves all over the neck, so by learning a few basic patterns and shapes, you can play all over the
fretboard. This will help take a lot of the mystery out of the guitar and make learning songs, riffs and solos much easier as well.
The first 2 variations both start on an E string, the first on the low E (thicker string) and the high E (thinner string). As they are both
E strings, the notes are exactly the same on them going up and down, the thinner string just sounds higher in pitch.
The 3rd variation is on the D string. But we start on the 2nd Fret which is an E note. The notes on the guitar go in order A B C D E
F G and then repeat A B C etc. the other notes are called sharps or flats such as A sharp, B flat. We will get to this more in book 2.
S m oke on th e Wa te r p l a ye d
on th e l ow E stri n g
on th e h i g h E stri n g
on th e D stri n g - n ote we sta rt
a t th e 2 n d fre t th i s ti m e
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S
TV, MOVIES, MELODIES
S o n g s , T V a n d M o vi e s , B a s s L i n e s a n d M e l o d i e s
Now that we have a handle on tablature, you will find that you are learning at a much quicker pace
and now the fun really begins.
From Mario to Ozzy Osbourne, James Bond to the Simpsons, Black Sabbath to Michael Jackson,
this section covers a lot of styles and will really get you moving all over the guitar neck.
G o d zi l l a
This example is in the style of Godzilla by Blue Oyster Cult, an old monster theater classic theme song
Cra zy Tra i n
This is the riff from the song that got Ozzy's solo career started, Crazy Train. Played by the late Randy Rhoads on the low E and A strings.
Try to keep the low E string held down at the 2nd fret while playing the note on the A string at the 4th fret. You will be bouncing back and forth
between the 2 notes and this will make it easier to do this kind of riff.
Rock School
M y S h a ron a
This example by 80's new wave band The Knack is played with Octaves. Octaves are 2 identical notes one higher up than the other. With
octaves, while you are playing notes on 2 different strings, they are the same note.
Octaves are great for riffs and are often used in place of a single line melody or to add "bounce" to a song. Jazz greats Wes Montgomery and
George Benson both used octaves extensively in solos, melodies and themes as did James Brown guitarist "Catfish Collins and Prince
combines Octaves with double stops to create incredibly funky rhythms. Listen to about any funk bass line whether James Jamerson or Flea
and you will hear octaves slapped, popped and thumped extensively.
The intro notes to Fire by Jimi Hendrix are octaves, as are Black and Blue by Van Halen, Wherever I May Roam by Metallica and Got the Life
by Korn to name a few great octave examples.
E n te r S a n d m a n
While Smoke on the water is the king of classic rock riffs, Enter Sandman by Metallica is the King Daddy of modern metal
guitar riffs. Take this one slow as it uses open string notes, fretted notes and crosses strings.
Try to "pre fret" or have your fretting hand already holding down the 2nd and 3rd notes in the riff located on the 7th and 5th
strings. Play the open string E note and then the 7th and 5th string notes already held down as a chord, this will give a rolling
effect.
The Sandman solo was the first song guitarist Kirk Hammett used a wah pedal on. You can get
this tone with the Ibanez Weeping Demon .
YouTube Hendrix's Voodo Chile, Slash's solo in Sweet Child of Mine or the Theme From Shaft for
more great wah moments.
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S
We will continue in this section with riffs, single note lines and song melodies and a couple of
TV and Movie theme songs you will probably recognize.
S u p e r M a ri o B roth e rs
M a ri o P a rt 1
M a ri o P a rt 2
You know this melody!!! In example one we have an
octave at the end, then we move up to the high frets,
yes the double digit numbers are 1 2 and above.
M a ri o P a rt 3
I ron M a n
Another classic Ozzy Osbourne riff, this time when he played with Black Sabbath on the song Iron Man. Guitarist Tony
Iommi is considered the Godfather of heavy metal as the style did not exist before the Sabs.
J am es B on d
The "James Bond" theme riff. The Beatles were huge Bond fans as it was quite popular in the 60's and were quite honored to
write the James Bond movie theme song Live and Let Die.
Guns N Roses scored big by covering the song on the Use Your Illusion album with guitarist Slash.
Beat I t
This brilliant riff jump started "Little Michael Jackson's" solo career. Check out Eddie Van Halen's ripping guitar solo in this song.
A little known fact is that while Eddie played the solo on one of the biggest songs of all times, due to a contractual problem,
Edward didn't get paid a cent.
F u n F a ct: 70's funk star and 80's solo star Lionel Ritchie (yes, Nicole's Dad) taught Michael his signature dance move "The
Moonwalk", if you don't believe me, YouTube classic videos from The Commodores and you will see what I mean.
P e te r G u n n
A great "Secret Agent" sounding riff, you can hear a great version in the Original Blues Brothers Movie.
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S
Our last examples and more great movie themes as well as a few TV themes. Most of these were composed on other
instruments but translate great to guitar. Look up Slash from Guns and Roses on YouTube playing the Godfather theme in his
solo spot or Buckethead doing a 2 handed version of Halloween.
Guitarists have a long tradition of including these in their "Solo" spot. For fun, check out Stu Hamm doing a 2 handed version of
Linus and Lucy on YouTube.
S ta r Wa rs P a rt 1
Classical composer John Williams composed the Star Wars themes. He also
has a few other memorable movie themes including Jaws, Indiana Jones and
Harry Potter to name a few.
S ta r Wa rs P a rts 2 a n d 3
T h e S ta r S p a n g l e d B a n n e r
Rock School
YouTube Hendrix Star Spangled Banner
at Woodstock for the
ultimate guitar version,
his whammy sounds
like "bombs bursting in
air"
T h e S ta r S p a n g l e d B a n n e r C o n ti n u e d
H a l l o we e n
Keep your index finger anchored at the 5th fret to make this easier to play.
Th e G od fa th e r Th e m e
G od fa th e r Th e m e Con ti n u e d
Squiggly line above note means to hold it or gently shake it to vibrato it (give it a singing vocal quality)
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T
GNR SWEET CHILD
P l a yi n g Ti p s
I n ve n t You r O wn Ch ord s
This is a great tune by Guns N Roses. While now for raunchy, riff driven, power chord
rock, Izzy and Slash could deliver the goods on an acoustic guitar.
Check out the song Patience, GNR could take their classic rock influenced jangley
acoustic guitars with some country style leads and make them sound fresh and new.
A M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
We will be adding a new chord for this song, the A major. It is just like
our E minor shape, but we move the whole thing down 1 string and
add the ring finger.
