Guitar Music Theory

Today, I answer email questions about guitar scale patterns, pickup configurations, amps, recording yourself, and more.  

In this free guitar lesson, I answer the question, What Does Playing Over Chords Mean? If you’re interested in soloing over chord changes, outlining chord progressions, or using chord tone soloing, I’ll explain what you need to do.  

In podcast episode 85, I sit down and talk with Keith Stevens. Keith used to teach classical guitar at James Madison University in Harrisburg VA and now owns and operates Stevens School of Music in Troy VA. We talk about the difference between classical and rock techniques, and the best way to learn guitar in general.  

In this free guitar lesson, I have another installment of How Does This Song Work? featuring “Jungle Boogie” by Kool and The Gang. This song features a scratchy funk guitar, chords from Dorian mode, and a bass riff that makes use of chromatic passing tones and 3 over 2 polyrhythms.  

In this free guitar lesson, I talk guitar amps and effects with HW from Tone Junkie. Tone Junkie is a company that makes amp profiles for the Kemper Profiling Amplifier. The owner, HW, is an expert on guitar amps, effects, modelers and more. We talk about the different types of setups guitarists use and the pros and cons of different pieces of gear.  

In this free guitar lesson, I have another installment of How Does This Song Work? featuring “Down Under” by Men at Work. This reggae-inspired song features great rhythm guitar tracks that make use of CAGED system chord shapes, sixteenth note strumming, and hybrid picking technique. Instead of using guitar tablature, I just show you the main chords and parts of the song and explain the music theory.  

In this free guitar lesson, I talk with a physiotherapist about hand anatomy, why we have more control over some fingers than others, and things you can do to improve your hand dexterity and play to your strengths.  

In this free guitar lesson, I teach you how to play the opening riff heard in Stevie Ray Vaughan’s song, “Cold Shot.” I explain what you need to do to play it using the right tone, timing, and technique. I also answer some email questions.  

In my latest podcast episode, I talk about different things you can do with your guitar playing in 2021. If you're looking to get more out of your playing but you're not sure what to do exactly, I give you several suggestions.  

In this free guitar lesson, I talk about the rockabilly lead guitar fills heard in the song “Jingle Bell Rock” by Bobby Helms.  

In this free guitar lesson, I explain and demonstrate what it means to play legato on guitar. Legato refers to the smooth transition between notes using hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides.  

In this free guitar lesson, I analyze the song “Walk Away” by Joe Walsh as recorded by his former band, James Gang. You get to know the key, chords, and progression as well as the scales used for the guitar solo.  

In this free guitar lesson, I have another installment of How Does This Song Work featuring “Gravity” by John Mayer. I give you an overview of the song including the chords, progression, composition techniques, and the scales used for the solos. I also demonstrate a part from the live version of the song.  

In this free guitar lesson, I answer email questions regarding learning pentatonic scale patterns, playing country guitar solos, identifying roots and modes, practicing picking exercises, and changing scales over chords.  

In episode 73 of the Guitar Music Theory podcast, I talk with Your Guitar Sage, Erich Andreas. We talk about how we got started teaching guitar online and what made Eddie Van Halen so great.  

Should guitar players learn how to read music? In this free guitar lesson, I discuss the pros and cons of reading standard musical notation. I talk about where your time might be better spent and how professional guitarists use their sight-reading skills.  

In this free guitar lesson, I explain what chord inversions, chord voicings, and drop 2 chords are. I demonstrate how you can add variety to your playing with different chord shapes, and how these chord forms are used in familiar guitar songs. I make use of the CAGED chord system as taught in my course Fretboard Theory Chapter 3.   

In this free guitar lesson, I explain to you that it’s not necessary to use all five pentatonic scale patterns. Most players have particular patterns and portions of patterns they favor and use most of the time. I’m going to show you why players do this and why you should do it too.  

In this free guitar lesson, I demonstrate part of the instrumental track, “Eruption,” that is featured on the very first Van Halen record and performed by Eddie Van Halen. I explain how the finger tapping technique works, how the tapping uses arpeggios, and how those arpeggios create a chord progression that features modal interchange and harmonic minor. I also discuss how I dial in an Eruption tone and my reverb, delay, and phaser settings.