In this guitar lesson video, I’ll teach you one of my favorite country & bluegrass guitar licks that sounds great on acoustic guitar. First I’ll play through the lick a couple times, then one time slowly with the tablature, and then I’ll break it down measure by measure. I’ll also show you how to play the rhythm guitar part that you heard me play at the beginning of the video and we’ll get some practice playing this G lick as a fill riff with rhythm.
Key: G
Using Jazzy Chords in Your Bluegrass Rhythm
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to use jazzy chord shapes in your bluegrass rhythm guitar. This technique will really make your rhythm guitar stand out at your next bluegrass jam. First, we’ll go over some useful jazzy chords that you can use to replace standard open chords. Then, you’ll learn some strumming patterns that work great with these jazzy chord shapes. Finally, we’ll work through a practice progression so you can get an idea of how to use these jazzy chords in a bluegrass song.
| Video Start Time | Lesson Topic |
|---|---|
| 00:00 min | G6 Chord |
| 02:13 min | C7 Chord |
| 03:29 min | D7 Chord |
| 04:05 min | “Foggy Mountain Special” Chord Progression |
| 06:24 min | Alternate Voicing for a G Major chord |
| 08:07 min | C9 Chord |
| 09:14 min | D9 Chord |
| 09:38 min | Strumming Patterns |
| 15:24 min | Standard Bass Line Walk (Available to CGO Members) |
| 19:06 min | Jazzy Bass Line Walk (Available to CGO Members) |
| 23:57 min | Extra Tips (Available to CGO Members) |
Ten Different Ways to Play the Bluegrass “G Run”
The classic “G run” is the most important part of bluegrass guitar. Learning different variations of the G run will improve your soloing and backup rhythm guitar. In this guitar lesson, we’ll work through ten different examples of how to play the standard bluegrass G run on guitar. All of the bluegrass G run examples in this lesson come with tablature. The first G run we’ll cover is the most common G run that guitar players use at bluegrass jams. We’ll also look at different signature G runs used by the great bluegrass pickers over the years — Del McCoury, Tony Rice, Norman Blake, and Doc Watson. Later in this bluegrass guitar lesson, we’ll get some practice using G runs with the chord progression to “Will the Circle be Unbroken” .
Worried Blues
“Worried Blues” is an old song from the early 1900s written by a country blues musician named Frank Hutchinson. Hutchinson was best known for playing slide guitar with the guitar held in his lap. His song “Worried Blues” has been recorded by several artists over the years, including a popular fingerstyle arrangement by Doc Watson.
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a country and bluegrass flatpicking arrangement of “Worried Blues”. This arrangement is in the key of G and we’ll play it with a nice mix of “Carter Style” boom chick strumming and country blues flatpicking licks. First I’ll teach you two complete instrumental breaks that have a nice bluesy country sound. Then we’ll work through the “Worried Blues” chords and lyrics. After you learn the guitar breaks, practice your flatpicking with the “Worried Blues” backing track in G.
Video 1 – Playthrough with Tablature
Video 2 – Full Breakdown
| Video Start Time | Lesson Topic |
|---|---|
| 00:00 min | Tablature Line 1 Breakdown |
| 04:51 min | Tablature Line 2 Breakdown |
| 10:18 min | Tablature Line 3 Breakdown |
| 14:49 min | Practice Along with Me |
Video 1 – Playthrough with Tablature
Video 2 – Full Breakdown
| Video Start Time | Lesson Topic |
|---|---|
| 00:00 min | Tablature Line 1 Breakdown |
| 05:21 min | Tablature Line 2 Breakdown |
| 08:51 min | Tablature Line 3 Breakdown |
| 11:56 min | Practice Along with Me |
| Video Start Time | Lesson Topic |
|---|---|
| 00:00 min | Rhythm Overview |
| 00:56 min | Worried Blues Chord Progression |
| 02:16 min | Chords and Lyrics |
| 04:33 min | Bass Line Walk Example |
| 06:29 min | Chords and Lyrics Continued |
| 09:44 min | Song Ending |
| 10:44 min | Strumming Patterns and Rhythm Tips |
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