Orville Johnson

If you’re looking for fun and interesting melody lines to include in your solos, the chords in the song can show you a clear path. Drawing a line between two chord tones can create melodic embellishments and add a touch of sophisticated tension. Chromatic approaches take off like a balance beam routine—wobbling through unexpected notes before landing squarely on the target in a satisfying resolution. Visual artists think of the word chromatic as relating to a variety of colors.

Intervals, or the distance between two notes, are a cornerstone of harmony, melody, and chord building on guitar. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where I grew up, rhumba and soukous music are central to guitar playing, and intervals are everywhere—a part of tradition. But as I explained recently in an Acoustic Guitar interview, my understanding of them shifted one day while playing Lego Star Wars with my son.

Mississippi Fred McDowell (1904–1972) had toiled for years as a farmer, playing his blues on the side, when in 1959 he was discovered by the folklorist Alan Lomax and the English singer Shirley Collins. McDowell’s distinctive North Mississippi hill country blues went on to earn the singer and guitarist widespread attention during the 1960s folk and blues revival.