How to play the Ask Zac Theme, and the story behind it - Ask Zac 114 

I’ll play your theme sometimes at soundcheck or trying out a guitar at the music store…. then look around to see if anyone noticed what it was….if someone recognizes it there usually is some kind of response. I liked it enough to learn it!

Your theme is on my list of top ten telecaster tunes. It has a whimsical quality like a Sesame Street number. It really suits your laid back style.

We have all been waiting for this video since the beginning of Ask Zac. Thank you for sharing the lesson and the story behind that intro.

I love your theme music. For some reason it reminds me of a perfect summer day. Thats the vision I get when I hear it. Its way different than the visions I get for my stuff which usually involves trains colliding and/or an urge to instinctually duck out of the way of flying shoes from the audience.

Fun thing is that I learned your intro several months ago, and I use it as a part of my daily warm-up routine, I find it quite useful :) Thanks for the video!

Retro, fun, mellow, relaxing, beckoning...it's just a great theme Zac. Luckily for all of us you were able to work through your left hand troubles. Also, we all probably owe something to Guthrie Trapp. The guy is inspirational. Thanks for this episode and lesson!

I’ve had hand, neck and shoulder problems but everything is working well now. “Mr. Rogers meets Pee wee Herman” Best theme song description ever!

Found this searching for what the name of your theme was after watching the Jolene guitars video. Always love your work and taste in music. I was sure the theme was a 50’s tune....now I can play it!

The final chord reminds me of Reggie Young's ending chord of Bill Black's Combo cover of Elvis's 'Don't Be Cruel'... great vid!

The theme is identifiable, catchy, and always puts me in a particular frame of mind. I hear it and I know there is going to be some really interesting introduction to guitar players that I'm either completely unfamiliar with or have not really heard much of, people that are outside my style of playing, people with tremendous skill that it is fascinating to hear about. Either that or there is some other nugget of wisdom that enlightens me in aspects of the guitar outside of my own British niche of grunge/blues/psychedelic rock noodling that I usually get up to. Thanks!

I really like this theme. Thanks for showing how to play it. 😊

I have been suffering from a bad case of tendonitis for almost a year now. I stopped playing 2 months ago and I'm starting to slowly back at it. I know what it feels like, Zac. Hearing your story gives me another kick of hope and positivity. Thank you for what you do.

I play this all the time... I had to figure it out very first time I heard it. Very catchy! Thanks! First time someone heard me playing it, they asked, Mr. Sandman? I replied, Ask Zac 😁

Dude, this is great! I'm gonna learn this annoy my family with it for days and days and days!

Thanks Zac! I’m 64 and wanted to start playing again after a 10 year layoff. I was fine when holding the neck like a baseball bat, but playing barre chords caused my thumb tendons to scream. Saw a hand doctor and he diagnosed de Quervains syndrome which is a condition similar to carpal tunnel, but only in the thumb. A single cortisone shot put me right!

Great story and lesson Zac! The idea that the theme introduces you to the audience is so right on. And it travels well - I was in my local guitar store last month (Guitar Showcase in San Jose, CA), wearing my Ask Zac A to Z shirt, and trying out a Player Plus Nashville Tele. I started playing the first few notes of the theme, and one of guys that works there came into the room and said “Ask Zac - great show!” Well done as always!

Great story! So glad you got back the use of your hand. Your theme has been at the top of my list of "songs stuck in my head" since I first heard it! 😁

Boy can I relate to your story. 5 years ago this Easter I had a stroke and I could hardly play. My fingers would lock up in strange positions. So I started playing the same scales up and down the neck for hours. Couldn't go any place because of the Covid. Then I happened on your site and learned the intro. Like you it was at least something interesting. My hands started to not lockup as much so I started playing Steve Howe runs from the Yes songs. I still play at least 2 hours a day and I'm almost getting back to where I was before the stroke. Oh and I play the intro a couple times I play. Hey I'm having Scott Lorensberg ( Tone Pump Amps) build me a Deluxe Reverb clone he lives in town here and I know you reviewed one of his amps in 2015. So I'm wondering what speaker you would recommend. Well I'm going play some and loosen up my fingers. Great vid as Always and story. CW

Mr. Rogers meets Pee Wee Herman, lol. Glad you were able to recover from your injury and share this channel with all of us. Thanks for sharing your story.

