Latest articles by Richard Barrett
5 ideas for how you can revoice guitar chords, and enhance your progressions
By using various voicings of the same chord, you can expand your fretboard knowledge and spice up your chord progressions
Upgrade your blues chops now with this lesson in how to play slide guitar in standard tuning
Looking for an entry into slide playing but don't want to retune your guitar and give it a setup? This tab and audio lesson in plain ol' EADGBE will help you develop your slide vocabulary
Learn how polychords and slash chords hold the key to musical exploration, just as scales do
Knowing the difference between slash chords and polychords can give you a much greater understanding of harmony
Get more out of one of guitar’s most important shapes with 5 chords that demystify the dominant 7th
They are so commonplace that we take the theory behind them for granted. Here are five 7th chords, the theory underpinning them, and some ideas for modifying them
5 dissonant guitar chords that hold unexpected delights
We're always talking about harmonious chord pairings, but these discordant shapes will bring tension and surprise to your playing
5 shapes to try using 6/9 chords – a voicing loved by the likes of Brian Setzer and a perfect closer
What are 6/9 chords? Well, it might sound complicated but they simply have the 6th and 9th of the parent scale, and their stacking of 4ths gives them a sound like no other
How Jeff Beck made his whammy bar sound like a slide – his soloing secrets revealed
Nobody could bend notes like Beck – he took a glissando approach to blues-rock guitar, using the whammy bar when others might have used a slide
From heartbreaking vibrato to fire-breathing leads, Gary Moore was one of the blues’ most versatile guitarists
This Gary Moore lesson teaches you two sides to the late blues icon’s playing
“Lots of thought has gone into this”: Boss Katana Artist Gen 3 review
The flagship amp from Boss’s latest iteration of the Katana series boasts some impressive-sounding features, for use from sofa to stage
How to use CAGED shapes in conjunction with pentatonic scales
Breaking these well-known chord shapes down into single notes or triads creates a road map for experimentation, improvisation and an escape route from cliched licks
“Can genuinely hold its own in any genre”: Mesa/Boogie Mark VII 1x12 Combo review
How can Mesa/Boogie possibly have improved on the Mark V so much that it skipped the Mark VI? Join us as we plug in and find out
5 easy ways to make open chords more interesting
Players such as David Bowie and Joni Mitchell have deployed alternate voicings to great effect in their songwriting, and they can be a powerful songwriting tool to have under your belt
5 weird chord shapes that will add mystery, suspense and drama to your songwriting
Aspiring film soundtrack artists, apply within, because with high drama, sometimes you need something more exotic than an open G...
Learn David Gilmour’s epic soloing style and take your blues playing to the Dark Side of the Moon
Here are four tabbed out examples of how Gilmour’s approach changed the way we play the blues, and it’ll whip your phrasing and feel into shape
Jazz guitar theory 101: 5 ways you can use tritone substitutions to jazz up your chord progressions
Tritone substitutions are jazz theory 101 – and you don't need a degree from Berklee to put them into practice
30 open tuning chords you need to know
Expand your guitar vocab with chord ideas for Double Drop D, Open G, DADGAD, Open D and Open C tunings, favorite tunings for Keith Richards, Joni Mitchell, Jimmy Page and more
Dissonant guitar chords: 5 voicings that will add suspense and tension to your playing
The Asus2(addb5) might sound mind-boggling, but it's easy to play, sounds fascinating, and is one of five voicings to add to your chord vocabulary
Art-rock’s elder statesman Bill Nelson on his wildest guitar stories – and why he still swears by the Line 6 Pod
The Be-Bop Deluxe icon invites us into his guitar-packed home to talk about his endless drive to write and record, his six-string war stories, and why he hasn’t used guitar amps for years
Make like Joni Mitchell and Steve Hackett and freshen up your chords with 5 alternative voicings
By incorporating open strings, you can give your chords more color and keep the ear interested. Here are five voicings that are certified fresh
Learn the greatest licks from over 100 years of trailblazing blues guitarists, from Robert Johnson to B.B. King, Buddy Guy, Eric Gales and more
These 15 must-learn licks take you from blues guitar's acoustic beginnings to its electric present day
5 rock ’n’ roll ending chords you need to know
These jazz-inspired chords will class up any set. Simply add to the conclusion of your jam, et voila!
Lonnie Mack is an unsung hero in the development of the modern guitar solo – learn the blues guitar pyrotechnics that lit a fire under Stevie Ray Vaughan
A key influence on SRV classics such as Scuttle Buttin', Lonnie Mack's trailblazing style is worth another look
6 simple but super-effective ways to make easy chords sound great
Simply rearranging the notes can make basic chords sound infinitely more exciting
“Take Jeff Beck, David Gilmour and Allan Holdsworth – Alan should be seen as being in that company”: Remembering the late Alan Murphy, the player Fender trusted as a tone consultant, who played with Kate Bush, Go West, and more
As November 2023 would have marked Alan Murphy’s 70th birthday, we look back at the man and his music, with personal recollections from the collaborators who knew him best
