All Posts by Jonathan Boettcher

2 Melodic Runs + Harmonic Twists in the Key of E (Lesson 3)

2 Vertical Riff Trick with a Solo in E Major (Lesson 4)

Ready to add some serious flavor to your riffs? In this lesson, Colin shows you a slick vertical riff trick in E major — then takes it a step further by shifting the melody across strings, mixing in harmonic intervals, and capping it all off with a short but powerful solo. This one’s all about getting that full, rich sound that makes your playing stand out.

Unlock the Full Drone Riffs Course

Key Takeaways:

In this lesson, Colin takes you deeper into vertical riff tricks:

• Shifting melody lines across the B and G strings for richer phrasing
• Mixing melodic and harmonic intervals to create full, ringing riffs
• Building and playing a 4–bar solo in E major using these techniques
• How to practice seamlessly with the included jam track

This isn’t just a “play it once and forget it” lick — it’s a technique you can integrate into your solos and riffs right away.

🎸Practice Resources For This Lesson 🎸

Jam Track — Play Along Now

Solo Tab:

Go Deeper: Unlock the Drone Riffs System

What you just learned is one piece of a much bigger puzzle. Hendrix and Van Halen didn’t just play single notes — they used drone techniques to make one guitar sound impossibly full.

That’s what the Drone Riffs Course (The Guitar Player’s Bag of Riff Tricks) is all about. The vertical trick you just learned is just the beginning — in the full course, you’ll discover how pros like Hendrix, Van Halen, and Petty expanded this into their signature sounds.

Inside, you’ll discover:

• The Van Halen “Double Guitar” Effect — how he layered sound on Ain’t Talkin’ ’Bout Love
• Hendrix’s Voodoo Child Secrets — the drone patterns that made his solos legendary
• The “Raised 6th” Transformation — Tom Petty’s mysterious minor-scale twist
• Cross-Key Soloing — a pro move that adds instant color (most players never learn it)

This isn’t theory for theory’s sake. It’s 2+ hours of practical methods with jam tracks and tab that make your solos sound professional right away.

Unlock the Full Drone Riffs Course

0 Start Soloing (4/7) – More Riffs

In this series, we’re going to learn about creating solos. In part 1, we covered the progression for Ain’t No Sunshine that we’re working with. In part 2, we started working with two different scale patterns over the jam track. In part 3 we learned three very generic, usable riffs that you can twist in many, many different directions.

In this lesson, we’re going to add some more riffs to keep building our repertoire!

0 Soloing Application: Stir It Up

In this lesson we’re going to learn an eight-bar solo for the song Stir It Up. Here’s the jam track. The progression is eight bars long, and looks like this:

A | A | D | E
A | A | D | E

Because we’re in the key of A major, we’ll be soloing in the relative minor which is F# minor. We’ll be using all those great scales you’ve learned in previous lessons; the pentatonic minor, the diatonic minor, and the three position climb.

Here’s the tab for the riffs we’ll be learning – each bar contains a separate riff:

0 Start Soloing (3/7) – The Riffs

In this series, we’re going to learn about creating solos. In part 1, we covered the progression for Ain’t No Sunshine that we’re working with. In part 2, we started working with two different scale patterns over the jam track.

In this lesson, we’re going to learn three riffs which come out of the scales we’re working with, which we’ll begin to use as a basis for our improvising.

2 Start Soloing (2/7) – The Scales

In this series, we’re going to learn about creating solos. In part 1, we covered the progression for Ain’t No Sunshine that we’re working with. In this one, we’re looking at the scales we’ll be using over that progression. If you’ve been following the School lessons in order, you should already be familiar with the scales presented in this lesson. We’re using the pentatonic minor, and the three position climb. If these patterns are totally fresh to you, it would be best if you go back and review those previous lessons first.

These scale patterns provide the notes you need to improvise a solo! So the first step is to become really comfortable using just the scale in the context of the jam track – listen to yourself as you play and take note of how each note sounds with the track.