Hold down D string at 2nd fret with index finger
Hold down G string at 2nd fret with middle finger
Hold down B string at 2nd fret with ring finger
Chord books are great for learning
chords with names like
Emaj6/9aug7, but how about
something simpler?
Adding and subtracting fingers to
our standard open chords can
give a song a whole new identity
and give you an arsenal of whole
new chord forms.
This is an old Folkie Trick (Folk
Guitarist) and is used by artists
from Bob Dylan, Neil Young and
The Eagles to the Foo Fighters
and Metallica. Try it on every open
chord you own.
By adding and subtractin from
open postion chords, you will
discover many chord types.
Your open position full E major
chord is a great place to start.
Remove the index finger on the G
string and you have E minor or
remove the middle finger from the
D string and you have E dominant
7th. Move the index finger on the
1 st fret G string to the 2nd fret and
you have E suspended.
Ch ord Ti p :
Throughout this book we are giving suggested fingerings for chord shapes.
These are great starting points, but you will also find there are many other ways to play the chords. If you
find one that is more comfortable to you, by all means use it. Some of the greatest players have unorthodox
technique.
Rock School
The late Jeff Healey played overhand with the guitar in his lap (watch the movie Road House), Albert King
played the guitar upside down, and these were 2 of the great players of all times.
F i n i s h i n g M o ve s
D M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
A M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
C ad d 9
E AD G B E
C Ad d 9 Ch ord
E AD G B E
G M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
D M aj or
E AD G B E
D M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
S on g stu ctu re si m i l a r to S we e t Ch i l d
of M i n e
Intro - D C G
Verse - D C G
Interlude - A C G
1 st Solo- D C G
Verse - DCG
Interlude A C G
This might be a good time to go back and practice all
of the songs you learned up to this point using the
Full Chords you have learned.
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T
THE BLUES
C o p y c a ts
You Li ste n to th e B l u e s a n d
Cou n try E ve ryd a y
The Blues influences almost every modern style of music in some way. (See the
green sidebar to the right and you might agree).
Blues is the basis for Jazz and is found in some way in almost every modern music
form Country, Rock, Metal, Punk, Funk, Singer Songwriter, Gospel and Pop Tunes.
G N o te
E AD G B E
We will start with what we know and build from there. This
example is a basic Blues Shuffle in G using the very first note we
learned in the book and adding to it.
A quick note on the "Blues Shuffle". These could also be called
"The Country Shuffle" as every example in all of our blues lessons
directly translates to country style playing.
Country guitars traditionally have a "twangy" tone while Blues
guitars generally have a "dirtier" tone, though over the last decade
those distinctions have blurred. In addition, these are the basis for
1 ,000's of Rock songs and most all Rockabilly songs as well.
Below is the G note on the E string played 2 times in
tab.
B LU E S S H U F F LE G
Practice these blues shuffles 2 ways,
first try to hear every note cleanly
when you play, then experiment with
"palm muting"
by lightly resting the palm of your
picking hand on top of the guitar
strings while you play, giving a slightly
muffled sound.
Rock School
When you cross Hank
Williams with Muddy Waters
you get Elvis Presley and
Chuck Berry and early Beatles
and Rolling Stones.
Add a distortion pedal and
Bob Dylan and you get Jimi
Hendrix.
Mix in Woodstock and you
have Classic Rock, throw in
Hispanic influences and you
have Santana.
Throw some dance moves,
purple suits and a funky
bassline blues and you have
disco, funk and Prince.
Take the Hendrix influence to
California and add Paganini
style virtuosity on guitar and
you have Van Halen. Put
hairspray on it and rap it in
Spandex and you have 80's
Hair Metal. Add Beethoven
and you have Neo-Classical.
Combine Hank Williams with
Classic Rock and mix in
American Idol and you have
Modern Country.
Take Hair Metal vintage
clothes and sing about sad
topics and you have Grunge.
Put tatoos Grunge and Metal
and down tune your guitars
and you have Nu Metal.
Sample beats, grooves, licks
and entire songs and you
have Hip Hop and Rap.
Next we will play the G note at the 3rd fret on the E string and the
Open D string together to make a chord.
EAD G B E
The A string technically is not played and the inside tip of your
middle finger that is holding down the G note at the 3rd fret will
most likely touch the A string enough to muffle it or keep it from
sounding. Don't worry if it does, sometimes messy playing and
extra notes are a good thing.
BLUES SHUFFLE G
Our index finger is not yet holding anything down,
it is hovering above the string waiting for the next
move
EAD G B E
G B l u e s Ch ord
E AD G B E
Next we simply drop our index finger
down on the open D string holding it
down at the second fret while we play
our new chord
EAD G B E
G B l u e s Ch ord 2
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T
THE BLUES
S to p I t
S ta c c a to
Th e B l u e s ca n b e e a sy to p l a y a n d ta ke a l i fe ti m e to m a ste r.
Dynamics are the mark of a Great Blues Player. Playing harder then softer or vice versa can be a
great way to catch the listeners ear. A quick surprise
First try to hear every note cleanly when you play, then experiment with "palm muting"
by lightly resting the palm of your picking hand on top of the guitar strings while you play, giving a
slightly muffled sound.
The final move for the G Blues first part
G B l u e s Ch ord 3
E AD G B E
We now add the ring finger on the 3rd fret of the D string.
So far we have wanted the notes
in our songs to ring out clearly
and until we switch to the next
chord.
But a great effect you will find in
every music is Staccato, or to cut
a note or chord off immediately
after it is played giving it a quick
or choppy sound.
Palm muting is one of the simplest
ways to do this. Using the heel or
side of your picking hand, lightly
lay it across all the ringing string
to stop the notes immediatley
after you strum or pick them.
Another great way to use palm
muting is to leave your pick hand
palm lightly touching the strings
while you are strumming the
chords or picking the notes.
This effect is used in countless
blues, rock and metal tunes and if
you have ever heard that choppy
low bottom chug in Metal Music,
chances are someone is palm
muting.
If you have ever heard the Rocky
song Eye of the Tiger, duh duh
duh duh, duh duh duh duh, all
palm muting.
Now we put all 3 moves together and we have the first bar of our Blues referred to as the I
In other books we will talk about
how this technique can be used
for a syncopated rhythm, if you
have ever listened to any reggae
such as Bob Marley or Peter
Tosh, you have heard this well.
EAD G B E
Next, we repeat Everything we did with the G chord, just move it all down a string so we start on the C mpte chord. It is the
same shape and pattern as the G, just start with your middle finger on the 3rd fret of the A string and repeat everything.
Now we put all 3 moves together and we
have the first bar of our Blues referred to as
the IV or 4.
