Great to see you here and equally great to actually see a Canadian made Larivee guitar in a video! Cool and thank from an Ontarioan who has 2 Normans and a Simon and Patrick.
Celtic guitar also utilises a lot of open strings when playing and soloing, it works really well for the instrument. It also suits more melodic solos in my opinion. Prime example being Lindsay Buckingham's live solo s on the Fleetwood Mac song Landslide.
Anyone here heard Clapton’s Unplugged? It’s the perfect counter-example of the video’s title. (edit: or Al di Meola / Paco de Lucia / John Mclaughlin's Guitar Trio album... and so many others...)
That could make a great follow up video. What did Clapton do that made that performance one of the best acoustic sets ever? How did he translate his electric playing to acoustic?
I think you are absolutely bang on. The unplugged album encouraged me to play solos and riffs more. Not that I would in any way compare my playing to these guys but anyone that says they hate acoustic solos is just talking nonsense.
I recently saw Al di Meola live. Worst show I have endured in my life, the piezo sound of an acoustic guitar doesn't really suit his music, in my opinion. Enduring it for almost two hours straight gave me a massive headache. Don't get me wrong, he's a musical prodigy and a genius, but the sound of an acoustic guitar, with all those transients jumping for your attention, I found listening to it for a prolonged period of time very unpleasant.
@@MashaT22I first listened to that album before I turned 10, the old love solo still blows me away. Personally? You want a solo to sound good on accoustic? Get rid of the pick, dig your fingers in, and pluck them outwardly... There's countless examples of ppl sounding good without doing that, but it sure as hell works for me
Lovely stuff, guys. Getting big Dave Rawlings vibes. Rhett: do a feature on Dave Rawlings! One of the only guitarists I've seen live who gets gasps during solos and rapturous applause every time he finishes one! That concept of creating a story out of your solo is huge, and, Dave is a master of it. Keep up the great work: big fan of you both. Awesome collab!
1000% an acoustic and electric are NOT the same, even hybrids! I like both, but being an old fart, I started in the early 70's with acoustics and while I love all the wonderful and creative sounds I can make with my electrics, I respect my acoustics for what they enhance in my ever going, never stop learning, guitar journey. Kudos to this video, respect the instrument you are playing!
Great jam session with soloing, clearly a lot of influences from Bluegrass and also Trad Irish and Scottish Folk tunes. As a Brit who loves Traditional Folk from various parts of the UK I can find a lot of inspiration from this. Cheers 🍻 chaps.
You guys need to get out more. Go to a Bluegrass festival where people are camping, walk around to the various camp jams and you will find that the per capita of awesome players within the Bluegrass audience is far and away higher than any other genre. The best pickers in the world come from Bluegrass and that's not an opinion. I had the good fortune of witnessing Billy Strings (William Apastol) at my local festivals here in west Michigan go from great to super stardom. Billy was by no means alone with his level of skill.
Profoundly grateful for this video. Please do more collabs. Lots of 'takeaways' especially for guitarists who play alone which I enjoy. In a sense create your own orchestra with the humble acoustic guitar. I have acquired an electric and acoustic - electric guitar but my affinity for my humble acoustic is so strong, inexplicable. Warm regards from Sunny South Africa
I heard a big click as I was watching this video and it was the sound of the lightbulb in my head coming on. Thank you for posting this! I have always hated soloing on acoustic and now I realize that my approach was all wrong. This is so simple, yet, I've never had somebody tell me this. Thanks, Guys!
Totally agree with Sammy G. Acoustic guitars and electric guitars are as different as pianos and organs are, maybe even more. They're different instruments. John Mayer's 2012 Performances EP has some great examples of acoustic guitar solos on it (that version of Queen of California comes to mind specifically). Individual note runs need help on acoustic guitars, 100%
Glad to see you drop that 2012 EP. Picked a part a couple of those songs earlier this year. Played mostly electric last year then hopped back to acoustic this year. Went from blues soloing to acoustic. That EP is brilliant. Shadow Days especially is so tactful. So many little diads and just playing through the scale in a tactful rhythmic way. Awesome stuff.
