Learn a Hill Country Blues Lick with Mamie Minch | Acoustic Guitar Teaching Artists

When you listen to old blues recordings, you’ll notice throughlines—players riffing off each other, constantly reinterpreting familiar passages in new ways. This Mississippi Hill Country lick turns up again and again, in countless variations by players like R.L. Burnside and Robert Belfour. So let’s learn it! First, tune to open G (lowest string to highest: D G D G B D). Start with the bass line, then layer in whacks, brushes, and slides—and just like that, we’ve got the blues. Once it’s in your muscle memory, join the greats by putting your own spin on it.

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