So far we have the G chord move which is
our 1 , our C chord move which is the 4 in a
blues, now we move on to the D chord to
finish our blues which is the V or 5.
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T
THE BLUES II
S e cre t Re ci p e
The Blues have a formula, once you unlock this ancient mystery you will be able to play
a blues in any key using single notes and chords.
Once we learn our last chord, we will add numbers to each chord so we can start using
this musical numbering system and learn our first 1 2 Bar Blues.
D B l u e s Ch ord
Col on e l S a n d e rs
Our last move starts with our simple D major chord. We are just
playing on 2 strings for this example, the D string is played open
while we hold the G string down at the 2nd fret. You will want to
concentrate on just playing those 2 strings through these
examples.
The final piece to the puzzle is dropping our ring finger or pinkie
down on the G string at the 4th fret to play that note with the open
G string.
Like KFC's original recipe
chicken, the blues has a
secret recipe.
Once this magic formula is
learned, you will be able to
create your own blues blend
anywhere on the guitar neck
in any key using chords and
single note lines.
It is a Greek numbering
system dating back 1 000's of
years and uses like all
western civilization music, the
major scale or Ionian scale as
it's basis.
The formula is spelled 1 4 5
or I IV V in Roman Numerals.
If you have ever watched the
Sound of Music, you will be
familiar with this scale or you
may have learned this
memory trick in music class
for the major scale.
Do Ray Me Fa So La Ti
Do is the 1 , Me is the 4 and
So is the 5. Simple
This formula is the basis for
thousands of Country, Pop
and Rock tunes and with
slight alteration can help you
figure out songs in any style
from Jazz to Nu Metal.
P l a yi n g Ti p
Try to keep your index finger down on the G string at the second fret while adding your finger to the 4th
fret. This will make it easier to drop and lift as you play and give the rhythm a little "bounce".
Rock School
We will work with this system
in book 2 and it will open up
an even bigger world of music
to you.
We are working up to a Blues Shuffle in the key of G. The shuffle is the foundation of many blues tunes. If you have heard
Stevie Ray Vaughan's Pride and Joy, the Beatles Get Back or Billy Ray Cyrus's Achey Breakey Heart, you have heard a Blues
Shuffle.
Asse m b l i n g th e G B l u e s S h u ffl e
1 chord G play for 2 bars, 4 chord C play for 2 bars, 5 chord D play for 2 bars. ( A Bar is the notes and chords located in
between those up and down bar lines seperating our tab into sections, also called a measure, as we are learning a 1 2 bar blues,
we will have 1 2 of them)
Th i s i s th e G ch ord p orti on of ou r b l u e s or th e 1 (I )
Th i s i s th e C ch ord p orti on of ou r b l u e s or th e 4 (I V)
Th i s i s th e D ch ord p orti on of ou r b l u e s or th e 5 (V)
Th e Tu rn a rou n d
The "Turnaround" section of any blues does just that, it turns the beat back
around to the 1 chord so it can start over.
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B
BACK IN BLACK
U s e th e B l u e s
P i cki n g E xe rci se s
Back in Black by AC/DC is a textbook rock song, equal parts Chuck Berry and Led
Zeppelin and a great starting point to learn a lot of new techniques.
E M a j or Ch ord
The Pentatonic Scale and Blues
scale are great picking exercises.
You will encounter their shape in
most every style of music you play
whether in licks, riffs or solos.
Practice going up the scale, then
back down the scale.
D M a j or Ch ord
A M a j or Ch ord
Double pick each note as you go
up and back (pick each note 2
times)
Play each note 3 times as you go
up and then back down the scale
(triplets)
Play each note 4 times as you go
up and then back down the scale
(quadruplets)
Sequences - This is fun and used
in lots of solos
Play each set of notes on the
string twice before moving to the
next string.
This is the same shape as our 2 finger E Minor Chord, we
are just adding the index finger to the 1 st fret of the G string.
The pattern starts on the high E
string, 3 - 0 - 3 -0
same on the B string 3 - 0 - 3 -0,
G string 2 - 0 - 2 - 0,
We are adding a finger to a chord we already know to make a new chord. We are taking our E minor chord shape
and holding down the G string on the 1 st Fret.
There is one important note to the rhythm of the song. The notes of the chords need to be stopped from ringing
immediately after the last one is strummed.
D string 2 - 0 - 2 - 0,
A string 2 - 0 - 2 - 0,
Low E string 3 - 0 - 3 -0
Rock School
This is done by quickly placing the palm edge of your picking down on the strings after strumming through the chord.
This important technique is referred to as palm muting.
G E AR N O TE : Unlike our previous songs that had a clean tone to the guitar, AC/DC adds a moderate amount of
distortion to their sound. If you are playing an electric guitar this is usually built into the amp or you can use a
distortion pedal. See the next page
T h e B l u e s S ca l e
This song lick uses a part of the blues scale, we will go into detail on this scale which is the most widely used scale in
blues, rock, pop and metal music.
The pentatonic scale on the left with the
notes listed out, and on the right with the
blue notes added.
Start on the high E string (the thin one) at
the note marked G and pick it, then remove
your finger and play the E string open, go
down every note of the scale this way and
then back up a few times to get the pattern
locked in your mind.
E Pentatonic Scale Descending - (Going Down)
E Pentatonic Scale Ascending - (Going Up)
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B
BACK IN BLACK
M o v i e N e ws
Te n a ci ou s D a n d th e P i ck
o f D e s ti n y
B a ck i n B l a ck b y AC/D C i s b l u e s b a se d to th e core .
The intro is 3 basic chords and a blues scale based riff, with a couple of new single
string techniques.
P u l l O ffs
A typical riff or lick move - the string pull off is just what it sounds like.
• Push the high E string down at the 3rd fret with your finger getting ready to pick
• Pick the string to sound the note
• Keep pressure on the string and pull it slightly down towards the ground and
immediately let go and it will sound the high E string note.
That's it, you only pick the note once, the very first time you hold it down
The curved line between the notes
indicates to pull off in tablature.
This classic movie, along with
School of Rock, both starring
Jack Black, show the funnier
side of rock n roll. Angus
Young the guitarist from
AC/DC provided lots of "guitar
moves" for both movies.
Look up Angus on the AC/DC
video of For Those About To
Rock, We Salute You on
YouTube.
He is the hyperspastic
guitarist in the schoolboy outfit
guitarring like a crazed
chipmunk on too much
caffeine. If you ever wonder
where Jack Black got some of
his moves from School of
Rock and Tenacious D, Angus
Young is the man.
Other Classic Music Movies
Now try doing the pulloff a couple times
on the same string, pick pull, pick pull
Now try using pull offs on the entire blues scale. It does get trickier on those low strings, so have some
patience and keep practicing. You will use this technique in a lot of songs and solos.
