Rock Guitar for Beginners
Unlock Your Inner Rock Guitarist
Rock Guitar for Beginners will guide you through the full process of learning your instrument, from the first time you hold a pick to crafting your first solo. The entire course is based on easy-to-play musical examples in the style of your favorite artists so you can start sounding great right away. Through these examples, you’ll actually be learning the foundation for thousands of rock songs so by the end of the course, you will be able to transfer what you learn to other tunes. Learn riffs in the styles of Black Sabbath and Bon Jovi, power chord progressions that sound like AC/DC, and Tom Petty and chord progressions inspired by Neil Young and Guns N’ Roses. Then play along with a full band using our professionally-created JamTracks.
No matter what kind of rock music inspires you, this course can take you from being inspired to being confident in your own sound. Learn more or start the course with membership, or get lifetime access with purchase.
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The JamPlay Learning System
Like every JamPlay course, Rock Guitar for Beginners features world-class instruction and a dynamic learning system to help you succeed quickly.
It's not just videos, and not just downloads. You'll get:
- Interactive tabs, notation, and fretboard
- JamTracks for play along practice
- Ask-a-teacher functionality
- Speed up, slow down and loop the video
- Bookmark exact moments in the lesson
- Note-taking feature
- 4k video with multiple camera angles
- Track progress with the progress report
Lessons
This is a full, 6+ hour course featuring 44 step-by-step lessons with full supplemental content.
4k & 1080p
Course filmed with 6 cameras and stream in awesome 4k video quality and downloadable in 1080p.
Interactive Tabs
Tabs powered by Soundslice, the powerful interactive tab software, working natively in your browser.
JamTracks
Download and play along with custom JamTracks to lock in the concepts. Own them for life.
Tabs & GPX
Download all tabs and notation in PDF and Guitar Pro formats. Download and own them for life!
This Course Covers
Technique
Play the right way from the very start
- Pick the right way
- Change chords with ease
- Play with increased speed and accuracy
Rhythm
Learn the skills you need to play rhythm guitar
- Discover the top chord progressions
- Play power chord progressions and riffs
- Learn the top strumming patterns
Lead
Learn riffs and lead lines in the style of your favorite artists
- Unlock the power of the pentatonic scale
- Learn licks in the style of your favorite artists
- Solo along with our full-band JamTracks
Meet Will Ripley
Will Ripley is a passionate guitarist who performs, teaches, and manages a successful music business. He is a graduate of the Berklee College Of Music’s Canadian Affiliate School, The Selkirk College. He has recorded, performed and toured with Grammy award winning musicians, and has shared the stage with members from bands you may know, including David Bowie and Jethro Tull. He is also a sought-after studio musician.
His unique style is touted as a combination of the blues stylings of Albert King and Jimi Hendrix, combined with larger-than-life riffs of bands like Led Zeppelin and Rage Against the Machine. Add in rhythmic complexity in the vein of Red Hot Chili Peppers and N.E.R.D. and you have a solid description of his eclectic style. While his heart may lie in blues and rock, he also has a love and deep appreciation of pop music, adoring and deriving inspiration from artists such as The Beatles, Stone Temple Pilots and Kelly Clarkson.
Learn to play Rock guitar
Learn this style with our world-class lesson videos, tabs and JamTracks
Learn everything you need to play rock guitar.
This course is for new guitar players who want to learn the instrument the right way from the very start. Explore the key concepts all guitarists must know, from proper left and right hand technique to crafting creative guitar solos. Best of all, everything is taught in the context of real musical examples.
This course offers 44 lessons covering 6+ hours of material in step-by-step, digestable presentation.
Series Introduction
Join Will Ripley as he gives us all the details of his series, "Rock Guitar for Beginners". You'll be playing cool rock riffs from the very first lesson!
5:25 Runtime
0.0 Difficulty
First Easy Riff, Part 1
Will wastes no time getting you playing actual music! Check out this cool riff in the style of Black Sabbath. You'll be rockin' in no time!
7:13 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
First Easy Riff, Part 2
Will continues in this lesson by showing you how to read basic tablature for his Black Sabbath style riff.
9:31 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
Chromatic Exercise
In this lesson, Will takes a break from riffs to show you a great tool for increasing your dexterity on the instrument: the chromatic exercise.
