FrugalGuitarist.com - John-Dybala

Guitar 101 - Lesson 4

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 12:49:00 -0500

The Blues Shuffle

Howdy buckaroos!! I can’t believe I haven’t mentioned anything about the blues shuffle. . That swung, rockin’ rhythm is the reason I wanted to play guitar. The other day I was checking out the newest King’s X album and low and behold there it was. Granted, it was in low B, and lower and chunky as hell. But it was still your plain old blues shuffle, and just as cool as ever. So let’s give it a shot.

Beginners

Let’s start with the A power chord (which is actually just the interval of the root and a 5th). First, put your 1st finger on the 4th string, at the 2nd fret. This will be your anchor finger. Leave your 1st finger anchored and hammer your 3rd finger, still on the 4th string, at the 4th fret. Rock the 3rd finger on and off every other strum. When strumming, you want to hit only the 5th and 4th strings together. Try muting the strings by resting the back part of your palm on the bridge of the guitar. Strum in a swung eighth note pattern. As Always, start slow and focus on control and accuracy. (You know, the shuffle sounds like on “Takin’ Care of Business”, or “Johnny B Goode”. Start with down strokes and then try to get it going using alternating down strokes and up strokes.

Now try the same finger pattern on the 4th and 3rd strings. That will make a D blues shuffle. And then try the same finger pattern on the 6th and 5th strings making the E blues shuffle sound.

Intermediate

A D E

For intermediate players I think it’s important to strengthen that pinkie. The pinkie needs to be used and strengthened. As Hanz and Franz would say, “You’ve got to pump * it * up!” I think the best way to do this is by playing the standard three-finger, open chord position and reaching out to the fourth fret with your pinkie. C’mon you can do it. OK, maybe for the A chord you might want to bar the notes on the 4th, 3rd, and 2nd string with your 1st finger, but try the pinkie on the “shuffle” note on the 4th fret.

For D and E just use the standard three finger forms and reach out to the “shuffle” note.

Advanced Pickers

A7 E7

One way to fill up the harmony in a blues shuffle is to add the 7th in the mix and open up some strings. Begin with a standard open A7 chord. Put your 1st finger on the 4th string at the 2nd fret and your 2nd finger on the 2nd string at the 2nd fret. (When strumming omit/avoid the 6th string.) Now instead of a shuffle note we’ll change or slide to the shuffle chord. Simply slide your 2nd finger, on the 2nd string to the 3rd fret and put your3rd finger on the 4th string 4th fret. This is an A sus13, I think. Heck, I don’t know but it sure sounds cool.

For E7, start with your open E7 chord and then slide your 1st finger on the 3rd string to the 2nd fret and put your 3rd finger on the 5th string at the 4th fret. Strum away on all 6 strings because this chord sounds just as cool as the A.

Good luck and keep on pickin’.

Guitar 101 - Lesson 3

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 17:35:00 -0500

Beginning- All you need to know is 3 chords

This week we’ll add a few more chords to our glossary. Two chords that go well together are D major and G major. I think Forrest Gump said it best; they go together “like peas and carrots”. Have you ever heard the old saying that all you need to know to play guitar is three chords. Well I beg to differ; you only need to know two!

D major to G major

Let’s begin by learning our basic D major chord. Place your 1st finger on the 3rd string, 2nd fret. Then put your 2nd finger on the 1st string, 2nd fret. And put your 3rd finger on the 2nd string, 3rd fret (this finger will be your ‘anchor’ finger). Omit the 6th string by avoiding it or by using your thumb and strum through the other 5 strings.

Now to switch to G major, leave your 3rd finger where it is ‘cause that’s your anchor finger. Move the 2nd finger to the 6th string, 3rd fret and the 1st finger to the 5th string, 2nd fret. Lastly, place your 4th finger on the 1st string, 3rd fret. This is our four-fingered G chord and should be familiar.

Strum these two chords together in counts of 12 (4 measures of 4/4), 8 (2 measures of 4/4), and counts of 4 (1 measure of 4/4).

Intermediate- Suspended Chords

If you’ve D to G major down pat, then why not spice it by learning to play a Dsus2 and a Dsus4. A suspended chord is chord that replaces the 3rd chord tone with either a 2nd or a 4th. The suspension builds tension in a chord and creates a need for resolution. These chords are a great to create harmonic movement in your chords.The best example of these chords, in action, is by far Tom Petty’s, “Freefalling”. Let’s check it out...

