Hello friends,
welcome back to Swift Guitar Lessons for another by request song tutorial. In today's session I've broken down how to play Neil Young's 1972 classic "Needle and the Damage Done." In this lesson you'll learn how to play Neil's instrumental cross picking techniques, before tackling basic strumming and lead techniques for the verse sections. Let's get started!
P.S I want to take a moment to thank you all for the continued support. With the uncertainty and anxiety surro...
2020-03-16 18:46:16 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another gypsy jazz lead guitar tutorial. In today's session I'm joined by Hot Club of Philadelphia guitarist Barry Wahrhaftig for a breakdown of three common gypsy jazz guitar licks. These phrases follow the chord progression for one of Django Reinhardt's most popular tunes entitled "Minor Swing." Let's get started!
Tabs for Lesson #1
2020-03-14 19:21:53 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
and welcome to the third installment of my lessons series breaking down how to play The Beatles' "While My Guitar Gently Weeps." In today's session we'll move on to learning the rhythm guitar section including the chord progressions and strumming patterns for the verse and chorus sections. Use this tune to practice general rhythm technique, picking accuracy, and bar chord shapes. Let's get started!
2020-03-08 20:37:19 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for a complete breakdown of the unplugged version of Nirvana's "Come As You Are." With this tutorial you'll learn the riffs, chords, and strumming patterns for the intro, verse, chorus, and bridge sections. Lastly, we'll move up the fretboard as we learn Kurt's beginner friendly guitar solo. Let's get started!
2020-03-01 19:59:41 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Welcome back to Swiftlessons for another lead guitar tutorial! In today's session I've broken down a technique that is often used by high level blues-rock guitarist, and that is implementing open strings into your licks and riffs, particularly low base tones between your phrases. The use of technique explains why so many different songs are played in keys E and A, and with drop D tuning. In this lesson I'll break down a full practice routine featuring several exampl...
2020-02-26 18:36:16 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Today let's revisit a lesson from the Swiftlessons archive breaking down major soloing techniques in the key of D major. In this tutorial we'll learn essential scales, descending patterns and melodic licks to help you compose your own ear-catching solos. Let's get started!
Intro Demonstration:
My introduction was played "free time." The phrasing and rhythmic elements are up for interpretation. This tab is an approximation of how it was performed in the video...
2020-02-25 04:12:01 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
and welcome to part 2 of my lessons series breaking down the guitar parts to The Beatles' "While My Guitar Gently Weeps." In today's session I'll be breaking down Eric Claptons outro guitar solo, dividing it up into seven easy to learn sections. We'll begin this lesson by learning the scale patterns Clapton is utilizing, before learning each lick using on-screen tabs, and my available printouts at Patreon.com/swiftlessons. Let's get sta...
2020-02-22 22:29:12 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another lead guitar tutorial. In today's session I've broken down two of my favorite jump blues style licks in the key of C major. Combine these licks to form one ear-catching phrase over a 1.4.5 blues progression. Let's get started!
Blues and Major Pentatonic Hybrid Scale:
Lick of the Week:
2020-02-13 21:08:42 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Welcome back to Swiftlessons for another lead guitar tutorial. In today's session I've broken down how to play Eric Clapton's iconic guitar solo from The Beatles "While My Guitar Gently Weeps." One of the most effective ways to improve as a lead guitarist is to study the work of your favorite players, this means learning which scales are being employed, and analyzing the rhythmic and technical details. In this tutorial we'll get started learning Clapton's go-to positions ...
2020-02-13 02:57:32 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another rhythm guitar tutorial. In today's session we will expand our knowledge of Chicago style blues as I break down essential riffs and shuffles lifted from songs by Howlin' Wolf and Sonny Boy Williamson. Let's get started!
Links:
Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another lead guitar tutorial. In today's session we'll combine notes from the minor blues and major pentatonic scales to create three stylish turnaround licks in the key of A. Take time to memorize the sound of each lick before practicing these phrases in distinct chunks for faster learning. Let's get started!
2020-02-04 15:24:34 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Today I welcome you to revisit The Band's 1968 classic "The Weight" by Robbie Robertson. I've created a new chord sheet and tablature breaking down the tune, as it was performed at The Last Waltz on Thanksgiving Day, November 25, 1976, at the Winterland Ballroom. This is a fantastic jam session tune, and always a crowd pleaser. Let's get started!
Robbie's Guitar Intro:
2020-02-01 23:47:24 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Today is a big day in the evolution of Patreon, as Swiftlessons has been chosen to be one of a handful of pages to beta test the platforms new search bar (desktop version only)! Over the weekend, I ask that you rely on this new tool to locate specific lessons, and report back to this post any issues you encounter. Please include the type of device and browser you were using at the time of the issue. Thanks so much for the help, I hope that you al...
2020-01-31 23:32:20 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another guitar talk session. Over the years I have learned a lot of lessons about how to become a better guitarist and musician, and many of these lessons did not come easy. So, in todays session I've set out to put aspiring guitar players on the right track by outlining 5 valuable things I've learned the hard way. Let's get started!
Suggested Talks:
Hello friends,
In addition to a number of other exciting projects, this week I took some time to prepare a revamp to my 2014 lesson on "Shoals of Herring" from the Inside Llewyn Davis soundtrack. As I work on the video content for this tutorial, take a moment to reacquaint yourself with the song, and enjoy my new tablature, gp7 and audio sample. Have fun! -Rob
Links:
Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another lead guitar tutorial. In today's session I've broken down a lead guitar trick that was really a game changer for me, the basic concept is simple; there are five major pentatonic scale boxes on the fretboard, each of these boxes when brought up three semi-tones becomes minor. In this lesson, we'll apply this concept to three useful pentatonic patterns. Let's get started!
