John Mayer Style Ballad

Ahoy GMC!

This lesson is dedicated to the great John Mayer - a young American artist - guitarist, composer, producer and vocalist. Being influenced by blues legends such as Stevie Ray Vaughan or Eric Clapton, John has released a few successful albums such as Continuum or Battle Studies, both showcasing his skills as a very sensible player and vocalist.

His ballads are usually offering a great level of intimacy to the listener, creating the illusion of having John playing there beside them if they close their eyes.

Let's see what you can learn from this lesson:

- phrasing in the style of John Mayer
- developing articulation - bending and vibrato
- hybrid picking

Tuning: Standard E A D G B E

Chord progression: G Gsus2 Em7add11 G/C Dsus4add13 Dsus4 D

Meter: 4/4

Tempo: 100 BPM

Scales: G major

Tone settings:

Solo - Bass – 10 o’clock, Mids – 9 o’clock, Highs – 1 o’clock, Gain – 9 o’clock, using the crunch channel of my AMT ss20 Pre-amp, software added reverb and keeping my PRS Paul Allender's pick-up switch in the neck position.

Chords - Bass – 10 o’clock, Mids – 9 o’clock, Highs – 1 o’clock, Gain – 7 o’clock, using the crunch channel of my AMT ss20 Pre-amp, software added reverb and keeping my PRS Paul Allender's pick-up switch in the middle position.

Check out the other John Mayer inspired lessons on GMC: John Mayer - Neon, John Mayer - Blues-Funk