Left Hand Technique (Guitar Lesson)
What are you waiting for? Get your membership now!
Left Hand Technique
In this lesson, Jim Deeming talks about Merle Travis' left hand technique.
Taught by Jim Deeming in Style of Merle Travis seriesLength: 10:52Difficulty: 2.5 of 5
Thumb or fingerstyle arrangements are usually combinations of chord shapes with melody notes added around them so both can be played together.
Travis picking is no exception to this. The thing that makes it unique is Travis’ choice of chords, chord shapes, and how he chose to fret them.
First, because as we talked about before, the lowest note used in a chord is not always the root note, it is necessary to accommodate that whenever possible. For example, fretting the low G note on the sixth string above a C chord sounds better than ringing it as an open E.
Second, because it’s not always possible to fret an "acceptable" note everywhere the thumb may strike, it is often appropriate to engage left hand muting – muffling certain strings or portions of chords so that they don’t ring out a wrong tone, but still provide a percussive sound.
Third, Merle Travis rarely – if ever – played a barre chord. He almost always used the left thumb over the top of the neck to provide the lower notes of what would otherwise be a barre chord. He also used this to play such things as a B9 instead of the common open B7 chord.
There are many other examples of these that the student will encounter while exploring more Travis style songs and techniques.
Video Subtitles / Captions
Supplemental Learning Material
Style of Merle Travis
Found in our Beginner Lesson SetsMerle Travis is one of the biggest names in the world of Fingerstyle guitar. In this series Jim Deeming will walk you through the tricks Merle employed to give his music that unique "Travis Picking" sound.
Lesson 1
Introduction and Right Hand Technique
Jim Deeming talks a bit about the history of Merle Travis and his guitar playing. He also explains the basics of his right hand technique.
Length: 10:59 Difficulty: 2.5 FREELesson 2
Left Hand Technique
In this lesson, Jim Deeming talks about Merle Travis' left hand technique.
Length: 10:52 Difficulty: 2.5 Members Only
Merle Travis Turnaround
Jim Deeming teaches a turnaround in the style of Merle Travis. Get your thumbpicks ready!
Length: 15:44 Difficulty: 3.0 Members Only
Travis Style Chords
Jim Deeming teaches several chord shapes that Merle Travis used extensively.
Length: 15:54 Difficulty: 2.5 Members Only
Travis Style Banjo Roll
Jim Deeming demonstrates how Merle Travis played a banjo-style roll.
Length: 4:38 Difficulty: 2.5 Members Only
About Jim Deeming
View Full Biography
Jim Deeming got his first guitar when he was only six years old. His Dad was taking fingerpicking lessons, and Jim wanted to be just like him. The Mel Bay books didn't last very long before he strapped on a thumb pick and added the Chet part to Red River Valley so it sounded better.
Most of Jim's early learning was by ear. With unlimited access to his Dad's collection of Chet Atkins albums, he spent countless hours decoding his favorite songs. They were never "right" until they sounded just like Chet. Around the age of 12, Jim heard Jerry Reed for the first time and just knew he had to be able to make that "Alabama Wild Man" sound. The styles of Chet & Jerry always have been a big influence on his playing.
More recently he has pursued arrangements by Tommy Emmanuel and Doyle Dykes, in addition to creating some of his own and writing originals.
Jim has performed in front of a variety of audiences, including concerts, competitions, weddings and the like, but playing at church has always been a mainstay. Whether playing in worship bands or guitar solos, gospel music is deep in his roots and is also the driving theme behind his debut CD release, titled "First Fruits".
Jim has been playing for about 38 years. He also has taught private lessons in the past but believes JamPlay.com is an exciting and better venue with many advantages over the traditional method of weekly 30 minute sessions.
Jim lives in Berthoud, Colorado with his wife, Linda, and their four children. Although he still has a "day job", he is actively performing and is already back in the studio working on the next CD. If you wonder how he finds time, look no further than the back seat of his truck where he keeps a "travel guitar" to take advantage of any practice or song-writing opportunities he can get.
