Josh Smith

Latest about Josh Smith

Josh Smith
“When I listened to Danny Gatton’s mind-boggling licks, I realized that they depended on a different technique. It just wasn’t possible to flatpick most of them”: Josh Smith presents a crash course in hybrid picking and fast-paced jump blues soloing

By Josh Smith Published

Smith’s guide to modern blues soloing takes things up a notch, analyzing the blistering technique of jump blues god Danny Gatton

Techniques
Josh Smith
Josh Smith shows you how to follow your musical inner voice and connect the dots in a blues guitar solo

By Josh Smith Published

The blues maestro shows you how to combine chromaticism, diminished patterns and ii-V-i's – but don't be alarmed: it's easier than it sounds, and opens up the doors for radical guitar improv

Lessons
Josh Smith
“If you want to get a visceral reaction from an audience, the bottom line is that you have to make your guitar sing”: Blues playing getting stale? Incorporating ideas from jazz guitarists will take your solos to the next level

By Josh Smith Published

At some point it is inevitable: our blues playing starts to get old. Josh Smith walks you through concepts to expand your blues vocab and help your solos stay fresh over those changes

Lessons
Kirk Fletcher
Kirk Fletcher makes a triumphant return to the stage following his recent stroke – and his blues chops were in full working order as he jammed with Joe Bonamassa in Tulsa

By Jonathan Horsley Published

The modern blues maestro suffered a stroke onstage in July, with Joe Bonamassa and Josh Smith launching a fundraising auction to support Fletcher with his medical bills

Guitarists
Josh Smith
“I want to pass on the blues vocabulary that stood the test of many tough audiences”: Modern blues master Josh Smith teaches you the secrets to better solos

By Josh Smith Published

In this modern blues masterclass, Josh Smith introduces nine essential solo approaches that will help you find your own sound and voice

Lessons
Josh Smith stood against a grey wall
“Know your history. But don’t be cliché and try to do what the guys in Chicago did in the ’60s. We don’t need more of that”: Josh Smith is on a mission to save the blues – he names 10 guitarists who are pushing the genre forward

By Andrew Daly Published

The defender of the blues faith names the players bucking the clichés and preventing the genre going stale, and explains why anyone who says Joe Bonamassa can't play the blues is “full of s**t”

Guitarists
Photos of Francis Rocco PRESTIA & Josh Smith
“Rocco Prestia could have held that 16th-note pattern in his sleep – it’s airtight” Halestorm bassist Josh Smith picks his top 5 bass albums

By Nick Wells Published

From Tower Of Power to The Beatles, Josh Smith reveals the influences that helped shape his heavy-riffing bass style with Halestorm

Music Releases
Josh Smith
Why diminished phrases can be your secret weapon in a blues chord progression

By Josh Smith Published

Josh Smith offers a road map for harmonically interesting blues guitar playing, offering fresh ideas for connecting notes between chords

Chords
Joe Bonamassa and Eric Gales
Joe Bonamassa has collaborated with some of today’s finest blues players – learn their soloing secrets with this epic lesson

By Andy Saphir Published

The JoBo Rolodex is filled with top blues guitar talent, and here we explore seven solo examples inspired by close contacts Eric Gales, Joanne Shaw Taylor, Kirk Fletcher and many more

Lessons
Josh Smith
How to use chromatic passing tones as connective tissue in guitar solos

By Josh Smith Published

Please join us in the chroma-zone, where you will find new ideas for where to take your solos in a country or jazz setting

Guitars
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