Hello friends,
Today I took some time to create a revamped version of my lesson on Dave Van Ronks "Hang Me, Oh Hang Me." This tutorial is a patreon exclusive, meaning it will only be released to you, my supporters.
In this video, I'll break down how to perform a Travis picking pattern with alternating bass. ...
2017-01-23 22:10:36 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
Thanks to popular demand (and a plumbing emergency in my studio), I took time today to create a study guide to go along with my popular "Top Secret Blues Tricks" tutorial. In this lesson I've broken down some of my favorite lead and rhythm techniques to enhance a 12 bar blues. These are tricks that I’ve acquir...
2017-01-19 18:27:22 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
This week my hands are feeling strong, so I'll be bringing you a comprehensive lesson on David Bowie's "Man Who Sold the World." In this tutorial I'll be breaking down the rhythm and lead parts, but also my approach to soloing over it's Dm, Fmaj, Amaj, Dm progression. Expect this lesson to be live by tomorrow af...
2017-01-18 00:37:26 +0000 UTC View PostHello friends and supporters,
Today I am issuing my first group poll. To better serve you, I'd like to have an idea of where each of you are in terms of skill level. This can be difficult to determine, so please choose the option that fits you best. The results of this poll will be used in the planning of future lessons. Thank...
2017-01-12 22:17:09 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
welcome to another music theory guitar tutorial. In today's session we will study the relationship between the notes in the major scale and those found in our basic major and minor bar chord shapes, rooted on the low E string. By studying this relationship, you will better understand how these chords are ...
2017-01-11 23:42:35 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
And welcome to another beginner friendly song tutorial. In today's lesson I'll break down one of the very first songs I learned, the Sublime version of the Melodians 1970 classic "Rivers of Babylon." This simple, three chord tune has a lot to teach, as we work to combine common strumming techniques, percussive e...
2017-01-06 02:11:08 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
In today’s lesson we will add a classic slide lick in the key of A to your repertoire. Players like Derek Trucks, Duane Allman, and Warren Haynes of the Allman Brothers Band were the inspiration for this bluesy phrase. Because knowing a lick means being able to perform it in every key, I'll break down some pen...
2017-01-04 13:35:57 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello my friends, On this very special day, and on the cusp of a new year, I am extra thankful to have you all, not only as supporters, but as the individuals who inspire me day in and day out. Thanks to you I have been able to work toward my dreams in ways I never thought possible, and I'm certain that 2017 will be full of new ...
2016-12-25 20:10:14 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
A welcome to another Swiftlessons lead guitar tutorial. In today's lesson i'll be breaking down some classic blues licks built from the open position of the blues scale. I'm still healing up from my trigger finger injury, so in the interest of making "lemonade out of lemons," I decided to show you these licks wi...
2016-12-21 14:29:20 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
Today I'm introducing the return of my featured artist video playlist! Each month I'll invite a talented local artist, or touring musician to come and share some of their wisdom, and of course, play a few tunes. This week I was honored to once again host the amazing Chelsea Mitchell, who performed a very simple ...
2016-12-17 17:10:57 +0000 UTC View Post
Good evening friends,
I have great news, the exercises I have been using to cure the tendonitis in my left hand are doing wonders and I've regained about 50% of my mobility. Expect new lessons to start rolling in soon, once my doctor has given me the go-ahead! In the meantime, I'm continuing to accept your request for chord sh...
2016-12-13 02:28:15 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
Thirty-six years ago today, the world lost one of its most prolific and influential song writers. In memory of John Lennon, let's take time this evening to pick through his 1969 classic "Because" off the album Abbey Road. This is a great song for players approaching the intermediate level, as it introduces a wid...
2016-12-08 20:17:10 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
Great news, yesterday I had a productive visit with the world renowned hand specialist Dr. Lee Osterman at the Philadelphia Hand Center. He and his talented team of physical therapist are confident that the injury to my hand will not require surgery, and that I will be back to form in 6 to 8 weeks!
I have ...
2016-12-08 17:32:43 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
Today I'm digging into the Swiftlessons archive, and introducing a new resource for my popular rhythm lesson "Six Bluesy Shuffles." In this tutorial you will discover some of the common riffs that you can use to spruce up a basic 12 bar blues.
These riffs can be used to replace regular chord strums,...
2016-12-06 17:59:18 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
It's almost that time of year again, so let's add a Christmas classic to your repertoire with Elvis Presley's country style rendition of "Blue Christmas." Attached you will find a new chord sheet complete with tabs for the verse riffs. For future reference, you can click the red video icon in the top right corne...