0 Start Soloing (1/7) – The Progression

In this series, we’re going to learn about creating solos. We’re going to start by learning the progression we’ll be working with. It’s inspired by Ain’t No Sunshine. Before we even get to the main course of this series (improvising a solo), it’s great practice to first play rhythm along with the jam track until you get very comfortable with it. Try playing the chords in different positions, work with it a bit until the progression feels very comfortable. You’ll find this really pays off when it comes time to solo over it.

The first part of the progression is two bars, and goes like this:

Am       Em   G  | Am

The second part goes like this:

Em7   |   Dm7

6 Under The Boardwalk: Progression

In this lesson we're going to look at the chord progression and strum pattern for Under The Boardwalk, by the Drifters. If you're looking for a fun song to play for your friends and have them sing along, this is a great choice.

For more songs like this, checkout Easy Strum Classics.

Verse chords:

Chorus chords:

Strum pattern:

3 Under The Boardwalk: Bass Line Riff

In this lesson we're going to look at the bass line riff for Under The Boardwalk, by the Drifters. (In case you missed the first lesson, you might want to check that one out first). You can use this for a cool intro if you want, or extend it further and use it for a whole verse too. The riffs are below - note that they are not arranged how you would play them in the song, but rather, show the riff for each chord change. You can put them into the arrangement yourself, quite easily.

For classic songs like this, checkout Easy Strum Classics.

2 Diatonic Minor Root 5 Scale (1 position, closed)

This is the second lesson covering different variations around playing in this position of the fretboard. Checkout part 1 on the pentatonic first.

We’re in C major / A minor.

Here’s the Root 5 Diatonic Minor Scale / Aeolian tab:

And if you want to add in the extra three notes on the 6th string (and who doesn’t?), you’ll need this:

3 Pentatonic Minor Root 5 Scale (1 position, closed)

The best way to learn the fretboard is one chunk at a time, until you’ve got enough to cover everything, and then you begin integrating things. In this lesson, we’re going to learn the final chunk that we need to effectively cover the entire fretboard. This is the pentatonic minor scale, root 5, 1 position closed scale. Phew! That’s a mouthful. But when you see the lesson, you’ll discover it’s just a functional name that describes what it is. Some folks call it Aeolian, and depending where your starting point is, Phrygian.

We’re in C major / A minor.

Here’s the Root 5 Pentatonic Minor Scale / Aeolian tab:

And if you want to add in the extra three notes on the 6th string (and who doesn’t?), you’ll need this:

When you’ve finished this lesson, move on to part two, and add a couple more notes to make this same pattern diatonic.

0 Soloing Application: Waiting on the World to Change (2/2)

This is the second in a two-part series where we’re learning an eight-bar solo you can play over John Mayer’s tune Waiting on the World to Change. You can download the jam track here. It’s in the key of B minor, and the progression is a pretty simple one, it’s four bars and has these changes:
D   Bm |  G   D
A   Bm |  G   D

In case you missed it, you can find part 1 here.

Here’s the tab we’ll be working with:

Riff 1:

Riff 2:

Riff 3:

Riff 4:

Riff 5:

Riff 6:

0 Soloing Application: Waiting on the World to Change (1/2)

In this two-part series we’re going to learn a solo you can play over John Mayer’s tune Waiting on the World to Change. You can download a copy of the jam track here. It’s in the key of B minor, and the progression is a pretty simple one, it’s four bars and has these changes:
D   Bm |  G   D
A   Bm |  G   D

When you’re finished this lesson, checkout part 2.

Here’s the tab we’ll be working with:

Riff 1:

Riff 2:

0 Applied Strumming 4: Triplets

This is the third in a series of lessons that all tie together, spanning several different skill categories. In this one we’re looking at applying a triplet strum pattern to a jam track which is based off a traditional 12 bar in E. Don’t forget to download a copy of the jam track used in this lesson.

Jam Track
(Right click the links below and save to your computer)

• 12 Bar in E

The Rest of the Series:

1. Quarters and Eighths
2. Adding 16ths
3. Dotted 8ths
4. Triplets

0 Applied Strumming 3: Dotted 8th

This is the third in a series of lessons that all tie together, spanning several different skill categories. In this one we’re looking at applying a dotted 8th strum pattern to a jam track which is based off the progression for Simple Man. Don’t forget to download a copy of the jam track used in this lesson.

