Influential funk guitar greats like Eddie Hazel from Parliament-Funkadelic and Ernie Isley from The Isley Brothers were masters at the percussive riffs and solos that give funk its distinctive groove-based feel. Funk/Rock and R&B Guitar Soloing teaches the tools and effective soloing techniques of the legendary funk guitarists: the appropriate scales, the best use of effects (such as wah-wah, overdrive, distortion, and fuzz), and the rhythmic and melodic development that work together to create an authentic funk-based solo and sound.

The course begins with a primer on the rhythm section and the importance of the Minor Pentatonic scale. You'll move on to cover articulation and picking/plucking techniques, pentatonic superimposition, and creating new scales with string bending.

Throughout the course, you'll review examples from artists such as James Brown, Curtis Mayfield, Isaac Hayes, Ohio Players, Stevie Wonder, Sly and the Family Stone, Jimi Hendrix, Prince, and Soulive to develop a greater understanding of how to apply the techniques covered. The course makes extensive use of state-of-the-art video demonstrations, animated illustrations, and hundreds of notated and recorded examples.

As the course progresses you will practice your soloing over the provided rhythm tracks, and receive expert feedback from your instructor on how to improve your performance.

The course provides the knowledge and skills needed to solo in this genre and any blues based genre with greater facility and awareness, in the context of a professional recording or live music performance.

By the end of the course, you will be able to: