JAM TRACKS TIPS

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➊ Slow Blues (C)

We start with a simple slow blues in C, where C Minor Pentatonic (C-Eb -F-G-Bb ) and the C Major Pentatonic scale (C-D-E-G-A) are great places to begin. Dig in to milk the notes and tone!

➋ G Mixolydian Vamp

This jam is a simple two-chord vamp (G-F), exploring Mixolydian mode in the context of a bluesy trip-hop vibe. Aside from the obvious G Mixolydian (G-A-B-C-D-E-F), I recommend G Minor Pentatonic (G-Bb -C-D-F) and also G Major Pentatonic (G-A-B-D-E) to produce an uplifting Major key feel.

➌ Jazz Blues (F)

Here’s a slow jazzy-blues in one of the more highly favoured keys of jazz musicians - F. You can mix between F Major Pentatonic (F-G-A-C-D) - same five notes as D Minor Pentatonic - and F Minor Pentatonic (F-Ab -Bb -C-Eb ) to great effect on this standard jazz-blues progression.

➍ Sweet Groove Blues - E Minor

We finish with a fun groove blues in E Minor, where you can use E Minor Pentatonic (E-G-A-B-D) to sound more SRV or Clapton, and E Minor scale (E-F#-G-A-B-C-D) which is more appropriate to Gary Moore or Peter Green. E Harmonic Minor scale (E-F#-GA-B-C-D#) sounds great too.

Visit www.Quistorama.com/ jamtracks and subscribe to www. youtube.com/QuistTV for more jam tracks. Quist’s new album Garden Grooves is out soon and you can find him on Spotify and Instagram, as well as Patreon for his full library of tabs & lessons.

PHIL HILBORNE’S ONE-MINUTE LICK Natural Harmonics Rock Lick

This month’s lick is a phrase comprising only natural harmonics. Obvious influences for this type of idea would be Eddie Van Halen (bars 1-2) and Jeff Beck (bars 3-4). You will need to be super-accurate with your fretting-hand finger placement and always aim to touch the indicated ‘node points’ by gently resting, then quickly releasing your finger(s) immediately after each pick stroke. You also need to let the notes ring into each other – but not too much so that it sounds messy. Muting can help with this aspect. I have given a suggested picking stroke order - this is how I play it - but feel free to change this to suit. Some sweep picking would also be feasible here - so do experiment! The chord names are given to indicate the relationship between the harmonic notes and the bass line. On the demo track I only played ‘5’ chords throughout. Lastly, it’s wise to experiment with whereabouts on any given string you are picking. This especially applies to the closing E7 arpeggio that's played on the sixth string. The highest notes come out best when the pick is positioned closer to the sting saddles. This shorter string length behind the pick can really make the harmonics sing out.