Playing with a Singer by Levi Clay

When it comes to becoming a well-rounded guitarist, knowing how to play with others—especially a singer—is essential. “Playing with a Singer” by Levi Clay is a focused, in-depth guitar course from Licklibrary.com that explores this often underappreciated but crucial aspect of musical collaboration. Whether you’re accompanying a vocalist on stage or aiming to improve your live and jam session performances, this course provides the tools, mindset, and techniques to become a supportive, musical, and expressive guitarist.

Rather than emphasizing flashy solos, this course puts the spotlight on dynamic rhythm playing, tasteful fills, complementary phrasing, and musical communication—all key elements when working with a vocalist. Using real-world scenarios and expertly guided lessons, Levi Clay shows you how to craft guitar parts that enhance a vocal performance rather than compete with it.

What You’ll Learn

Levi walks through a series of stylistically diverse performances alongside a live singer, showing how to create guitar parts that are both tasteful and song-serving. Each lesson offers valuable insights into techniques and musical concepts every guitarist should master. Working with the talented songwriter and vocalist Melisa Kelly, Levi demonstrates how to tailor your rhythm playing, chord voicings, and improvisational choices to better serve the song—and the singer.

You’ll also get a firsthand look at the kind of musical dialogue and collaboration that lies at the heart of playing with others.

Meeting a Singer & Finding Musicians

If performing with a singer—or other musicians—is new territory, the idea can be intimidating. Levi and Melisa share practical advice for finding collaborators, attending jam nights, and taking your first steps into live performance. They discuss what to expect, how to approach potential bandmates, and how to build confidence in a live setting.

Playing Choices to Avoid

What do singers and bandmates really need from a guitarist? How do you avoid simply duplicating the chords being played by a singer-songwriter? What should your solos contribute to the song? Learn how to build guitar parts and improvisations that are musically appropriate and elevate the entire performance.

Register & Texture

What tones, effects, and registers work best when backing an acoustic singer-songwriter? Levi and Melisa break down how to create texture and contrast with your guitar tones. You’ll learn how to use effects and fretboard positioning to craft accompaniments that stand out—in the right way—and make you the guitarist everyone wants to work with.

Original Song Analysis

Put your knowledge into action by working through three original songs written by Melisa. Levi takes you through how to develop guitar parts from the ground up. Explore how to match rhythms, find space in the arrangement, and even take inspiration from other instruments used in the full recordings of the songs.

Why This Course Matters

Playing guitar with a singer is a skill that demands restraint, awareness, and active listening—qualities that aren’t always emphasized in traditional solo-focused lessons. Levi Clay breaks these concepts down into clear, applicable lessons that not only show what to play, but explain why it works.

By the end of this course, guitarists will:

• Sharpen their rhythm and timing
• Learn how to leave space for vocals and other instruments
• Develop taste and musical intuition
• Gain confidence in live settings
• Adapt more easily to different genres and dynamics

Whether you're an intermediate player ready to move from bedroom jams to live gigs, or an experienced guitarist wanting to refine your band-playing skills, “Levi Clay's – Playing with a Singer” will help you become a more complete and versatile musician.