I've disovered that EP a few weeks back, actually, thank you spotify💪 I agree, when you compare actual album versions and EP acoustic stuff, it brings about a different, special feel. If any of you would like to discuss or maybe demonstrate how to play some of that stuff, I'd be thrilled to connect and chat! Take care!
I think of guys like Clapton and Gilmore and my memory comes back to solos I've seen and heard them play. They do it with finesse and grace. Sparsely often. Licks and stuff are short and concise and theres breathing room before the next phrase. (eg Wish you were here)
Cool! Glad you did this. I had this aha moment when I moved to Kentucky and sought out a jam. Someone starts something like Big Sciota. Then they each take 16 bar (NO MORE!) breaks improvising around the basic tune. They weren’t anything but everyday folk, maybe the occasional musician from Nashville, but just folks with good ears and hands. Watch some videos of these folks. Go to the local Bluegrass jam. There is a lot to learn. $20 sounds a bargain
I've always thought this was an interesting topic. I could never think of a good acoustic solo. Until that is, I heard old shoes (& picture postcards) by Tom Waits one day. Shep cooke plays an absolutely beautiful solo on acoustic guitar for that song, one of the best I've heard. I think that's the basis for a good solo on an acoustic, simple great feel, and not at all flashy
I Love Sammy G! So glad he was coming through and you guys got a good video together lol! Would love to see more collabs of you all! He should of came down for that Bike Festival to jam with Josh Scott lol!!
The best advice I ever got (especially for approaching a fiddle tune like Big Sciota that they were playing here, although it applies to breaks over vocal tunes here): Play the melody. Or at least play the bones of it. You can improvise and throw in hot licks, but ultimately you want the listener to be able to tell what tune you're playing over.
Love the video. Bending on acoustic presents challenges simply because of tuning issues. I used to play heavier guage acoustic strings for sustain but not necessarily good for bending. I like to listen and play eastern music on guitar. It's a good lesson in bending on acoustic, especially with microtonal music. I'm also thinking that some of the concepts here are more for playing in a group setting. If you are the lone instrument, the soloing approach would be different - just the dynamics alone. How would you approach that?
The acoustic solo near the end of The Past Recedes by John Frusciante is an example of a good acoustic solo imo, simple and not trying to mimic an electric guitar solo
Great video, and i dig watching you both quite a bit! Do have to agree there may be a bit of naivete, but I wonder have you guys started on electric? Im mostly totally an acoustic player and have my whole concept of soloing rought from acoustic. Funny thing is, i just got my first strat electric and leaning to solo electric now lol. Been a process for sure. You guys can for sure rip it on acoustic too! But yea, to add to this list of crazy acoustic players throw on that Tommy Emmanuel and Billy Strings vid and see that insanity.
Django played acoustic. Same originally with Freddie Green. And all of the early blues musicians. Also, check out Charlie Hunter playing acoustic. And Tommy Emmanuel! How could I forget him?
Loved this-well acoustic has a big advantage-you don't really need a band. I've been on both sides of the equation. No one is going to hear your subtle nuances over a band with a drummer. Even worse, banging on the strings is fine-if you are playing percussively. My opinion-playing with dynamics, between light and heavy picking-lets the tone of the instrument shine through. That said, self-accompaniment on guitar is not easy.
You talked about solos needing a direction and often players sound like they are just playing a bunch of notes. I often find these types of videos end up sounding like that because you are just 'playing in G' and are not playing an actual song. If you frame a solo by saying which song it is in, you can make it make more sense or give it more meaning. Is it a sad song or a happy one, can you base your phrasing around the phrasing of the lyrics etc? Generic/contextless licks come from generic/contextless playing.
Hey Rhett , did you see the video on Lee Sklars you tube channel, of Jerry Douglass and Tommy Emmanuel at Telluride...??? ...talk about mind-blowing acoustic guitar....
This is a stylistic things but.... I think a lot of people pick way too hard during acoustic solos as well - better to turn up the tracking compressor and guitar in the cue mix and pick more lightly!
Check out "Bridge Festival Eindhoven" on UA-cam with Tommy Emanuel and Mike Dawes for superlative solo acoustic guitars. Pro tip: work WITH the instrument and its capabilities, rather than against it (i.e. wishing it was electric).
