Lesson 3 – Rhythm Fill Riffs and Lead Guitar Course
Lesson ID: A0091
In the previous lesson of this series, we learned the 5th position of the G major pentatonic scale and I showed you how to apply this scale to a basic country and bluegrass chord progression. In this lesson, we’re going to start breaking out of the pentatonic scale box using five additional major scale notes. Adding these extra notes is the first step towards making your fill riffs sound more country and bluegrass. I’ll give you some pointers on how you can use the G major scale to create riffs and we’ll also have a tablature download below the video with several nice major scale riffs to get you started!
Lesson Video
| Video Start Time | Lesson Topic |
|---|---|
| 00:00 min | Lesson Overview and Course Recap |
| 03:15 min | Major Scale and Improvising Tips |
| 11:39 min | Major Scale Fills over a Country & Bluegrass Progression |
| 14:51 min | Practice Using the Tablature Download |
Keep the lessons coming. I’m really enjoying this course a lot. Thanks!
This is exactly what I’m wanting to learn. Great job explaining and teaching! Thanks, Devin.
great job devin
Really nice guitar tone. What are you using to record?
Thanks! Most of the warm sound comes from a Blue Bluebird condenser mic and I run it through an Apogee Duet into my Mac Pro…edit with Logic Pro X..besides a bit of mastering, I don’t add much to it besides some EQ and a compressor. Pretty happy with it. The clip-on lavalier mic adds a bit to the mix but it’s mostly that Bluebird.
Wow great lesson! Learned a lot here
Helped me a great deal
New member here. Been playing guitar for years but kinda got stuck in a rut. Messed about with electrics for a while but recently invested in a Fender Paramount acoustic and this lesson series is exactly what I need. Keep up the great work, Devin!
Awesome man, glad you’re liking the videos! I’ll be posting more in this series soon. Thanks a lot for the comment – Devin
Do I need to be able to read music to learn the chord fills and embellishments you are teaching in the
videos? I want to join your club and get access to the lessons but don’t know if I can learn these really neat
sounds that Devin produces for country and bluegrass.
Hey Larry,
I don’t think you’d necessarily need to read sheet music…might help to understand basic guitar tablature. Every now and then I’ll reference some guitar tab to show you the exact notes. Other than that, most of the music theory type of stuff is broken down in the lessons. I’m not a big fan of reading music myself…mostly like to play by ear.
Let me know if you have any other questions. Hope to see you in the Gold Pick area!
Devin
I can’t read music and I’m learning these lessons and it’s helping my guitar playing a lot.
Tablature-? The one thing I did forget is how to read music. I’ll just watch the videos and try to pick it up from there
Being new to all this, I’m confused and torn between two different opinions. In this video you show the G Major scale pattern starting from the 3rd fret of the E string (to play the G note), and then to play the next (A note) you pluck the open A string and go on from there to do the entire G major scale. But if I take this pattern to try to play the A major scale (starting at the 5th fret of the E string), it doesn’t work. So with your pattern I can only play the G major… Read more »
Hey Phil, Thanks for the note…maybe this will help… The chart you attached in the comment would be the 1st position Major scale shape and the Major scale shape that we’re using here in this video is the 5th position Major scale shape…this 5th position shape we’re using in this lesson is very useful for key of G chord fills because the shape includes all the open strings. If you see the pic below, this 5th position shape, when you’re in the key of G, can be played in two places — near the nut using the open strings and… Read more »
Thank you, Devin, I now see it more clearly. Looking at what you said along with the major scale shapes you referenced made a lot of the fog clear. I can see I was just looking at the 1st position shape and trying to fit it into the 5th position – LOL. Now I can just move along happily in your lessons seeing I am on the right path. Thank you so much for your quick reply!
I make my living teaching. These are great
Couple of questions.
What happens when your monthly download “allowance” runs out?
It would be useful to print the Scale Charts – can this be done?
