The Strat-O-Blogster has tipped us to the announcement that Scott Henderson will begin answering questions from fans over at Online-Discussion.com. Below I've included some of my favorite questions and responses from Scott's last answer session on June 24th as well as the youtube version of Guy Fenocchi's "Scott Henderson Style Lick" lesson:

Question: Is touring work or fun for you? I mean you gig almost every day, so do you get tired of it after some gigs in a row?

Scott: I love playing every night even though I wish I had more new tunes. The only part I hate is flying because it fucks up my ears and just sucks in general. When you add up the playing hours vs. the travel, setting up/tearing down hours, it does sometimes feel more like the moving and storage business, but a great night on stage more than makes up for the hassle and I feel like I'm lucky to do what I do.

Question: ...and do you agree that Simpsons started to suck after season 9??

Scott: What I heard was that they were using the A team writers for the movie and the B team for the show, but now that the movie is over, I've seen it get a little better. Still not as good as the classics though...

Question: How many "fusion" standards do you know? I mean things like Actual proof, Havona, Humpty Dumpty...can you please name a few that you think are interesting and fun to play?

Scott: I can think of more than a few, if you're like me and consider about 50 Weather Report tunes as great fusion standards. You can find a lot of them in various Real Books.

- Sure I can name a couple types of moustaches off the top of my head: the "handlebar", "fu manchu", etc. But you really need an extensive list to correctly describe the variety of moustaches out there. Luckily Thumbarella has found this ukulele featuring drawings of different soup strainers all over the body of the instrument. On the "Illustrated Guide to the Moustaches of the World" ukulele you'll find the "the sad cowboy", "the imperial", and "the Shirley Temple". In addition to the moustaches the head of the instrument has the following quote:

"There are three kinds of man you must never trust: a man who hunts south of the Thames, a man who has soup for lunch; and a man who waxes his moustache." -Sir James Richards

- Guitar Noize has come across a helpful Mac application for guitarists. Capo lets you pinpoint sections of songs you're trying to learn. You can then listen to that section on loop and even at different speeds.

- Guitar Research has compiled a list of the 50 Greatest Guitar Albums. The list is a little heavy on the metal for my taste but it's definitely a good selection of material if you're trying to find good and fun guitar parts to play.

Thanks to Guitar Lifestyle for finding this old Eric Johnson article from Guitar World. Of note is Eric's opinion on how much your fingering decisions affect your guitar tone.

"I always sacrifice ease of execution for better tone. For example, on "Camel's Night Out" (Venus Isle), which we'll cover next month, I played the same solo using eight different fingerings until I got the tone I wanted. You can imagine how long that must have taken!"

And that's a really good point. Not just that your left hand can affect the tone, but experimenting. If you continue to practice and experiment you will find little techniques or sounds that you're partial to. As those elements continue to show up in your playing you begin developing your own style.

Last week we linked to an overview of recording on your computer. Well now Guitar Noize has a post about possibly turning those recordings in to cash. Pump Audio is a firm that licenses independent and mainly lyric free music for use in advertising, tv, radio, and web use. You retain rights to the song and make some bank. Sure, not many people aspire to be the creator of the background music for a car dealership ad or a podcast, but it's not a bad way to make money for stuff you were already doing.

Over on FreeBassGuitarVideos.com we have free lessons on playing bass using the two finger plucking technique with your right hand as well creating a funky sound by playing slap bass. But there's a third method that we haven't covered yet. Using a pick or plectrum. If it's something you thought about head over bassguitarblog.com for their post Plectrums - To Pick or Not? It's a thoughtful post that's followed by some great commentary by the readers:

"When I play with a pick it reminds me of when I used to use a bow to play double bass (upright bass) in an orchestra. I love the feel of the give and take of the pick against the string similar to how the bow felt each time it would grip the string in the short staccato notes or when scrubbing."


photo by: cnraether

Guitar Lifestyle has found a video from the Science Channel on how pedal steel guitars are made. It takes electric guitar construction and ratchets is up a few notches on the difficulty scale. Which is a lot like actually playing steel guitar. In general, steel guitar is more often associated with older country music, but there are still a few bands out there using that heart breaking swell. The new devotee is former alt-rocker Ben Kweller who has made a turn towards country on his last two albums. His newest, Changing Horses, features pedal steel player Kitt Kitterman on almost every track. You can check out Stereogum's post on Changing Horses that features a review and free mp3 download of "Hurtin You". Below is Ben Kweller performing his new single "Fight" on Letterman.