Depends on the acoustic. I’ve got some guitars that ring for a long time. Of course they are high end hand made instruments. Not plywood factory slapped together things. But the thing about music is there are no absolutes. Sometimes a dead acoustic can sound really cool in context. Norman Blake uses dead strings and sounds massive with very little sustain. But the. You can hear Martin Simpson let his guitars ring out with harmonics over top of his work.
I have 3 Collings acoustics. I've played acoustic forever, and at one point took a break and only did acoustic for 17 years. I know the instrument. It's not electric. HOWEVER, I put 11s on one of the Collings (a mahogany and German SJ) and I play it quite freely and it doesn't fight me. Sure, some guitaristic genre stuff, but also pianistically. Few limits. It's just not a Les Paul.
The problem with acoustics is they don't have adjustable saddles, quite often the action is high, frets are not levelled, crowned and polished, nut slots are too high. But an acoustic guitar that is set up professionally or by an amateur with a lot of professional tools. Shouldn't perform much differently than an electric guitar. Give an acoustic a nice fret level job with fall off after the 14th fret, plug and recut the bridge saddle slot to where it is in perfect intonation and lower it and the nuts slots to where it plays and feels like an electric guitar. Then you do a nice solo. You're not really going to be able tell the difference from any other guitar.
It’s not a coincidence the SG is using the solo from the Big Sciota as an example. The solos in Bluegrass songs nearly always use open strings to keep things ringing. The great Bluegrass players rip off solos that are just beautiful. Stay relaxed and fluid and the notes sound like butter.
0:24 he says solos on a acoustic guitar sounds SORTA “ PLINKY “ ? Damn have you heard Mr Billy Strings or Molly Tuttle ? There isn’t one note these players that sound plinky what so ever , as a flat top player myself wishing I could play just 1/2 as good as Billy or Molly acoustic solos are 2wice as hard as electric ,not just because of the string gauge or neck size either !
Well, someone discovered acoustic guitar is not just a guitar, but sounds as and must be played differently. If all guitarists learned basic classical guitar first, then acoustic the electric they would know all this. ❤ 🎉
I mean, for an american perspective it makes sense. He's basically talking about country-folk-bluegrass guitar, and in that context these principles are true.
David Rawlings is the master of acoustic soloing. Electric soloing technique doesn’t translate very well to acoustic but conversely acoustic soloing techniques work extremely well when applied to electric and are a great way to get out of your personal box and offer more to the listener.
Thank you. I love these guys but this video is embarrassingly naive. They obviously have little familiarity with bluegrass guitar. They should put Tony Rice in their playlist.
@@WillyPDX94 i've recently dived into the bluegrass rabbithole after recently buying an acoustic guitar. I hadn't heard of a lot of the artists in the bluegrass genre. It's unfortunately not a widely known genre. It's a shame because a lot of what i've seen so far has been amazing.
Thank you. Tony Rice. Bryan Sutton. Tommy Emmanuel, Glen Campbell, Paco de Lucia, John McGlothlin, Jerry Reed and on and on and on. But Tony Rice. Yes.
Surprisingly, and I mean this because one would figure Rhett as such an accomplished player would undersrand this, the problem here is poor technique. Electric and acoustic guitars are different and need to be approached differently. Rhett's flat picking just isn't very good. Tell me that Bruce Cockburn can't solo well on an acoustic guitar. Of course he can. His fingers are gold.
Clapton Unplugged is a master class in acoustic soloing (slide/nylon/steel). It’s all there, melodic, soulful and serves the song/performance. Tim Reynolds work on Dave Matthews Live at Luther College is also incredible.
One of the biggest takeaways from this video for me is about not resting your forearm on the guitar and holding the body of the guitar away from your body to allow it to resonate. Wow, that is a huge tip. Been playing acoustic since I was 8 and I am 54 this year and it never dawned on me. I've always been looking to get better acoustic tone. Wow, thank you Rhrett & Steve. Great video!
@goswo I think for the average player the answer is somewhere in the middle, finding the sweet spot between having firm control of the guitar and getting maximum resonance. Occasionally when I want to practice nylon guitar in a more classical manner, I'll have the guitar tilted fairly high and rest the guitar body on my sternum, but otherwise putting only enough forearm pressure to feel comfortable. It's crazy what kind of feedback you can get from the resonance like this.
