Guitarists Who Shaped the '80s

In the `80s, there was one guitar player who made his own template for rock guitar licks.  His name, Edward Van Halen.  Eddie combined hammer-ons, pull-offs, two-handed tapping, and a trunk full of effects and other techniques to create his own style that was mimicked by almost every other guitarist in that decade.   Today's lick is just one of his many riff styles in which you'll learn to duplicate this month.  The example below illustrates his technique for arpeggiating chords.  The term arpeggio means to play the tones of a chord in a rapid succession rather than simultaneously.  For an authentic sound as you learn this lick, try using a phasor or flanger effect along with a slight delay or echo effect.

Learn this lick and then practice to