School of Rock
Airheads
Purple Rain
Amadeus
Grease
Spinal Tap
High School Musical
The Blues Brothers
August Rush
Crossroads (with the Original
Karate Kid and Steve Vai as the
Devil's Guitarist)
Rock School
T h e B l u e s S ca l e
This song lick uses a part of the blues scale, we will go into detail on this scale which is the most widely used scale in
blues, rock, pop and metal music.
Ben d s
This is another typical and very important technique, there are all kinds of bends, we will keep it simple for this tune.
Push down a note and pick it to sound it, like the pull off we want to pull down on the string but this time give the
string extra pressure and don't let go.
Now combine the two for the AC/DC scale lick. Pick down the blues scale starting on the 3rd fret of the high E string,
when you get to the 2nd fret of the G string, push it down to bend then quickly release and you have a combination
technique, the bend and pull.
In tablature it looks like this.
E Major
D Major
A Major
Most amps have built in distortion but it can be ackward to flip a knob or turn switches mid
song to get from a clean to a distorted tone. Effects pedals or stomp boxes like the Ibanez
Tube Screamer and Turbo Screamer are a simple fix.
You step on or "stomp" on these boxes to turn on and off the distortion effect - so when
playing Nirvana's Smells Like Teen Spirit you can get from the intro riff to the grunge
chords to the chimey melody riff quickly.
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January 201 2
38
C
CLASSICAL
Classical Music is technically challenging and can take years to learn and a lifetime to
master.
We are going to jumpstart your classical playing by teaching you basic fingerpicking exercises,
etudes and studies that will help you fuse classical music into your playing style.
Ozzy Osbournes guitarist Randy Rhoads fused classical music with metal perfectly on many of
his songs, check out Diary of a Madman. Dragonforce and Killswitch Engage are just a couple
other bands that have fused elements of classical into their songs and rappers have long been
sampling bits of classical melodies into their tunes. Yngwie Malmsteen has made a whole career
out of this style.
All of these examples can be played with a pick, though classical guitarists NEVER use a pick or
plectrum to sound notes, only the fingers of their right hand or picking hand.
In the next section on Flamenco, we will work on right hand techniques, so come back to this section and
try it fingerstyle. You will also find most every style of music can utilize a fingerstyle technique.
Variations on country guitarist Merle Travis' right hand style called Travis Picking have been used in
songs from Dust in the Wind by Kansas, Nothing Else Matters by Metallica to Stairway to Heaven by Led
Zeppelin with great effect.
F u r E l i s e - B e e th o v e n
First up is one of the most popular classical melodies of all time. Fur Elise which means in German
"For Elise" and was a love song Beethoven wrote for a certain young lady he was quite fond of.
B e e th o v e n wa s a R o c k
S ta r
That's right, in their day
composers like Mozart,
Beethoven and Paganini were
treated like Rock Stars.
Before TV, MP3's,
Radio,Movies and the
Internet, people had to leave
their house to find
entertainment.
Much like today, concerts
were one of the most popular
forms of entertainment and
the star composers and
performers were treated like
royalty, often quite wealthy
and were recognized
wherever they went.
Quite impressive considering
there was no Cameras TV,
YouTube, tabloids, talk shows
or internet to exploit them, no
videos played, and no MP3's
to be heard. Someone had to
paint a picture of Chopin.
In addition, the greatest
musicians of the time were
given lavish residences by
Royalty and having the "in"
court composer gave the
King, Queen or local royalty
serious cred and bragging
rights.
For a first hand look at this,
watch the movie Amadeus
about Wolfgang "Amadeus"
Mozart, one of the original
rockstars.
Rock School
E tu d e s, E xe rci se s, M e l od i e s
You will recognize many of these melodies, though you may not know who composed them.
You will find classical music in everything from classic Bugs Bunny cartoons, look up "The Barber de Seville" for classic
Bugs and Elmer Fudd, to movies, tv, advertising and Christmas and Gospel songs.
CL A S S ICA L
R OC K
METAL
D i a ry of a M a d m a n
Composed by the late Randy Rhoads, this Ozzy Osbourne masterpiece was the first succesful fusion of metal and classical music
elements, and the solo is just brilliant. Listen to the track Dee on the Blizzard of Oz album for further insights into Randy's style.
P e rform a n ce N ote : There are 4 basic chord shapes to this part of the song, so practice each one getting them "under your fingers" then play
them as arpeggios one note at a time going down then up.
F u g u e b y B a ch
Like many of these melodies, you may not know the artist or composer, but will recognize their songs.
This is a great cross picking and string skipping exercise for your right hand when played with a pick. We will explore doing these fingerstyle in
Book 2 as a Classical Guitarist would play them.
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January 201 2
40
F
FLAMENCO
P l a yi n g Ti p s
Flamenco music's roots can be traced back to Arabic, Roman and North African influences
traveling to Southern Spain and mixing with the local culture and evolving with special forms
of dance and singing particularly the areas of Seville, Granada and Andulucia. A festive
music, it was a special way of expressing the experiences of the Gitanos or Spanish Gypsies
living in the poorer quarters of the city. In this way it has a direct relation to turn of the century
American Blues.
Llike other music styles, there are virtuoso guitarists who take the artform to a completely
different level. To be truly amazed look up Meditterean Sundance on YouTube or Gabriella
and Rodriguez who have combined Flamenco with Metal for some interesting sounds. Check
out their version of Metallica's One.
E M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
We will start this section with a slight
variation of our E major, and then turn that
chord into a F major 7#11 chord or as we
will call it the "Flamenco Chord"
We will use a guitar pick for now though Authentic
Flamenco only uses the fingers for chords, single
note lines and melodies.
A flamenco guitar is very similar to
a classical guitar. Flamenco music
also refers to toque, the guitarplaying part of the art of
Flamenco.
In addition to the techniques
common to classical guitar,
flamenco guitar technique is
uniquely characterized by:
G ol p e : Percussive finger tapping
on the soundboard at the area
above or below the strings.
Al za p ú a : A thumb technique which
has roots in oud plectrum
technique. The right hand thumb
is used both up and down for
single-line notes and/or
strumming across a number of
strings. Both are combined in
quick succession to give it a
unique sound.
Tre m ol o: Rapid repetition of a
single treble note, often following
a bass note. Flamenco tremolo is
different from classical guitar
tremolo, it is usually played with
the right hand pattern p-i-a-m-i
which gives a 4 note tremolo.
