Latest articles by Richard Barrett
Understanding alternative chord shapes and inversions can have massive benefits for your lead playing – take a break from scales and give your solos a boost by incorporating these shapes
Step away from your usual scales by peppering your leads with some smart new chord shapes
Introducing contrasting open chords – the open-string shapes used by the likes of Alex Lifeson and Jeff Buckley in some of their dreamiest guitar parts
What is a contrasting open chord? It's simply an open chord that combines high-fretted notes and open strings, and it can be used to great effect on acoustic or electric guitar
If you're playing in a blues trio, you have an awful lot of freedom with your guitar parts – here's how to make the most of being the only guitar player in the band
These major-sounding blues ideas are ideal for those situations where you've only got the drummer and bass player for company
DADGAD guitar tuning: an introduction to the (not quite) open tuning favored by Jimmy Page
Here are five ideas to get started with DADGAD tuning, so you can get on with the important business of writing the next Kashmir
Bored with pentatonics? This lesson in superimpositions will make you think again
Get more out of the guitarist’s favorite scale and make it sound fresh again by learning how the notes relate to each other and their underlying chords
Crosspicking is an advanced picking technique that will lend your licks an authentic country flavor – test your picking skills with this lesson
You can apply crosspicking techniques to all kinds of styles, from country to the blues, bluegrass and more
Keith Richards' use of open G tuning is the stuff of guitar legend – take a leaf out of his book with these 5 must-learn shapes
No sixth string required…
Introducing polychords – the mind-bending guitar shapes that will take your playing into new harmonic and melodic worlds
Polychords are a neat way to expand your musical vocabulary and can be used in your rhythm and lead playing, as the great Larry Carlton has demonstrated time and time again
Your solos and rhythm playing will benefit from learning chords across the fretboard – and major 7ths are a great place to start
The major 7th chord is a favorite among guitarists of all stripes, including Nile Rodgers – here are 5 ways to take the shape to the next level, and your overall playing along with it, too
How to play gospel blues guitar and make something original – and thrilling – out of electric guitar's oldest art form
This lesson draws from the playing of B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan and John Mayer in its off-grid timing and unexpected blues trademarks
30 beautiful acoustic guitar chords you need to know
Increase your musical vocabulary and expand your compositional horizons, in each and every key
How to tell the difference between add chords and altered guitar chords
Here are five chords with names to test the brain and a sound that's kind to the ear. Add them to your chord vocabulary now
Take your guitar solos to the next level with these genre-spanning tips
Soloing ideas for lead guitar in rock, blues, acoustic, metal and more to make you a better player now
How to use chromatics in a blues guitar solo
A working knowledge of the in-between notes can get you out of a jam when in a jam
5 easy ways to create complex sounds from simple chords
Using open strings to embellish your chord work can yield magical results
How to use chords in a blues guitar solo
We all think of the blues solo in terms of which notes sit atop which chords, but reversing that proposition – and building chords into the solo itself – generates some tasty new phrasing ideas
How to play acoustic blues in open D tuning
Open minds with open tunings can bring new shades to the blues, and in this acoustic piece inspired by Molly Tuttle and Jimmy Page, we bring bluegrass, blues and folk to the party
Learn 5 guitar chords that evoke the golden age of Hollywood
These chords have an orchestral quality that radiates a certain silver screen soundtrack magic
4 soloing ideas you can learn from Leslie West
Scale the blues-rock mountain and balance on the edge of major and minor tonalities with this lesson in the style of one of rock's greatest players
Learn 5 Lydian chords that can add mood and atmosphere to your playing
Joe Satriani is a fan. Danny Elfman, too. And by learning these chord shapes, you can drop some Lydian magic into your songwriting for dramatic effect
Jazz up your chord progressions with this introduction to voice leading
Thou shalt Joe Pass with this lesson in gradual transitions between chords, which allow you to move around the fretboard for new musical ideas
Learn the vibrato styles of 5 giants of the blues
Welcome to vibrato bootcamp, where we'll be looking at how B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Gary Moore, Peter Green and Paul Kossoff shook those strings
Learn 5 Eric Johnson chords that utilize his trademark ‘shell’ voicing for big ambient clean tones
Got a wicked clean tone but don't know what to play? Step right this way...