@@icoz7Shallower body depth guitars that still project a comparatively big acoustic sound CAN be found, and mitigate this physical comfort issue a great deal.
0:28 main reason for the "plinky" sound is the right hand technique. If you want more "body" and attack it's worth to practice "rest stroke" technique, very often used in gypsy jazz. A friend of mine showed me the difference it makes in sound, and it was almost like he was playing a different instrument. Joscho Stephan is one of the greatest in that realm.
Yes. But also no. His methods are a whole different breed of play stylings. Separate him from this the same way you would a classical or flamenco guitarist. This applies to the generic guitarist using a guitar pick.
One thing that I find key to soloing on an acoustic is landing phrases on the beat. You can noodle around more freely on an electric, but for an acoustic where you don't have that kind of volume and sustain, it helps to have the support of the rhythm section especially when you hit a first or last note of a phrase. (It's pretty good on electric solos, too.)
A solo done right on an acoustic is the most beautiful thing ever. So unforgiving.
Wish You Were Here comes to mind
Django Reinhardt comes to my mind. And Paco de Lucia
Nutshell AiC MTV Unplugged
@@Thomas-xs2kqJerry Reed!
Not really. lectric guitar solos would still destroy that and knock it off the park. Acoustic guitar is a much inferior instrument to electric guitar.
Thanks for the hang, good luck to all those looking to learn how to not hate soloing on acoustic!
Great to see you here and equally great to actually see a Canadian made Larivee guitar in a video! Cool and thank from an Ontarioan who has 2 Normans and a Simon and Patrick.
backhanded compliment, i'm not the biggest fan of your channel, but this was a great little video and i'm clearly mistaken.
@samuraiguitarist I think you may just be becoming a bluegrass nerd! I recognize that Big Sciotia in the intermission breaks 😃
Good job Steve! LoL
Great tips
Celtic guitar also utilises a lot of open strings when playing and soloing, it works really well for the instrument. It also suits more melodic solos in my opinion. Prime example being Lindsay Buckingham's live solo s on the Fleetwood Mac song Landslide.
Also check out some of the traditional Irish fiddle tunes John Doyle plays on guitar.
Anyone here heard Clapton’s Unplugged? It’s the perfect counter-example of the video’s title. (edit: or Al di Meola / Paco de Lucia / John Mclaughlin's Guitar Trio album... and so many others...)
That could make a great follow up video. What did Clapton do that made that performance one of the best acoustic sets ever? How did he translate his electric playing to acoustic?
I think you are absolutely bang on. The unplugged album encouraged me to play solos and riffs more. Not that I would in any way compare my playing to these guys but anyone that says they hate acoustic solos is just talking nonsense.
I recently saw Al di Meola live. Worst show I have endured in my life, the piezo sound of an acoustic guitar doesn't really suit his music, in my opinion. Enduring it for almost two hours straight gave me a massive headache. Don't get me wrong, he's a musical prodigy and a genius, but the sound of an acoustic guitar, with all those transients jumping for your attention, I found listening to it for a prolonged period of time very unpleasant.
@@MashaT22I first listened to that album before I turned 10, the old love solo still blows me away. Personally? You want a solo to sound good on accoustic? Get rid of the pick, dig your fingers in, and pluck them outwardly... There's countless examples of ppl sounding good without doing that, but it sure as hell works for me
the di Meola / de Lucia /McLaughlin trio album was, and is, magic and majesty ! Highest level of artistry and skill on acoustic guitar.
Lovely stuff, guys. Getting big Dave Rawlings vibes. Rhett: do a feature on Dave Rawlings! One of the only guitarists I've seen live who gets gasps during solos and rapturous applause every time he finishes one! That concept of creating a story out of your solo is huge, and, Dave is a master of it. Keep up the great work: big fan of you both. Awesome collab!
"What is this, a crossover episode?"
Cool to see 2 channels I like collaborating
1000% an acoustic and electric are NOT the same, even hybrids! I like both, but being an old fart, I started in the early 70's with acoustics and while I love all the wonderful and creative sounds I can make with my electrics, I respect my acoustics for what they enhance in my ever going, never stop learning, guitar journey. Kudos to this video, respect the instrument you are playing!