F l a m e n co Te rm s
Cante (Song)
Baile (Dance)
Toque (Guitar)
Try these examples using your right hand thumb
to strum the chords for an authentic Flamenco
sound.
Rock School
F l a m e n co
Below are the 2 chords that will form the basis of our whole Cante (Song).
E M a j or Ch ord
E AD G B E
F F l a m e n co Ch ord
E AD G B E
Strum the chords 4 times each and repeat. You now have a
Flamenco sounding tune.
Certain chord progressions also characterize Flamenco and
one of the most common is the Spanish Cadence. We will
explore this in depth in Book 2, but for extra credit you can find
the chords in our Chord Primer and try it out yourself. A minor,
G major, F major and E major are the chords. Play them in this
order, Aminor, G major, F major, E major, A minor, G major, F
major, Emajor.
Let's give the chords some up and down strumming. We are going to still count 1 2 3 4 while strumming on
each number, but this time we will strum up and down.
Start with the G chord, the 1 is a down strum, the 2 is an up strum, the 3 is a down strum, the four is an up
strum. Now repeat with the C chord D chord then the E chord.
AYU D AD O
This is the primary method of picking individual notes, scales, melodies and arpeggios. Ayudado uses the thumb and
index finger of the right hand or picking hand to sound all of the notes.
This is a great cross picking and string skipping exercise for your right hand when played with a pick. We will explore doing these fingerstyle in
Book 2 as a Classical Guitarist would play them.
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January 201 2
42
T U N IN G
G u i ta r Tu n i n g 1 0 1
A standard guitar is tuned to A440 meaning the A note above the middle C vibrates 440 times per second when properly tuned..
The notes of the guitar from low to high are E A D G B E - just like our diagrams throughout the book.
Singer/Songwriters tune the guitar up or down from standard pitch to accommodate their vocal range, Paul McCartney tuned all his strings
down a whole step for the song Yesterday. Singer songwriters often use capos to get a higher pitch from their guitars. The Eagles Hotel of
California is played with a capo at the 7th fret as is The Beatles' Here Comes the Sun. Our songbook example Teardrops on My Guitar is
played capoed at the 3rd fret.
Alternate and Drop tunings have long been used on the guitar for a different sound.
Blues Guitarist Robert Johnson used no less than 7 different tunings, slide guitarists often use open tunings such as open G A E and D as
do the Rolling Stones.
Goo Goo Dolls guitarist Trent Reznick employed the random tuning method, just turning the tuning knobs at random and inventing his own
tunings. Check out Name and Black Balloon to hear the sounds this creates.
Neil Young was the pioneer of Double Drop D in songs like Cinnamon Girl and Eddie Van Halen copped the drop d tuning often for songs
like Unchained and Drop Dead Legs. Grunge guitarist Kim Thayil of Soundgarden cites Eddie's dropped tuning influence on songs like
Outshined and metal guitarists soon followed. Eddie also used the TransTrem by Steinberger to change tunings mid song with this unique
tremelo/ capo type invention.
Innovative acoustic guitar virtuosos like Michael Hedges, Khaki King and Andy McKee employ numerous alternate tunings. Check out Andy
on YouTube to see that the guitar is only limited by your imagination.
Korn took it a step further in metal by using 7 string guitars in drop tunings, thanks to their influence modern metal now relies heavily on
down tuned guitars often dropping to a low B tuning using 7 and 8 string guitars to drop their tone to the bottom, getting well past standard
bass guitar range.
P
Tuners Everywherel
M a n u a l Tu n i n g
Playing in tune is one of the most important things you will ever learn as a
musician along with playing in time.
Besides the fact that playing out of tune is not very pleasant to listen to, it will
actually harm the ear training process and slow you down musically and who
wants to go to the local guitar store every time you need tuning when it is a simple
process.
Digital Tuners
Pitch Pipe
Tune to Strings
Harmonics
Cel l Ph on es, I pad s, PC
D
G
A
B
E
E
EADGBE
There are many free tuning
apps for your digital device,
phone or pc as well.
Tu n e to Th e S on g
Many artists tune the guitar
sharp or flat either to
accommodate a singers vocal
range or to get a heavier
guitar sound.
Tuning down to E flat is
common and metal bands
with tune down 1 to 2 whole
steps for a really low sound on
their guitars and basses.
For this book we will use a digital tuner for tuning our guitars. They are inexpensive and work
on acoustic and electric guitars and bass.
In the next book we will explore 2 other tuning methods, harmonics and tuning the guitar to
itself which developes ear training as well as explore how to drop, down and alternate tune
guitars.
We i rd B u t Worth y
Toilets flush to E Flat, Most
Dial Tones are an A Note
S e e th e v i d e o o n tu n i n g
January 201 2
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G E A R T E CH
G u i ta ri sts Love G e a r - Th e M ore th e B e tte r
Joe Bonnamassa is said to have 300 vintage guitars, a respectable stash, Slash of GNR has over 900 les pauls dating back
to 1 959, Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin owns a seperate warehouse space with private guard for his guitar and amp collection.
Karate Master/Action Star/Reality TV Sherrif Steven Seagall owns 700 guitars including Albert King's custom made Flying
V's that he paid over $1 50,000 dollars for.
S i g n a tu re Axe s:
Most famous guitarists are identified by their signature axe which they often name - below are a few.
Jimi Hendrix - Woodstock Stratocaster, Brad Paisley - Paisley Telecasters, David Gilmour - Black Stratocaster, Eddie Van
Halen - Frankenstrat, Randy Rhoads - Polka Dot V, Albert King - Signature Gibson Flying V, Eric Clapton - Blackie Strat, Bo
Diddley - The Gretsch Bo, Rick Neilson - Custom 5 neck Hamer, John Lennon - Epiphone Sheraton, Zakk Wylde - Bullseye
Les Paul, Dimebag Darrell - Lightning Bolt, Billy Gibbons - Pearley Gates, Jimmy Page - Doubleneck Gibson, SRV - Lenny,
Michael Angelo Batio - 4 Neck Dean, Don Felder - Hotel California Doubleneck Gibson, Alexi Laiho - Scythe Blacky, BB King
- Lucille, George Lynch - Snakes and Skulls, Angus Young - Gibson SG, Brian May - Red Special, Keith Richards Micawber, Wille Nelson - Trigger, Neil Young - Old Black, Slash - (Fake Gibson Les Paul), Bootsy Collins - Star Bass, Kiss:
Gene Simmons - The Axe, Paul Stanley- Iceman and Ace Frehley - Smoking Les Paul.
G
Gear Tech. To be a great musician you have to know how to use your gear.
From guitars and amplifiers to recording and effects, we will teach you how to get
the tones of your favorite player both live and when recording.