The opening song you hear in Jim's introductory JamPlay video is called, "A Pick In My Pocket". It's an original tune, written in memory of Jim's father who told him early on he should always keep a pick in his pocket in case he ever met Chet Atkins and got the chance to play for him. That song is slated to be the title track for his next CD, which will feature several more originals plus some of his favorite covers of Chet and Jerry arrangements.
Acoustic Guitar Lessons
Our acoustic guitar lessons are taught by qualified instructors with various backgrounds with the instrument.
Mike Dawes
Free LessonSeries Details
Mitch Reed
Mitch teaches his interpretation of the classic "Cannonball Rag." This song provides beginning and intermediate guitarists...
Free LessonSeries Details
Nick Amodeo
Nick explains how to play some of the most commonly used chords in the bluegrass genre.
Free LessonSeries Details
Freebo
In this lesson, Freebo covers the basics of right hand technique. This lesson is essential for all up and coming bassists.
Free LessonSeries Details
Rich Nibbe
Rich Nibbe takes a look at how you can apply the pentatonic scale in the style of John Mayer into your playing.
Free LessonSeries Details
Mark Kailana Nelson
Mark Nelson introduces "'Ulupalakua," a song he will be using to teach different skills and techniques. In this lesson, he...
Free LessonSeries Details
Steve Eulberg
Steve Eulberg does a quick review of this lesson series and talks about moving on.
Free LessonSeries Details
Danny Voris
Lesson 7 is all about arpeggios. Danny provides discussion and exercises designed to build your right hand skills.
Free LessonSeries Details
Mike Tolle
Free LessonSeries Details
Electric Guitar Lesson Samples
Our electric guitar lessons are taught by instructors with an incredible amount of teaching experience.
DJ Phillips
Learn a handful of new blues techniques while learning to play Stevie Ray Vaughn's "The House Is Rockin'".
Free LessonSeries Details
Tosin Abasi
Tosin explains some of the intricacies of the 8 string guitar such as his personal setup and approach to playing.
Free LessonSeries Details
Prashant Aswani
Do you want to play more musical sounding solos? Do you want to play solos with more emotion behind them? Maybe you're the...
Free LessonSeries Details
Paul Musso
JamPlay is proud to welcome senior professor and Coordinator of Guitar Studies at the University of Colorado at Denver,...
Free LessonSeries Details
David Ellefson
David Ellefson, co-founding member of Megadeth, explains his overall approach to teaching and learning bass in this introductory...
Free LessonSeries Details
Lisa Pursell
Lisa breaks into the very basics of the electric guitar. She starts by explaining the parts of the guitar. Then, she dives...
Free LessonSeries Details
Dan Sugarman
Dan Sugarman gives us an introduction and preview to his series - Sugarman's Shredding Revolution.
Free LessonSeries Details
Matt Brown
Matt Brown shows off some ways to add some creativity and originality to your rock chord voicings.
Free LessonSeries Details
Kenny Ray
Albert Collins brought a lot of style to the blues scene. In this lesson, Kenny breaks down Albert's style for you to learn.
Free LessonSeries Details
Eric Haugen
Eric Haugen discusses the goals of his "Six String Problem Solver" lesson series and what kind of material it covers.
Free LessonSeries DetailsJoin over 516005 guitarists who have learned how to play in weeks... not years!
Signup today to enjoy access to our entire database of video lessons, along with our exclusive set of learning tools and features.