Click the album art to get this album from iTunes for just $7.99

Guitar Lifestyle found an old BBC video (below) of Eric Clapton explaining how he makes the "woman tone" that he used on Sunshine of Your Love and other tunes. Gibson.com also has an article on the same subject:

"Zeroing in on “Woman Tone” isn’t rocket science. That would be easier. There’d be a precise formula that would work for everyone, and no mojo factor. Nonetheless, a powerful neck-position pickup is essential. Start by turning your guitar’s tone dials all the way off. Next, place the pickup selector switch in the middle position. Now roll the bridge pickup’s volume to about six or seven, and crank the neck pickup all the way up to 10.

Amp choice is crucial too, although a carefully selected high-quality distortion pedal can turn some tiny practice rigs into snarling monsters. Clapton used heavy artillery: a Marshall 50-watt head through a 4x12 cabinet with 25-watt Celestion greenback speakers running full out – volume, bass, midrange and treble all set on 10. And while an electronic amplifier – especially one that emulates tube distortion – can get the job done, one of “Woman Tone’s” key elements is the smooth, creamy distortion that only tubes provide."

Thanks to the IG Blog we came across this post by Dave Jacoby. It's Chapter 2 in his series on how to not suck at guitar. The basic idea is to occasionally pick out a popular tune and try to figure out how to play that tune on the guitar. It's easy to fall into a habit of only practicing technique and speed and forgetting about understanding the guitar. It's certainly quicker to do a google search and pull up the tab for a favorite song. And there's nothing wrong with that, but some of my favorite practice sessions have been either intentionally or semi-accidentally figuring out how to play a song. Dave suggested Happy Birthday, the IG Blog went with the 007 Theme and then recorded it. Try your own. I like the theme song idea. How about the Jeopardy theme?

The IG Blog has put up two interesting posts recently. The first post, The Key to Guitar Practice, brings up a very good point:

“In a craft practice, HOW we do what we do is primary, and WHAT we do is secondary. Our concern is with process rather than result.”

For me this would be an issue of how intently I'm practicing. If I'm mainly watching tv and happen to be playing guitar at the same time, am I actually practicing, or am I just fidgeting with my hands in a musical way? Playing through chord progressions and riffs that I've known for years is not practice. But trying to learn a new part or actually focusing on music theory is the type of practice that will actually make me a better guitar player.

The second post of interest references an old Guitar World interview with Eric Clapton where he discusses his guitar tone. Specifically, why he switched from a telecaster in his early Yardbirds days to a Les Paul and a Marshall amp when he was with the John Mayall and the Blues Breakers.

And finally, Guitar Noize points us towards some incredibly cool guitar cases by Kaces. They have a special line of cases featuring national flags (UK, USA, Mexico) with a weathered look to them. See examples below.

Guitar Lifestyle has a few holiday gift ideas for that special guitarist in your life. Ranging from key chain guitar tuners to reading material.

If you're looking for an easy way to give someone a guitar lesson as a gift, check out the gift certificates we've just made available. They can be used to buy downloads, dvd, books, or cds.

If you're feeling very giving this year, why not just by that person a whole guitar. Maybe even a guitar that was good enough for Stevie Ray Vaughan, or at least a replication of it.

The Mad Stratter tips us off to this anonymously written list of ways that guitars are better than women.

