Hey guys and gals! What's everyone working on this week? Is there something in the classrooms that has piqued your interest? Does anyone have any questions about something they're working on? Lemme know! As always I'll have something fun for you I've made for some of our other social medias down below. Later this week I'll have a quick lesson, that typically goes out in our newsletters, but I'll post it here as well in case you aren't subscribed to our newsletter (you should totally get on that though!). Finally on Friday I'll have a new Classroom video that goes out as well! Of course I'll let everyone know here when each one of these goes out so keep your eyes peeled! Mike will be here too! Don't worry, he hasn't gone anywhere! Hope everyone has a great week this week, and remember to reach out about, well, anything guitar related! I'm always around haha! -Ben Newsletter: https://intermediateguitar.com/newsletter/

Hi everybody! I wanted to drop y’all a quick message so you know I haven’t forgotten about you! We’ve been tearing up the sky for the last couple of weeks. I just logged on and found Ben’s “OverThe Hills and Far Away” post! I love that song. I’ll work on that when I have some down time and hopefully be able to spend some quality time here soon! Until then, Keep on Rockin!

Checking in with everyone this week! I've been working on some short form lesson video's for our newsletter, as well as the long form lesson video's, that I post in the classroom section. I'll be posting some of those a bit later this week! In the meantime, what's everyone been working on lately? Anything in particular you're struggling with? A scale, a technique? Let me know, I would love to either chat about it, or get a video out that covers it for you! My big thing lately has been learning ton's of songs, recording, and editing them for our social pages. Woof, it's a lot! But, I'm trucking along because I want everyone to feel freedom on the fretboard! That is our number one goal here after all! So here's to freedom and understanding! -Ben P.S. Here's a play along for you to wet your whistle, one of my favorites from when I was first learning how to play guitar!

It's my turn this week and you'd better grab your electric guitars and all the stomp boxes you've got! This week's Riff of the Week is the intro to "Aint Talkin Bout Love" by Van Halen! The highlight for this riff is how simple yet powerful it is, and its all in the arpeggiation of the chords. Arpeggio's are just notes played in a sequence, seems simple enough, and done right, WOW! This riff get's all the hips movin' and grooving'! So plug in, crank it up, fire up those pedals, and I'll meet you in the classroom section titled, "Riff of the Week"! You don't have to wear a leopard print leotard if you don't want to. Mine's in the wash currently... Video link here! Catch you later this week! -Diamond Ben

You're probably already humming this one in your head This riff holds a special place in my heart. https://www.skool.com/intermediate-guitar/classroom/8fea4915?md=765b4f5d0e0a4fa2b4749ad216e8417b I've gotten to see Steve Miller Band twice at Red Rocks, and they really don't disappoint. They sound just like they do on the album, with one small difference... Live, you can actually hear Steve's breathing, the rhythmic-rise and fall of it underneath the lyrics. And honestly, It reminds me I'm hearing something unique coming from another human being, in real time, and I love that. So thank you, Steve Miller Band, for your dedication to the craft all these years. It's an iconic riff, but it's a simple one. Everybody knows exactly what's coming the second it starts, and you only need three frets to get there. We're jamming on 3 strings and primarily on 3 frets... Frets 7, 9, and 5. That's it, it doesn't wander off anywhere else. Once you've got it, you just repeat it until the song kicks in, and before you know it you'll be playing the whole tune. Pull your guitar out and give this song life!