2020-01-13 20:42:29 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another mini guitar tutorial. In today's session we are back to basics as we learn to convert our C Major Scale to chordal form using four note harmonies. Learning this skill will expand your knowledge of chords, help you to learn songs more quickly, and also help you to compose your own original music. Let's get started!
C Major Scale on a Single String:
2020-01-08 21:14:04 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Welcome back to Swiftlessons for another mini-lead tutorial. One of my goals for 2020 is to develop a proficiency at playing gypsy jazz, and to share what I learn along the way. In today's lesson I'll break down an easy way of playing over a common 5-1 chord change in the key of A minor. This technique is perfect for soloing on Django Reinhardt's "Minor Swing." Let's get started!
Diminished Side-Stepping Lick over E7:
In this example, we are...
2020-01-01 15:53:41 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
I hope you all enjoyed an amazing holiday and are ready to tackle some new goals in 2020! This week I'm hard at work creating new jam tracks, lead lessons and a song tutorial breaking down the Willie Nelson classic "On the Road Again." As I put the finishing touches on that video, take a moment to reacquaint yourself with the track, and practice along using the attached PDF study guide. Have fun!
Links:
Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another by request song tutorial. In today's lesson I'm breaking down a beginner friendly tune in Sam Cooke's 1961 classic "Cupid." Together we'll review the essential 1.6.4.5 chord progression in Gmaj and a common calypso strumming pattern that can be applied to countless songs. Let's get started!
Links:
Hello friends,
in today's lesson we are continuing to learn essential chords across the fretboard. In this session I'll break down how to perform six voicings of the basic minor harmony (1,m3,5) in the key of Am. Learning chords in a variety of voicings will help you to diversify your rhythm playing, break out of the open position and understand the relationship between chords and scales. Let's get started!
Section #1: What are Minor Chords
Minor chords are harmonies...
2019-12-17 23:43:37 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
In today's session we're going back to the fundamentals, discovering how to perform the basic major chord harmony across the fretboard. Learning this skill will help you to break out of the open position, and give you the ability to quickly transpose basic major progressions. Let's get started!
Section #1: What are Major Chords?
Major chords are harmonies containing the 1st, 3rd, and 5th notes of a given major scale. The tab belo...
2019-12-15 22:37:38 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
In today's session we are going back to the fundamentals by learning the various positions of the essential major 7 chord harmony. Mastering this skill will provide you with more options as a rhythm guitarist, and will help you to visualize the connections between scales, melodies and the chords. Let's get started!
Section #1: What are Major 7 Chords
A major 7 chord is a harmony of the 1st, 3rd, 5th, and 7th notes of a given major scale. The tab below shows ...
2019-12-13 02:35:06 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Welcome back to Swiftlessons for another holiday song tutorial. In today's session I've broken down how to play an arrangement of Bing Crosby's "I'll Be Home For Christmas" for guitar and vocals. In this lesson you will learn melodic chord melody phrases, and how to use hybrid picking to arpeggiate jazz chord shapes. Let's get started!
Links:
Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for a follow up on my lesson breaking down how to follow a 1-4 chord change in the key of E. In this session we'll be learning how to play an ear-catching lick using two positions of the E minor blues scale. We'll begin this tutorial by learning the chord change and source scales before learning two versions of this useful phrase. Let's get started!
Source Scale #1 - E Minor Blues Scale (A Shape Position)
2019-11-30 22:03:10 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Welcome back to Swiftlessons for another by request song tutorial. In today's session I've broken down the chord progressions and strumming patterns for John Mayer's 2019 hit "New Light." In this lesson we'll learn how to play through the complete tune, and mimic the transition riffs performed by the keyboard player on the original track. Let's get started!
Recording Equipment:
Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another jazz guitar tutorial. In today's session I've broken down how to combine jazz chord shapes and a walking bassline over a 2.5.1 progression in C major. We'll begin by learning essential jazz chords and a common walking bassline riff before combining these elements into a complete practice routine. Let's get started!
Section #1: Chord Shapes
2019-11-22 00:13:45 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another lead guitar tutorial. In today's lesson I have broken down how to play the guitar solo from John Mayer's 2019 hit song "New Light." In this lesson I'll break down John's funky instrumental riff, and prerequisite scales before dividing the solo up into four easy to learn licks. Let's get started!
Source Scale: G Major Scale in G Position
2019-11-19 17:48:27 +0000 UTC
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Hello friends,
Welcome back to Swift Guitar Lessons for another by request song tutorial. In today's session I've broken down how to play John Lennon's 1971 classic "Jealous Guy" for solo performance. We'll get started by learning an adaptation of John's piano intro, then move on to the chord progressions and strumming patterns for the verse and chorus sections. Let's get started!
Featured Content:
Hello friends,
welcome back to Swiftlessons for another gypsy jazz lead guitar tutorial. In today's session I'm joined by Hot Club of Philadelphia guitarist Barry Wahrhaftig for a breakdown of three common gypsy jazz guitar licks. These phrases follow the chord progression for one of Django Reinhardt's most popular tunes entitled "Minor Swing." Let's get started!
2019-11-09 00:55:16 +0000 UTC
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