Hey David – Here’s a link to the “how downloads work” page https://countryguitaronline.com/about-lesson-tablature/ Think that should help, but if you have any other questions, feel free to send me a message on the live chat. Scale charts can be printed as well. There is a “print charts” button at the top of the scale chart pages that you’ll find at the top menu under Resources > Scales. Hope that helps!
Did not realise that you have to pay for download pages after 15 so will have to wait a couple of weeks before printing the scales. The “Print Chart” button gives you access to the chord tabs for major, minor, blues, hybrid, etc. However – I am looking to print the example that you show under the Scale Charts in the lesson. For example in lesson 3, the Scale Chart shows the G Major Scale – 5th Position and the Tablature. I should say – it is earlier days but am very impressed with the style and content of the… Read more »
Yep, the Grand Ole Opry said they have you a slot booked and ready to go 🙂 Important thing about the lesson tablature is that it’s always free to all members on screen when you’re logged in to the Gold Pick area. If you click the full screen button on the on-screen tab viewer, then click the “-” button to minimize the tablature, it fits pretty nicely on the screen. We used to allow unlimited tab downloads for printing, but we had too many people downloading all my lesson tablature and leaving which makes it hard to get compensated for… Read more »
I have recorded you playing the first six bars and the rhyme that you use on the Fill Riffs does not seem to follow the sixteenth-notes on the tab. I have tried to play back at much slower speed and I still cannot figure it out. It seems like you are putting emphasis on certain notes. Can you help?
Are you watching the sample of me playing at the very beginning of the lesson overview video? t’s been a while since I’ve watched this video but I don’t think there’s a point in the video where I play through the entire practice progression note for note. The practice tablature will just be a guide for using the riffs over the practice progression that we have in this lesson. I think the main goal of this lesson is to start improvising riffs using the scales we went over. The tablature is really just an example of how it can be… Read more »
Is there a reason why I shouldn’t use my middle and pinky for the 6th and 7th degree of the scale? I see you are using your pointer and ring finger for those notes…
Hey Lauren – I think it’s fine to use the middle and pinky there. Those fingers would make sense. When I’m playing this scale up and down, I probably just use my pointer and ring finger out of habit. I think I learned the scale like that way back in the day because those were my strong fingers at the time. I really don’t practice the scales up and down anymore…these days I mostly try to learn new ways to use riffs in different keys…and I’ll just use the scale shapes as kind of a blueprint so I know where… Read more »
cool! thanks for the quick reply.
amazing scale , in just a week , i improve my fingerpicking ! great coach
Nice job break down the mystery of adding in the cool riffs. I have been relying on simply reading the tabs for years and missing the theory behind the music. Many songs move faster then I can read so then I memorize those parts. I have peaked out as they say; plateau, stuck. Your teaching method shows the importance of doing the ground work and learning the scale and I guess the key of the song. I will stick with you for a long time and so appreciate you providing this course. I am spreading the word to my guitar… Read more »
i just wish i could play these scale notes faster, but I know it will come
nice , i m starting this lesson , thanks , really nice chords and embellishments !
It s great you always do review of previous lesson , professionnal
Damn , my game change totaly in only 30 min ,, can t thank you enough cowboy
Great lesson and the way you tie it all together.
Devin, how would you recommend progressing through each lesson? How much time would you allot to each lesson? Should I stick with each lesson until i perfect it or should I continue with the next lesson once I have it down but with imperfections. thanks
Hey Stephen – I’d say it’s fine to continue through the lessons without completely mastering every concept. There should be plenty of things to pick up as you watch each lesson without spending too much time on each one, and you can always come back later to smooth things out. My practice routine has never really been that structured as far as allotting a certain amount of time to each song or technique. I like to practice a brand new song at a really slow tempo at first…then gradually increase the speed in increments and smooth out my playing at… Read more »
Devin, great lesson here (5th psn G Major scale riffs). Shows how to integrate strumming and riff picking. Many bluegrass gospel songs are in 3/4. Would it be possible to see a tab like a0091 in 3/4. I have trouble with counting within beat for 3/4. Not sure I am making sense — if not forget note. ADB
Absolutely amazing course and I’ve only done 3 lessons. I now have riffs and fills based on the major pentatonic and major scales and have already worked out a fabulous “solo” I’ll be introducing to the band at practice tonight on “This Train Is Bound For Glory”. thanks Devin – this is fun!
