ABILITY RATING Moderate/Advanced Info https://bit.ly/45aYTTj Will improve your… Blues-rock techniques Key E and C Tempo Freetime Finger vibrato Classic blues vocabulary
In this feature we welcome blues-rock master Philip Sayce. Philip has recorded nine albums as a band leader and has worked with many top artists including Jeff Healey and Jimmy Barnes. In the video Philip demonstrates all of his licks in free time with no backing track or click used. So we have opted for a 4/4 time signature with all the rhythms being as simple as possible to follow, in an easy-touse approximation of what’s implied.
In the video performance Philip is in Eb tuning so all the strings are de-tuned by a semitone (Eb-Ab-Db-Gb-Bb-Eb). However, to keep things simple we have notated the tab fingerings as they appear in the video and the notation is in regular concert pitch. If you tune your guitar down a semitone and play along with the tab and notation everything will marry up like magic.
Licks 1, 2 and 6 are based around the E7 chord and combine the Major Pentatonic (E-F#-G#-B-C#) and E Minor Pentatonic scales (E-G-A-B-D) with some colour tones added here and there. As the licks are performed without a backing there is no specific harmonic context, so we have used the E Major key signature for the E7 type examples and C Major for the examples rooted around C. It’s worth noting it’s common practice in the world of blues and rock to mix the Major and Minor Pentatonic scales over a Dominant 7 chord.
Throughout his licks Philip demonstrates the use of several common blues-rock guitar techniques including string bending, finger slides and heavy finger vibrato.
The main influences at play here are Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Philip references these two players as we go. In true Hendrix style Philip often uses the thumb of his fretting hand to play the notes on the sixth string. This frees up the fingers of the fretting hand to play notes and chords that would usually be quite awkward.
Philip’s phrases are tasteful and well chosen and come from a well-tested framework of Major and Minor Pentatonic fingerings. All of the licks are played with the plectrum, but the picking fingers are often also included. If you are new to this concept of ‘hybrid picking’ it is well worth trying, as the fingers provide extra facility when plying licks that involve crossing strings.
The notation contains all of the articulations and phrasing from Philip’s video performance, so we’d recommend taking a close look at the way he fingers and picks the phrases.
Remember Philip is tuned down a semitone. If you are playing along in concert pitch this can get a little confusing, so tune down a semitone if you can. The Eb tuning also reduces string tension and makes those big bends a little easier to manage. Good luck with these licks