While we will detail all aspects of guitar gear, we will also have articles and focused on using the
music gear you have on hand.
While it would be nice to have a 1 960's Stratocaster or vintage Les Paul, or the new Kirk Hammett
ESP with a matching amplifier stack and an effects pedal board that looks like NASA built, your
average guitarist doesn't have the dough to pony up for this kind of rig.
We will have Artist Specific Lessons on using The Gear You Have to get the tones you hear on your
favorite tunes and as most experienced guitarists know, Jimi Hendrix would sound like Jimi on a
$99.00 Squire Stratocaster through a $40 practice amp. "It ain't always the gear, the magic is in the
fingers"
So if you can't afford the Slash Signature Marshall Stack amplifier, we will show gear alternatives that
most anyone can afford.
Rock School
R O C KS C H O O L W E B S I T E
We will have reviews of all the
current equipment from new
guitars, amplifiers and effects
to strings, capos and picks.
The rockshool website will
also give you tone tips.
One of our most popular
columns, Pro Tone on A
Budget is designed to teach
you how to get the sounds
you hear on your favorite
songs with the equipment you
have at hand.
It would be great to have a
vintage 60's Stratocaster and
Marshall stack as well as an
Echoplex, Dallas Arbiter Fuzz,
Original Vox Wah and a Small
Stone Phaser, but if you don't
have $1 50,000 bucks handy,
we will show you how to get
the tones with the guitar rig
you own.
Top 5 Guitar Pedals:
It's all in the hands. You can play any type of music on any size stage in the world using
the equipment you have below and sound like a pro.
Too much emphasis can be put on equipment, if you don't practice and work at your music,
it won't sound good no matter how much you spend on equipment.
There are 1 00's of effects
pedals and it can be hard to
choose which ones to add to
your rig, if you are on a
budget, go for the ones most
used. There are also great
"multi effects" pedals that
combine many effects in one
affordable unit.
• D i storti on /O ve rd ri ve
• Ch oru s/Re ve rb
• Del ay
• Wa h P e d a l
• Ph aser
January 201 2
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R E S OU R C E S
20 years ago to record an album, you had to travel to one of the few towns that had a recording studio, usually on the East
or West Coast and spend tens of thousands of dollars for the small amount of studio time you could afford and hope the
disc came out great because you had no way to "fix it" or go back and add to the recording.
Now you can record yourself with a $39.00 link kit for your Iphone or Ipad or with freeware like Audacity on your PC and
get professional sounding recordings without ever leaving the house.
You can post videos instantly up to YouTube for the entire world to hear or just upload them to a free musical collaboration
website where you can post an idea and guitarists, vocalists, drummers, pianists and anyone else on the planet with a pc
and an instrument can add their musical ideas until the track is finished.
We will list our favorite resources though this is by no means all that are out there. Everything from free to not so free
learning tools, gear platforms, apps, promotional sites and more.
Don't forget to email us links of your projects through our website, we will feature daily new artists of all calibers daily, from
the guitarist who learned their first chords to the indie band who recorded a demo in their garage.
Check out our YouTube channel for our Free Video Lessons.
R
The Rock
School Website
Resources for the guitarist, a handy reference of Free and Not so Free tools that
any musician can use.
B e g i n n e rs
Learn new licks, chords and
tricks daily
I n te rm e d i a te P l a ye rs
F RE E RE S O U RC E S
N O T Q U I T E F RE E
Le sson s a n d Ta b s
B o o ks a n d M a g a z i n e s
www.rockschoolkc.com daily free lessons
YouTube
Ultimate Guitar
Tux Guitar to Open Power Tabs and Guitar Pro
Guitar Player
Guitar World
Vintage Guitar
Acoustic Guitar
Styles Lessons from Country,
Rock, Jazz, Rockabilly and
Metal Soloing to Playing like
your favorite Guitarist style
specific Lessons. SRV, Van
Halen, Jimi Hendrix, Steve
Vai, Kirk Hammett, John
Petrucci
Ap p s - H a rd wa re - S oftwa re
AmpKit for Iphone, Ipad, Ipod
Line 6 Toneport
Re cord i n g
Audacity
Music Collaboration Site
Li ve P e rfom a n ce
Coffee Houses
Churches
Benefits
Family Functions / Holidays
School Functions
Re com m e n d e d Vi d e os
Paul Gilbert
George Lynch
Hal Leonard Blues Video
Learn to Burn Method
Ad va n ce d P l a ye rs
Master Class Programs Jazz, Classical and Flamenco
concepts as taught by 2 of the
biggest names in the genres.
Advanced Super Shred
Techniques, 8 finger tapping,
full fretboard legato, speed
picking, string skipping, sweep
picking, exotic scales, 3 note
scale clusters, and some of
the craziest guitar tricks know
to man.
Style Master Classes - Blues,
Country, Gypsy, Grunge,
Punk, Funk and more.
N e tworki n g a n d P rom oti on
Facebook
Websites
Twitter
We wi l l a l so fe a tu re :
Vi d e o Le sson s
P e rform a n ce Cl i n i cs
Te ch a n d G e a r Re p a i r
Vi d e o G a m e s
Guitar Hero and Rock Band vs. Guitar Smith
January 201 2
48
P E R F OM I N G L I V E
Rock P ose s, P ostu ri n g a n d Acrob a ti cs - A F e w Cl a ssi c M ove s
Th e Wi n d m i l l S tru m - S e e P e te Town sh e n d of th e Wh o
Th e D u ckwa l k - S e e Ch u ck B e rry
F l yi n g Ai r S p l i ts - S e e E d d i e Va n H a l e n
Th e B a ckwa rd s B e n d S ol o - S e e Ace F re h l e y of Ki ss
Th e S p a sti c Le g - S e e An g u s You n g of AC/D C
Th e H e a d B ob - S e e An g u s You n g of AC/D C
Th e S p l i ts - S e e Ch u ck B e rry
T h e C u p p e d E a r C a l l a n d R e s p o n s e - S e e Z a k k Wy l d e
P l a y G u i ta r Wi th Te e th - J i m i H e n d ri x
T h e H u l a H o o p - Yn g wi e M a l m s te e n
Arou n d th e Worl d - S te ve Va i
P l a y B e h i n d You r B a ck - J i m i H e n d ri x
S m a sh G u i ta r - Cob a i n , H e n d ri x, Town sh e n d
S p a ce S h u ttl e - Kri st N ovose l i c of N i rva n a - (a l so th e cra sh l a n d i n g )
S e t th e G u i ta r on F i re - J i m i H e n d ri x
B u n n y H op - Ch u ck B e rry
I n to th e Au d i e n ce - B u d d y G u y
Th e M i l e Lon g P i ck S cra p e - Ace F re h l e y of Ki ss
S m oki n g G u i ta r - Ace F re h l e y of Ki ss
4 g u i ta r n e cks a t on ce - M i ch a e l An g e l o B a ti o
6 g u i ta r n e cks a t on ce - Kyl e G a ss - Te n a ci os D , Ri ck N i e l son - Ch e a p Tri ck
Vi ol i n B ow G u i ta r - J i m m y P a g e of Le d Ze p p e l i n
P l a yi n g G u i ta r wi th F oot Wh i l e J u g g l i n g - N i g e l Tu fn e l of S p i n a l Ta p
P
Rock School
Performing Live is an Artform.
