Master Chordal Melodies With This Simple Guitar Trick!

As guitarists, we often get stuck in the scale mindset, running up and down patterns without truly connecting to the music. Today, I want to share an approach that has transformed my playing and can help you create more musical phrases: thinking in chord tones.

Nashville's Secret Weapon I've been particularly inspired by Nashville guitarist Jedd Hughes, who masterfully weaves double stops into both his solos and accompaniment work with artists like Vince Gill. His playing exemplifies how chord-based thinking can elevate your musicality.

Let's break this down using the key of A as our playground. Instead of immediately reaching for the A major scale, try exploring the different A chord shapes up and down the neck. These shapes become your launching pads for melodic ideas.

Double Stops: Your New Best Friend When playing single notes, you might throw in that sharp five for color. But the magic really happens when you start working with double stops – playing two notes simultaneously. By utilizing partial chords (what I call "partials"), you can create compelling rhythmic and melodic phrases.

Here's a practical example: In the key of A, try picking up a bass note and combining it with chord tones above. One of my favorite moves is hammering on from the E and B strings to create movement within the A chord shape. This simple technique immediately adds a Hendrix-like flavor to your playing.

Finding Your Landmarks: Understanding your fretboard markers is crucial. When you know where your E and A notes live across the neck, you've got reliable targets for your phrases. These become your home bases, allowing you to venture out and return with confidence.

The R&B Connection: This chord-based approach shines particularly bright in R&B contexts. Try this: Keep your thumb anchored on the A string while exploring the chord tones above. When you're ready to move, slide into the D9 chord, then back to A, followed by an E9. The progression creates that classic R&B movement we all know and love.

Getting Practical: A simple but effective exercise is working with double stops on the fifth fret (E and A notes), then moving these shapes up and down the neck. Even just striking these double stops once can inject serious R&B flavor into your playing.

Remember, perfection isn't the goal here. Some of my examples might include a "bad" note or two, but that's part of the journey. What matters is understanding the relationship between chord tones and how they can guide your melodic choices.

The Real Freedom: The beauty of this approach is its transferability. Once you grasp these concepts in the key of A, you can apply them to any chord. It's about developing a musical vocabulary that flows naturally from your understanding of chord structures rather than just running scales.

By thinking in chord tones and using techniques like double stops and partial chords, you'll find yourself playing more musical phrases that serve the song rather than just demonstrating your technical ability. And isn't that what it's all about?

Remember, these are tools to expand your musical expression, not rigid rules to follow. Experiment, make mistakes, and most importantly, let your ears guide you. The fretboard is your canvas – these chord-based approaches are just new colors for your palette.