Unlimited Lesson Viewing
A JamPlay membership gives you access to every lesson, from every teacher on our staff. Additionally, there is no restriction on how many times you watch a lesson. Watch as many times as you need.Live Lessons
Exclusive only to JamPlay, we currently broadcast 8-10 hours of steaming lesson services directly to you! Enjoy the benefits of in-person instructors and the conveniences of our community.Interactive Community
Create your own profile, manage your friends list, and contact users with your own JamPlay Mailbox. JamPlay also features live chat with teachers and members, and an active Forum.Chord Library
Each chord in our library contains a full chart, related tablature, and a photograph of how the chord is played. A comprehensive learning resource for any guitarist.Scale Library
Our software allows you to document your progress for any lesson, including notes and percent of the lesson completed. This gives you the ability to document what you need to work on, and where you left off.Custom Chord Sheets
At JamPlay, not only can you reference our Chord Library, but you can also select any variety of chords you need to work on, and generate your own printable chord sheet.Backing Tracks
Jam-along backing tracks give the guitarist a platform for improvising and soloing. Our backing tracks provide a wide variety of tracks from different genres of music, and serves as a great learning tool.Interactive Games
We have teachers covering beginner lessons, rock, classic rock, jazz, bluegrass, fingerstyle, slack key and more. Learn how to play the guitar from experienced players, in a casual environment.Beginners Welcome.. and Up
Unlike a lot of guitar websites and DVDs, we start our Beginner Lessons at the VERY start of the learning process, as if you just picked up a guitar for the first time.Our teaching is structured for all players.Take a minute to compare JamPlay to other traditional and new methods of learning guitar. Our estimates for "In-Person" lessons below are based on a weekly face-to-face lesson for $40 per hour.
 |
||||
| Price Per Lesson | < $0.01 | $4 - $5 | $30 - $50 | Free |
| Money Back Guarantee | Sometimes | n/a | ||
| Number of Instructors | 122 | 1 – 3 | 1 | Zillions |
| Interaction with Instructors | Daily Webcam Sessions | Weekly | ||
| Professional Instructors | Luck of the Draw | Luck of the Draw | ||
| New Lessons | Daily | Weekly | Minutely | |
| Structured Lessons | ||||
| Learn Any Style | Sorta | |||
| Track Progress | ||||
| HD Video | - | Sometimes | ||
| Multiple Camera Angles | Sometimes | - | Sometimes | |
| Accurate Tabs | Maybe | Maybe | ||
| Scale/Chord Libraries | ||||
| Custom JamTracks | ||||
| Interactive Games | ||||
| Community | ||||
| Learn in Sweatpants | Socially Unacceptable | |||
| Gasoline Needed | $0.00 | $0.00 | ~$4 / gallon! | $0.00 |
Mike H.
"I feel like a 12 year old kid with a new guitar!"
I am 66 years young and I still got it! I would have never known this if it had not been for Jamplay! I feel like a 12 year old kid with a new guitar! Ha! I cannot express enough how great you're website is! It is for beginners and advanced pickers! I am an advanced picker and thought I had lost it but thanks to you all, I found it again! Even though I only play by ear, I have been a member a whopping whole two weeks now and have already got Brent's country shuffle and country blues down and of course with embellishments. Thank you all for your wonderful program!
Greg J.
"With Jamplay I can fit in a random session when I have time and I can go at my own pace"
I'm a fifty eight year old newbie who owns a guitar which has been sitting untouched in a corner for about seven years now. Last weekend I got inspired to pick it up and finally learn how to play after watching an amazing Spanish guitarist on TV. So, here I am. I'm starting at the beginning with Steve Eulberg and I couldn't be happier (except for the sore fingers :) Some day I'm going to play like Steve! I'm self employed with a hectic schedule. With Jamplay I can fit in a random session when I have time and I can go at my own pace, rewinding and replaying the videos until I get it. This is a very enjoyable diversion from my work yet I still feel like I'm accomplishing something worthwhile. Thanks a lot, Greg
Bill
"I believe this is the absolute best site for guitar students."
I am commenting here to tell you and everyone at JamPlay that I believe this is the absolute best site for guitar students. I truly enjoy learning to play the guitar on JamPlay.com. Yes, I said the words, ""enjoy learning."" It is by far the best deal for the money.
Member Comments about this Lesson
Discussions with our instructors are just one of the many benefits of becoming a member of JamPlay.