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Guitar World
Guitar World
Entertainment
Ben Martin

How to play slide guitar: 5 essential techniques every aspiring slide player needs to learn

A close-up of a guitarist playing electric guitar, with a metal slide on the ring finger of his fretting hand.

Slide guitar is a fun and expansive technique that can unlock fresh, expressive and previously untapped aspects of your playing. It is used in many styles including blues and folk, but can also be heard throughout rock and beyond. It’s fluid, expressive and novel, and adds another string to your bow.

At the start, slide guitar can seem tricky and daunting, esepcially as there a few different variables to consider. This is mostly because there are certain basic things you have to do differently to when playing guitar normally – and if you don’t do these things right, it’s just not going to work. 

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