Description

Jim Deeming, a JamPlay.com instructor, teachers a lick that he claims is the most versatile lick of all time.

Transcript

Hello, Jam Play members. My name is Jim Deeming and this is a new entry for the Lick Library today. And I’m going to call this the most versatile, cross genre and cross key and cross right hand style lick ever, supercalifragilistic big guy lick and it has used in Bluegrass, folk country, rock, even new straddles can use this one. And it’s also a pretty good exercise for practicing your pull offs, gets down on the first position and standard tuning. And the first time I demonstrated or put a little Bluegrass spin on it, we’ll keep it in the key of G but trust me we’re going further with this one than just Bluegrass. [Demonstration] That was half speed and slow motion while I’m doing very simply is staying entirely in frets two and three and I’m only using two fingers to do a series of what we call triplets. The first one is that note that I picked. The next one is a pull off to the second fret and the next one is another pull off to an open string. So that right hand whether you’re flat picking or finger picking, the right hand is only playing 1/3 of the notes you’re hearing. And it’s always this one, it’s always the one fret in the third fret and it’s always the first of the triplet, pull off, pull ups then its all we do this. Shift to the next string, pick, pull off, pull ups. [Demonstration] That’s all there is to it. Now, here’s why this lick is so flexible and can be used in almost every chord and almost every key down in the first position. The notes that are comprised what I would call neutral. It’s like using a bland color carpet in your house so that goes with any color furniture. These notes are neutral enough and cover a long enough range that which you can do is just enough and decide where using that same pattern where you do you start and finish. If I start on a G, the big one I just showed you, starts on a G and ends on a G. So you can pretty well guess I’m using that as a G chord lick. Watch it again, G, that’s a G, ending on the G. I could also do this. Let’s say I’m playing in the key of C and I slide up here and start here. [Demonstration] And end right there. So, now we’ve got a C lick but you know and I know we’re going exactly the same thing, pull off, all in these two frets. Kind of give you an example of what the C would sound like. [Demonstration] I used some of G. [Demonstration] What I did there that you got me doing is I went a little bit pause and then keep back to the C. Rhythm is what’s going to dictate whether you have to do that or not. Back to the G lick by way of example. [Demonstration] I’m going to back down and wanted to come up to the G. And also drop it from a triplet note back down to let’s say quarter note. [Demonstration] I have a pause right before the G. Alright, that’ how we use little subtle varieties to get different keys, different timings, different chords to work but it’s still the same fundamental lick. Let me show you another one. You probably heard me playing a little bit of Jerry Reed songs on the club. [Demonstration] It sounds pretty cool but had its foundation during the main part of the song. [Demonstration] He’s using just a slightly modified version. [Demonstration] So this pull off works for A, it works E, it works for D. What else can we pick here? We’ve got C. G, we did, C, A, G, E, D, it doesn’t work so good for probably half. I have enough there, not close, it gets a little work. Experiment with this and see what you can do. We’re going to do partials now, not all six strings. Let’s make strumming in 4/4 time, so I’m going to do four triplets of that lick. And what I’ve like to do is end and have the one be the route note or whatever chord on this. So I just showed you. And we do the same thing on the C, come up below it so that if times out right and you get on the C on a 4/4 beat. How about your D? [Demonstration] If you start here, and there should be right underneath it. Let’s see E. [Demonstration] And here’s another little variation I’m doing starting here, so that I have four strings, four beats of triplets. I’m stopping there, that is still in our pattern but now I’m hopping, I'm not playing this F# here. That one’s a little bit off for what we want to accomplish, pull it a little bit, bend it. So I think you can see that it’s useful in just about every chord down in the first position, give that a try. It’s going to put some major calluses on fingers in one and two and remember what I told you. It’s entirely on frets two and three and then adjust your starting and stopping strings and then maybe depending on timing. You might go a little bit pause or stop a little short of your route note so that you land on your route note on the beat that you need to. One final comment, you will see some guitar players, hold strictly to the rule that third finger should be the one playing in the third fret and the second finger should be the one playing in the second fret. So some people will do this, that’s fine. That’s probably technically more correct. It’s just been more useful for me and the other songs that I’ve used this in to do it with the second and first finger. Either one is fine; whatever what’s comfortable for you. Maybe you want to practice both, that’s probably the best answer if you are good at both. Thanks. Let me know what you think of that one.