When You're SO Good At Guitar John Mayer and BB King Don't Believe It!

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#DerekTrucks #leviclaytabs #amazingguitar

[@joeyhyland]

Afterwards BB King says, “that’s about as good as I ever heard it.” That kind of praise coming from him is probably the highest honor you could achieve as a blues musician. Not one wasted note. Just beautiful.

[@AngelusNielson]

Hell, just being on stage with King would be an honor.

[@joeyhyland]

@@AngelusNielson Ain’t that the truth. Legend.

[@AngelusNielson]

@@joeyhyland But yah, I"m sure he'll die happy now with the complement.

[@Brytons_Thoughts]

I don’t know how Derek didn’t just breakdown in tears after being told that, because I would.

[@AngelusNielson]

@@Brytons_Thoughts nonsarcastically, I'm sure he was on the inside. But gotta be a professional, right?

[@mumenrider862]

He's got a knack for playing the perfect note every time, and making it sound like that's exactly what we want to hear.

[@satevo462]

It sounds like singing.

[@Vanamutt]

I woul've wanted 3 more choruses out of that guy.

[@-damnit]

I've never heard it explained so perfectly before

[@dashiellgregory]

Perfectly explained

[@kwerk2011]

That's it in a nutshell. Every note is exactly where it should be. Superb.

[@ghostnote43]

Derek Trucks’ face looks like he could be doing his taxes, but he’s one of the most lyrical and soulful musicians around. He pours all his emotions into the guitar. So, so damn good.

[@holliswilliams8426]

I don't mind him not pulling horrid guitar faces tbh.

[@methyod]

reminds me of bach more than anything else. homie is at church

[@foreverseethe]

Rumor has it he makes love the same way. Looking down like it's a piece of paper with figures.

[@worthless_opinion]

That's called focus!

[@RickMcCargar]

Far too many young guitarists over-emote when they play, and it looks fake. Nothing fake about Derek.

[@math001]

So good he got John Mayer making his guitar face without him even playing

[@giraffesareselfish9563]

Hell I was making my guitar face and wasn't even in the same room.

[@jacephrochester5341]

Underrated comment fr

[@JoHn-if6wy]

Theyre all bad. Go watch yngwie malmsteen if you want to make a guitar face without playing. A 5 year year old can play and hit notes by notes at a slow paste like this.

[@giraffesareselfish9563]

@@JoHn-if6wy 🥱

[@ewoknroll]

I didn't even know the mayor plays guitair!

[@nomannic1]

Derek's guitar playing is so vocal! He really is singing through that guitar. 😁

[@manplusguitar]

That's the best way to describe it! He has phenomenal tone and every note sings.

[@slowery43]

ugh, any more ridiculous cliche like posts there PP?

[@USA92]

@@manplusguitar what??! Omg non musicians talking about musicians

[@sam8404]

These two edge lords above me need to touch grass.

[@denkanator]

@@slowery43 this actually isn’t a cliche comment at all. Trucks spends a lot of time doing call and response exercises with his wife - a professional soul and blues singer. His playing sounds like singing, because he specifically practices to make his playing sound that way

[@unacuentadeyoutube13]

Derek Trucks is one of the best examples of the "tone is in the hands" concept. His left one glides the slide all over the fretboard while the right one makes use of one of the most dynamic playing anyone has ever heard

[@Asshat237]

Yes, but why is he using vintage/custom made Gibson SGs all the time? If the tone is in the hands he wouldn't care about his guitar, but he plays the same one pretty much all the time. Does he have a special technique/touch from not using a pick? His hands impact and influence the tone, but tone is the result of various factors.

[@drdenny2487]

@@Asshat237 I think what he's getting at is the idea that a crappy setup in the hands of a great player will sound more musical and enjoyable than a high-quality setup in the hands of a novice. And more importantly, why wouldn't someone who's a master of the strings want good hardware supporting their act? That's like saying if someone is an amazing rally car driver, they should drive a prius since it doesn't matter what they drive, they can make it perform.

