The Power of Two

Welcome to the first Cory Wilds lesson page. Over the coming months, I'll offer you a basic overview of some essential elements of blues and rock guitar. Little things that I think everyone should know. So have fun and try your hand at these licks. We'll all get along with a little help from our friends.

This first lesson is on basic double stops. This two-string sound is at the heart of many guitar styles and it creates a great textural alternative to chords. The examples below are all built in thirds.

Ex.1 suggests an E7. On beat one, strum the G and B strings open and hammer-on to the first fret G# on the third string. Use the tip of your first finger to ensure the open B continues to ring. This is a grace note hammer on so make it quick. On beat two, barre your second finger across A and C# at the second fret. On beat three, use your second finger for the 4th fret B and your first finger for the third fret D. On beat four, come back down using the same fingerings. While playing, count 1 2 3 4&.

Ex. 2 uses the same line to suggest an A7. On beat one, use your first finger to barre across the 5th fret C and E of the third and second strings. Strum the E and C and hammer onto the 6th fret C# on the third string with the tip of your finger to ensure the E continues to ring. On beat two, use your third finger to barre D and F# at the 7th fret. On beat three use your second finger on the third string E and your first finger on the and second string G. On beat four, come back down using the same fingerings.

Ex. 3 uses the same line to suggest a B7. Use the same fingering as you did in ex. 2.

Ex. 4 is a basic 12 bar blues form in E that uses the three chords we've talked about. It is intended to be played with a swing rhythm. Start with an easy tempo and count the beats to get in the pocket. If you haven't memorized the 12 bar form this would be a good time to do so as countless songs use it. It will also serve as a simple environment to workshop different melodic and rhythmic ideas in the future.

Ex. 5 is the same as ex. 4 but is has a cool twist on the A7 in measures 5 and 6. It suggests an A9 and has better proximity to the E7 that comes before and after it.

Once you master these examples you may begin to notice them all around you as you listen. I hear variations of these lines every day from artists like Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard, Led Zeppelin, ZZ Top, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis and Kenny Burrell. I have played countless different themes using these same notes because they are everywhere. Learn these lines straight and then mutate them any way you can think of. For example, add some slides to stir things up or move the examples to another duet of strings. Snap the examples with your fingers instead of a pick. Do anything you can to breathe some life into the music and make every note count.

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