Icons Of Rock Lead-guitar

Lead Guitar: This half of the course covers the basic stuff you’re going to need to play solos, fills, and, most of all, to understand why you’re doing things as you do them. I find a lot of my students walking in able to play certain things by rote, like a monkey doing a trick, but having absolutely no idea what’s behind the trick. Get through this material and you’ll be able to add onto the things you’re playing and explain why you’re doing it.

Another huge problem with intermediate students is being stuck in “Position One”. If you’ve been playing for awhile, you’ll play position one in this book and go “AHAAAA! I know that sucker!” It’s easy to play, it’s fun, and it’s really, really easy to get stuck in. People are afraid to break out of that four-fret box. This course will show you how to continue your ideas anywhere, up and down the neck, in any key.

Most importantly, I’ve tried to present this material in an easy-to-follow, fun format. If I’ve done my job, you’ll be able to appropriate ideas from these tunes (“appropriate” sounds SO much nicer than “steal”, don’t ya think?) and make them your own, so other players can steal ‘em from YOU. My private lessons are known as “the fastest half-hour on the planet”. Hopefully, that feeling will translate well onto the screen and the printed page.

OK…enough talk. Let’s pick…..

Shape 1 (Em Shape): Basic Em Pentatonic Scale: Try to get a “hook” on this scale by thinking of the open strings just behind the nut as kind of a visual straight-lined axis. Starting with the open sixth string, go up 3 frets to the next note. Go to the next string, play it open, and go up two frets. Look at the notation; the pattern goes like this:

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Memorize this pattern; it will become extremely useful to you as you move into

the next series of scale patterns in different keys.

• Make sure to use the correct fingering, and keep things slow.

I cannot stress this

enough; play these exercises really, really slow at first, with emphasis on your left hand fingering being clean and crisp.

• Use downstrokes at first (pick away from you).

You’ll be using alternating down

& up picking for more speed later.

•

Keep your left hand thumb flat on the neck; don’t grab the neck like a baseball

bat. Use the fingerTIPS on your left hand rather than the sides of your fingers, and your notes will be clean, crisp, and confident sounding.

•

Look at an Em chord. Notice how 3 of the 5 notes of the Em pentatonic scale

form the chord shape. This is an important concept that will make it easier for you to find scale notes all over the neck.

The Em Pentatonic Scale with b5 added (The “Blues” Scale): A diatonic scale is a full seven-note scale. In an Em diatonic scale, the fifth note is a B. (In our Em pentatonic scale shape, the B is found at the second fret of the fifth string and at the open second string.) The “b” symbol is a flat sign. When you flat a note, you lower it by a half step. (A half step on the guitar is one fret.) So, if B is at the second fret of the fifth string, Bb would be at the first fret of the fifth string. The other Bb would be at the third fret of the third string. When you add the b5 (“flat five”) to the pentatonic scale, you add a note that is very bluesy sounding. If you think of the pentatonic scale as a musical stew, the flat five note is another spice to throw in. It can be sexy, aggressive, or downright unsettling and ugly; it depends on how often you use it, and what other notes you use it with.

• Practice these scales daily.

By doing them over & over, you will get them “under

your fingers” more quickly. Play them as steadily as possible, and remember…sloo-o-ow is go-o-o-od! Use the metronome to keep you steady and to gradually increase your speed in a methodical manner.

•

Practice the blues examples to see how to use the scale notes as melodies.

Then, try making up your own melodies using the two scales. Try holding certain notes for a long time, and picking other notes more quickly. Experiment, be fearless, have fun! When you’re playing solos, you don’t want it to sound like you’re just playing scales. The scales are tools for you to help find the sounds that other players make and the sounds that exist in your head.

Basic Em Pentatonic Scales

Basic Em From Pentatonic Scales: Icons of Rock Lead Guitar DVD Greg Douglass �

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Page 1/1

Em Pentatonic Blues: The marking at the left hand side of the title on these pieces is a metronome setting. It shows a quarter note symbol, followed by an equals (=) sign, followed by a number. On this piece, it’s telling you that you are counting at 120 BPM (Beats Per Minute.) It would be a good idea to start slower than the suggested BPM. 120 BPM is the suggested performance tempo (speed); the learning tempo is up to you. I have found that by taking the song at a much slower speed when in learning mode, I am able to get my muscle memory together much more quickly. I didn’t add left hand markings; just use your first finger at the first fret, second finger at the second fret, etc., etc., etc.

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Em Position 2 (Dm Shape): Position 2 is directly connected to position 1. I call it the Dm shape because the body of the scale is very similar to the Dm chord shape. If you use your first finger and barre the strings and then create a Dm chord shape with your other fingers you will see most of the notes used to create position 2.

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Slides, Hammer-Ons & Pull-Offs: A great deal of learning these techniques is visual, and the DVD is indeed going to be a huge asset. SLIDES

•

The main problem with sliding in the beginning is over or under shooting the

note you’re aiming at, especially with slides that are several frets apart. Again, be very slow and careful in the beginning, and eventually that muscle memory will take over.