I do really like the "retro-fun-stalgic" (if you will) feel that you're theme gives, but at the same time, I also like very much the funky groov-ah-rific "alternate take" approach.

Picking up a Deluxe Reverb soon and I think it’s appropriate that I should learn this! :)

This is great - I've been using that from Guthrie for quite a while, trying to make sure warm ups/practicing is musical, working in all the keys. I thought that maybe it was based on some unknown tune! You've adapted it brilliantly.

You are quite the fellow musician. Always enjoyed watching every episode since you started this channel. Thank you

Thanks! That was FUN! 🙂

I’ve got a great variation on that lick. I’ll try and post it here later. Great lick. Great channel

Yes! I had figured this out but always wondered if there was more to it, and what the story was behind it.

I always appreciate new hand exercises

Really appreciated your story, Zac! I just received my deluxe reverb t-shirt. Thanks for putting out quality edutainment.

Thanks - I love it since i first heard it, play it frequently and its a great exercise.

Every time a plus 40 year old picks up a tele in a music store going forward will feel obligated to play this.

Thank you for sharing. I really appreciate your theme song and I am glad you shared it with us. I really enjoy the show.

Yes, playing injuries..glad you recovered! I've had encounters with trigger thumb...most recently, and now I play electric guitar.. previously it was tennis elbow. Both of these took months to heal and indeed set me back..doin ok now though.

Always enjoy your commentaries, interviews and your laid back demeaner. Your wonderful repository of knowledge and experiences are greatly appreciated by your many fans. Keep up the great work. Look forward to your next segment.

Your Tele sounds so good on both the neck and bridge pickups.

I use it for warm ups - it’s a great exercise routine, and a good fill to build on! Thanks Zac!

love this tune. its fun to do the 12 fret tapping to :)

I really like your theme. Had to learn it a few weeks ago cause it sounds so cool. It is also fun to play. Imagine taking it even further, like a cool full song. That would be awesome. Thanks for another great episode. 👍

Zac I always enjoy your videos

Great stuff, Zac. I had most of it down by ear, but helpful to be shown it! I had a (very different - my right thumb did something weird so I couldn't hold a pick for a couple of months) hand issue in 2013 just when we moved to Hong Kong, which meant I wasn't able to play guitar for about 10-11 weeks, so your story about re-awakening the hands resonates.

Thanks Zac! I agree with you that GT is a great picker!

Thanx, Zac. Keith W advocates learning before buying gear with TrueFire. Hard to teach an old dog new tricks (happy i can play at all) but i like this little lesson. Thanks, Zac !

Thanks for sharing Zac!

Awesome. Been waiting for this

😊👍👍 This was a great episode...I can hear you on the left hand issue. I'm 76 and have arthritis issues in both hands...BUT this is not keeping me away from doing my thing with the 'axe' . . .I like the Mr. Rogers / Pee-Wee Herman analogy 😊. I have severe issues with my right shoulder as I had to stop bowling due to this (bear with me on this)...in the meantime, I switched over to bowling left handed . . .I'm pretty much ambidextrous and had little difficulty with this...altho getting the bowling ball to stay on the lane is another story (hand release)......I am finding out that now bowling lefty-style is helping me with my left hand on the guitar...I think it may have strengthened my hand/wrist area also...take care Zac.......looking forward to next week's episode 😎

Had a similar situation to where I couldn’t hold a coffee cup, much less play. Wound up having carpal tunnel and tendinitis surgery on my elbow. Still have some slight discomfort here and there, but nothing like before. Definitely discouraging for a little while. Thanks for sharing.