# Guitars don’t get pregnant.
# You can play your guitar any time of the month.
# Guitars don’t have parents.
# Guitars don’t whine… unless you want them to.
# You can share your guitar with your friends.
# Guitars don’t care how many other guitars you’ve played
# Guitars don’t care how many other guitars you have.
# Guitars don’t care if you look at other guitars.
# Guitars don’t care if you buy guitar magazines.
# You’ll never hear, “Surprise, you are going to proud father of a new guitar!” unless you go out to buy one yourself.
# If your guitar is flat you can fix it.
# Your guitar doesn’t care if you never listen to it.
# Your guitar won’t care if you leave up the toilet seat.
# You don’t have to be jealous of the guy who works on your guitar.
# If you say bad things to your guitar, you don’t have to apologize before you play it again.
# You can play your guitar as long as you want and it won’t get sore.
# You can stop playing your guitar as soon as you want and it won’t get frustrated.
# Your parents won’t remain in touch with your old guitar after you dump it.
# Guitars don’t get headaches.
# Guitars don’t insult you if you’re a bad player.
# Your guitar never wants a night out with the other guitars.
# Guitars don’t care if you’re late.
# You don’t have to take a shower before you play your guitar.
# If your guitar doesn’t look good you can refinish it or get new parts.
# You can play your guitar the first time you meet it, without having to take it to dinner, see a movie, or meet its mother.
# The only protection you have to wear when playing your guitar is a decent thumb pick.
# When in mixed company, you can talk about what a great time you had the last time you played your guitar.

And the Guitar Site directs our attention to Grover Allman's Chicks on Picks series. Which may be not safe for work since it features scantily clad women on guitar picks.

Cartoon by Ian Ink, brought to our attention by IG Blog

Strat-o-Blogster brought our attention to this great photograph. Apparently the picture you see is the result of taking two pictures: one with the guitar, and one without. The outline of the guitar is traced with a "pen light" and then the guitar itself is removed from the picture. Check it out

- Hometracked.com has an excellent post that includes audio examples of 10 recording bloopers that appear in famous songs.

- Guitar MX has a how to guide on makin your own guitar picks

- Gibson has an interview with Emmylou Harris about music, her guitar, and well... her love of the Atlanta Braves.

- All About Jazz has an interview with guitarist John McLaughlin

- Interesting article on Mel Bay from the Indianapolis Star.

- Mark McGuigan posts his favorite guitar related Youtube videos of the past month. Which includes the video below entitled "Tomatito Bulerias"

- Play Like a Girl has a mini interview with guitarist Steve Lynch discussing his technique for tapping. You should also check out our lesson on guitar tapping.

- The IG Blog has an interesting post on preparing you body to play guitar. In our Warm Ups and Drills lesson we discuss several different stretching exercises for the arms and legs. They take it a step further and look at some back stretches and general posture ideas that could improve your playing.

- Guitar Noize takes a look at the new Killer Paint Series by Schenk Guitars. They certainly have an eye catching paint job.

The IG Blog has a good post on practicing the guitar. It contains a link to an NPR interview with Glenn Kurtz who just wrote the book Practicing: A Musician’s Return to Music. In addition to the interview there also excerpts from the book with my favorite being:

“Alone in the practice room, I hold my instrument silently. Every day it is the same task, yet something new. I delve down, seeking what hides waiting in the notes, what lies dormant in myself that music brings to life. I close my eyes and listen for the unheard melody in what I’ve played a hundred times before, the unsuspected openings.”

Check out the post and be sure to read the comments as well. There is some good conversation going on over there. If you're looking for some specific drills to use while you practice, take a look at our set of guitar technique video lessons.

The Guitarz Blog linked to an article from The Independent on the resurgence of the ukulele. Here's a sample:

"Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes plays ukulele on "Cleanse Song", a track on his latest album Cassadaga, while Bill Drummond, the anti-hero of KLF, says he's so in love with his uke that he takes it to bed with him. The new ukulele brotherhood also apparently includes Pete Doherty, one of an unlikely trail of stars who frequent Duke of Uke, Britain's only dedicated ukulele shop, which does a roaring business in London's Spitalfields."

So I decided to look around the web myself and see what ukulele stuff was out there. The Uke.com was the most informative site I found. Most helpful is probably their chord charts section

I also ran across two ukulele blogs if you'll believe it. The first is the Uke Club, which features songs and even cartoons. The second, Ukulelia, finds everything ukulele related on the web.