6:37 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
Right Hand Technique, Part 1
A good foundation on the guitar has a lot to do with your right hand, or picking hand, technique. Will starts here with the basics: How to hold a pick and how to place your hand.
9:22 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
Right Hand Technique, Part 2
So far, Will has had you focus on playing on one string. Now he gives you the tools to play across multiple strings.
8:40 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
Riff in the Style of Deep Purple/Queen
Now that you have some right hand technique under your belt, Will hits you with another classic sounding riff in the style of Deep Purple or Queen. This is an easy, yet great sounding single note riff that will have you rockin' out in no time!
9:43 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
Riff in the Style of Bon Jovi
Will is back with another classic sounding riff! This riff is a great exercise that gets you using your fingers on more than one strings, and improves on your chromatic movement.
5:44 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
Riff in the Style of Journey/Foster the People
Will uses this catchy riff to teach you how to mute open strings and fretted notes, and how to add some rhythmic depth to your playing.
5:43 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Riff in the Style of RATM/Led Zeppelin
Here's another catchy, classic sounding riff from Will. This one will get you up and running with your alternate picking. A must have picking technique moving forward!
7:04 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Chromatic Graduation Riff
Remember the chromatic scale we learned earlier in this series? Well, Will steps it up a notch by adding a cool funky riff to help you earn your chromatic diploma!
10:21 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
E Minor Pentatonic Scale
The minor pentatonic is one of the core scales of rock guitar. In this lesson, Will shows you a super simple fingering for this essential scale!
8:21 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Em Pentatonic Riff In the Style of the Beatles
Now, take the minor pentatonic scale, add some rhythm, and you've got a super cool rock riff!
4:47 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Intro to Power Chords
Power chords are essential to any rock guitar playing. In this lesson, Will shows you the basics. Learn open string power chords and other classic power chord shapes!
11:09 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
Power Chord Riff In the Style of Tom Petty/ACDC
Will's back with another classic sounding riff in the style of Tom Petty or ACDC. This riff builds off of what you learned in the previous lesson on power chords. Use both your open string power chord and full fretted power chord shapes!
11:19 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Palm Muting
Getting a great rock sound has lots of different elements to it, and one of those is the palm muting technique. Will shows you a super easy way to get rolling on this great right hand technique!
6:39 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Power Chord Riff in the Style of Black Sabbath
Now Will takes a riff he taught earlier in the series and adds the power chord element to it. This makes the riff extra heavy sounding and extra cool!
10:48 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Power Chord Riff with a Fifth in the Bass
Believe it or not, Ripley can show you a way to make your power chords even more powerful! It's a simple fingering shift, but will add a lot of thickness to your power chords.
12:31 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Power Chord Riff in the Style of Audioslave/RHCP
Get ready to learn a super pro-sounding riff in the style of Audioslave or Red Hot Chili Peppers! Hidden in this riff are some more foundational guitar techniques that will increase your facility on the guitar.
12:41 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Other Two Note Shapes
We've learned the interval of the power chord, now Will shows us some other intervals in the form of two note shapes that are easy, and add tremendous color to our playing.
10:15 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Octave Shapes
Will's back with an important and useful technique: Octave shapes. Learn not only the shape, but how to apply muting to get it sounding very professional!
8:46 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Muting Techniques
Proper muting can add a lot of passion to your playing. In this lesson, Will shows us how to play single notes without compromising any of the energy or intensity.
8:27 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
The Minor Pentatonic Scale - Second Position
Will showed us the first position of the minor pentatonic scale in an earlier lesson. Now it's time to move on to the second position. It's a must know scale and technique!
5:22 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Reading Chord Charts
Up to now we've learned a lot of single note riffs and power chords. Now it's time to inject some chord playing into our technique. In this lesson, Will starts us off by showing us how to read a chord chart.
9:13 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Spanish Flavored Chord Song
Continuing with chords, Will introduces us to some new chord shapes with this Spanish themed chord song.
6:06 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Sus and Slash Chords
Sus and slash chords are very important when it comes to making you sound like a pro. Will walks us through a few of the most common ones, and how to implement them in our playing!
