Slide Guitar for Beginners - part 4

Lesson Sample

Lyle: In this lesson you'll get more practice playing a 3 chord blues, the 1 - 4 - 5. This lesson is in C, so the 3 chords are C - F - G.



Lyle: Here's a good look at the chord progression:

chord chart

Lyle: Remember to lay your slide right on top of the fret. The sample is something my brother and I just made up, he's playing the bass.

Lyle: I'm going to show you a few simple slide riffs and variations to play with this groove in C. Here's the jam track you'll use for this lesson:

jam track in C

Lyle: Here's the first riff I want you to try. It's a simple slide and hold/sustain on each chord like this:




riff 1

Lyle: Here's a variation of that first riff:



riff 2

Lyle: Those first two riffs should be pretty easy, just remember to land on top of the target fret.

Lyle: Now I'd like you to try playing a melody using the C minor blues scale. Try repeating this riff throughout the whole chord progression.



riff 3

Lyle:

Lyle: Sometimes its hard to keep the 1st or 2nd strings muted when playing riffs like this. I tend to use my 3rd finger on my right hand to mute those strings. Here's a video example:

right hand close-up

Lyle: Another good scale to use is the C mixolydian mode. It's like a C major scale but with a flatted 7th:



riff 4

Lyle: Repeat that riff over and over against the jam track, it should sound just fine as an exercise just like riff 3.

Lyle: Let's go back to the chords and make riffs from those. Here's a great riff example:

riff 5

riff 5

Lyle: In riff 5 you pick the second string, slide up to the target tone/fret and keep it ringing as you pick the 3rd string. Mute the first string with your 3rd finger on your right hand.


Lyle: Riff 6 is a variation of riff 5. Start your slide on the 4th string, then pick the 3rd string as you reach your target fret.



riff 6

Lyle: Combine the two techniques you learned in riffs 5 and 6 and you'll get something like this:



riff 7


Lyle: The Lesson Sample is 3 times through the whole progression. I used riff 5, then riff 3, then riff 7 in that order. Once you memorize those 3 riffs, try playing along with me in the Lesson Sample or just use the jam track.


Lyle: If you would like extra study in this or any topic, you can with customized private lessons with me. Email me at: Lyle@theguitar.net for more info. Thanks, Lyle