How To get TONE in Your Hands!

[@weps2097]

You definitely know your audience demographic and "our" hang-ups, I hate sounding bad in front of people. I watch your videos, own a metric butt ton of your courses and support working class guitar. Your explanations are gold to me. Lastly, avant-garde...good word!

[@coreycongilio]

Well thx for that! Happy to help and I really appreciate the support! All the best to ya!

[@robertattard7203]

I really enjoy it when you introduce your videos with such a stunning solo. Your phrasing is simply phenomenal.

[@coreycongilio]

Hey thx!

[@steveindorset]

Wished I'd had your videos 30years ago when I was starting out! It took me 20years to find out tone is all in the fingers.I've also played unplugged for years! Sounds great!!

[@Firas-R]

I'm going through your Blues Beginner Rhythm course on your WCG site and intuitively started strumming heavier to spice up practicing the same chord progression over and over (I get bored easily) and it felt like I was playing a different guitar with richer chords! Going through this video today, showed that I was still being timid and playing "safely", so I'm gonna try this out in tonight's practice. Great video and advice as always Corey, thanks!

[@BrianBrazilHarmonica]

CoreyCongilio, Hi I've been taking lessons and playing for about 8 months and practice 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours a day at least 6 days a week. I have several electric guitars, but only practice with them unplugged. I have to rely on my hands and technique to get the sound I want. I think that's a good way to start. I tried 6 different guitars before I found the ones that had the right profile on the neck and the right radius on the fretboard to let me play comfortably. The bodies size weight and balance makes difference too.

[@BrianVallotton]

I know one thing for sure Corey... you have tone in YOUR hands! God bless you and I really appreciate your videos.

[@timchalmers1700]

You talkin' to me? Yep! Thanks! I started playing in '65 but haven't been playing all that much so I still have a lot to learn. This is gooood stuff.

[@Jmans247massathon]

Thank you Corey! Really fundamental and important things to remember. Also the neck on that guitar is gorgeous.

[@deadtothewxrld]

What are the negatives to play unplugged? I ask this, because I did that for years and years, since I've lived with people and in apartments and didn't want to piss anyone off. However, my hunch is that led to me have a *reeaally* heavy picking hand so that I could hear what I was playing, which I'm having to work tirelessly to reverse now.

[@philf4086]

Great suggestions here! I'm still wondering if tone is a quantity (more, less) or a quality (better, worse). Probably, like most things, it is a combination. Time to get to work with these approaches.

[@darkinertia2]

dude i had no clue you had a youtube channel! your lessons on truefire is what really got me into blues playing and i learned so much from all of your lessons

[@superalvedon97]

Hey Corey! Just saw you on the swedish TV-show ’Jills veranda’, really cool seeing you in it👌

[@27Pyth]

Corey! Great opening solo thang! You might be a country jazz blues guy but you've got rock in your soul.

[@RedMercuryBluesBand]

I always wondered why someone like you doesn't do a video using 5-6 players, at the same session, using the exact same guitar, amp, cable, effects etc and a short simple blues/ country riff plus some chord sequence at the same video shoot? Be fun to hear the outcome!!

[@owendavis4154]

Your first point made me think of Heartbreaker....Jimmy is really hanging on some of those notes for sure. Thanks Corey, great video as always.

[@siciliostudios]

F*c* Yeh man…dig it, this is a great lesson…lesson being the operative word. 😊PS I’m very happy to see you looking healthy as can be!

[@slicksalmon6948]

Love the S7. I've got one, too.

[@FerdinandEphrem]

Been struggling with explanation online until I found this video! nice casino...

[@markmullins6734]

Very good lesson man , not a lot of people understand or talk about pluck sensitivity I call it and it really makes a difference when recording especially and when playing certain things that I call very touchy with the luck hand but yes mam thank you so much for your lessons 😊

[@GitShiddy]

Very insightful observation about adult guitar players playing softer because they know what sounds bad. As a kid I was hit it as hard as you can, now though when I have a tone which I'm "unaccustomed" to playing (clean, high headroom, and/or loud) my pick attack is light & soft and as such ends up sounding timid. Because I am.