[@atharbarghouthi9649]

@@drdenny2487 yea but you'll never be a great musician without expensive stuff lol. That's a fact.

[@mattmillen1636]

@@Asshat237 he probably uses the same guitar because its the one he is most used to. i know if you take my jackson away and hand me another guitar it takes me a second to get the hang of some minor things. so always playing the same guitar ensures he isn't going to have problems pulling off some stuff. string spacing is different on every model and somehting liek the volume knob trick this guy does maybe difficult or out of place for him since he learned it on a SG. also relearning little things that you may use often is just annoying. if you look back most musicians really do only paly one guitar and may have another they use for different tunings but when they are at home may never use those other guitars in different tunings and just tune the one favorite guitar around

[@drdenny2487]

@@atharbarghouthi9649 that's really not true. I'm not a great musician but I regularly see artists performing beautiful music with low end equipment. It's not that being great requires good gear, but that being great means it's WORTH IT to buy things that let you express yourself more fully. Plus if you have natural talent you may very well find yourself making money or being given access to studios that themselves invest in high end equipment

[@candidfob8423]

As much Dereck shines in this segment, a huge part of why I keep coming back to this clip has to be the unbelievable accompaniment by the organ player. That classic Hammond M3/Rhodes organ sound is so satisfying and you can tell that the keys player is intently listening to Derek's phrasing. He fills the gaps accordingly, all while staying out of the way and not doing too much. Masterful stuff

[@pathofprophecy]

True! You can't discount Dereck's playing/choice of notes + tone. But equally powerful were those who were accompanying him: Drums, bass and the Hammond B3.

[@TorbenCASchwartz]

Heh I dont see how the organ is really responding to his playing. Just louder in the segments he isnt playing because of the compression probably

[@fredsik]

@@TorbenCASchwartz Agreed. He's kinda just playing the changes, not really responding to stuff

[@johnhizajutta4285]

You have good ears! The band is really accompanying Derek here! Beautifully!

[@damachine3]

*Derek At least give him the respect of spelling his name correctly

[@andrewpappas9311]

Derek Trucks is one of the best slide players for a reason, such a great guitarist and definitely great tone at that

[@shittybuttrue2819]

It's his ear. Watch other guys try it out: they're flat/sharp all over the place.

[@purdysanchez]

This was a great solo. But, I saw his current band live a month ago and every song was 2 minutes of music with 7 minutes of super boring filler. Left early cause it was so bad.

[@keithremedy]

@@purdysanchez that’s the dumbest shit I have ever heard

[@shittybuttrue2819]

@@purdysanchez Yeh they ain't exactly showpeople. They seem uncomfortable a lot of the time. People come to a show like that to party, not admire one's 99th decimal slide playing.

[@purdysanchez]

@@shittybuttrue2819, it wasn't a matter of not being 99th percentile. It was a matter of being tedious to listen to. It was the kind of music you put on at low volume in the background of a party where everyone's talking to each other. Not the kind of music you actively listen to. It was kind of like going to the movie theater and buying a ticket to watch a screen saver.

[@francescodomenichetti3787]

There’s a clip of him jamming on maggot brain with Santana, Haynes… I couldn’t believe what I heard. He’s literally playing the best note on the planet for that chord. He’s amazing.

[@LeviClay]

Yeah, his connection with music is just something else

[@Whoru87]

Good chance that's the video I took. I still can't believe I caught that on video

[@Whoru87]

@riddlydiddlyimawantedmanin4442 yup that's me! Amazing show

[@joeldb]

Oh man great reco, Warren Haynes is amazing on that

[@jwest86]

@@Whoru87 man that was a real treat. Must've been amazing in person.

[@kevinwall795]

I know NOTHING about guitar playing, but that guy made that guitar sound like it was singing. I was expecting words to come out of it. 👏

[@LeviClay]

Kevin, that means you noticed something beyond what a lot of guitarists noticed.

[@Guitargate]

Oh dude I can't believe you transcribed this! Killer!

[@LeviClay]

I can’t believe you keep patching my messages 😂

[@nassera]

@@LeviClay I'm willing to believe everything!

