Rhythms & Riffs of Early Rock & Roll Guitar - RiffNinja.com

Finally - A Step By Step Guide Revealing The Secret of Combining Rhythm & Lead Guitar

THIS Is the Key To Sounding AMAZING

Picture this – you’re at a family gathering of some kind, everyone is having a good time, having just freshly stuffed their bellies.

Old Uncle Jim is sitting over in the corner, slowly shifting his gaze between you, and an old beat up guitar in the corner of the room. You’re trying to avoid his attention, but soon enough Uncle Jim breaks into the conversation.

“Hey you! Don’t you know how to play guitar? Why don’tcha play us all a little music?”

The guitar in the corner is a real piece of work – the strings are probably dead, and you don’t know how well it plays… but the real question is:

What would I even play for them???

The Challenge Of A Single Guitar Player Entertainer

As a single guitar player, you’re pretty limited in what you can do. Let’s face it, you could be the best rock soloist in the world, but without a band to back you up, it’s all going to fall totally flat. Or, you might be a rock solid strummer, but who wants to listen to you go through a G C D Em progression six to eight times? If you sing, that can help a lot, but now like it or not, your voice has become the main event, carrying the melody, and the guitar is now a backup instrument. Plus, many guitar players can’t (or prefer not to!) sing.

So what’s the option?

Spice it up, that’s what! While rhythm on its own quickly becomes boring, and a lonely solo has no context, as soon as you add just a little bit of solo to a little bit of rhythm, and keep the ping pong ball bouncing back and forth between rhythm and riffs, you’ll find that your audience is ready to sit up and pay attention!

One of the most fun and popular ways of learning to do that is to begin learning the:

Rhythms & Riffs of Early Rock & Roll

My name is Colin Daniel, and as a guitar teacher with over 40 years of experience, I know that some kinds of music lend themselves to teaching certain skills a little better than others. Early rock & roll is filled with lots of great songs that have strong rhythm, but at the same time really leave things open for a single guitar player to be able to stretch his wings, so to speak.

That’s why I decided to put together the Rhythms & Riffs of Early Rock & Roll course. The entire purpose of this course is to teach a single guitar player to be able to play rhythms & riffs together, in one great-sounding guitar piece. To accomplish that, we’ll be using three very different rock ‘n roll songs, each chosen to add something new to what we’re learning, or to add a new style of playing into the mix.

If you want to start learning to play lead guitar, this is the place to start. You’ll learn some really classic, foundational riffs, how they come out of the scale, and how they fit into the rhythm picture. You’ll also develop your technique for switching between rhythm and lead. Many players have a really hard time switching from one to the other (rhythm to lead). Their perception of where the rhythm is at is off, or their timing is off, and this leads to confusion especially when trying to end off a riff and re-enter the rhythm. This course will address those issues head-on.

This course is my tip of the hat to early rock n roll, and you will find it absolutely loaded with the kinds of rhythms and riffs that permeate that style of music… I’m talking the kind of riffs that literally everybody who has ever played rock ‘n roll considers staple riffs. If you listen closely, you’ll hear these rhythms, and these riffs throughout the work of dozens of the biggest names of the last 60 years. 

To put it simply, if you want to play rock ‘n roll guitar, you must know these rhythms and these riffs, or you’ll be missing vital pieces!

What's Inside

The heart of the course revolves around three classic rock ‘n roll songs:

In Never Been to Spain by Three Dog Night, we’ll dig into those sweet sounding inverted third riffs that have been well loved by so many guitar players, from Van Morrison to Janis Joplin, from the Blues Brothers to Los Lonely Boys, from Motown to Van Halen… and don’t forget John Fogerty (CCR) or Elvis! This song is a good starting point, because the rhythm is nice and slow, offering lots of opportunities to learn how to begin sliding those riffs in between your chords. The riffs you’ll learn on this song are very similar to those found in Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison, in fact we’ll actually take a quick look at how to apply them to that song and roll Uncle Jim over in his armchair!