Great jam session with soloing, clearly a lot of influences from Bluegrass and also Trad Irish and Scottish Folk tunes.
As a Brit who loves Traditional Folk from various parts of the UK I can find a lot of inspiration from this.
Cheers 🍻 chaps.
You guys need to get out more. Go to a Bluegrass festival where people are camping, walk around to the various camp jams and you will find that the per capita of awesome players within the Bluegrass audience is far and away higher than any other genre. The best pickers in the world come from Bluegrass and that's not an opinion. I had the good fortune of witnessing Billy Strings (William Apastol) at my local festivals here in west Michigan go from great to super stardom. Billy was by no means alone with his level of skill.
Profoundly grateful for this video. Please do more collabs. Lots of 'takeaways' especially for guitarists who play alone which I enjoy. In a sense create your own orchestra with the humble acoustic guitar. I have acquired an electric and acoustic - electric guitar but my affinity for my humble acoustic is so strong, inexplicable. Warm regards from Sunny South Africa
I heard a big click as I was watching this video and it was the sound of the lightbulb in my head coming on. Thank you for posting this! I have always hated soloing on acoustic and now I realize that my approach was all wrong. This is so simple, yet, I've never had somebody tell me this. Thanks, Guys!
Love Slash's acoustic soloing on Lies -bends and all!
Great video and info. This is where I am trying to improve and the journey continues.
Totally agree with Sammy G. Acoustic guitars and electric guitars are as different as pianos and organs are, maybe even more. They're different instruments.
John Mayer's 2012 Performances EP has some great examples of acoustic guitar solos on it (that version of Queen of California comes to mind specifically). Individual note runs need help on acoustic guitars, 100%
Glad to see you drop that 2012 EP. Picked a part a couple of those songs earlier this year. Played mostly electric last year then hopped back to acoustic this year. Went from blues soloing to acoustic. That EP is brilliant. Shadow Days especially is so tactful. So many little diads and just playing through the scale in a tactful rhythmic way. Awesome stuff.
I've disovered that EP a few weeks back, actually, thank you spotify💪
I agree, when you compare actual album versions and EP acoustic stuff, it brings about a different, special feel. If any of you would like to discuss or maybe demonstrate how to play some of that stuff, I'd be thrilled to connect and chat! Take care!
I think of guys like Clapton and Gilmore and my memory comes back to solos I've seen and heard them play. They do it with finesse and grace. Sparsely often. Licks and stuff are short and concise and theres breathing room before the next phrase. (eg Wish you were here)
Cool! Glad you did this. I had this aha moment when I moved to Kentucky and sought out a jam. Someone starts something like Big Sciota. Then they each take 16 bar (NO MORE!) breaks improvising around the basic tune. They weren’t anything but everyday folk, maybe the occasional musician from Nashville, but just folks with good ears and hands. Watch some videos of these folks. Go to the local Bluegrass jam. There is a lot to learn. $20 sounds a bargain
I've always thought this was an interesting topic. I could never think of a good acoustic solo. Until that is, I heard old shoes (& picture postcards) by Tom Waits one day. Shep cooke plays an absolutely beautiful solo on acoustic guitar for that song, one of the best I've heard. I think that's the basis for a good solo on an acoustic, simple great feel, and not at all flashy
John Mayer's Queen of California acoustic solo is a prime example of how to solo on an acoustic guitar. Same with his Something Like Olivia
I Love Sammy G! So glad he was coming through and you guys got a good video together lol! Would love to see more collabs of you all! He should of came down for that Bike Festival to jam with Josh Scott lol!!
Hi boys,
listen to Michael Hedges, Mike Dawes and Tommy Emanuel and it‘s like the sunrise, a phantastic world full of acoustic music!
Man, this is a great collaboration.
Just to be the next to be with you was pretty epic. Especially that low e pop!
Great advice here. It brings out the music in the acoustic guitar.
Max Willow fingerpicking a guitar is like listening to heaven as the clouds briefly part after a rain
You need a ToneWood amp! This will make soloing acoustic amazing!
The best advice I ever got (especially for approaching a fiddle tune like Big Sciota that they were playing here, although it applies to breaks over vocal tunes here): Play the melody. Or at least play the bones of it. You can improvise and throw in hot licks, but ultimately you want the listener to be able to tell what tune you're playing over.