Nice, glad to hear it! Hope the solo went over well!
Hi Devin, is there a reason you only use the f# in measure one. In the other measures you “jump” over this note.
Hi Oliver! Are you looking at measure one in the practice tablature?…the f# on the 4th string 4th fret? I don’t think there’s a reason I did that in particular other than trying to put together some different riff examples to get some variety. A lot of times when I’m improvising, I like to do a slide from the F# up to the G on the 4th string.. then pick the open 3rd string right after. It’s one of those slides you’ll hear in bluegrass a lot. The F# usually always works great for soloing in G since it’s part… Read more »
when I look at the 5th positions G major scale in pentatonic scales it does not look like this. I do not see this shape or fingering. What am I missing?
Hi Scott – If you go to the major scale charts under the top menu Resources link https://countryguitaronline.com/major-scale-charts-guitar/ and find the key of G, you’ll see the 5th position scale chart that matches the chart in this lesson…the difference is that the chart in this lesson is shown down near the nut and you play the scale with the open strings instead of the other chart that shows the shape one octave higher at the 12th fret. Hope that helps! Let me know if you have any other questions on it.
thanks for the reply Devin, I think I understand it now (or at least I am starting to understand).
Great lessons!! Easy to understand. And thanks for including the chord chart
I’ve been following your lessons from the oldest one and can feel a major improvement in my accuracy and tone quality. I’ve played scales over and over and over. Now I’m running them with the backing tracks. I like when you give “homework” at the end of the lesson. It gives me a target. I’m amazed when I go to the next lesson and you teach the “why” I practiced those scales. Thank you!
I have been playing chords for years and always wanted to play with fill ins and think finally with Devin I’ll learn. Thank you.
Hey Devin
I’m really enjoy this course. Thank you for that. I’m definitely in progress.
I’m thinking if It’s possible to save the loops i make in the videos?
They gone when return to the selected video
Thanks again
Hey again
Sorry, i just experienced that i can juse the lesson topic instead.
Thanks again
Just wondering there is only seven notes in the second octave? Great lessons.
ok great lesson – but if I may ask what scale is that … [ie name]. it definitely doesn’t seem to be a major or minor pentatonic that I am aware of …. [but then I came here to learn so …..]
ok in regards to my last comment … sorry I was just being less than bright … what you were simply showing was the full G scale and I had my mind on pentatonic scales//// duh sorry about that
All these Licks seem all the same and im having a hard time separating them they all seem to go everywhere. Can u put them in a song? Something easy like you are my sunshine. When i play back the tracks i cant tell whiçh chord is playing. So i never know which lick to play when, can u put up the chord changes with the back tracks ? Maybe just getting frustrated, i do like that your putting the licks in chord chànges, im not so lost that way so thank you. Im trying.So yikes help!
Excellent approach. I like the lessons a lot!
Brother, I can’t download the file .I’ve printed out the entire beginning , including all the comments and your pic holding the guitar but the download button just spins onetime and then stops .
Great lessons and content!
Hi Devin,
I’m really enjoying these lessons. I’m 77 years old and been playing most of my life. Maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks. I hope so anyway. By the way, great sounding Martin. What model is it. I’m playing an HD-28 right mow.
Hi Gerald! The guitar in this video is my Martin D-16GT. I’ve probably had this guitar the longest behind my Martin D-15. Bet your HD-28 sounds great.. and glad to have you here at CGO!
I took a couplet of guitar courses on line the last 3 years. I didn’t progress. But since I’m here, I have improve my guitar playing to a point where it’s unbelievable. I wanna play strictly country and bluegrass. Most of the others courses on line make you play Hotel California. Thank for being there Devon.