[@aileronsintowind6835]

I surely cannot be the only person who could almost hear Aretha Franklin singing a section of a song to this solo, Making a guitar sing just took on a whole new meaning.

[@warwickscram1656]

Sounds like that guy from Aerosmith.

[@SomeCanine]

If you've never played guitar, you have no idea how hard it is to play it like that with a slide so smoothly without making all sorts of unintentional noise and fret hits. The guy is really good on top of the solid melody blues playing.

[@Rhythmicons]

no doubt!

[@NytronX]

It takes the right setup too. I'm sure the action on his guitar is higher than most non-slide players would like

[@redneckhippiefreak]

@@NytronX Nope.. I have had the pleasure of setting up his equipment as a stagehand.. His guitars are tight. His talent and touch, is simply unmatched.

[@pizzazemle6262]

Wait, is he using a slide? I haven't realized!

[@YouCanCallMeReTro]

I remember when I first got a slide and soon realized its a lot more difficult to use than it appears.

[@t1msguitar]

I don't think I've seen another professional guitarist be THAT into someone else's solo, leaning over and staring at what he is playing .... John's reaction and BB King's words are top tier. What an amazing solo

[@XDirkLanceX]

I like how you can see John Mayer just falling in love with this dude more and more with every note.

[@redneckhippiefreak]

I fully understand and sometimes wish I was a tall belting blond with measurable talent. Unfortunately, Im just a skinny redneckhippiefreak with thinning hair and no breasts . He is wayy out of my legue. XP

[@360.Tapestry]

he was under his spell and so was the crowd

[@trantorthetroll8768]

Ayo

[@Tangue0]

Hey, is this THE Dirk Lance?

[@XDirkLanceX]

@@Tangue0 Nah LOL. Just a long time fan and appreciator

[@bigmistqke]

I love that part around 0:15 where he just let it breath for a bit and then fade in w the slide.

[@SamuelNewham]

ikr. The greats really know how to use space just as well as any note

[@CinemaPerfectoTV]

And then Johns reaction, like "no, that is just so damn good, I can't even."

[@beastabuelos6421]

The word you're looking for is breathe

[@bigmistqke]

@@beastabuelos6421 i didn't even now i was looking

[@spanqueluv9er]

@@bigmistqke ^*breathe, not breath ^*with, not w ^*know, not now🤡🤡🤦‍♂️

[@cechichan]

Man this is such a gift to the guitar community, thank u for making this ;D

[@michelwaldrich]

Amazing solo! Thanks friend!

[@GuitarBeard]

Great work on this as always Levi!

[@jjpopnfresh6822]

Derek is the untouchable king of slide playing

[@martynspooner5822]

Watching Levi transcribe in real time, a few times now, made me understand the many levels to musicianship and just how at the very beginning I am despite playing for decades. It doesnt detract from my enjoyment but on the contrary shows me I have so many places I can go and even if I never get there it has been so much fun. Thanks for all you do for guitar players everywhere.

[@antttt1]

I must've watched this solo hundreds of time...absolutely incredible! 👌👌👌

[@mikel917]

Such a soulful and gifted player

[@baykay9559]

That was one of the absolute smoothest leads I’ve ever heard. And each note has a place and function. Magnificent!

[@DizzyKrissi]

Wow, what an incredible solo.

[@libertyblack715]

That was the best guitar I've ever heard. Thank you to the artist.

[@cap6159]

Simply amazing. Makes it look so easy to do. Yet so, so hard to replicate.

[@jqentertainment6966]

That is perfect playing...the tone, dynamics, slides, picking...everything is perfect

[@consciousmonster6062]

He’s one of the best guitarists, I love the feeling he puts into his playing and all of the detail combined.

[@TonyHavenMusic]

Shame they cut the video when they announced the name because many won’t know this guy, but Derek Trucks is really an icon of slide and should be studied by all new guitarists

[@Uncle-Bull]

If you don’t already know his name, then you wouldn’t understand the importance anyway.