D major to Dsus4

Start with your D major open chord. Keep all three fingers “anchored” where they are and simply add the 4th finger to the 1st string, 3rd fret. In order to change back simply lift off the 4th finger and your back to D major. (So far so good)

D major to Dsus2

The next change is even easier. Start at your D major position and this time keep the 1st and 3rd fingers anchored and only lift off the 2nd finger so the open string is added to the chord. This is your Dsus2. Now put it all together.

Freefalling- (gtr intro) - [D major- Dsus4- Dsus4- D major- Dsus2]

Advanced- Chords at the “sweet spot”

The “sweet spot”, like a baseball bat, a guitar has a “sweet spot”, as well. The area of the neck, around the 9th- 12th frets, is called the sweet spot of the guitar. The frets are closer together. The strings are away from the nut of the guitar which makes them a little easier to bend. So let’s check out what D major and G major are like at the “sweet spot”.

D major to G Major

Let’s make a bar with the 1st finger across the 4th, 3rd, 2nd, & 1st strings at the 7th fret. Place your 4th finger on the 1st string at the 10th fret (Note- the 4th finger can be placed on the 6th string at the 10th fret, since the notes on the 1st & 6th strings are the same). This is a D major chord.

To switch to G major, leave the 1st finger and the 4th finger “anchored” where they are. Then place the 2nd finger on the 2nd string, 8th fret and the 3rd finger on the 4th string, 9th fret. Here is a G major chord (1st inversion). A great way to practice this chord change is to hammer- on the 2nd & 3rd fingers to their positions and then pull them back off.

Guitar 101 - Lesson 2

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 17:27:00 -0500

LESSON 2

Buddy Fingers – fingers that move together to the next chord maintaining their finger position.
Anchor Fingers – fingers that do not move between chord changes.
Major Chords - the “happy” sounding chords.
Minor Chords – the “sad” sounding chords.

Beginners

Keeping in step with last month’s Buddy and Anchor Fingers, I’ve come up with a few exercises and new chords to try.

Exercise 1a - A min to E maj (three buddy fingers)

Let’s learn A minor! For the three finger, open position – place your 1st finger on the 2nd string at the 1st fret. Put your 2nd finger on the 4th string at the 2nd fret and place your 3rd finger on the 3rd string at the 2nd fret. You can strum all six strings, however you also want to practice muffling the 6th string by wrapping your thumb around the neck.

Now let’s learn E major! We are going to move our A minor fingering to E major by keeping our buddy fingers together. Move your 1st finger to the 3rd string, 1st fret. Hopefully your 2nd and 3rd fingers naturally fell into place on the 5th and 4th strings at the 2nd fret. If not, try to move the whole group of fingers in unison to their new positions. Practice changing between the 2 chords. Don’t forget C major, F major and G major.

Exercise 1b – A min7 to E7 (four buddy fingers)

Let’s not forget about our pinkie. The pinkie is weak and lazy. The only way to toughen him up is to make him work! So . . .

Let’s play A minor, but this time let’s put the 4th finger (pinkie) on the 1st string at the 3rd fret. That note makes our A minor an A min7. It has a very cool sound, huh?

Now let’s play E major, but this time put your 4th finger on the 2nd string at the 3rd fret. This makes the E major an E 7 chord. Now, strum these chords together keeping in mind the buddy finger system. If the four finger chord are too much then just leave off the pinkie.

A Note on Strumming - While strumming, try tapping your foot in measures of 4/4. (1 & 2 & 3 & 4 &) Keep your wrist in time with your foot. Think “up-beat- down-beat”. If the foot goes down, then so should the wrist. And if the foot is going up then the wrist should follow. Focus on keeping a steady rhythm, you can experiment with tempo, counting in ¾, 6/8, etc., but don’t strum faster than your fingers can change chords. Start slow, play steady, and be patient young grasshopper.

Intermediate

Exercise 2 - Anchor fingers and Four Finger Chords C – Amin7 – Emin7 – G

C to Amin7

Start with the four finger C major chord by placing your 1st finger on the 2nd string, 1st fret – your 2nd finger on the 4th string, 2nd fret – your 3rd finger on the 5th string, 3rd fret – and your 4th finger on the 1st string, 3rd fret. Your 1st, 2nd & 4th fingers are your “anchor” fingers, so to change to Amin7, simply move your 3rd finger to the 3rd string, 2nd fret.

A min7 to E min7

Changing from Amin7 to Emin7 is pretty easy if you keep your 4th finger anchored to the 1st string, 3rd fret. Then place your 1st finger on the 5th string, 2nd fret – your 2nd finger on the 4th string, 2nd fret – and your 3rd finger on the 2nd string, 3rd fret.