Love the video.
Bending on acoustic presents challenges simply because of tuning issues. I used to play heavier guage acoustic strings for sustain but not necessarily good for bending. I like to listen and play eastern music on guitar. It's a good lesson in bending on acoustic, especially with microtonal music.
I'm also thinking that some of the concepts here are more for playing in a group setting. If you are the lone instrument, the soloing approach would be different - just the dynamics alone. How would you approach that?
So Rhett, seriously, what wood is that top made out of? It has those beautiful flecks in the grain, almost like a figured top. Absolutely gorgeous!!
Listen to more bluegrass fellers, these runs utilizing open strings are called floating licks.
8:40 Sammy G's real name is Steve?!
Yes. ‘Sammy G’ is just short for his channel name.
Don’t know if ToneGard got mentioned but for mandolin and guitar it helps avoid damping. Also did crosspicking get mentioned?
Good segment.
Dean Deleo on "It wasnt supposed to happen" is brilliant.
The acoustic solo near the end of The Past Recedes by John Frusciante is an example of a good acoustic solo imo, simple and not trying to mimic an electric guitar solo
Dicky Betts and warren on sweet Melissa unplugged great example
dope pants samurai!
Whats that 2" 24track in the background....where have u been recording this clip?
Great video, and i dig watching you both quite a bit! Do have to agree there may be a bit of naivete, but I wonder have you guys started on electric? Im mostly totally an acoustic player and have my whole concept of soloing rought from acoustic. Funny thing is, i just got my first strat electric and leaning to solo electric now lol. Been a process for sure. You guys can for sure rip it on acoustic too! But yea, to add to this list of crazy acoustic players throw on that Tommy Emmanuel and Billy Strings vid and see that insanity.
Nice tips here. I do like the sound of a piezo pickup acoustic solo
Hey that was great man, thanks!
So….bluegrass
Yep
It turns out those hillbillies knew a thing or two.
Who’d have thought?
Django played acoustic. Same originally with Freddie Green. And all of the early blues musicians. Also, check out Charlie Hunter playing acoustic. And Tommy Emmanuel! How could I forget him?
You guys could do more collaboration videos, awesome…
Loved this-well acoustic has a big advantage-you don't really need a band. I've been on both sides of the equation. No one is going to hear your subtle nuances over a band with a drummer. Even worse, banging on the strings is fine-if you are playing percussively. My opinion-playing with dynamics, between light and heavy picking-lets the tone of the instrument shine through. That said, self-accompaniment on guitar is not easy.
That eastman sounds good
I kept saying "Bluegrass!!" and then they whip out Big Sciota right at the start. Love to see it
09:54 and 10:06 - little moments of delicious magic.
Kenneth Pattongale is a stone master... (along with David Rawlings)!!
You talked about solos needing a direction and often players sound like they are just playing a bunch of notes. I often find these types of videos end up sounding like that because you are just 'playing in G' and are not playing an actual song. If you frame a solo by saying which song it is in, you can make it make more sense or give it more meaning. Is it a sad song or a happy one, can you base your phrasing around the phrasing of the lyrics etc? Generic/contextless licks come from generic/contextless playing.
I was just going to say "listen to Tony Rice" but this video works too
0:24 you mean "I kinda hate soloing on an acoustic because I cant hide my mistakes with a distortion/OD pedal". lol
Two words for all you guys,
Tony Rice.
Listen to some of his work, and THATS how it’s done! Hope this helps.
I would prescribe a heavy dose of gypsy jazz.
Love and luck.
Samurai been watching a lot of Jason Isbell
Bro, any reason, why you dont like a cutaway acoustic guitar ?
Most guitars i see you play is without cutaway.
I just don’t like the look of
@@RhettShull oh Okay, thanks bro for sharing 😊
I like that banjo killer!
Tommy Emmanuel is master at this! thanks for this video!
Hey Rhett , did you see the video on Lee Sklars you tube channel,
of Jerry Douglass and Tommy Emmanuel at Telluride...???
...talk about mind-blowing acoustic guitar....
Love it 😊
To Be With You by Mr. Big
This is a stylistic things but.... I think a lot of people pick way too hard during acoustic solos as well - better to turn up the tracking compressor and guitar in the cue mix and pick more lightly!
