Acoustic Guitar Lessons

Acoustic guitar playing places a strong emphasis on rhythm, feel, and musical independence. These lessons focus on practical acoustic ideas that combine harmony, bass movement, and melody in a way that works especially well on acoustic guitar.

The lessons on this page use blues-based material to develop fingerstyle control and musical phrasing, with ideas that can be adapted into your own playing rather than memorised in isolation.

What these acoustic lessons focus on

Rather than speed or technical flash, these lessons emphasise groove, timing, and musical structure.

You’ll work on:

  • Fingerstyle coordination between bass and melody

  • Common blues progressions and turnarounds

  • Creating movement within a chord progression

  • Developing a strong sense of rhythm on acoustic guitar

These skills translate directly into songwriting, accompaniment, and solo acoustic playing.

How to use this page

Each video includes on-screen guitar TAB so you can follow along while playing. Learn each idea slowly, then experiment with changing tempo, feel, or key.

If you prefer a written reference, downloadable TAB PDFs are available alongside the lessons, but the main goal is to develop feel and coordination through playing.

Video lessons

The videos below introduce acoustic blues ideas that work as complete pieces or as building blocks for your own playing.

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This lesson walks through a fingerstyle 12-bar blues arrangement designed specifically for acoustic guitar. Bass notes and chord tones are combined to create a full, self-contained sound.

Learning this style helps develop independence between the thumb and fingers while reinforcing a strong sense of groove.

Focus on keeping the bass steady while letting the upper notes flow naturally.

Awesome 12 Bar Blues Fingerstyle You Should Know! TABS/PDF

This lesson introduces a collection of simple blues turnarounds that work especially well on acoustic guitar. Each turnaround is designed to sound musical without requiring advanced technique.

These ideas can be dropped into standard blues progressions or adapted into your own arrangements.

Practice each turnaround slowly and focus on smooth transitions back to the start of the progression.

10 Easy Blues Turnarounds You Should Know Acoustic Blues Guitar Lesson (TAB/PDF)

Getting more serious about acoustic guitar?
If you’re looking for an instrument upgrade, I’ve put together a list of popular acoustic guitars that are commonly recommended for different playing styles and budgets.