[@thac0twenty377]

that's amazingly clean

[@Gixsir]

It’s just so beautiful you can feel every note

[@michaelreilly3000]

Sick slide playing! He’s learned his lessons well from uncle Dwayne and even managed to elevate it. I first saw him in early 90s when he was a young teenager and the Allman’s brought him out on stage for a jam in Vancouver, Canada. It was clear from the get go that we were witnessing something special.

[@EVHStrat]

This just left me speechless and brought an unexpected tear to my eye. Wow.

[@gnrslash1987]

someone finally tabbed it! bravo! awesome!!

[@wolfie316781]

Derek is a magical player definitely lives within the creative musical waves

[@australia9175]

I havent had chills like that in a long time. What a solo.

[@redneckhippiefreak]

You should see him in person. Epic.

[@hepatitis123]

Derek is playing so well, it's giving John the guitar face.

[@clanrobertson1]

That is the most amazing, beautiful thing I’ve ever heard played on a guitar. Just incredible.

[@amidtheruins02]

I was looking at tab for this the other day and couldn't find it so sweet hahaha Thank you so much sir!!!

[@danielrobert4219]

this is such an inspiring reminder that it's not just the notes you play but HOW you play them. You close your eyes and it sounds like human speech

[@DaveRossignol]

Hands down the best slide solo I have ever heard. Almost hard to believe

[@waltzguy14151]

Wow.. that was a beautiful solo

[@MrJackWorse]

Wow, that was beautiful!

[@METTI1986LA]

That guitar is singing gospel it’s so beautiful and unreal!

[@bambledaczymbledek]

Blues guitar is all about the human voice -the best players make it talk, and Derek makes it sing.

[@Ohurt]

Thank you for this 🙏🏽🙏🏽

[@kman8749]

That was a beautiful piece of music right there. My god.

[@MikeSingSing]

This is something people will go back in 50 years and still will draw from. Derek is the man.

[@manhalen7046]

Midnight in Harlam is such a great song and the gdamn song literally transports you to the place in your mind. That slide when played right achieves things a standard player cant get out of the instrument.

[@apagoogootwo7552]

and sahib teri bandi. check that one out.

[@bh7622]

I’m 45 and lived in Canada for a couple years as a teenager. I saw a very young Derek Trucks on MuchMusic and loved the slide guitar he played. A few months later my dads job moved us again down to Georgia and I learned about the Allman Brothers. Saw him play with those guys a few years later. He’s still amazing.

[@nihowdy1]

Derek shreds, what a humble guy too. Had the pleasure of meeting him backstage in ‘99.

[@haitchteeceeeightnineeight5571]

I can not adequately describe how much I love/hate that you were able to transcribe this. The hate bit's all jealousy on my part, because I am a terrible person, and the love is envy and delight mixed into a wonderfully tall cocktail. I've been trying to play this solo on the saxophone since a couple of weeks since it first ate the internet, and I'm just not that good, but with this transcription I've at least got a shot. Mad props, and thank you!

[@Red80008]

Good luck, let us know when you got there and share your successes! I mean it, no sarcasm here.

[@benkyle76]

Please show us what you’ve got so far after a few run throughs with the tab

[@spanqueluv9er]

@haitchteeceeeightni eeight5571 Guitar tablature in no way helps a saxophone player, dumbfuq. Wow.🤡🤦‍♂️🤷‍♂️

[@spanqueluv9er]

@@benkyle76 Please explain how a saxophonist is suppose to get anything out of guitar tab…🤡🤡🤡

[@benkyle76]

@@spanqueluv9er they go to their guitar (or a diagram if they don’t own one) and look at the 5th fret on the A string (or whatever this tab shows for the note they are wanting to play) and say, “oh he is playing a D here! I shall now key this fingering and tighten my lips like so and blow a D!!” …also known as transcribing. At least the tab now gives them a key to transcribe with that they didn’t have beforehand. Of course this saxophonist would prefer someone had transcribed it straight to standard notation, but they didn’t, so they will make due transcribing it themselves. Surely you understand. Hopefully you aren’t so particular with most other obvious assumptions that people understand in day to day situations without being handwalked through as you call them clowns.

