This Stevie Ray Vaughan guitar lesson, Corey Congilio explores an SRV ballad with an breakdown of the Texas blues solo with tab, notation, and jam track. Be sure to check out the full Essentials: Texas Blues Solos course for more guitar lessons like this one.
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Stevie Ray Vaughan Guitar Lesson: Overview
Let’s face it, Stevie Ray Vaughan is the poster boy for Texas Blues, and I could do many a Stevie Ray Vaughan guitar lesson (and have) on his style. The one part about Stevie Ray Vaughan’s guitar playing I love the most is his Hendrix inspired “clean” playing. Stevie Ray Vaughan always seemed less predictable in these situations and often more melodic.
I’m not condemning his other playing, but hearing Stevie Ray Vaughan play ballads was another beautiful but less heard part of his bag.
Stevie Ray Vaughan Guitar Lesson: Performance
The main idea in this Stevie Ray Vaughan guitar lesson is to RELAX. Trust me, I have to tell myself this all the time. We’ve talked about playing behind the beat a lot in this course, but this is the perfect time to slow down and approach this solo with a relaxed vibe.
Stevie Ray Vaughan Guitar Lesson: Breakdown
I like to include examples like this Stevie Ray Vaughan guitar lesson in my blues courses because we’re forced to think melodically and less “lick” oriented. This solo is chock full of cool techniques but don’t overlook the melody and feel.
Notice how I’ll weave in and out of major/minor pentatonic ideas as well as hitting chord tones via double stops etc. Generally, I’m always thinking Em or Gmajor for this one. I let the chord changes tell my ear where to go… then the hands follow. Sounds crazy but, as long as you have a good idea of your scale patterns, you can let instinct take over.
I hope you enjoyed this Stevie Ray Vaughan guitar lesson. For more just like it, check out the full course: Essentials: Texas Blues Solos.