Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Part 1: So You Wanna Be a Rock-and-Roll Star 7
Chapter 1: It’s Only Rock Guitar But I Like It 9
Chapter 2: Holding Your Own 27
Chapter 3: The Other Half: The Guitar Amp 43
Part 2: Basic Playing Techniques 67
Chapter 4: What the Left Hand Is Doing: Chords 69
Chapter 5: The Right Stuff: Right-Hand Rhythm Guitar Techniques 85
Chapter 6: The Leading Edge: Introduction to Lead Rock Guitar 109
Chapter 7: Groovin’ on Riffs 133
Part 3: Beyond the Basics: Sounding Like a Rock and Roller 145
Chapter 8: Playing Up the Neck 147
Chapter 9: Playing Expressively: Making the Guitar Sing 165
Part 4: Mastering Different Rock Styles 177
Chapter 10: Rock and Roll: The Early Years 179
Chapter 11: The Golden Age of Classic Rock 197
Chapter 12: Heavy Metal and Its Mutations 223
Chapter 13: Progressive Rock and Jazz-Rock Fusion 239
Part 5: Becoming a Gearhead 259
Chapter 14: Gear Lust: Assembling Your Dream Rig 261
Chapter 15: Wild and Crazy Sounds: Effects 277
Chapter 16: The Care and Feeding of Your Electric Guitar 301
Part 6: The Part of Tens 323
Chapter 17: Ten (Plus One) Rock Guitarists Who Changed History 325
Chapter 18: Ten Must-Have Rock Guitar Albums 331
Chapter 19: Ten Classic Guitars 335
Appendix: Using the Online Audio and Video Files 339
Index 347