In No Particular Place To Go, by Chuck Berry, we dig into one of the most grooving songs of the era, and we’ll learn some of those classic Chuck Berry-style double stop riffs that got a whole generation jumping up and dancing. We’ll dig into the classic 12-bar format of chord progressions, as well as the shuffle-style boogie-woogie rhythms. For the riffs, we take a look at the call and answer style of playing a double-stop riff with a boogie-woogie pattern rhythm. This is classic 50’s rock ‘n roll folks! It’s what you need to get yourself going! You’ll find the riffs you learn in this section played by all kinds of artists, including (but not limited to!) the Georgia Satellites, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Dave Edmunds, Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley, Elvin Bishop, John Lee Hooker, Carl Perkins, and the Rolling Stones. They’re even used in country guitar like Dwight Yoakam’s country-billy style!

The Best Lesson I Ever Had

Uncle Bob wants to hear more... The Rhythms and Riffs of Early Rock and Roll is the best lesson I have ever had.

It hits me just were I am in my guitar journey and is exactly why I took up guitar in the first place.

I have no desire to start a band or play to anyone but friends and family. The lesson was at just the right pace and detail and made it easy and fun.

REALLY HOPE MORE LESSONS LIKE THIS ARE COMING IN THE FUTURE!!!!!

Bob Schultz Colorado, USA

In the last song, Let Me Love You Baby by Buddy Guy, we’ll learn how to use a rhythm riff as the main foundation of the song, as well as how to throw in some awesome sounding Buddy Guy-style double-stop and single note riffs. You’ll learn how to take a riff that one player has played, and change it up and make it your own. We’ll look at how some of these iconic riffs have traveled through many players hands, and how they changed just a little bit at each stop along the way. You’ll learn the riffs inside and out so that you can play them in many different rhythmic feels – including your sleep! You’ll learn how the riffs relate to the scale, so that you can transpose them into another key and create new riffs for other songs. Stevie Ray Vaughan, Jimi Hendrix, Jeff Beck, the Rolling Stones, the Beatles, and Carl Perkins are just some of those heavily influenced by the the style of playing you’ll learn in this section.

All in all you’ll be learning roughly 40 of the most absolutely essential, foundational riffs that have been used by pretty much every rock n roll player in existence. These are indeed the bread and butter of rock ‘n roll!

  • String Bends
  • Slides
  • Hammer Ons
  • Single Note Riffs
  • Double Stops
  • Rhythm Riffs
  • Inverted Thirds

It is important to note that we’re simply using interpretations of these songs and progressions to learn how to play riffs along with our rhythm. If learning these songs note-for-note is what you’re after, then you will be disappointed in this course. We’ll be using different keys than the original, and you will not find any lyrics or transcription of the originals in here either. That being said, from what you learn here, you’ll be close enough that you can easily learn the original on your own later, should you choose.

One of the reasons for this approach is that I want to help you begin to think on your feet, as a guitar player. I want to give you the tools and ideas you need to start getting really creative in how you weave your riffs in between your rhythms, and let’s face it… if I taught you a few songs note-for-note exactly as they were originally written, we’d be going in the opposite direction, wouldn’t we? I don’t want monkey-see, monkey-do students, I want students who understand the concepts behind the songs and are able to apply them to their own playing in whichever way they choose. That’s what I aim at in my courses, because I know from experience that is the approach that will make you the strongest guitar player possible.

Learn How To Be Creative On Guitar

Learning to be creative on the guitar can be one of the most elusive skills for many players, and yet, once found, one of the most rewarding. Thankfully, being creative doesn’t require any fairy dust – in fact I can teach you ways of looking at the guitar that will naturally bring out your own creativity.

In this course, we’ll be taking a close look at a couple of different scales, because the scale is the foundation for all your creativity; it represents your building blocks that you have to work with. Once you understand that, I’ll get you setup with proper technique for scale practice. Sound nice and creative so far? Haha, I bet you’re thinking I’ve lost it now! No – this foundational stuff is in fact the basis for creativity, and I will demonstrate that to you in the course. We’ll also cover things like how to move the scales up and down into different keys, as well as how the 12 bar works in multiple keys, how it is constructed, its common patterns, turnarounds, and endings. You’ll learn about chromatic passing notes – also called the blues note, or the devil’s note. By the time you get to the end of the course, you will indeed be choosing (and perhaps writing!) your own riffs to add into rhythm parts, giving you a truly creative expression on the guitar.