A musicians Attitude, Looks, Poses, Tricks and Maneuvers have been vitally important
since live music was first performed.
From the bombastic intro music themes and ultra tight powdered wigs of Beethoven and
Mozart, the physical acrobatics of Chuck Berry, Angus Young, Eddie Van Halen and of
course Jack Black and The Tenacious D.
The stone cold groovin' dance moves of Kool and the Gang, Madonna and the Cheetah
Girls.
The posing and posturing of Jimmy Page and Kirk Hammett or vintage metal maneuvers of
Ozzy Osbourne and Ronnie James Dio.
Last but not least the flamboyant style of Jimi Hendrix, Devo and The Village People, the
glitzy outfits of The Grand Old Opry Stars to Celine Dion and Barnum and Bailey Circus
style antics of Kiss, Alice Cooper and Motley Crue to Gwar.
Music is entertainment and performing live in front of an audience is a vital part of this, and
a musicians showmanship, flair, style and musical prowess all play into that.
Th e H a i r
A F E W S TYLE N O TAB LE S
Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Muddy Waters, Chuck Berry, Conway Twitty, Billy Ray Cyrus (the achey
breakey hair mistakey) , 80's punk introduced the Mohawk, the girley shine top Sinead O'Connor,
Double Samurai - Eddie Van Halen, The Aqua Net - See 80's Hair Metal, Wayne Newton
T h e C l o th e s
Bootsy Collins, Village People, Elvis Presley (Vegas Elvis and Vintage Elvis), Kurt Cobain (helped coin
term sweater rock) Jimi Hendrix, Jimimy Page (Oriental Dragon Jump Suit was and is Boss), Foxxy
Cleopatra - Beyonce in Austin Powers Goldmember, Kiss Theme Suits - Space Ace, The Cat, The
Beast and Starman.
Th e S h o e s
Bootsy Collins, I'm Gonna Git You Sucka the movie Goldfish Shoes to Shaft Theme, The Beatles
(Beatle Boots), SRV - Purple Dyed Ostrich Skin Boots, Garth Brooks - Ropers, The Snakeskin and
Biker Boot - 80's Hair Metal, the Ballet Slipper - 80's Drummers, The Flip Flop - Jimmy Buffet
P e rform a n ce s
With the songs learned in our
classes, you will be ready to play
and perform live.
Music is entertainment, and we
teach you how to keep the crowd
coming back for more.
While knowing your instrument is
important - Playing Live is where
the fun really begins.
From Jerry Lee Lewis' fiery piano
to Madonna vogueing, Michael
Jackson Moonwalking, Hendrix,
Cobain and Townshend thrashing
a stage, Tommy Lee's spinning
drum set to Kiss spitting fire, flying
through the air and smoking
guitars,
M u si c i s P e rform a n ce
So break out your Guitar Hero
and Rock band video games refer to movies such as Spinal
Tap, School of Rock, Pick of
Destiny or classic YouTube
footage.
P e rform i n g G on e Wron g
1 992 MTV Music Awards - Krist
Noveselic, bassist for Nirvana, in
a classic rock moment was nearly
knocked unconscious while
performing the "bass toss"
maneuver.
Th e B a n d a n a - H a t
Jimi Hendrix, Axl Rose - GNR, Brett Michaels - Poison, Any Hair Metal Artist who can't afford Rogaine
or Plugs, 60's Blues Artists - The Uptown Pimp and Fedora, Prince - Purple Fedora
January 201 2
50
R OC K S C H OOL
M E T H OD
M
Rock School
B e g i n n e rs
More 3 and 4 chord songs for this book. These songs will use the
exact same chords as are taught in this book, just different
strumming patterns.
O u r c o m p a n i o n s o n g b o o k h a s o v e r 1 0 0 a d d i ti o n a l s o n g e xa m p l e s .
S tyl e s Cove re d :
Foo Fighters - Big Me
Bob Dylan - Knocking on Heavens Door
Taylor Swift - You Belong With Me
Johnny Cash - Ring of Fire
The Beatles - Eleanor Rigby
Poison - Every Rose Has It's Thorn
Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
Norah Jones - Be Here to Love Me
Wilco - California Stars
Goo Goo Dolls - Iris
Carl Perkins - Bebop a Lula
Elvis Presley - Jailhouse Rock
Bob Marley - Redemption Song
Sheryl Crow - First Cut is The Deepest
CCR - Bad Moon Rising
Elvis Presley - Hound Dog
The Beatles - Yellow Submarine
Jeff Buckley - Hallelujah
Jimmy Buffet - Margaritaville
Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl
The Eagles - Already Gone
Bonus Lessons - Add 4 New Easy Chords and Be able to Play
1 000's of more songs.
The Beatles - Let it Be
All American Rejects - Swing Swing
James Blunt - You're Beautiful
Johnny Cash - Folsom Prison Blues
Oasis Wonderwall
Cranberries - Zombie
Plain White T's - Hey There Delilah
Allman Brothers - Ramblin Man
Pink Floyd - Pigs on the Wing
Allman Brothers - Midnight Rider
Carter Family - Can the Circle be Unbroken
The Clash - Should I Stay or Should I Go
Coldplay - Clocks
Counting Crows - A Long December
John Denver - Take Me Home, Country Roads
Guns N Roses - Patience
Jack Johnson - Wasting Time
CCR - Suzie Q
Warrant - Heaven
Bob Dylan - All Along the Watchtower
Cat Stevens - Wild World
Goo Goo Dolls - Iris
Harry Chapin - Cat's in the Cradle
Foo Fighters - Learning to Fly
Steve Miller - Take the Money and Run
Foo Fighters - Times Like These
Bob Seger- Night Moves
Steve Miller Serenade
Norah Jones - Come Away With Me
Jimi Hendrix - Hey Joe
Matchbox 20 - Mad Season
Bob Seger - Fire Lake
Jerry Lee Lewis - Great Balls of Fire
Ben Harper - Another Lonely Day
Buddy Holly - That'll be the Day
Incubus - Drive
Bob Seger - Turn the Page
Pink Floyd - Mother
B O N U S - 25 Christmas - Holiday Songs
Run Rudolph Run
White Christmas
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Silver Bells
Nutcracker Suite
You're a Mean One Mr. Grinch
Away in a Manger
We Three Kings
Jingle Bells
Hannukah Song
Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer
and more.....
