The Steve Stine Podcast

Steve Stine
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The Steve Stine Podcast is about more than just music — it’s about life, faith, and finding meaning in the everyday. Join Steve as he shares honest stories from decades of experience as a musician, educator, husband, father, and believer navigating the highs and lows of life. Each episode offers heartfelt conversations about purpose, spirituality, personal growth, and staying inspired — even when life gets messy or uncertain. Whether you’re picking up a guitar, walking through a season of change, or just looking for encouragement to keep going, you’ll find something here to lift your spirit. With special guests, personal reflections, and real-world insights, this podcast is for anyone seeking a deeper connection to their creativity, their calling, and their faith.

  1. 16h ago

    Basics of Ear Training Part 1

    Send Steve a Text Message If someone says “This one’s in G” and your brain goes blank, this will give you a simple map you can actually use. We’re kicking off a practical ear training series by focusing on chords first, not complicated interval drills, so you can learn songs by ear faster and feel calm when playing with other people. We start with the major scale as the foundation for understanding any key, then we get straight to the useful shortcut: in a major key, the 1 chord, 4 chord, and 5 chord are major, while the 2 chord, 3 chord, and 6 chord are minor. Using the key of C as the clean example, we lay out the exact chords you get and why knowing this instantly narrows your choices when you’re trying to figure out real world songs. We also talk about which minor chord to try first and how that one decision saves time when your ear is still developing. Then we put it into action with familiar progressions in the key of G, including “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” and “Last Kiss” (Pearl Jam version), showing how songs mix the same chord family in different orders. We briefly mention the diminished 7 chord and why we’re not majoring on it yet, keeping the focus on what shows up most in pop, rock, and folk guitar. By the end, you’ll be able to generate the six common chords in other keys like D and start building a repeatable process for chord recognition and guitar ear training. If you want more lessons like this, subscribe, share the episode with a friend who’s learning guitar, and leave a review so more players can find it. Thanks for being here!! I will continue to do my best to bring you the best, most informative guitar discussions to help you along your guitar journey! The more you share this podcast with others, the more I can continue to grow this channel and offer the best information and advice I can to you. Thank you! Steve Links: Check out the GuitarZoom Academy: https://academy.guitarzoom.com/ Steve’s Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/stinemus... GuitarZoom Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/guitarz0... Songs Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarSo... .

  2. Sep 10

    Play Better Blues Solos in Just ONE Position

    Send Steve a Text Message Your blues can sound bigger without moving your hand at all. Steve Stine (GuitarZoom Academy) shows how to get real, melodic blues phrasing by camping in one spot on the neck and treating that position like a full roadmap of the song, not a box you get stuck inside. We build everything around a 1 4 5 in the key of A (A, D, E) and make it more authentic with A7, D7, and E7 colors.  We start by visualizing chord shapes and chord tones at the 12th fret using CAGED thinking, then connect those shapes to the A major pentatonic scale so your lead lines naturally outline the harmony. You’ll hear how chord tones become targets, while the “extra” pentatonic notes become the smooth steps between targets, turning scale patterns into musical sentences. We also nail one of the most important blues guitar sounds: finding the minor seventh by stepping back from the root, and using it to add that gritty blues pull.  Then we layer in a classic flavor move Steve calls the minor major twist, slipping the minor third against a major chord for tension and release. From there, it’s all about choices: stay in A major pentatonic across the whole progression, or shift your pentatonic approach with each chord (like D minor pentatonic over D and E minor pentatonic over E) for more motion and contrast. If you want cleaner solos, better note choices, and blues phrasing that sounds intentional, this one is a keeper. Subscribe, share it with a guitar friend, and leave a quick review with the one blues concept you want to improve next. Thanks for being here!! I will continue to do my best to bring you the best, most informative guitar discussions to help you along your guitar journey! The more you share this podcast with others, the more I can continue to grow this channel and offer the best information and advice I can to you. Thank you! Steve Links: Check out the GuitarZoom Academy: https://academy.guitarzoom.com/ Steve’s Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/stinemus... GuitarZoom Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/guitarz0... Songs Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarSo... .

  3. Sep 3

    A Simple Warm-Up Routine For Arthritis And Finger Stiffness

    Send Steve a Text Message Stiff fingers can make you doubt your playing before you even play a note, and that frustration is often avoidable. We walk through a practical “pre-practice” routine for guitarists who deal with arthritis, morning stiffness, or hands that just need time to wake up. The big shift is mental first: we stop expecting peak performance the second the guitar hits our lap, and we give our body a runway to get there. From there, we get specific with an easy off-guitar warm-up: simple stretching you can repeat throughout the day, including a palms-together position that helps open up the wrist and forearm when you press your elbows straight outward. We also talk about quick ways to boost blood flow and comfort, like warm water on your hands and forearms, staying hydrated, and supporting your body so your fingers feel less tight and more responsive. Then we move to on-guitar warmups that do not require perfection. We use light legato exercises such as hammer-ons and pull-offs across different finger pairs, add basic picking options like downstrokes or alternate picking, and include simple strumming or an easy song if that matches your style. We also touch on hand synchronization with scales or a straightforward 1-2-3-4 pattern, all aimed at warming up rather than chasing speed. If this helps, subscribe, share it with a guitarist who struggles with stiff hands, and leave a review so more players can find a better way to start practicing. Thanks for being here!! I will continue to do my best to bring you the best, most informative guitar discussions to help you along your guitar journey! The more you share this podcast with others, the more I can continue to grow this channel and offer the best information and advice I can to you. Thank you! Steve Links: Check out the GuitarZoom Academy: https://academy.guitarzoom.com/ Steve’s Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/stinemus... GuitarZoom Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/guitarz0... Songs Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarSo... .