BLUEGRASS MASTER RACE!!!!!
Check out "Bridge Festival Eindhoven" on UA-cam with Tommy Emanuel and Mike Dawes for superlative solo acoustic guitars. Pro tip: work WITH the instrument and its capabilities, rather than against it (i.e. wishing it was electric).
Your guitars sound great. Q: Are the sdc's Earthworks?
They are! SR25’s they’re really good
Interesting to see the title to this video has been edited.
How to solo on an acoustic guitar......
Billy Strings: Hold my beer.
I SWEAR I saw him somewhere but I was like nahhhh im in ATL like no way why would he even be here
Funny, there is a Canadian who looks just like “Steve“ and he is an amazing guitar player, electric and acoustic. 😂
Love ya Rhett, but this doesn’t fly. Have you ever heard of Tony Rice just to name one.
Yeah SammyG!!!!
you owe the entire jazz community an apology for this
Days Of The New. Nobody ever mentions them. The platipus of bands
The problem is that your note dies instantly. Like, there's no sustain by definition
Depends on the acoustic. I’ve got some guitars that ring for a long time. Of course they are high end hand made instruments. Not plywood factory slapped together things. But the thing about music is there are no absolutes. Sometimes a dead acoustic can sound really cool in context. Norman Blake uses dead strings and sounds massive with very little sustain. But the. You can hear Martin Simpson let his guitars ring out with harmonics over top of his work.
I have 3 Collings acoustics. I've played acoustic forever, and at one point took a break and only did acoustic for 17 years. I know the instrument. It's not electric. HOWEVER, I put 11s on one of the Collings (a mahogany and German SJ) and I play it quite freely and it doesn't fight me. Sure, some guitaristic genre stuff, but also pianistically. Few limits. It's just not a Les Paul.
Fucking great!
The problem with acoustics is they don't have adjustable saddles, quite often the action is high, frets are not levelled, crowned and polished, nut slots are too high. But an acoustic guitar that is set up professionally or by an amateur with a lot of professional tools. Shouldn't perform much differently than an electric guitar. Give an acoustic a nice fret level job with fall off after the 14th fret, plug and recut the bridge saddle slot to where it is in perfect intonation and lower it and the nuts slots to where it plays and feels like an electric guitar. Then you do a nice solo. You're not really going to be able tell the difference from any other guitar.
Acoustic solos : upper fret
Electric solos : lower fret
Some 8year old gypsys here in my house are laughing about your topic!!!!!
See Bill Nershi for acoustic soloing.
Try all of that in DADGAD.
“If the World” by Guns N Roses
“Ghost” by Buckethead
It’s not a coincidence the SG is using the solo from the Big Sciota as an example. The solos in Bluegrass songs nearly always use open strings to keep things ringing. The great Bluegrass players rip off solos that are just beautiful. Stay relaxed and fluid and the notes sound like butter.
Who is Steve? Brett called Sammy ... Steve at 8:47 lol
Saw Sammy G and had to watch immediately
0:24 he says solos on a acoustic guitar sounds SORTA “ PLINKY “ ? Damn have you heard Mr Billy Strings or Molly Tuttle ?
There isn’t one note these players that sound plinky what so ever , as a flat top player myself wishing I could play just 1/2 as good as
Billy or Molly acoustic solos are 2wice as hard as electric ,not just because of the string gauge or neck size either !
Well, someone discovered acoustic guitar is not just a guitar, but sounds as and must be played differently.
If all guitarists learned basic classical guitar first, then acoustic the electric they would know all this. ❤
🎉
In the end, we all inevitability evolve into old men picking Bluegrass with other old men in or around an RV
Bluegrass
Django is screaming from his grave
Aiee😂
Right? This was Rhett's worst video. Really highlighting that he only knows electric. "I almost never bend on acoustic" 😢😱
@@DoctorMandible I read an interview with Jimmy Page who said that he practices only on acoustic.
I mean, for an american perspective it makes sense. He's basically talking about country-folk-bluegrass guitar, and in that context these principles are true.