[@coreycongilio]

Thx for that honest comment. Best of luck to ya

[@ciachetti]

Old guy here. Another great video!

[@dw7704]

When i taught guitar i often suggested to students who played electric to spend some of their practice time unplugged, for pretty much the same reasons I believe it can help your playing In my case it also helped with pick control But I have run across people who think practicing unplugged is useless. So yeah, I disagree with them. And playing unplugged is better than not playing at all, but of course as electric guitar players, playing plugged in is part of the fun, and also something to practice. Thanks for this video

[@loontil]

I would point you knaves to Bill Frisell, whose tone-in-the-hands is incredible

[@BrandonOutside]

When I was younger (high school and college), I was mostly into punk and prog, so I had a pretty aggressive pick attack, and even set my action a bit high because I liked almost "fighting" the tension of the strings. Over the years, my preferences have shifted a bit, and listening to tons of Trey Anastasio has taught me to pick much lighter. And of course, the real key for me is to be able to play dynamically - a mix of hard and soft picking.

[@JohnHorneGuitar]

Great details worth digging into! That guitar looks pretty sweet, too - though I sure don't need another one.

[@druwk]

Combining all those dynamics Tone tips with a LOUD dynamic amp is where I think people start modulating their attack? Having an amp sound that takes off when hit hard, and controlling the dynamics in the context of playing with other musicians is honestly a lot to understand. You need a certain amount of volume? This is where playing at 10 on the guitar volume, and changing sound with pedals has come to dominate…and where dynamic control has gone to die! All the things you talked about is the beginning of how you control your sound. The rest of the chain, LISTENING, and being able to step forward AND retreat into the mix…with just the guitar controls, and your hands is where it’s at. Maximum sweetness and sustain of each note is generally what’s best

[@grantrobertdavies]

Great playing man :) Great Feel and Groove :) Awesome Lesson

[@michaelbaldwin6543]

Great lesson again. Thanks also for highlighting your gear. I really like their guitars, but I’m having trouble choosing. I guess at that price I should get one of each. ❤

[@hartcons]

you always hear "tone is the hands" but you don't often hear an explanation of what that means. thanks! I have a casino that rattles and I wonder if it's the wire on the bridge.

[@texhaines9957]

Never thought of that. But it works. Thanks

[@garyhart4646]

Nice guitar.. Sire.. great playing !

[@dlieras]

Another great lesson for sure! In regards to tone, I was wondering if you thought it would make sense and would consider doing a video/lesson in regards to single coil and humbucking pickups and in what situations you prefer using each. What do you consider the pros and 'not so' pros of each in any given situation?

[@johnwilliamgould]

Myth: confirmed. Tone IS in the hands. Now to get a hold of Corey’s hands… 🤔 Great video man!

[@jerrymckenzie1858]

Case in point - as soon as Corey started playing, it sounded like HIM!

[@garyeggleton1142]

playing microtone bends on each note helps develop feel too

[@mrbigg7255]

Good stuff here👍👍👍

[@jimclegg5659]

This is truly a useful and informative lesson Corey! I learned a lot from this.....thanks!!!

[@edwardgodfrey7002]

You should provide tabs to those intros

[@elreyabeja4539]

You will develop faster if you work it out without tabs.

[@BlazonStone]

This is about playing technique, not actually tone itself :) Playing style and technique is in the hands The tone is in the pickups/amp/cab :)

[@coreycongilio]

Bad technique, bad tone. Doesn’t matter what the gear is hence this $700 guitar

[@Saberfist001]

What's the color of your guitar? Is its sire s7?

[@waynehicks1969]

The funniest thing about the tone in your hands BS is when some podcast guys talk about tone in your hands and change equipment and say they are doing it to Chang their tone. LOL. Of course their is tone that results from technique. It is frankly annoying that people continue to perpetuate a myth that results from a lack of understanding.