Learn over 500 songs the first
week! You can play guitar
immediately, no sight reading
or traditional sheet music.
No complicated scales and
theory to get started.
Absolutely anyone can use
this method no matter their
musical background.
I n te rm e d i a te P l a ye rs
Jumpstart your playing. Tired
of playing the same few riffs
and chords, or using the same
scale pentatonic licks over
and over in your soloing.
Our styles section will get you
out of a rut!
Infuse some classical and
flamenco into your rock or
metal, broaden your blues
based playing with our 1 0 step
jazz blues program.
Mix some country into your
rock or rock into your country
or mix it up with rockabilly.
Fuse your jazz with gypsy.
Ad va n ce d P l a ye rs
Master Class Programs Jazz, Classical and Flamenco
concepts as taught by 2 of the
biggest names in the genres.
January 201 2
54
S
SOLOING
P E N TATO N I C P O S S I B I LI TI E S :
Slides, Hammers, Pulls
BB Box, Albert Box, Jimmy Page
Ladder Licks, Sequences, Repeating Licks
Bends-1 /2, 1 step, 1 1 /2 step, 2 step
Unison Bends and Checking your bends
Reverse Bends, Ghost Bends ,Bend Vibrato
Bend Hold Vibrato, Bend release, Bend Vibrato
Bend and Slide, Country Bends, Oblique Bends
Bend Tap
Bend and Add
Behind the Nut
Finger Vibrato - The Beullen Exploitation
BB, Zakk, Clapton, Gilmour, Albert, Vai
Classical, Butterfly, Wrist, Shake
Tremelo Vibrato
Call Response - Art of the fill
Turnarounds
Snaps, Rakes and Stings
1 to the 1
Natual Harmonics,Artificial Harmonics,Pinch Harmonics
Pedal Point
Tremelo Picking
SRV Organ licks
Palm mute - hand mute
Octaves
Hybrid Picking - Pick Fingers
Dynamics - soft to loud - volume control
Effects - Wah - Voodoo Chile to Shaft, Delay, Tremolo, Phase,
Flange
Open Strings, Cascades
Build Penta Riffs - Zep, Sabbath, Dime, Metallica, Kansas
Slide Guitar standard tuning
Left hand style - use either 2, 3 or 4 fingers, causes phrasing style
to change
Full Neck Pentatonics Eric Johnson - Joe Bonamassa - Zakk
Major Pentatonic -Combine Major - Minor Pentatonic Blue Notes
Style Specific Lessons - Jimi, Jimmy, Slash, EJ, Bonnamasa, Billy,
Albert, BB, Buddy, Muddy, Zakk, Yngwie, Gilbert, Eddie, Randy,
Wes, Burrell, Albert Lee, Scotty Moore, Setzer, Paisley, Vince Gill,
Johnny Hiland, Frehley, Young, Santana,
Pentatonics in Jazz - Wes/Burell Follow Changes
Pentatonic Arpeggios - chord tones, blue notes, landing
notes,triplets,straight 8's, mixed
Building penta bass lines, combine with comping
P l a yi n g Ti p s
Inside/Outside Home Box Adding schmaltz to the Home base
concept - diminished pieces etc
Playing inside/outside back to home base - use all 5 penta
patterns as home base
play 2 steps up to catch extensions, 1 step above or below then
into whichever box you are using as home
Adding nonsense and neat noise to home base - eddie is a
master - 1 24 hammer or pull runs, fake holdsworth legato all
ending at home position, add a screaming harmonic, whammy
dumps, whammy dips into notes, the horse, the whale - vais
lizard down the throat string off neck
Extreme Pentatonics Dime Bag, Eddie, Hammett
3 note per string
Legato 3 note
Pentatonic Tapping - Tap Pick - Tap Bend - Tap Harmonics - 2
to 8 finger tapping - batten, reb beach, gilbert, kotzen, jeff
watson
Right hand moveable capo
Percussive Penta - Raul Midon, Mean Street - mixing funk bass
techniques
Pentatonic Sweeping
Wide Interval
Zen Concepts - stops scale running and helps vocal phrasing
Play only on 1 string - limit to groups of 2 to 3 strings or
particular areas of fretboard or scale position - flutters all on 1
or 2 strings, bends all up and down 1 string - get out of safety
bend and zone areas, bend with odd fingers
Master all boxes, practice in 2 box, 3 box, 4 box groups, get out
of comfort zone
practice groups out of order, box 2 and 5, 2 and 4 etc.
Play only on 2 non consecutive strings
Sing, scat or hum a lick, then play it, tap a beat then play that
rhythm
Practice breathing and playing - like a horn player, breath will
determine line length
Play pentatonic lines from other instruments - Floyds sax player
plays primarily penta solos
Create Jam tracks to solo over - using all techniques
Jam over different styles - it will force new phrasing, dynamics,
tone
Exploit the tools you
have to the fullest
Too often guitarists look for the
"magic chord" or "secret scale"
without realizing they have most
of the tools they need.
The concepts on these 2 pages
are foundation techniques every
guitarist needs to master the
instrument and sadly glossed over
by most books and teachers.
Every guitarist knows the
Pentatonic Scale or Blues scale few know how to truly use this
scale. It is the most powerful
scale for soloing there is and the
basis
of most every soloing technique
from blues, rock, country, jazz,
metal, ska, punk, funk, pop, soul
and just about every known style.
We will show you how to morph
this powerful scale into fiery leads,
creative fills and devastating
solos.
The rhythm techniques are
another overlooked area. We
LOVE the solo, but in a 4 minute
song, 3 and 1 /2 minutes are
rythym - the backbone of the
song.
Book 2 will again use basic
concepts to bring your rythym and
accompaniment skills to a new
level.
Play in any style and have parts
with licks and riffs that stand out
and learn to write and compose
truly unique songs on your own.
Rh yth m Te ch n i q u e s
on th e l ow E stri n g
on th e h i g h E stri n g
on th e D stri n g - n ote we sta rt
a t th e 2 n d fre t th i s ti m e
WEBSITE CONTENT
• Lesson Videos
• Gear Tips
January 201 2
20

Rock School KC Method

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