For better or worse, Dennis Hodges cannot stop playing music, and (he hopes) will never stop playing music.
Growing up in Flint, Michigan, Dennis had a tremendous passion for drawing. He couldn't stop copying moves from bands he saw on MTV, though, and it didn't help that his parents filled the house with Santana,
Stevie Ray, and Allman Bros. (on real records, no less!) so it wasn't long till he got his first guitar. It was junk. Within a few weeks his parents traded in a... (more)
Dennis currently offers 122 guitar lessons at JamPlay, with 58 intermediate lessons, 34 song lessons, 26 Lick & Riff Library entries and 4 entertainment videos.
Use the tabs below to learn more or subscribe for unlimited access to all artists and courses.
Get ready to rock in this metal lesson series with Dennis Hodges. From 80's Metal to modern Dennis loves it all.
Dennis covers important guitar basics such as note names and technical exercises.
33:00 Runtime
1.0 Difficulty
Dennis introduces power chords and basic rhythm concepts. Both subjects are very important to the metal genre.
22:00 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Learn a variety of essential techniques commonly used in the metal genre, including palm muting, string slides, and chord slides.
36:52 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Metal lesson 4 brings you some info on hammer-ons, pull-offs, trills, bending, and the infamous pinch harmonics.
45:25 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Dennis delivers left hand techniques and exercises, with topics including spider walking / riffing, octaves, stretching and 4 practice riffs.
62:36 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
While using a metronome, Dennis covers essential techniques and exercises to obtain great rhythm and timing.
35:00 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Written just for JamPlay and his Metal series, this song will allow you to put all your techniques to use in a musical manner.
28:54 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
In this lesson Dennis teaches the following common time signatures: 3/4, 4/4, 6/8, 9/8, and 12/8. Dennis explains each signature and provides a short example for illustration.
33:12 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
This time around Dennis explains odd time signatures. Similar to Part 1, he uses a musical example to illustrate each new signature.
45:07 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Dennis continues his metal series with part two of his look at rhythm and timing.
56:24 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
This lesson is the long lost sibling to "Left Hand Overload."
52:11 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis Hodges blends conceptual lead instruction for developing solos, improvising, and harmonizing along with lead techniques such as legato, sweeping, and alternate picking.
Dennis covers the basics of the major scale. Then, he introduces you to improvisation within a one octave scale pattern.
25:45 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Dennis introduces the minor scale. You will improvise within this scale and work on a written solo as well.
26:20 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Dennis teaches harmonization in 3rds, diatonic and non-diatonic 4ths, 5ths, diatonic 6ths, and atonal harmonization.
27:16 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Dennis teaches key improvisational concepts such as blending scales, phrasing, and staying within a scale.
29:16 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Dennis Hodges teaches sweeping technique, 3 string triads, and 2 octave arpeggios. Also included is an etude written specifically for JamPlay!
39:18 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Dennis covers many tapping techniques in this lesson. From basic to advanced, get ready to learn something new!
39:47 Runtime
3.5 Difficulty
Dennis teaches a bunch of cool metal and rock tricks in this lesson!
34:27 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis Hodges teaches you some of the basics to writing your own solos!
47:13 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis Hodges teaches the basics of improvising a solo over a backing track.
28:44 Runtime
3.5 Difficulty
Dennis teaches some basics on how to interpret a piece of music and make it your own.
20:03 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Dennis dissects a solo he wrote that stays in the 12th position box of E minor.
15:10 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis Hodges dissects an advanced, extended solo he wrote in A Minor for this lesson.
33:28 Runtime
4.0 Difficulty
JamPlay instructor Dennis Hodges is back with a two sided metal solo! This pack of lessons contains an intermediate and advanced level metal solo. You'll be utilizing bends, sweeping, arpeggios and talking about modes that fit into a neo-classical modal genre. By learning the easier of the two solos, you get to see how you can simplify and scale down your playing. Learning the harder of the two will provide you with embellishment ideas to really fire up your metal soloing!
2:11 Runtime
0.0 Difficulty
To get things started, Dennis offers up the first four measure phrase of this easy metal solo. He also discusses the E Phrygian Dominant mode, which will be used throughout most of this solo.
3:06 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Now that you have the first phrases of the easy solo under your fingers, let's put a little heat into the lick. You're working out of the same E Phrygian Dominant scale here, but you're adding some embellishments and tapping.