E min7 to G

Now to change from Emin7 to G – keep your 1st, 3rd & 4th fingers anchored and simply move your 2nd finger to the 6th string, 3rd fret.

G back to C (the top)

To get back to the top of the exercise – keep your 4th finger anchored on the 1st string, 3rd fret – move your 3rd finger to the 5th string, 3rd fret – move the 2nd finger to the 4th string , 2nd fret – and move the 1st finger to the 2nd string, 1st fret.

Now I know the exercise is a little melancholy, but it is a great way to practice these four chords together. You can make many variations of these chord changes. Some combinations may sound better than other, but remember to have fun, challenge your fingers and your ear.

Advanced pickers

One of my favorite things to do when playing acoustically, with friends, is to thump out the bass line on the 4th, 5th and 6th strings. This sound is a standard motif of most country, rock, pop, reggae, and practically anything Johnny Cash sang. When no drums or bass are present its always nice to be able to step up and have everyone lock in with the bass lines. I used to worry about bouncing between the root and the 5th, but now I find if I just treat the lower three strings like bass notes, then a third works just fine. Just bounce between the two lowest strings in any given chord. If you can maintain the bass line and the strum, then by-golly you’re a one-man band. Happy pickin’.

Guitar 101

Sun, 01 Jun 2008 01:00:00 -0500

Being a “Frugal Guitarist” means getting the most bang for your buck. It means taking out the fluff, getting down to what’s important and making the most out of your time. After-all time is money, well you get the idea. Unfortunately, there is no short-cut to being a great guitarist, but hopefully you can avoid getting stuck in a rut and some of the common pitfalls.

LESSON 1- Open Chords

Anchor Fingers - fingers that do not move between chord changes.
Buddy Fingers - fingers that change location, but maintain the same position and spacing in the new chord.

The First Few Chords

C, F, & G major are the first three chords everyone should learn, in my opinion. Just like skinning a cat, there are many ways to play these chords, none of which are any better than the other. However, it is important to be familiar with all the possible ways to skin a cat. Remember, you are beginning a journey, young grasshopper.

Beginners C-F-G (four fingers)

C major (open – actually C9)

Place the 3rd & 4th fingers on the 1st & 2nd strings on the 3rd fret. These are the anchor fingers and do not change position when the chord is changed. (This will leave marks on your fingertips. It will hurt, but you can take it.)
Next, place your 2nd finger on the 5th string at the 3rd fret and then the 1st finger on the 2nd string 2nd fret. (Strum it ‘til your heart’s content. Make sure your fingers are arched and that will help eliminate any buzzing.)

F major (Actually F major 6/9)

In order to change to the F chord all you need to move is your 1st & 2nd fingers, which are your Buddy Fingers. Move the 2nd finger to the 4th string, but stay on the same fret (3rd fret). The first finger should stay right with its buddy and follow to the 3rd string, 2nd fret.
Practice strumming and changing between C and F until you’ve got it down. Remember you’re only moving your 1st and 2nd fingers, and they are moving together. (Because they’re buddies, right?)

G major

Changing to G major simply requires another movement of your buddy fingers. Move your 2nd finger to the 3rd fret on the 6th string. The 1st finger should fall right into place on the 2nd fret of the 5th string, right behind its buddy. Hot Damn! You’ve made a G major chord.
Now, practice until your fingers are bleeding.

Intermediate C-F-G (four fingers)

C major

You know the basic open C major form; simply place your pinkie (4th finger) on the 3rd fret of the 1st string. This is your anchor finger.

F major (Actually F major 9)

For F major leave the 1st and 4th fingers anchored in place and move your buddy fingers to the 4th and 3rd strings. The 3rd finger should be on the 4th string, 3rd fret. The 2nd finger should be on the 3rd string, 2nd fret. Now practice these two chords and the changes necessary to go back and forth. Hopefully the buddy fingers are making it easy for you to change.

G major

To change to a G major chord, first move your buddy fingers to the 6th and 5th strings. Your 3rd finger should be on the 6th string, 3rd fret its buddy, the 2nd finger should be on the 5th string, 2nd fret. Your 1st finger lifts off and gets to rest while the 4th finger stays in place as the anchor. Just like the directions on your shampoo bottle you might want to rinse and repeat.

Advanced C-F-G

Let’s be serious, if you call yourself an “advanced” player then you don’t need a lesson on C-F-G!