Lmao
David Rawlings is the master of acoustic soloing. Electric soloing technique doesn’t translate very well to acoustic but conversely acoustic soloing techniques work extremely well when applied to electric and are a great way to get out of your personal box and offer more to the listener.
Absolutely. He's one of my favourite guitarists, period. I love how he weaves notes in his solos. So tasteful!
Also... Kenneth Pattongale!
@@jellofarce yes!
It’s bluegrass music. Dem boys been doing this for years. Thanks for bringing it up guys.
Exactly!
Thank you. I love these guys but this video is embarrassingly naive. They obviously have little familiarity with bluegrass guitar. They should put Tony Rice in their playlist.
That’s what I was thinking.
@@WillyPDX94 i've recently dived into the bluegrass rabbithole after recently buying an acoustic guitar. I hadn't heard of a lot of the artists in the bluegrass genre. It's unfortunately not a widely known genre. It's a shame because a lot of what i've seen so far has been amazing.
Brian Sutton!!!
Tony Rice: Backwaters...the entire album. You can definitely solo with authority on an acoustic guitar.,
Thank you. Tony Rice. Bryan Sutton. Tommy Emmanuel, Glen Campbell, Paco de Lucia, John McGlothlin, Jerry Reed and on and on and on. But Tony Rice. Yes.
@@garywhitt98 The list can go on quite a ways...
Yes. And of course Clarence White’s work or Tony McManus. Right hand is even more important than with electric in my observation.
Surprisingly, and I mean this because one would figure Rhett as such an accomplished player would undersrand this, the problem here is poor technique. Electric and acoustic guitars are different and need to be approached differently. Rhett's flat picking just isn't very good. Tell me that Bruce Cockburn can't solo well on an acoustic guitar. Of course he can. His fingers are gold.
Clapton Unplugged is a master class in acoustic soloing (slide/nylon/steel). It’s all there, melodic, soulful and serves the song/performance. Tim Reynolds work on Dave Matthews Live at Luther College is also incredible.
One of the biggest takeaways from this video for me is about not resting your forearm on the guitar and holding the body of the guitar away from your body to allow it to resonate. Wow, that is a huge tip. Been playing acoustic since I was 8 and I am 54 this year and it never dawned on me. I've always been looking to get better acoustic tone. Wow, thank you Rhrett & Steve. Great video!
It blew my mind when I learned it too
Other, really amazing, acoustic players, will argue that its all about getting a good rest 😀😀
@goswo I think for the average player the answer is somewhere in the middle, finding the sweet spot between having firm control of the guitar and getting maximum resonance.
Occasionally when I want to practice nylon guitar in a more classical manner, I'll have the guitar tilted fairly high and rest the guitar body on my sternum, but otherwise putting only enough forearm pressure to feel comfortable. It's crazy what kind of feedback you can get from the resonance like this.
How can it work with a dread and playing while standing?
@@icoz7Shallower body depth guitars that still project a comparatively big acoustic sound CAN be found, and mitigate this physical comfort issue a great deal.
0:28 main reason for the "plinky" sound is the right hand technique. If you want more "body" and attack it's worth to practice "rest stroke" technique, very often used in gypsy jazz. A friend of mine showed me the difference it makes in sound, and it was almost like he was playing a different instrument. Joscho Stephan is one of the greatest in that realm.
I agree 100 per cent….rest strokes help a lot to get a full sound.
Thanks for the info! 🙏
Check out Duved Dunayevsky for one of the most authentic "early Django" style players of today.
I was like, "Wow, is that samuraiguitarist?" It is!
Me too! I was like the Samurai and Rhett, seems like a super team to me! Well done gentlemen!
Honestly I love the combination of SammyG and Rhett haha
Leo Kottke...nuff said
Justin Johnson does it pretty good.
Yes. But also no. His methods are a whole different breed of play stylings. Separate him from this the same way you would a classical or flamenco guitarist. This applies to the generic guitarist using a guitar pick.
Not saying he can’t flatpick, but its not his usual style and he follows these thought processes when he does.
One thing that I find key to soloing on an acoustic is landing phrases on the beat. You can noodle around more freely on an electric, but for an acoustic where you don't have that kind of volume and sustain, it helps to have the support of the rhythm section especially when you hit a first or last note of a phrase. (It's pretty good on electric solos, too.)
Billy mf Strings