I have to say this is Coles guitar method book two standard Nick Manoloff the unsung hero of guitar instruction books

Good episode and neat opening theme you play. I can relate to your hand issues. I still suffer from some left hand issues myself and last year I injured my left hand middle finger which resulted in a finger brace for 6 weeks and I had to build up the strength in my left hand not to mention my calluses again. Fast forward ahead to this year and the finger has healed quite well but I’m having trouble with stiffness with my left hand index finger. The good thing so far is that once I start playing for awhile it seems to work fine so I’m trying to stay positive. I also listen to Guthrie Trapp’s channel. He’s a great player. Keep up the great work on your channel!

Thanks Zac! I enjoyed that. 🙂

My first thought when you started saying Guthrie was Guthrie Govan, I thought that would have been a kind of out there influence for you haha.

Good job Zac

It's a great theme, Zac -- very identifiable. And it's clearly meaningful to you, which makes it the perfect theme for your show! I learned it right away, though with completely different fingering (because I seem to do everything the hard way -- including playing left handed). I also wrote a second section, which takes the theme from the top back down to the bottom (not exactly in reverse, but still in the same melodic ballpark). And finally, I wrote a high harmony. So your exercise, which became an identifiable theme, also became a new exercise for me! Thanks so much! One question though... why B-flat? Any particular reason?

Thanks. Got all of it except that chord at the end. Having trouble fingering that to sound right.

Another good one Zac! When are you going to have another good story for us?? Thanks for sharing your time

Awesome

I too have hand and wrist pain, and had to stop playing for several months. I still need to maintain good discipline with exercise and stretching, playing time, even foods that I eat (had to cut way back on inflammatory foods like sugars, carbs, beer :-( ) - Thanks for sharing your experience, Zac, it's very positive.

Kewl. !! Very original !!

Hah, a couple years too late for me, but I really like to play this through a few times to warm up. 😁

ya it does feel like Mr Roger's happy

FINALLY. Been waiting for this since Christ was a child

love it neighbor! I confess I play it all the time - super catchy and fun. I should have done a tutorial on it on my channel - DOH! :-)

That’s great Zac. Now every time the show starts I’m going to be playing along with you! Or is that too creepy? Seriously, I sympathise with the hand problem. I lost about a year of playing due to carpal tunnel problems in my left wrist. I even sold my J-45 because I didn’t think that I would ever be able to get my arms around a big guitar again.

I always thought it was very Jimmy Bryantish and that the music would fit in real well on a Beaverly Hillbillies episode. If it doesn't have a name I'll call it Ellie May's Bounce. Actually the Bryant song that reminds me of your theme song is called Bryant's bounce .

Dig it.

Learned something today, been using that chord and it's my favorite and never knew the name of it for years and now I know . B flat 6 9 chord. Of course in other keys also in other songs Thank you Zac. Ask Zac I enjoy these!

Learning that riff the 1st time I heard you do it , opened all kinds of doors for me . What's up with the true tone lounge ???? Am I missing them or have you slowed down a bit ????

The official name for that piece of music, of course, is the ZacSoPhone riff.©

I understand on building the muscles in you fingers and hand .its been a Year for Me and I dont know if I will be able to.pick.or Even strum .. nuot talking about my left hand .it hasent been on a neck .in that year and im still.at a skild center .till Aptil 7 th 2022 3 days after my stroke .april 4th 2021

I thought it was inspired by Mr Sandman

Maybe you or someone could ask Fender to bring back a Harvard re-issue amp?

Bb Zac? The local blue grass guitar player I most admire in town read me the riot act when I called that key. ?? I tried to explain it was horn thing. What difference should that make to a genre who lives with a capo most of the time?. Help me.

It looks like you are using lots of pick upstrokes in a row. I niced it around the 2 minute mark, playing against the I. Why is that?

RIP Peewee