Learning To Balance Rhythms + Riffs

The heart of this course is to help you learn how to play not only cool rock ‘n roll rhythms, but to take that to the next level and throw in some great licks and riffs right there in the midst of your rhythm work. A lot of players really struggle with nailing the timing of that though, and so in the video, there’s a section where I get you to play the rhythm, and I play the licks. Once you see and hear it fitting together, that really starts helping. Then we take it a step further, and this time I play backup for you, and you get to play the licks. By the end of the course the goal is for you to be doing the whole part, all on your own.

  • Discover how Jeff Beck got away with modifying Buddy Guy's riff like no one else has ever done, before or since, all while playing live with Buddy Guy on stage! (And how to do this yourself)
  • Learn the super-cool arpeggiated riff that Elvis' guitar player used in their live version of Never Been To Spain. 
  • Master the cool double stop lick that was a favorite of John Lennon, Matt 'Guitar' Murphy, Janis Joplin, and Van Morrison. 

Once you’re able to balance out the rhythms and the riffs, and move between them seamlessly, you’ll be amazed at how much your day to day playing changes. This is the kind of playing everyone loves to hear around a campfire or an open mic… and now you’ll be your own jam band! Learning to play in this fashion is also great preparation for joining a band, if that’s something that interests you, because you’ll be a much more versatile player. In a band situation, where you’re actually given some room to have a proper solo, with the skills you learn in this course, you’ll be able to put together a great sounding solo when the need arises.

Want To Write Your Own Songs?

This is not a songwriting course, but you will find that if your mind is already pointed in this direction, you will learn a ton in this course that applies to writing great sounding songs. You’ll learn how to take a riff that you like the sound of, and work it over a bit until it becomes your own idea. From there, you’ll learn how to make it a key component of the song… this type of stuff is of huge benefit to song writers. It’s all about learning to be creative in your ideas and what you play on guitar.

What Will You Tell Uncle Jim?

So, next time you find yourself in a squeeze, being asked to perform something on the guitar, what are you going to tell Uncle Jim? I’ll tell you what – you’re going to grab that guitar with gusto, tune it up, and launch right into some of the coolest sounding single guitar work Uncle Jim has ever heard. You’re going to knock him right back into his chair, smoking pipe and all, with the sheer force of your playing. And afterwards, in his stunned silence, maybe you’ll even hit him up for some cash to support your original recording project! (Hey, it never hurts to ask, right?)

"Improving Immensely"

I'm loving it... but it takes me ages to get those riffs up to your speed... especially with "Let Me Love You Baby'... I'm practicing hours every day; slowly getting there... and improving immensely.


I have been playing only about a year and a half and it's a late start for me; 65 years old. I love your teaching.

I'm really looking forward to beginning the Blues course...

Mike Wall Queensland, Australia

Is This Course For Me?

This course is not designed for straight up beginners. If that’s you, then head over here instead.

This course is designed for intermediate level players who are already familiar with their chords and rhythms to some degree, perhaps a scale or two, and are now wanting to take their playing to the next level. The over-arching goal of this course is to enable you to seamlessly add riffs into your rhythm playing, going back and forth with ease. Along the way, you’ll learn a ton about soloing too!

This course is designed for someone who is struggling to break through to the next level, but even more advanced players will find some valuable gems inside. This is also a great course for players who want to start learning about lead guitar. Whether you know a scale already or not, we’ll get you setup with the scales and techniques you need to make you a better player.

Q. But what if I don’t know the songs that the course uses?

A. That’s okay – it isn’t necessary to know the songs beforehand in order to learn what I’m trying to teach from each one. If you are familiar with the songs, it may help you learn a bit quicker, because you’ll already know where the song is heading, but it isn’t strictly necessary. Everything you need to learn is included right here in this course. 

Also, it is important to note that we’re not learning specific songs so much as we are using these progressions to learn a style of playing. The song selection is really just a means of teaching you how to play classic rock ‘n roll guitar.

