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Lesson 1 of 5

Shuffle in A

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The shuffle is the engine of the blues. Every beat splits into a long note and a short one: long-short, long-short. Say "DUM-da DUM-da" out loud and you've got it.

This lesson is in A, using the open A string as the bass. Start with the open string alone so the swing gets into your hand before your fretting hand has anything to do.

Then add the boogie shape: the open A with the D string at fret 2 (the fifth, E), then fret 4 (the sixth, F#), two strokes each. Fret 2 with your index finger and reach fret 4 with your ring finger. Keep the index down the whole time.

Picking

  • Downstrokes on every note give the classic, driving sound.
  • Rest the edge of your palm lightly on the strings near the bridge: a thick chug, not a dead thud.
  • Keep the picking hand moving even when it isn't striking.

It should sound like a train: steady, heavy, never rushed. The most common mistake is straight eighths creeping back in as the tempo rises. If the long-short feel flattens out, drop 10 bpm.

Start at 110 and work up to 160.

Exercises

Swing the open A string

90 → 140 bpm
  1. Bar 1
    1. A string, open
    2. A string, open
    3. A string, open
    4. A string, open
    5. A string, open
    6. A string, open
    7. A string, open
    8. A string, open
  2. Bar 2
    1. A string, open
    2. A string, open
    3. A string, open
    4. A string, open
    5. A string, open
    6. A string, open
    7. A string, open
    8. A string, open

Clean 3 times in a row? Raise the tempo by 5 bpm.

A shuffle boogie

110 → 160 bpm
  1. Bar 1
    1. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    2. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    3. A string, open + D string, fret 4
    4. A string, open + D string, fret 4
    5. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    6. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    7. A string, open + D string, fret 4
    8. A string, open + D string, fret 4
  2. Bar 2
    1. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    2. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    3. A string, open + D string, fret 4
    4. A string, open + D string, fret 4
    5. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    6. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    7. A string, open + D string, fret 4
    8. A string, open + D string, fret 4

Clean 3 times in a row? Raise the tempo by 5 bpm.

Accent the backbeat

110 → 160 bpm
  1. Bar 1
    1. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    2. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    3. A string, open + D string, fret 4, accented
    4. A string, open + D string, fret 4
    5. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    6. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    7. A string, open + D string, fret 4, accented
    8. A string, open + D string, fret 4
  2. Bar 2
    1. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    2. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    3. A string, open + D string, fret 4, accented
    4. A string, open + D string, fret 4
    5. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    6. A string, open + D string, fret 2
    7. A string, open + D string, fret 4, accented
    8. A string, open + D string, fret 4

Clean 3 times in a row? Raise the tempo by 5 bpm.

Checkpoint

Move on when you can do all of these.

  • Swing the open A string evenly at 140 bpm for 8 loops
  • Shuffle at 160 bpm, relaxed, for 2 minutes
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