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Start Climbing the Neck in D Riffs and Scale Theory

learn country bluegrass guitar riffs in D
Lesson 13 – Rhythm Fill Riffs and Lead Guitar Course
Lesson ID: A0138

In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn four country & bluegrass guitar riffs in the key of D that work up the neck a ways. These four riffs can be pieced together to create a guitar solo or you can use them as rhythm fill riffs. They’re all around great riffs that’ll give that country & bluegrass sound we’re going for. After you learn the riffs, we’ll talk about the guitar scales we’re using today to create these riffs so you can see where the notes are coming from instead of just learning licks and playing them from memory.

Lesson Overview

Guitar Riffs

Video 1 – Intermediate Breakdown

Video Start Time Lesson Topic
00:00 min Overview
00:17 min Riff 1 with Tablature
01:36 min Riff 2 with Tablature
03:25 min Riff 3 with Tablature
06:10 min Riff 4 with Tablature

Video 2 – Full Breakdown

Video Start Time Lesson Topic
00:00 min Riff 1 Breakdown
04:14 min Riff 2 Breakdown
05:18 min Syncopated Rhythm in Country & Bluegrass
06:32 min Riff 2 Breakdown Cont’d
09:17 min Riff 3 Breakdown
13:18 min Riff 4 Breakdown
18:05 min Riff Recap

Scale Theory

Video Start Time Lesson Topic
00:00 min Overview
00:58 min D Major Scale, 3rd Position Shape
02:10 min Major Scale Practice Tips
02:44 min D Blues Scale, 3rd Position Shape
03:52 min How to Use These Scales When You’re Improvising Solos
05:06 min Simple Country & Bluegrass Improvising Example
07:08 min Analyze Riff 1 with the Scales
09:20 min Your Homework

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Backing Track

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Big Sciota

big sciota guitar lesson traditional tune origin
Lesson ID: A0137

In this guitar lesson, I’ll teach you how to play “Big Sciota“, a traditional song credited to Burl Hammons. This song is named after a 231-mile stretch of river in Ohio that was very important to many Native American cultures. It is believed that Ritchie Stearns was the first to attach words to the tune, and much later, “Big Sciota” was made more popular by Old Crow Medicine Show.

Overview

Playthrough with Tablature

Chord Progression

Video Start Time Lesson Topic
00:00 min Rhythm Overview
01:03 min “Big Sciota” Chord Progression
03:21 min Playthrough with Tablature
05:50 min Helpful Chord Transition Tips

Backing Track

Railroad Bill

railroad bill finger style guitar lesson
Lesson 5 – Hybrid Picking Rhythm Course
Lesson ID: A0140

“Railroad Bill” is an old traditional song based on a legend about a man in south Alabama during the post-Civil War era known as Railroad Bill. Sources suggest that Railroad Bill was a “Robin Hood” type of character that would steal from food trains and sell items to poor families at below market prices. As legend has it, Railroad Bill’s ghost is still roaming the L&N Railroad tracks to this day.

This song has a great melody that we’ll play using Chet Atkins and Merle Travis style picking. This is a challenging tune, but if you relax your right hand and take it slow, everything will fall into place with a bit of practice. We’ll focus on hybrid picking in this lesson, but feel free to play these arrangements with a thumb pick or finger plucking if you find that more comfortable. Download the tablature below the lesson video. Hope y’all enjoy learning this one!

Lesson Overview

Playthrough with Tablature

Arrangement 1

Video Start Time Lesson Topic
00:00 min Arrangement 1 Preview
00:42 min Line 1 Breakdown
04:10 min Extra Hybrid Picking Detail
07:36 min Line 2 Breakdown
13:05 min Line 3 Breakdown
15:53 min Practice with Me

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Arrangement 2

Video Start Time Lesson Topic
00:00 min Arrangement 2 Preview
00:54 min Line 1 Breakdown
05:28 min Line 2 Breakdown
10:21 min Line 3 Breakdown
13:33 min Practice with Me

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Listen

Here are some nice YouTube videos of other folks playing “Railroad Bill”…

Adding Fills Between Your Chords with Key of D Scales

country fill riffs in d guitar lesson bluegrass licks scales
Lesson 12 – Rhythm Fill Riffs and Lead Guitar Course
Lesson ID: A0133

In this guitar lesson, I’ll show y’all some fun ways to use key of D guitar scales to play country & bluegrass fill riffs. All of the licks we’ll cover today are great for transitioning between chords, and they’re also useful for playing country & bluegrass guitar solos. First, we’ll cover the main scale shapes that you need to memorize. After that, I’ll teach you ten of my favorite country fill riffs in the key of D. My main goal for this lesson is to show you how I visualize key of D scale shapes when I’m improvising key of D riffs. This should be a very useful lesson for the rhythm guitar folks and also for the country & bluegrass lead guitar pickers!

Overview

Guitar Scales

Country Fill Riffs

Your Homework

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