Blues is easy to play, but hard to master. Chris Liepe's mission in this series is to get you to master the blues.
Complete course with step-by-step lessons and practice examples.
Course filmed with 6 cameras for the perfect angles.
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Join Chris Liepe on an epic Blues journey. He will take a 3 minute Blues guitar solo, break it down and teach it lick by lick. By the end of this series your ability to play and understand Blues will increase substantially.
Begin the CourseIn this lesson, Chris Liepe introduces the "Jekyll and Hyde Blues." This is a 3 minute long blues guitar solo that incorporates techniques and lines from the blues greats. Chris breaks down the solo lick by lick.
3:17 Runtime
0.0 Difficulty
Chris teaches the first section of this epic blues solo. This portion features string raking, muting, and a simple pentatonic line.
3:40 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Chris teaches the second section of the solo. This section features sort of call and response and also incorporates more bending, rakes and muting in a higher register.
4:31 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Based on an open “E” chord, this familiar sounding lick comes way down in dynamics and in range.
2:57 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Chris teaches the fourth lick in this solo. It is a dominant line that is played the same over both the V and IV chords just before the turnaround.
3:54 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
This is one of the most familiar sounding licks in the entire pack. Chris teaches this classic turnaround and demonstrates how it can be used in the context of a blues solo.
5:04 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
We really turn into the “nice guy” on this one! It starts with a subtle sweep/rake followed by some whispering bends. Then, you get to walk up with some clean 6th intervals and back down with some octaves. Get the other fingers on your pick hand ready for some hybrid picking. It makes the back half of this lick sound all the more lullaby-like.
5:06 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
This lick has bite! This lick remains soft for the most part, but has a few notes that really jump out dynamically. The beginning of the lick really nails the minor 3rd, but at the end, it rests on a nice major 3rd. Strategically using the minor/major 3rd interplay really creates some nice ear candy.
4:39 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Play one more quiet lick before we crank the gain back up. Incorporate some fast triplets, palm muted legato notes, and a smooth slide down to E. Then, you’ll reach for your volume knob!
3:03 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Bring back the bends and the loudness! This lick is designed to lead to another lick with a bit more resolve. It’s written to be messy.
3:44 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
It's time to bend the first string up to an E! Milk it for all it’s worth. The rest features a bendy journey down the Em pentatonic scale and a Hendrix-influenced trill with a twist. If you have a whammy bar, hit it a few times while you’re playing the trill. It’ll create a nice distressed sound.
3:59 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
If you like abusing your guitar, you’ll like this lick. It features loud, open string double stops, slides, and a long bend that ends with you hitting your guitar to create a percussive and abrupt stop!
4:08 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Time to return to nice playing. The use of staccato when playing quietly makes for a playful, controlled sound. Pay special attention to note durations on this one. In order to nail the crescendo at the end, you’ll need to inch your volume knob up just before you start the line. Take care to play extra quietly so you don’t jump too abruptly in dynamics.
4:52 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
This lick only works if you play behind the beat. There are not many notes here, but each one counts. Using the whammy bar takes the listener to a modern instrumental rock place just for a second before being reminded once again that he/she is indeed listening to the blues.
4:40 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Chris focuses on playing melodic lines that mimic vocals.
2:42 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
It's time to spend some time with the b5. This lick features lots of legato with some strategically picked notes that give this descent a free flowing sound.
2:35 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
It's time for some more pedal tones! By taking the same pull-off feel, but slowing it down and using the ‘B’ string as a pedal tone, we’re able to walk up to a higher register unison bend.
3:05 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
The hook returns in plain form, this time in a quiet octave line. String muting is important here to generate the desired effect of sneaking around the guitar while tipping one's hat to the melody.
4:48 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Chris Liepe teaches an epic blues trill!
3:30 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Chris teaches another passage that features of vocal-like guitar playing.
4:18 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
This section of the guitar solo is fast and features strategic use of slurs.
4:08 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
We return to the opening melody once again. It’s like we’re coming home now. There are a few key variations from the original, but the point is to exit the guitar solo and bring in the song's end. It can’t go on forever, right?
4:41 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
You don’t have to bend up a perfect 4th this time, but you do have a few more notes to worry about. You also have the opportunity to mimic a slide guitar player after you hit the highest note of the lick.
4:01 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
In this lick the choked notes return. We contrast them with dominant chord arpeggios played very quietly.
3:48 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
This lick features bends, open strings, and a lot of pull-offs. This revolving line draws from Jimmy Page influences and is the perfect highlight to transition to the final chords of the song.
3:26 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Chris teaches the final section of the "Jekyll and Hide Blues."
2:49 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
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