4:00 Runtime
3.5 Difficulty
Here's another four bar phrase of the easy metal solo. This phrase is predominantly arpeggio-based. It ends with a big bend and slide out.
4:03 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Like the second phrase of the easy solo, this advanced phrase is also predominantly arpeggio-based. However, it adds speed and flash for a more speed metal vibe.
4:50 Runtime
3.5 Difficulty
Dennis is back with the next phrase of the easy metal solo. Phrase three incorporates a step sequence where you play a note, go up a step, then leap down in a repeated fashion.
3:49 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Just like the other advanced phrases, this one is an embellishment of the easy lick. To amp up the step sequence of the easy lick, this advanced phrase adds triplets.
6:16 Runtime
3.5 Difficulty
Dennis Hodges is back with another lick from the easy metal solo. Phrase four is the final phrase of the easy metal solo. This lick isn't incredibly fast, but it combines a pull-off to open strings, which gives the lick a lot of character.
3:28 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Phrase four of the advanced solo is another embellishment of the easy solo. To amp up the speed and give it a more metal edge, Dennis introduces trills that bounce off the open strings.
5:56 Runtime
3.5 Difficulty
At this point, you should have all four phrases of the easy solo under your fingers. In this lick entry, Dennis discusses how to connect the phrases together in order to play the entire solo seamlessly.
4:40 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Congratulations! You've learned all four phrases of the advanced metal solo. Now, let's take a look at how to connect those phrases for a seamless solo!
6:07 Runtime
3.5 Difficulty
Dennis Hodges teaches jazz for students with a rock background. In this series you will learn to play jazz chord progressions and licks without theory being forced upon you.
Dennis kicks off the lesson series with a lesson on an F major blues solo.
27:19 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis covers the rhythm accompaniment to the F blues solo presented in the previous lesson.
16:58 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Learn how to play a 12 bar jazz blues solo in Bb. Dennis provides an in depth analysis of the solo from a theoretical standpoint.
20:30 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Dennis teaches the accompaniment part to the Bb blues solo taught in the previous lesson.
13:03 Runtime
2.0 Difficulty
Learn a 12 bar jazz blues solo in Eb.
21:55 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Learn how to accompany a 12 bar jazz blues in the key of Eb. Dennis uses a walking bass line and three note chord voicings for this particular accompaniment.
18:58 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Learn this Ab jazz blues solo taught by Dennis Hodges.
21:18 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis explains the accompaniment part to the Ab blues solo taught in lesson 7.
14:14 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis teaches a jazz blues solo in Db major.
20:45 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis teaches the accompaniment part to the solo in lesson 9.
7:46 Runtime
0.5 Difficulty
Learn this Gb blues in 6/4 time based on the Miles Davis tune "All Blues."
12:42 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis teaches the accompaniment to the solo in lesson 11.
12:58 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis continues his straight ahead jazz series with a lesson on a jazz blues solo in B.
18:59 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Here's a lesson on jazz blues accompaniment with a walking bassline.
12:54 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Learn jazz guitar with this straight-forward look at a solo in E major.
13:52 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Learn the accompaniment part to the solo in lesson 15.
3:28 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Dennis Hodges continues his growing Jazz-Blues series with a lesson on a solo in A.
15:33 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Learn the accompaniment to the solo in lesson 17.
11:14 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Learn jazz with a straight-forward lesson on a solo in D.
21:39 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Learn the accompaniment to the solo in lesson 19.
10:00 Runtime
2.5 Difficulty
Here is a very "outside" and modern sounding jazz-blues solo. The timing is very important here! This is one of the trickier solos that Dennis teaches in this series.
18:00 Runtime
3.5 Difficulty
Learn the rhythm accompaniment for lesson 21.
3:00 Runtime
1.5 Difficulty
Here is the final solo to learn for this jazz series. This solo is inspired by the great bebop saxophonist Charlie Parker.
15:00 Runtime
4.0 Difficulty
Here is the final lesson for Dennis Hodges jazz series. Learn the comping for lesson 23.
12:00 Runtime
3.0 Difficulty
Unlock All Courses
Get StartedGet access to all guitar lessons from Dennis Hodges along with our full roster of guitar teachers.