JBerto
Verified buyer
09/02/25
Great and useful riffs here!
50 Rock Guitar Licks You MUST Know
Crucial phrases, concepts and rock guitar techniques you MUST know. by Chris Buono
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About this course
Top educator and avant-jazz/rock guitarist Chris Buono presents his hand-picked collection of 50 rock guitar licks you MUST know. Buono's handpicked range of phrases, concepts and techniques takes you across a wide variety of contemporary rock styles to help guide your development of the tools, techniques and vocabulary that you'll need to unleash powerful solos and take your rock guitar playing to the next level.
You'll learn note targeting, intervallic lines, sweep picking, whammy-bar techniques, effective movement from one position to another, controlling pinch harmonics and how to artfully move between major and minor tonalities when soloing. Chris will clue you in on the secrets of playing effectively in the upper registers along with other insider tips like three-note per string concepts and tremolo picking. You will learn open position riffs, when to rely on repetition, hybrid picking and how to spruce up solos with double stops.
Chris also covers style-specific riffs that cover rockabilly, Southern rock and jam band feels, as well as how to incorporate exotic scales into your guitar vocabulary. Buono breaks down all of these advanced concepts into versatile, easy-to-apply licks that you can use in almost any rock setting.
Mastering 50 Rock Licks You MUST Know will give you the skills and confidence to tear it up within any rock style, from blues to rockabilly, metal to prog — you too will be able to burn like the masters!
You'll learn note targeting, intervallic lines, sweep picking, whammy-bar techniques, effective movement from one position to another, controlling pinch harmonics and how to artfully move between major and minor tonalities when soloing. Chris will clue you in on the secrets of playing effectively in the upper registers along with other insider tips like three-note per string concepts and tremolo picking. You will learn open position riffs, when to rely on repetition, hybrid picking and how to spruce up solos with double stops.
Chris also covers style-specific riffs that cover rockabilly, Southern rock and jam band feels, as well as how to incorporate exotic scales into your guitar vocabulary. Buono breaks down all of these advanced concepts into versatile, easy-to-apply licks that you can use in almost any rock setting.
Mastering 50 Rock Licks You MUST Know will give you the skills and confidence to tear it up within any rock style, from blues to rockabilly, metal to prog — you too will be able to burn like the masters!
What you'll learn
- Execute half-step, whole-step, and two and a half step bends with proper technique
- Master 50 essential rock guitar licks
- Understand how to transpose licks to different keys
- Develop ability to adapt and personalize licks
- Build vocabulary of rock guitar vocabulary across multiple techniques
Release date: 09/09/2009 • 1h 51m runtime
Sample lessons
Panamaniac
Lick 5
Rolling Hammers
Lick 22
Ode To Jimi
Lick 27
Dover Pedals
Lick 37
What's included
52 lessons • 50 charts • 50 Jam Tracks
50 Rock Guitar Licks
Hello and welcome to 50 Rock Guitar Licks You Must Know—a comprehensive collection of rock essentials for any guitarist wanting to get their rock on! These 50 must know licks fully explore the myriad techniques that make playing rock guitar feel like the world’s greatest roller coaster ride. We’re gonna cover it all including various types of string bending, legato moves such as pull-offs, hammer-ons, and slides; must know picking techniques like sweep picking and string skipping, the ever-important technique of tapping, whammy bar maneuvers; even tricks that utilize both natural and artificial harmonics! In addition we’ll delve into signature tricks of the trade from the master rockers like Eddie Van Halen, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, David Gilmour, Jimi Hendrix, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Bumblefoot, Dimebag Darrell, Dickie Betts, Steve Cropper, The Edge, Nuno Bettencourt and more.
To get the most out of 50 Rock Guitar Licks You Must Know watch me first play through the lick at tempo, then, be sure to sit back and listen to the segment that immediately follows before going off into the shed. During these breakdowns sections I’ll show you the ins and outs of playing each lick along with tips on how to get around the tricky parts. What’s more, the backing tracks you hear me rippin’ over are included in the course for you to rock with as well as PDF and Power Tab charts that feature both spot-on TAB and notation of all 50 licks. In regards to the latter, you’ll be able slow down lick in the Power Tab MIDI player so you can zero in on any passages without altering the pitch.
To get the most out of 50 Rock Guitar Licks You Must Know watch me first play through the lick at tempo, then, be sure to sit back and listen to the segment that immediately follows before going off into the shed. During these breakdowns sections I’ll show you the ins and outs of playing each lick along with tips on how to get around the tricky parts. What’s more, the backing tracks you hear me rippin’ over are included in the course for you to rock with as well as PDF and Power Tab charts that feature both spot-on TAB and notation of all 50 licks. In regards to the latter, you’ll be able slow down lick in the Power Tab MIDI player so you can zero in on any passages without altering the pitch.
Bend-Palooza
One the coolest things about playing the guitar is you can stretch pitch by way of bending notes. Only limited by your neck radius and string tension, bending is infinitely cool. This lick is a bending schmrogesborg with bends ranging from 1/2 step to 2-1/2 steps as well as picking while holding a bend. Like a rubber band in a monkey's hand, the lick pulls pitch back and forth with fervor.
Sound the Alarm!
Unison bends always deliver a massively phat sounding tone especially when played on the 2nd and 3rd strings. Who could forget the unison bend torpedoes Joe Perry shot out at the onset of the outro solo in "Walk This Way"? How about the opening to Iron Maiden's "Run to the Hills"? Much like the timeless unison bend laden cadenza heard at the end of "Stairway to Heaven", this lick drips with coolness while it pays homage to these classic moments.
Ho' Lotta
All it took was is a simple whole step bend followed by a unison note on the higher adjacent string and a first finger roll to kick-off some of the greatest solos ever played. You need not look any further than the opening lick in Jimmy Page's air-guitar approved "Whole Lotta Love" solo where he does just that and more.
Casper
While everything that goes up very well must come down, when it comes to ghost bends, the trick lies within never hearing what went up in the first place. Ghost bends are bends that require you to pre-bend a note and then pick the string so you only hear a descent in pitch. Ritchie Blackmore made liberal use of this technique in the Deep Purple anthem "Smoke on the Water", which is where this lick finds it's origins.
Panamaniac
Eddie Van Halen's contribution to the world of rock guitar is dizzying to say the least. From his deft whammy work to his screamin' pinch harmonics all the way to his signature fretboard tapping antics [and more]--the man is a monster. While the art of tapping will be examined in full force down the line, here's a lick that incorporates a little tap action while holding a whole-step bend as heard in such monumentous VH moments as "Panama" and "You Really Got Me".
Squawking Bells
Pinch harmonics are totally cool, hands down. The trick lies within making contact with the string with the side of thumb after picking the note. Once you get the hang of it, you'll be squakin' away. This lick finds us in the house of Billy Gibbons where the infamous squeals he musters from Pearly Gates (Gibbons beloved '59 Les Paul) rein supreme. Other pinch harmonic purveyors to keep an ear out for are Zakk Wylde, Jon Donais (Shadows Fall), and that guy with the stripes all over his guitar.
+ 45 more lessons
Reviews
10 results
GlennWilliam62
Verified buyer
03/13/21
Great course, loving it.
wholmer
12/31/20
Way to rock Chris
This is Chris out of the gym. Good Course not just for beginners. This course provides jamming tracks to play the licks over and I found that to be very helpful. Plus the licks are in different positions on the neck. The lessons helped me with extending my lick vocabulary. I am a lot more excited about jamming now that I played through these lessons!
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