  4. Aug 27

    Playing Guitar With Stiff Hands or Arthritis? Try This!

    Send Steve a Text Message Your guitar shouldn’t feel like a hand-strength contest, but a lot of players unknowingly make it one. We dig into the fastest ways to make guitar easier to play, starting with the stuff most people ignore: guitar setup, string action, and string gauge. If your strings sit too high or your neck hasn’t been adjusted in years, you’ll work harder for every note. And if your string gauge is heavier than it needs to be, bar chords and scales can feel brutal for no good reason.  From there, we get into the technique that changes everything: learning the “feather light” fretting pressure point. We talk through how to find the minimum pressure needed for a clean note, why pressing harder is just wasted energy, and how placing your finger closer to the fret instantly improves clarity. This is one of the simplest guitar practice habits that can reduce tension, improve speed, and help you play longer without fatigue.  We also break down bar chord mechanics in a practical way: thumb pressure, relaxed grip, wrist placement, and the subtle elbow rotation that helps you use the side of your index finger for a cleaner barre. If you’ve been frustrated with buzzing chords, cramped hands, or slow chord changes, these small adjustments can make a big difference fast. Subscribe for more guitar lessons, share this with a friend who’s stuck on bar chords, and leave a review with the one technique change you’re going to try first. Thanks for being here!! I will continue to do my best to bring you the best, most informative guitar discussions to help you along your guitar journey! The more you share this podcast with others, the more I can continue to grow this channel and offer the best information and advice I can to you. Thank you! Steve Links: Check out the GuitarZoom Academy: https://academy.guitarzoom.com/ Steve’s Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/stinemus... GuitarZoom Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/guitarz0... Songs Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarSo... .

  5. Aug 20

    Major And Minor Pentatonic Made Simple

    Send Steve a Text Message Major pentatonic and minor pentatonic get treated like separate skills, but that mindset slows down your playing. We break the whole thing down to one clean visual: a single pentatonic shape you can move anywhere on the neck, plus a simple way to find whether you are hearing the major sound or the minor sound. We start with a clear A minor pentatonic example, naming the five-note set and locking in the consistent fingering that makes the box so useful for guitar solos, blues phrasing, and rock licks. Then we flip the switch to major pentatonic without learning anything new: we slide the exact same shape down three frets and re-orient around the new root note inside the pattern. Same notes under your fingers, different tonal center, different vibe. Next we connect the dots with relative major and minor. A minor pentatonic equals C major pentatonic, F sharp minor equals A major, B minor equals D major, and the pattern continues across the fretboard. Once you can visualize that relationship and you know your sixth-string notes, you can choose the sound you want on purpose and land your phrases on the right root. If this helps, subscribe, share the episode with a guitar-playing friend, and leave a quick review so more players can find it. What key do you want to see mapped out next? Thanks for being here!! I will continue to do my best to bring you the best, most informative guitar discussions to help you along your guitar journey! The more you share this podcast with others, the more I can continue to grow this channel and offer the best information and advice I can to you. Thank you! Steve Links: Check out the GuitarZoom Academy: https://academy.guitarzoom.com/ Steve’s Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/stinemus... GuitarZoom Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/guitarz0... Songs Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarSo... .

  6. Aug 13

    Turn A Five-Note Box Into A Full Scale

    Send Steve a Text Message Pentatonic scales can feel like a cheat code because almost anything you play “works” but that safety can also keep your solos from sounding like real melodies. Steve Stein from Guitar Zoom Academy shows a simple way to hear and see the difference between pentatonic and diatonic playing, using the fretboard shapes most guitarists already know and trust. We start with the core definitions: pentatonic means five notes, while diatonic means the full seven-note major or minor scale, the do re mi framework that underpins music theory. From there, we walk through C major pentatonic and show how that familiar shape relates to what many players first learn as minor pentatonic. The big takeaway is root-note awareness: the pattern matters, but what you resolve to matters more, because it changes how every note functions in your ear. Then we expand the pentatonic into a true diatonic scale by adding two notes back in. In C major, that means adding the fourth and the seventh, which introduces half steps and instantly changes the color, tension, and resolution options in your phrasing. We also connect the dots to A minor, explaining why C major and A minor share the same notes while the scale-degree names shift to 2 and 6 when A becomes the root. If you want to level up your guitar soloing, fretboard knowledge, and practical music theory, this is a fast, usable upgrade you can practice today. Subscribe for more bite-sized guitar theory that actually translates to the fretboard, and if this helps, share it with a guitarist who lives in the pentatonic box and leave a review so more players can find it. Thanks for being here!! I will continue to do my best to bring you the best, most informative guitar discussions to help you along your guitar journey! The more you share this podcast with others, the more I can continue to grow this channel and offer the best information and advice I can to you. Thank you! Steve Links: Check out the GuitarZoom Academy: https://academy.guitarzoom.com/ Steve’s Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/stinemus... GuitarZoom Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/guitarz0... Songs Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarSo... .