A Sweet Little Bonus

Every now and then, you’ll come across a guitar course that actually comes with a book to go with it. I’ve read many of these, and I can tell you from first hand experience, they’re usually little more than collections of (sometimes incorrect) tablature. That’s a big part of why I decided to make a proper book to go with this course. The Course Supplement is a full 75 page printable book (available on PDF), complete with crystal-clear diagrams, chord charts, tabs, and in-depth explanations of the relevant theory. My diagrams have each been custom-created to match exactly the way I’ve drawn them out by hand for thousands of my one-on-one students.

If you follow the book closely while you watch the video, it will magnify what you learn. There are some things covered in one, but not the other, so it really is like a totally separate bonus lesson that thoroughly complements the main video lesson. I know most of my students learn best by seeing things from more than one perspective, and by adding in the written component with the book, I’m giving you that second perspective.

Have you ever looked at a far off object with one eye closed? That’s like what you get with just the video. You can see it clearly, but you can’t quite tell how far away it is… Add the book into the mix and it is like opening your other eye – now you can see everything clearly and the full picture falls into place much more easily.

This book, if it were available to purchase on its own, would go for $25… but because it complements the course so completely, I’m including it for free. As soon as you order the course, you will be able to download it from the member's area, and if you wish, print a hardcopy for yourself, or use it on your tablet. 

100% Risk-Free Satisfaction Guarantee

If you’re hesitant about purchasing online, that’s okay – I understand. In fact, that’s why I stand behind all my guitar lessons with a 100% Risk-Free “No Weasel Clauses” Satisfaction Guarantee. My guarantee states that if for any reason you’re not completely satisfied with the guitar lesson, I’ll give you a complete refund within 60 days of purchase, with no hassles. This completely eliminates the risk on your part – you’ve got nothing to lose, and everything to gain by trying Rhythms & Riffs of Early Rock & Roll!

45+ Years of Guitar Teaching Experience,
At Your Service

So who is this Colin Daniel guy? Well, without tooting my own horn, I wanted to assure you that you’re in capable hands. I’ve been a professional musician and teacher for over 45 years… I’ve played hundreds of gigs, led dozens of bands, written dozens of original songs, and taught over 5000 guitar players, many of whom have gone on to become professionals in their own right. Recently I’ve been able to reach even more students via the internet, and I’d love to help you learn guitar too!

The Rhythm & Riff Package

In this well-organized, 6.5 hour video courseRhythms & Riffs of Early Rock & Roll, you will gain:

  • More than 10 famous rock ‘n roll rhythm styles.
  • Over 40 of the most bread ‘n butter rock riffs of all time.
  • The ability to seamlessly weave riffs into your rhythm playing, so that your playing sounds full and interesting and complete… without accompaniment!
  • A strong foundation in soloing on guitar, from understanding the rhythms and theory to applying scales and riffs and composing it all into solos.
  • Multiple teaching methods and approaches assure that you learn guitar in the way that suits you best.
  • You will learn how to combine rhythm & lead parts into one seamless guitar part that sounds awesome!
  • You will learn how to think and play creatively on your guitar.
  • You will learn the foundations of playing lead guitar.

Are You Ready to Master the Art of Merging
Rhythms and Riffs?

Rhythms & Riffs of Early Rock & Roll is completely focused on teaching you, step-by-step, how to merge riffs in with your rhythm guitar playing. You will learn three fun songs that you can play as a solo guitarist. Along the way you'll learn dozens of awesome riffs, plus at least ten different rhythm styles!

Instant Access

Get Started Immediately!


  • Download all videos
  • Mobile-friendly streaming
  • Course book on PDF
  • Questions answered in member's site

$100

100% Satisfaction Guarantee

Are you ready to become a Riff Ninja like me, and take your guitar playing to levels that you never before dreamed possible?
Let’s do it!

Keep on Rockin’    

PS: Rhythms & Riffs of Early Rock & Roll will teach you how to seamlessly weave riffs in between your rhythm playing, and it will give you a really strong introduction to learning how to solo on guitar. 

PS. If for any reason you’re not satisfied, you’re protected by my 100% Risk-Free Satisfaction Guarantee for a full 60 days.