Dimebag Darrell's "Trademark" Pick-Squealing Lesson

(Image credit: Paul Natkin/Getty Images)

While Dimebag Darrell was touring Japan with Damageplan, he took time out during the band's Tokyo stop to shoot an impromptu lesson video.

The video, which focused on what he considered his trademark licks, was shot in honor of the 35th anniversary of Young Guitar, a Japanese guitar magazine.

You can watch the complete clip below. Although it's all good—especially if you're a huge Dimebag fan—the best and most useful content kicks off at 1:16, where the guitarist starts to explain "the old trademark Dimebag high-pitched squeals and stuff."

"That one's gonna cost ya right there," he says, after a solid, squealin' demo. "You can catch that two different ways," he continues.

"You can go with the Steve Vai technique—whip the bar back and work it out—or you can just go with the straight technique." Anyway, if you've got the time, you can enjoy five minutes' worth of pure Dimebag, doing what he did best.

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Damian Fanelli
Editor-in-Chief, Guitar World

Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.