Rock City - bars 3&4
With
Tommy WebbLearn bars 3 and 4 of the Rockschool rock song Rock City, playing a different note on each beat with smooth transitions between them.
What's in the course
47 lessons (1h 40m) · 1 free
01. Welcome to the Course
1:41
02. Meet Your Teacher
0:40
03. Guide to the Guitar
6:52
04. Sitting with Your Guitar (Acoustic)
3:29
05. Sitting with Your Guitar (Electric)
0:49
06. How to Tune Your Guitar
4:57
07. How to Use a Guitar Pick
2:49
08. Make Your First Sound on the Guitar
2:45
09. How to Strum a Guitar
2:02
10. How to Read Music - Tab
Free lesson1:52
11. How to Read Music - Notation
3:03
12. Note Values and Rhythm
5:08
01. Introduction to Rock riffs and melodies
1:47
02. How to get a clean fretted sound
3:19
03. Riff using the E&G notes
3:30
04. Riff using the E&G notes (performance)
1:10
05. Riff accenting the strong note
1:34
06. Riff accenting the strong note (performance)
0:58
07. Riff using half notes
1:44
08. Riff using half notes (performance)
0:50
01. Intro to Rock pt2 and my Gibson Les Paul
1:10
02. Riff combining half notes & quarter notes
1:36
03. Riff combining half notes & quarter notes (performance)
0:56
04. Melody A combining 4 notes
4:00
05. Melody A combining 4 notes (performance)
0:57
06. Melody B combining 4 notes
2:32
07. Melody B combining 4 notes (performance)
0:55
08. Rock City - bars 3&4
You are here2:18
09. Rock City - bars 3&4 (performance)
0:58
10. Well done on the Rock section
0:17
01. Intro to the pop section and rests
1:14
02. Riff with rest on beat 3
3:36
03. Riff with rest on beat 3 (performance)
1:04
04. Riff using F note with rests
2:53
05. Riff using F note with rests (performance)
1:05
06. Melody using C note and rests
4:59
07. Melody using C note and rests (performance)
0:54
08. Summary of Pop part 1
0:55
01. What is a Fender Telecaster
1:05
02. Melody with a D note
3:51
03. Melody with a D note (performance)
1:10
04. Melody using whole notes
2:34
05. Melody using whole notes (performance)
0:57
06. Riff combining note values
2:32
07. Riff combining note values (performance)
1:03
08. Party People bars 13-16
2:23
09. Party People bars 13-16 (performance)
1:22
Lesson transcript
Example 4: Rock City
Welcome to this section from the song Rock City. We'll be diving into this rock song towards the end of the course when we start learning pieces from Rock School.
These songs are fantastic for:
- Furthering our guitar playing skills
- Building stamina
- Getting used to playing for extended periods
It's exciting that we have so many songs to learn. A significant part of playing guitar is memory‚ being able to recall different tunes and sections. These songs are genuinely fun to play, so I'm looking forward to guiding you through them later in the book.
Overview of Rock City
For now, let's focus on a small section from Rock City. We will be using the same notes we've been practicing in all previous rock examples:
- E
- G (the third fret on the E string)
- Open A
- B (the second fret on the A string)
Bar One
In bar one, we will encounter our first look at playing different notes on every beat of the bar.
Tips for Practicing Bar One:
- Watch out for the changes between notes
- Take it slowly at first, as there's a lot of movement involved
We start with the E string, transitioning to the G string. The next two notes are:
- Open A
- B (second fret on the A)
I recommend breaking this bar into two halves:
- Practice the first two notes first
- Then practice the second two notes
Once comfortable, loop this entire bar repeatedly until you can play it smoothly, ensuring all notes are of even length. Gradually build up speed, but remember: accuracy is more important than speed at this stage.
Bar Two
In bar two, we have half notes, which means:
- The A note lasts for two beats
- The note being played is the open E string
Bars Three and Four
Bars three and four repeat the same pattern as one and two. This repetition gives us a great opportunity to develop stamina and work on transitioning between strings.
Practice Play-Along
Now, I'll play this example at a slow pace.
- Try to play along with me
- Take your time to work on the section
I'll see you in the backing track next!
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Meet your guru
Meet your guru
Tommy Webb is a London-based guitarist who completed a BA(Hons) Degree in guitar at the Academy of Contemporary Music in Guildford, studying under Sandy Beales (One Direction, Wheatus) and Nicolas Meier (Jeff Beck). His own playing moves freely across rock, pop, indie, hip-hop, country and metal - the exact ground his guitar methods cover.
Tommy has worked with a wide range of artists and bands across the country, including Jarki Monno and Indira May, sharing stages and sessions with guitarists Paul Murray (Jess Glynne, Zak Abel) and Adam Chetwood (Paolo Nutini, Mark Ronson), and drummers Alex Woodward (Black Honey), Luke Robinson and “Bambi Music” (N-Dubz, Lethal Bizzle, Wretch 32, Tinie Tempah).
On stage, he has performed at the Jazz Cafe opening for soul singer Jocelyn Brown, plus venues and festivals including Ronnie Scott's, Troy Bar, The Watford Colosseum, Camden Assembly, Kensington Roof Gardens, Notting Hill Arts Club, Meraki Festival and Sundown Festival.
On record and radio, Tommy has played live sessions for BBC Three Counties Introducing, Vibe FM and Pulse 88, with tracks featured on BBC Radio 1 and Radio 2. He has recorded at studios including South Lanes Brighton, Hempstead Road and Titan Studios with producers such as Steph Carter (Gallows, Lyoness) and TMS / Froe Barnes (Lewis Capaldi, Dua Lipa).
In his guitar methods, Tommy passes all of that working-musician know-how on to you - teaching the techniques, tones and feel behind real styles, from rock and pop to indie, hip-hop, country and metal, so you can play the music you actually love.