[@bernlin2000]

The guitar as a soul-singing vocalist, that tone is absolutely heavenly!

[@JiMMY-my1ds]

Phenomenal! Perfection!

[@swat1710]

This brought tears to my eyes man

[@RobertHeaney]

The expressiveness he gets from his guitar is stunning.

[@Jallatt]

DTs got some good music in his head and he can effortlessly play exactly what he wants to hear. Different level of guitar playing entirely. Just pure melodic composition. So fun to watch and hear.

[@bernie4366]

I'm really, really happy I came across this clip. This man is amazing.

[@recabitejehonadab2654]

Great playing!

[@josephgodfrey8468]

I watched this entire concert with my Mom (who is 82). She LOVED IT!!

[@satiarpourvasei1644]

Derek Trucks truly makes the guitar sing (like a human voice). It’s his soulful voice coming through his guitar.

[@ec1665]

that transcription was no joke, many thanks!

[@scevvin7788]

I’ve had the pleasure of not only hearing Derek but meeting him a few times 10+ years ago. Even watching a video doesn’t do justice to his natural tone he delivers live. I remember saying “wow” when I first heard it

[@jairverplaats153]

You can see John was very eager to join in, but decided to listen and enjoy instead. Now that is a compliment if I've ever seen one

[@fretburns]

Its a killer solo :)

[@adammchugh5456]

that was some expressive playing!

[@mljrotag6343]

This is one of my favorite YT videos. Trucks is just spectacular.

[@TheLeomlopes]

Bro is shredding with a slide, friggin legend

[@codyfinnell9581]

The little lick at 0:15 is pure bliss.

[@Greg-o304]

That’s when John realized Truck was at a whole other god level and just gets outta the way

[@timberwolfdtproductions3890]

Beautiful! Mr. Trucks was such an integral part of the Allman Brothers sound, and an absolute master of his instrument. A true legend.

[@shpooko]

Fantastic playing

[@hobbiesaremyhobby]

John Mayer cannot help himself from hovering over the position of the riff he is playing in his mind, all the while just enjoying the moment

[@lucaosch]

Seemed to be pretty high as well

[@cincinnatipedalsteel4347]

Derek Trucks is a slide guitar god!!! That’s why I love all instruments you use a slide or bar with… it’s so expressive like the human voice. Sacred Steel is a style that is a lot like this.

[@d-obvious]

made me smile Derek.. thanks bud

[@brandonlopez3902]

This has been the video I come back to from time to time to feel reborn. That is one beautiful fucking solo.

[@SimonLoveridge]

I get goosebumps every single time. This might be the single greatest bit of guitar playing I've ever heard.

[@tchrisou812]

I don't play any instrument. Could you explain why this is so great to a guy like me? I am guessing that he hit the main notes of the song smoothly, but idk.

[@SimonLoveridge]

@@tchrisou812 the main thing for me is the simplicity of the melodies, but how they’re played so soulfully, as if someone is singing them. It’s really hard to state exactly what it is

[@tchrisou812]

@@SimonLoveridge I think I get what you're saying. He shows "je ne sais quoi" and it's like trying to describe what the "it" factor is.

[@SimonLoveridge]

@@tchrisou812 yeah pretty much! I probably could go into it in more detail if it was somewhere more expansive than YT comments ☺️

[@slyfur]

I came here for this comment. I just got ridiculous goosebumps watching/listening to this. He's just incredible.

[@andydsimmons]

John has guitar face even when he is listening 🎶

[@chrisc765]

He plays with more emotion than any other guitar player ive seen.the way he builds up his solos is so amazing

[@nigel900]

Fantastic! 👍🏻

[@harvestfieldchurch9365]

Literally the only live guitar performance that caused me to cry spontaneously! Derek is the real deal.

[@sergiobollana]

I don't know if anybody here tried picking up a guitar, let alone a slide... to hit a good pitch note with the slide it's darn hard. This man is a miracle worker... pitch perfect, beautiful phrases, articulation... you name it.

