How to Play Cripple Creek

3 versions of Cripple Creek - Melody on Bass Strings, Treble strings, and Up the Neck

This Lesson will teach you scales in a couple positions, and show how to play the melody of Cripple Creek in those spots as well. The melody is kept simple so you can see how the shapes are similar. There are some great licks in the songs and this lesson.

1

Overview

What's in Store

Scales, Songs, and licks in several positions. That's what we have going on in this lesson. We'll work through several scales and exercises, and then move on to playing a song, Cripple Creek, using...
2

Starting Simple

One Octave G Scale on the Bass Strings - 1/8th Notes

Just a simple one octave scale. Pay attention to the fret hand fingerings used in the video. Play slowly. Hold down notes as long as possible. Keep fingers low over fret board. Use rest strokes wit...
3

Speeding Up

One Octave G Scale on the Bass Strings - 1/16th Notes

Start Slow! Now that we've moved from 1/8th notes to a 1/16th note rhythm, the notes come twice as fast. It's likely you might have to move the metronome to a much slower speed than with the prev...
4

Song Time

Cripple Creek on the Bass Strings

This version of Cripple Creek is played within the same octave as the scale we just learned. In some of the licks you'll see some notes not seen in the previous scale. Chromatic licks can sound rea...
5

Adding Some Flair

Bluegrass Lick

This is a very typical bluegrass/fiddle tune embellishment. We stay within the scale and add extra notes that flow around the original melody. The most difficult part here will likely be the string...
6

Taking You Higher

One Octave G Scales on the Treble Strings - 1/8th Notes

Alright, here we are playing all the same notes in a higher octave. Because of how the guitar is tuned we start the scale on an open string, and the fingering is different than the G scale on the b...
7

Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger

One Octave G Scale on the Treble Strings - 1/16th Notes

Just as before, we will now practice this scale with 1/16th notes. Remember the notes come twice as fast, so you may need to practice it slower. Move the tempo slider back as needed. Find a speed t...
8

Song Time, Again

Cripple Creek on the Treble Strings.

The melody is the same, but we're playing in a higher octave on the treble strings. The sound is much brighter, and the fingerings are different. Hopefully, you recognize the similarites. Check out...
9

Painting Outside the Lines

Chromatic Lick

Chromatic means we will play notes moving a half step at a time. There are only 12 notes in music. The Chromatic scale uses all of them. Any given Major scale only uses 7. It's something that can s...
10

Up The Neck

One Octave G Scale - 7th position - 1/8th Notes

Playing up the neck may present a few challenges. First off, we aren't using any open strings. Every note must be fretted. Secondly, we will be using our pinky. That may be tough if you've never do...
11

Speeding Up, Again

One Octave G Scale - 7th Position - 1/16th notes

Don't sacrifice clarity for speed. Sloppy and fast usually doesn't sound better than slow and clean. Adjust the metronome as needed to play cleanly and with the least amount of tension. If it is to...
12

Filling in the Gaps

Partial Scales - 7th Position - 1/8th Notes

The previous G Scale didn't use any notes on the E strings. These partial scales show you the notes available on those strings that are also in the G scale. Because of how the guitar is tuned, and ...
13

A Bit Faster

Partial G Scales - 7th Position - 1/16th Notes

You know the drill.
14

Song Time, Once Again

Cripple Creek - 7th Position

Hope those fingers are nice and comfy in the 7th position. If they are, Cripple Creek shouldn't present too much trouble up here.
15

Adding Some Flair. Again

A New Chromatic Lick

This chromatic lick up the neck begins with a nice rhythmic figure. Pay close attention to the pick direction. It's noted in the tab, and you should be able to see it in the video. Watch the video ...
16

Where to Next?

A Few Suggestions

After you've made it through these versions of Cripple Creek, you might want to learn a new song or keep working on your scale knowledge, and exercises, so just a couple suggestions from our Library