[@waynehicks1969]

Exactly, I have even heard some of them say they are changing guitars or amps because they want a different tone! LOL Let's face it whenever they talk about this crap it is click bait (at least I hope that most of them aren't really that stupid). Well you don't have to be a scholar to play guitar. No one naturally has "Tone in their fingers, except maybe Pinocchio, because he was made of wood. Oops that's right wood doesn't affect tone. Hahaha.

[@annemariekaczorowski1863]

You’ve said so many things that are so true😂

[@coreycongilio]

Check out the Gear used! Sire S7 Guitar sweetwater.sjv.io/sires7family UA Golden Reverberator imp.i114863.net/uafxgolden Get my Arpeggio Handbook for Blues Guitar on sale for 50% off! working-class-guitar.teachable.com/p/arpeggio-handbook-for-blues-guitar?coupon_code=APRIL2350&product_id=4255093 Download the track here working-class-guitar.teachable.com/courses/best-of-corey-s-youtube/lectures/46777158

[@stratman9449]

my tone is definately in MY hands,pick and fingers.....yep.....where else.....??...cheers Corey.....

[@davidgrad7651]

I'd love to see a vid where you, Tom Bukovac, and Tim pierce share and compare your approach to playing, writing, etc and jam out a little. You guys all make great content, live in Nashville, and just rip. Haha just a little dream of mine. Actually I don't know if Tim Pierce lives Nashville, Just seems like so many damn good guitarists live there! Like Guthrie Trapp and Shawn Tubbs.

[@PaulCooksStuff]

Tim is in LA I think. Or at least the clubs and jam nights he goes to are.

[@dougmaccoll7564]

​@@PaulCooksStuff Yes, he's in LA.

[@onehotrocker99]

I subscribe to the philosophy that your finger skills on the fretboard is a tool of technique rather than tone. Pure tone comes from a combination of the amp, pedals, guitar and pickups. Your finger TECHNIQUE will contribute to your tone, but not to the extent that your amp, pedals and guitar will.

[@greekplayback]

What drums plugin you are using ?

[@coreycongilio]

I use EZ Drummer and random loops

[@johnfritzenjr.1240]

Feel

[@KevinMiner1970]

I feel like Corey can see into my living room because he just called me out for playing too softly….lol

[@deathwarmedup73]

the "telephone dial" tone actually sounds difficult to me

[@TheArmchairrocker]

Helps to not have fret buzz.

[@azbluesdog]

Malcolm Young told his little brother Angus when he first picked up the guitar: “Don’t tickle it. Hit the bugger!”

[@ChrisJones-ht9zn]

Confused here. You say press hard on the strings but then we are told to use the lightest touch you can use 🤔

[@bazilbrushrocks]

Tone is in the gear and I’ll keep buying stuff until I find it 😂

[@coreycongilio]

The manufacturers thank you haha!

[@roddiculousguitar]

🔥🔥🔥👊💪👌😎

[@Bolbo9_]

🔥🔥🔥

[@clausherther]

Dear Corey, while tone may come from your fingers, it's a known fact that TOAN comes from pedals

[@tianjohan4633]

As fun as that Casino might be to play, you should not use it in a video. That string buzz is really hard to listen to, and if a viewer don't know any better they might think a little string buzz is ok rather then focus on cleaning up their act and avoiding string noises. It's all vibration of air, but some vibrations are musical og melodic and others are just noise.

[@coreycongilio]

It’s actually the pickup wire but thanks for the recommendation

[@book3100]

Practice and callouses. Only one way to get there.

[@alexandarcorda]

🤩

[@AP-ui7oi]

When I play my electric 98% of the time it's unplugged.

[@jamesbaskin8616]

Not much of an electric player anymore. To really understand and develop a good tone, you need to play an acoustic. Finger-style. So it's just you and your hands.

[@TheJoecoool]

THE SIRE Trem is suck's

[@josephsliger3308]

Yeah. But you do realize that your born with it. Just as you have it.