MORNING PICK - Volume 23

Most players bend a note up and let it come back down, and that's about it. But there are really three kinds of bends, and each one says something different:

1. Bend and release. Bend up, then let it come back down. You hear both directions.

2. Bend and mute. Bend up, then mute the string before it comes back. You only hear it go up.

3. Pre-bend. Bend the string before you pick. Then pick and release. You only hear the note come down.

So: up and down, up only, down only.

That's it. Nothing complicated. But once you start mixing all three into your phrases, your bending vocabulary opens up fast.

Try this today: take one lick you already know and play it three times, using a different bend type each time. Listen to how the mood shifts.

See you next Thursday for another Morning Pick,
Dustin

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P.S. - The Essential Skills Course covers the three frameworks I've built my playing around — the Number System, the Landmark Pentatonic System, and the CAGED System.