RIFF LESSONS

Get inside Jack White's playing style from past to present

- Charlie Griffiths

Jack White has most certainly carved out his own niche in terms of both guitar sound and style. Be it with The White Stripes, The Raconteurs or in his own solo work, his idiosyncratic fuzz-driven mixture of groove and note choice is easily recognizable. Most people would be happy with the commercial success of The White Stripes and the bona fide classic riff of Seven Nation Army which came with it, but Jack shows no sign of slowing down, with his latest Fear of the Dawn being his fourth solo album.

Here we're looking at a handful of our favourite White-penned riffs, starting with a classic White Stripes tune Icky Thump, whose ear-worm infectiousness will help you recognize the Dorian mode, the groovy Lazaretto to help you sit in the pocket. We finish up to date with the driving What's The Trick, which is a fantastic hand synchronization challenge.

1 THE WHITE STRIPES

ICKY THUMP

Appears at: 0:40-1:04

Tempo: 95bpm

Key/scale: E Dorian

Main techniques: Single note picking, grace-note slides, power chords