The progression is a very simple one:  C   G   Am

Jam Track
(Right click the links below and save to your computer)

• Simple Man

The Rest of the Series:

1. Quarters and Eighths
2. Adding 16ths
3. Dotted 8ths
4. Triplets

5 Looking Out My Backdoor: Part 1

In this lesson we're going to look at the chord progression and strum pattern for Looking Out My Backdoor, by CCR. This uses familiar chords, and a cool muted strum pattern that you'll be able to apply to other songs as well.

For more songs like this, checkout Easy Strum Classics.

Verse chords:

Chorus chords:

1 Looking Out My Backdoor: Part 2

This is the second part to our series on Looking Out My Backdoor, by CCR. This uses familiar chords, and a cool muted strum pattern that you'll be able to apply to other songs as well. In this one, we cover the key change, the change in tempo, and general arrangement.

For more songs like this, checkout Easy Strum Classics.

Key Change/Instrumental:

Verse 2:

2nd Half of Verse 2, Slowed Down:

0 Applied Strumming 2: Adding 16ths

This is the second in a series of lessons that will all tie together, spanning several different skill categories. Don’t forget to download a copy of the jam track used in this lesson.

In this lesson, we’ll be working with a chord progression from Don’t Think Twice – here are the changes in a very simple format:

Jam Track
(Right click the links below and save to your computer)

• Don’t Think Twice

The Rest of the Series:

1. Quarters and Eighths
2. Adding 16ths
3. Dotted 8ths
4. Triplets

2 Applied Strumming 1: Quarters & Eighths

This is the first of a series of lessons that will all tie together, spanning several different skill categories. Being the first in the series, this lesson is aimed at beginner strummers. We’re going to be working with a few different progressions with the goal of helping you dial in your strumming to the beat of the song. To help this, we have a couple of simple jam tracks available at the bottom of this page.

In this lesson, we’ll be working with two chord progressions – here are the changes in a very simple format:

Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door: G / D / Am / G / D / C

With or Without You: D / A / Bm / G

Jam Tracks
(Right click the links below and save to your computer)

• Knocking on Heaven’s Door
• With or Without You

The Rest of the Series:

1. Quarters and Eighths
2. Adding 16ths
3. Dotted 8ths
4. Triplets

3 Lesson 2: Nail the Shuffle Feel That Makes Blues Swing

0 Lesson 3: Add Flavor to Your Blues — Make the Riff Your Own

0 Lesson 4: Break Out of the Box — Move Your Blues Up the Neck

4 Lesson 5: Final Touches — Bring It All Together With Confidence

1 Circle of Fifths: Using Sharps

In this pair of lessons, we’ll look at using the circle of fifths with sharp keys and flat keys.

While you’re in the area, topically speaking, why not checkout using the circle to create chord progressions as well?

0 Circle of Fifths: Using Flats

In this pair of lessons, we’ll look at using the circle of fifths with sharp keys and flat keys.

While you’re in the area, topically speaking, why not checkout using the circle to create chord progressions as well?

5 5 Keys Quick Reference Cheat Sheet

0 Introduction to Fingerpicking (3/3)

In this lesson we’ll learn some more finger picking patterns that you’ll find commonly used in many different songs.

This is the third is a series of three lessons. If you missed them, revisit Lesson 1 and Lesson 2.

1 Introduction to Fingerpicking (2/3)

In this lesson we’ll learn some more finger picking patterns that you’ll find commonly used in many different songs.

If you missed the first lesson, you can catch up here.

If you’ve completed this one, you’ll find the next one here.

5 Introduction to Fingerpicking (1/3)

Have you ever wondered why Colin has those crazy finger nails? In this lesson you’ll find out all about his reasons for that, as well as different routes you can take when it comes to finger picking. We’ll also cover a few basic patterns to get you started.

When you’re done this lesson, you’ll find the next one here.

4 Using The Circle of Fifths In A Chord Progression

In this lesson we’re going to look at a famous chord progression – Hey Joe – that uses the circle of fifths right in the progression. It’s a fun, powerful, and commonly used technique for building chord progressions, and definitely one you want to understand. Using fifths is a great way to change keys too.