  7. Jul 30

    Gritty Blues Bends

    Send Steve a Text Message I went Live on Social Media with this, so if you are interested in watching the video, here it is: https://youtube.com/live/IaBZQVuPCDI?feature=share Your solos can have perfect timing and perfect notes and still feel lifeless. Today I go live (on my birthday, no less) to show the opposite approach: how to make guitar leads sound more authentic by adding grit on purpose. We start in A minor pentatonic and build a small set of tools you can use anywhere, from a quick scrape into the phrase to a fast slide into the blues note, followed by a snappy pull-off that screams “real” instead of “exercise.”  Then we get into the bend choices that change everything. I break down a subtle “blues bend” you do right before you leave a note, plus bigger, more aggressive bends that are about emotion and delivery, not perfection. We also talk practical gear feel, including how string gauge and scale length affect bending on guitars like a Les Paul versus longer-scale instruments, so you can stop fighting your setup and start shaping phrases.  The most powerful idea is learning to bend from notes outside the pentatonic back into the scale. Those “wrong” notes can sound right when you treat them as a vehicle, give them space, and commit to the tone, vibrato, and staccato attack. If you want blues rock soloing that has attitude, contrast, and voice-like phrasing, this is a deep well to practice. Subscribe, share this with a guitarist friend, and leave a review, what’s one lick you want to make sound more expressive? Thanks for being here!! I will continue to do my best to bring you the best, most informative guitar discussions to help you along your guitar journey! The more you share this podcast with others, the more I can continue to grow this channel and offer the best information and advice I can to you. Thank you! Steve Links: Check out the GuitarZoom Academy: https://academy.guitarzoom.com/ Steve’s Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/stinemus... GuitarZoom Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/guitarz0... Songs Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarSo... .

  8. Jul 23

    Outdoor Guitar Survival Guide

    Send Steve a Text Message Your guitar can feel rock solid indoors, then completely unravel the moment you roll up to an outdoor gig. Heat, humidity, and direct sun push the wood and hardware into fast changes, and that shows up as tuning instability, sticky playability, and sometimes a neck that suddenly needs attention. We walk through what actually helps when the weather is the problem, especially during those brutal hot and humid summer shows where everything feels damp and rushed.  We share a simple acclimation process that keeps your instrument from getting shocked: leave it in the case, park it in the shade, give it time, then crack the case so the guitar adjusts gradually before soundcheck. From there, we talk through when to put the guitar on a stand, when to retune, and why checking tuning more often outdoors is normal, not a personal failure. If an electric guitar needs a small neck adjustment in extreme humidity, we explain how to plan that ahead of time so you are not scrambling right before you walk onstage.  We also cover the practical gig-bag items that matter when sweat and moisture take over: towels for wiping the neck, body, and hands, plus optional helpers like Fast Fret for strings and Dry and Glide for your hands when the neck starts feeling like a slip and slide. Finally, we discuss humidity control options for storage, including D’Addario Humidipak Maintain, and why shade and patience beat any quick fix. If you found these outdoor guitar tips useful, subscribe, share this with a gigging friend, and leave a quick review so more players can find it. Thanks for being here!! I will continue to do my best to bring you the best, most informative guitar discussions to help you along your guitar journey! The more you share this podcast with others, the more I can continue to grow this channel and offer the best information and advice I can to you. Thank you! Steve Links: Check out the GuitarZoom Academy: https://academy.guitarzoom.com/ Steve’s Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/stinemus... GuitarZoom Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/guitarz0... Songs Channel → https://www.youtube.com/user/GuitarSo... .

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About

The Steve Stine Podcast is about more than just music — it’s about life, faith, and finding meaning in the everyday. Join Steve as he shares honest stories from decades of experience as a musician, educator, husband, father, and believer navigating the highs and lows of life. Each episode offers heartfelt conversations about purpose, spirituality, personal growth, and staying inspired — even when life gets messy or uncertain. Whether you’re picking up a guitar, walking through a season of change, or just looking for encouragement to keep going, you’ll find something here to lift your spirit. With special guests, personal reflections, and real-world insights, this podcast is for anyone seeking a deeper connection to their creativity, their calling, and their faith.

Information

  • Creator
    Steve Stine
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    409
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Steve Stine Guitar Podcast
  • Show Website
    The Steve Stine Podcast

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