[@FrankFurther]

Just centre over the fret, I picked up slide playing in minutes it's super easy. As long as you have good enough relative pitch to be able to hear when you're in tune you can just slide up or down and stop when the note sounds right.

[@steelisreal]

@@FrankFurther 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 🤡

[@lightness1701]

You watch his other performances and his hand moves with almost computer like precision, flawlessly and quickly from one note to the next, no hunting notes whatsoever. It truly is insane

[@ColinOBrien]

I’ve watched this 5 times in a row. Just effing elegantly beautiful.

[@varningforvanheden2774]

Really cool with the tab. I would love to see this with "Kirk Hammets 1989 Seattle solo".

[@Ridendrty]

Derek seems to have drawn some of that slide soul genius from Skydog. So good…

[@dhirschorn1]

No words. Unreal!

[@SamSinghComic]

Truly amazing

[@coolguyponus]

When I hear the guitar being used in this way, Stevie was really good at making the instrument do it, but when the guitar is crying like this, it always makes me emotional, almost teary. Because the I know the guitar is giving its handler absolutely every ounce that it can, and that's beautiful. 😊

[@cowslinger64]

I've seen Derek about a dozen times. First with the ABB, and with the Tedeschi/Trucks band. He is such an exceptional artist. IMO, he has the best left hand of any guitarist. And I have never seen anyone play so effortlessly. What a class act too. Gawd.

[@Asshat237]

it just looks effortless because he has been mastering his unique technique/style since he was like 8 years old.

[@xijinvegg]

I can name plenty of better players, he’s simply very good if not the best with the slide. Take that slide away, and he’s still good but you wont call him one of the greats for his non slide stuff.

[@Asshat237]

@@xijinvegg He's not like conventional slide players who can only really play blues. He really elevated slide to the next level.

[@xijinvegg]

@@Asshat237 yes, but there are still plenty of better blues players. He’s the best at slide but blues overall - not a chance

[@spanqueluv9er]

^Best left hand of any guitarist🙄🤡🤡🤦‍♂️🤷‍♂️

[@xR0N1Nx]

Beautiful

[@blakehendricks860]

Trucks is amazing, so smooth and has so much talent

[@JamieSlays]

Who is that? I love these tab videos you’re doing mate

[@brunoribeiro7854]

that's Derek trucks man! a legend!

[@ikkenhisatsu7170]

The response of BB and John Mayer is truly epic. And John Mayer is a guitar master, as was BB King. Props to Derek Trucks.

[@robertbragg9364]

BB king changing that string mid song on stage and tuning the guitar all without missing a beat. He's the greatest to ever do it in my mind. Not to take anything from anyone else be abuse I've heard some amazing and beautiful music in my life. Sometimes you'll hear that rif or few chords and it just sends chills down your body. Music has a soul and it soothes mine to the core. I hum all day everyday and don't get to play much anymore and I'm miserable because of it but the love of all music is so deep down inside that I know when I find my way back I'll be healed. Growing up is for suckers!

[@PhillipSunkel]

Ain’t no one play like Derek. Seen him so many times and he still blows me away

[@rams6702]

i dont even know what those notations mean but it sure does sound like him

[@GuitaristGuyJames]

Derek is the only guitar hero who has literally never sang and stands in one place looking down at his guitar the whole time. I struggle with the stage presence social anxiety thing so he’s kind of my role model in the regard of just focusing my energy on the music and tuning out everything else.

[@Rhythmicons]

I always hated that bands are sometimes more about "the look" and "stage presence" than anything else. But if you know your shit and you can play really good, stop giving a fuck about what you're doing on the stage and let the music speak for itself.

[@whycantihaveanumber00000]

I don't think I've ever heard blues played quite like that before. One of a kind

[@DI_IDER]

Derek Trucks 👌 been years since I last heard this LEGEND thank you internet!!!

[@smelltheglove2038]

Derek trucks is the best guitar player alive. He had an intangible that you feel but cannot articulate.

[@SeptemberChild1835]

Malmsteen??

[@smelltheglove2038]

@@SeptemberChild1835 no.