6:30 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
The G Major Chord
The G major chord is one of the most common chords used in popular music. In this lesson, Will shows some of the more popular and useful variations of the chord.
5:26 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
The Secret to Changing Chords
One of the biggest issues for beginning guitarists is changing chords. It can be a source of great frustration. Join Will as he shows us his secret to changing chords that will revolutionize your playing!
11:42 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Rhythmic Subdivisions
By now you've learned what an important role rhythm plays in the process of learning guitar. Will gets more specific here by showing us some basic rhythms and how to count them.
14:45 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Acoustic Pop Chord Song
Ever wonder how certain songs get really pro sounding chord progressions and strumming? Here's a peek behind the curtain as Will shows us a chord progression that is simultaneously easy and great sounding!
16:04 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Three Must Know Strum Patterns
Strumming and rhythm is something that frankly gets taken for granted when learning guitar. But, it's just as important as the notes you play on the fret board! Will gets you started on the right foot with your rhythm by showing you these three must know strum patterns.
11:42 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
All Major and Minor Chords
It's time to get deeper into chords! In this lesson, Will shows us all the major and minor chords.
12:30 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
12 Bar Blues Song - Part 1
The 12 bar blues is a fundamental rock and blues song form. Will shows you the 12 bar blues, but puts a little twist on it to make it sound extra rockin'!
7:44 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
12 Bar Blues Song - Part 2
In part 2 of the 12 Bar Blues Song, Will gets into the meat of the 12 bar blues form.
11:25 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Chord Techniques in the Style of Neil Young/Guns and Roses
Will brings together several chord playing techniques in this lesson that will challenge you and keep you on the road to sounding more like a pro!
15:20 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Minor Pentatonic Scale - Third Position
Will now brings us the 3rd position of the minor pentatonic scale. This is one of the great rock guitar scales, and Will is building towards having you cover the entire fret board with this scale!
4:42 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Chop Builders
Here's a couple of exercises that will help build your "chops", otherwise known as your strength and dexterity on the guitar!
11:29 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
The Major Scale and Basic Theory
Don't let the phrase "music theory" scare you off! It's merely an aid to help you understand what you've been learning and playing so far. Will uses this lesson to show you a very important scale that is the door way to some beginning theory concepts. When you're done, you'll have a better grasp of the material he's showed you already!
10:59 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Minor Pentatonic Scale - Fourth Position
On to the fourth position of the minor pentatonic scale! As usual, Will shows us the scale, then shows us a way to connect all of the positions so far.
4:16 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Find Every Note on the Fret Board
Believe it or not, finding and knowing every note on the fret board is not as hard as it may seem. In this lesson, Will demystifies the fret board taking away that overwhelming feeling when you look down at it. A few simple tricks is all you need!
13:39 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Precursor to Barre Chords
Leading up to learning your barre chords, Will shares this lesson with us that gets us familiar with some of the basic shapes we'll need to know. Plus, you get to learn some super cool sounding chords!
9:26 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Four Shapes of Barre Chords
The "dreaded" barre chords are anything but dreaded here. Will gets you going on the four basic shapes, with some tips and tricks to make them frankly, quite easy!
15:27 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Barre Chord Song
Now Will gives you the chance to put those barre chords into practice! Here's a super simple little song to help you get more familiar with the shapes we learned in the last lesson.
8:48 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Minor Pentatonic Scale - Fifth Position
The Grand Finale of your minor pentatonics: The Fifth Position. Now that you have all 5 positions, Will shows you some cool ways to practice these, and consequently, the ability to begin using them in solos right away!
9:28 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
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Lessons
This is a full, 6+ hour course featuring 44 step-by-step lessons with full supplemental content.
4k & 1080p
Course filmed with 6 cameras and stream in awesome 4k video quality and downloadable in 1080p.
Interactive Tabs
Tabs powered by Soundslice, the powerful interactive tab software, working natively in your browser.
JamTracks
Download and play along with custom JamTracks to lock in the concepts. Own them for life.
Tabs & GPX
Download all tabs and notation in PDF and Guitar Pro formats. Download and own them for life!
Lifetime Access: Stream & Download
Lifetime access. Download all files to your devices or stream online. Includes all videos, tabs and supplemental material.
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