And if you just want to enjoy some good uke playing check out the video below.

- It's attack of the Giant Flying V Guitar over at Music Thing. Do you think they keep strings for that in stock at Guitar Center?

- Guitar Wars has a review of the complete overhaul Fender has done to their website.

- Gotta Strat? Wanna leave the world of relative obscurity behind for the fast paced and glitzy lifestyle of internet semi-fame? Head over to Me and My Strat, where they will post a picture of you and you gorgeous stratocaster.

- The Guitar Channel has a review of Robben Ford's new album. If you're looking to learn some Robben Ford style riffs you should check out our Altered Blues Licks lesson.

- Guitar Stuff brought our attention to a fantastic lesson by flatpicking great Brad Davis on double down up picking. The video starts off with a somewhat cheesy interview but later moves on to some truly valuable instruction. Take a look and see what you think.

The Guitar Resource has a post on what he learned from Guitar Player Magazine this month. Mainly from an interview where Pat Martino discusses improvising, listening, and playing in the moment. If you're intrigued you can learn some Pat Martino style lines in our Classic Jazz Licks II lesson.

Also, while I was digging around on the Guitar Player website I found this article on the Top Ten George Benson Riffs of All Time. Unfortunately on their online article Guitar Player isn't allowed to include the tabs. However they do have lengthy explanations of each lick as well as time notation of when the lick occurs in the recordings. So you should be able to pieces everything together with a little work.

If you're looking to go ahead and have the tab smack dab in front of you... we have two Benson inspired lessons. Our first Classic Jazz Licks lesson featured licks inspired by George Benson and Joe Pass. Billy Wilkie also has a second lesson called More Joe Pass Style.

First of all, we're proud to annouce Peter Vogl's two new lessons on how to play the lead guitar solo from All Along the Watchtower. The first lesson will cover the Jimi Hendrix inspired opening to the song and the second lesson will cover some Jimi styled lead guitar from later in the song. Peter also has free lessons on a couple of the techniques covered in the solo. First learn how to play Minor Third Bends and Unison Bends, then move on and learn the guitar solo for Watchtower.

You can hear Jimi's version of the song on this Youtube video

It seems like Jimi has been popping up on guitar sites all over the net the last couple of weeks.

- Strat-o-blogster has the run down of the Fender Custom Shop's re-creation of the Strat Jimi played at the Monterey Pop Festival 40 years ago. Plus he's also got youtube clips of Jimi playing the original and John Mayer playing the new model.

- Electric Guitar Review has a post about the "IK Multimedia’s Amplitube Jimi Hendrix digital modeling software". You can also follow a link from there to hear an .mp3 of "Guitar Player Magazine’s Michael Ross has recorded a pretty impressively authentic Hendrix-style jam"

There is a great article about jam tracks over on the Electric Guitar Review. I think the point that I find most important is:

"CONVENIENCE: Let’s face it, the best way to learn music is to play music, and you can’t do it all by your lonesome self. Even if you’re in a band, chances are your band mates are not willing to play back-up for you on demand. With playalongs, you have the luxury of practicing with a rhythm section day after day, anytime you wish, for any length of time."

There's nothing like the freedom of being to jam whenever you want to. I'm often moved by a song I'm listening to or performance on tv and pick up the guitar and jam for hours. Sometimes your most inspired moments don't happen when other musicians are around. Which is just one of the many reasons quality jam track cd's and mp3s are helpful.

You can check out our full line of jam tracks and see what strikes your fancy. We also have free lessons for each Let's Jam CD to help guide you towards creating your own solos.

Strat-O-Blogster

Electric Guitar Review

Guitar Noize

Guitar Lead

Check out this post from the Play Like a Girl blog to learn how to create some cool strap locks for you guitar. This little tip could probably get you out of a jam but it's also cost effective. Considering a six-pack of Grolsch will only set you back about $7, and Fender's Strap Lock pack is going for $13.99, you'll save money and get a buzz.