2016-12-02 21:24:48 +0000 UTC View Post
Here's something for my beginner-intermediate level students, and anyone looking for some easy tunes to strum on.! In the "Your First Repertoire" songbook, I've compiled chord sheets and videos for classic songs by legendary songwriters like Bob Dylan, The Beatles, Bob Marley, Van Morisson and Leonard Cohen.
Hello friends,
First, I'd like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for your continued support this month! As you know, this week I'm working on tab sheets and ebooks, and I'm super excited to share with you an updated version of my beginner guitar manual, "The Swiftlessons Fast Track Guitar Guide."
Updates inc...
2016-12-01 13:40:11 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
As some of you may have learned from my Instagram, I'm nursing an unfortunate injury to my hand. This means that I will be focusing on creating chord/tab sheets, and updating my Intro to Guitar ebook while I heal.
For this weeks practice, let's revisit Bob Dylan's 1963 classic "Don't Think Twi...
2016-11-30 03:06:16 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends and welcome to another lick of the week!
In today’s lesson we will expand our knowledge of the fretboard by discovering how to transpose scales and licks over the three chords present in a common 1.4.5 blues progression in the key of Gmaj. From there we will tackle our lick of the week, a jump blues ...
2016-11-22 21:12:38 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
Thanks so much for your patience as I've been hard at work putting together one of my most comprehensive lessons to date! For this weeks By Request Song Tutorial, I've finally gotten around to teaching The Doors 1967 classic "People Are Strange." I'll take you through each section of the song including the...
2016-11-15 17:12:26 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
and welcome to another By Request Song Tutorial! In today's lesson I'm going to breakdown an easy, two chord song for the beginner level students out there. John Lennon's 1969 classic "Give Peace a Chance" is the perfect practice tune to develop essential stru...
Hello friends and welcome to another lick of the week!
In today’s lesson we will discover how to create major lead lines the easy way, using our major pentatonic scale in the G position. We will be jamming over a 12 bar blues in the key of C, and learning a bluesy BB king/Jerry Garcia inspired, chromatic lick that ties toge...
Hello friends,
Thanks so much for your continued support this November, your patronage has had a tremendous impact on my work, as I happily approach becoming your full-time online instructor! I'm back to typing up notes, chord sheets and tabs for my past lessons. Tonight, let's crack open the Swiftlessons archive and enjoy thi...
2016-11-05 23:52:06 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
and welcome to another Swiftlessons Song Tutorial! In today's lesson, I'll break down The Beatles 1969 classic "Across the Universe" from their Let It Be LP. I'll take you through John's iconic acoustic guitar intro, before breaking down the chord progressions and strumming techniques for the verse and c...
Hello friends,
and welcome to another Swiftlessons song tutorial! In celebration of Halloween 2016, let's learn a classic spooktacular in Jack Marshall's 1964 "Munster's Theme Song." This lesson includes tabs on screen, and also in pdf format. Let's get started!
Hello friends,
and welcome to another By Request Song Tutorial. In today's lesson, I'll explain common folk style guitar techniques with a complete tutorial on Simon and Garfunkel's 1970 classic "The Boxer." We'll begin this lesson with a full demonstration, before I break down the intro section, and the chord progressions...
Hello friends,
Thanks to popular demand, I've spent this week working out the finer details to Simon and Garfunkels 1974 classic "The Boxer." Within the next few days I will have a full video lesson on this, but I thought some of you might like to check out my chord sheet and tab ahead of time. This transcription follows...
2016-10-26 20:37:36 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello guitar enthusiast!
And welcome to another Swift Lessons lick of the week! In this lesson we'll work on both rhythm and lead guitar playing, as I break down a more advanced version of our basic blues shuffle, and a classic lick that you can perform together. Let's get started!
Hello friends,
It's time for another By Request Song Tutorial! In today's lesson I'll break down the Chris Isaak version of the 1960 Roy Orbison classic "Only the Lonely." I'll take you through the rhythm sections of the intro, verse and chorus and also the catchy lead guitar part heard in Chris's 1996 version. Let's get...
2016-10-21 12:54:58 +0000 UTC View Post
Hello friends,
I want to thank you all for your patience as Natalia and I wrapped up our anniversary in Paris. I had intended to get some videos shot during our stay there, but our hectic sight-seeing schedule kept me away from my guitar for most of the trip. The city proved to be a dynamic and unpredictable place, full...
2016-10-18 19:57:20 +0000 UTC View Post