• If your strings are dirty or sticky, or your fingers are unusually dry, it can be hard or sometimes actually painful to slide. (I have seen people actually get cut while attempting a slide on a particularly gross, rusty set of strings. Try explaining that to the case worker at Workman’s Comp.) You can lubricate your fingers by using the oil at the sides of your nose or between your eyebrows. (See, you always knew that stuff would come in handy someday!) There is also some great stuff called Finger-Eze that you spray on your strings. It’s kind of like PAM, that stuff you spray on cookware so food won’t stick, except for guitars. I always carry some in my guitar case. HAMMERS

•

Remember; it’s a HAMMER-on. Bring that finger down assertively; it needs

to be as loud as the picked note that precedes it. That’s especially important on the slow/rhythmic hammers, and even more important if you’re doing hammers in conjunction with pull-offs. PULL-OFFS

• Again, remember the name; it’s a pull-off, not a lift-off.

If you just kind of wimpily

lift your finger up off the string, you’ll get…nothing, a sort of ghostly approximation of what you need. Pull slightly away from yourself; you should really feel the string dig into your finger. You’ll hear the difference. It needs to be as loud as the note(s) that precede or follow it.

Basic Slides, Hammer-ons & Pull & Offs: Basic Slides, Hammer-ons Pull-Offs From Icons of Rock Lead Guitar DVD Greg Douglass �

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Page 1/2

“Get the Hook!” This tune was inspired by one of my heroes, John Lee Hooker, AKA The Hook. This has long been a huge favorite among my students, and I hope you have a good time with it as well. Listen very carefully on this tune. It has a kind of a blues shuffle feel to it, which I demonstrate on the DVD, and it’s important to the groove, or feel, of the song. The shuffle feel is indicated on the tab next to the tempo marking. There, in parentheses, is a pair of eighth notes, with an equal (=) sign, followed by a quarter note & an eighth note with a triplet sign over it. (A triplet is three notes played evenly over the space usually occupied by two.) Note pairs are played with the first note being slightly longer than the second; again, listen carefully on this one. The left hand fingerings are, as with much of the fingerings in this project, “suggested” fingerings. If you have something that works better for you, go for it. A lot of this tune is open for interpretation. However, on the “answer” part on the low strings in the second measure, use your first and third fingers. A lot of people try using their second and fourth fingers, and it’s much harder, clumsier, and doesn’t sound as good. On the triplet pull-offs starting in measure 13, I use my first and second fingers to do the phrase, as I’m able to be aggressive and clean at the same time. You really want that pull-off to be crisp and quick; if your second & third fingers get the job done better for you, go for it! Measure 23 combines hammers & pull-offs to a nice effect. The power chord stuff starting at measure 26 really relies heavily on the shuffle feel; again, rely on your ears to play this part correctly. You can use all down strokes or down & up strokes to make this part groove right; try it both ways. Take your time on this one. There are some challenging passages, but when it’s all done and ready to play, it rips! It’s a great piece to whip out when people at a gathering say, “Say, you play guitar, don’t you?” that’s when you….Get the Hook!

Get The Hook!

Get the Hook! From Icons of Rock Lead Guitar DVD Greg Douglass E5

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First Lead Position Different Keys:

(Em

Shape),

When you play an F major barre chord at the first fret on the guitar, what you are actually doing is taking the E major chord shape and then using your first finger behind the chord as a kind of flesh-covered capo to move the entire chord up one fret. The sixth string is your reference point, telling you where the root note (the “name” of the chord) is. We discussed how the first pentatonic position in the key of Em is physically based on the shape of an Em chord. The same thing is going to happen as we move the scales up and down the neck. With the Em scale, we have a parallel line representing the open strings just behind the nut. Starting with the open sixth string as your first note, you go up 3 frets to get to your next note. Then, you go up two frets on the fifth string, two on the fourth, two on the third, three on the second, and 3 on the first. The same thing happens as we move up to the key of Fm. We now have a parallel line on the first fret. We start on the first fret of the sixth string, and then go up to the fourth fret (a distance of 3 frets) to get to the next note. We then follow the exact same pattern that we did with the Em shape; starting with the sixth string, it goes: STRINGS

6th

5th

4th

3rd

2nd

1st

FRETS

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The pattern stays exactly the same as you go from key to key, so that once your fingers have learned what to do in one key, they know how to do it in all 12 keys. There are four other minor pentatonic positions, and this same positional approach works for all of them. It’s very important to get these patterns “under your fingers” as quickly as possible by practicing these shapes every day. They are all interconnected, and once you get them down, you will be able to play these scales everywhere on the neck. There is no substitute for constant practice of these scales; the sooner you learn them, the sooner you’ll be out there shredding with the big boys!

1st Lead Position (Em Shape) , Different Keys

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Blues In A: So far, we’ve been treating these scales as exercises, playing the notes in a very methodical manner, playing (hopefully!) as steadily and as cleanly as possible. Now, we’re going to start grouping these scales into musical phrases. Instead of a fixed line of quarter notes or eighth notes, now the notes will have ebb & flow, room to breathe. Although these early solos are very simple and short, pay attention to some of the concepts they contain. In measure number four, for instance, there is a whole note rest where the lead guitar does…nothing. That’s right, you kick back and let the rhythm guitar do all the work for four beats. Don’t feel like you have to constantly fill space with your newly-learned notes. Think like a singer, or a sax player. They have to stop and catch their breath occasionally, and it adds humanity to their music. Try that same concept with your guitar solos. You’ll be amazed at how far you can take these simple scales with a little time, taste, practice and, above all, imagination!

Blues in A From Icons of Rock Lead Guitar DVD Greg Douglass

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Solo Over Power Chords: This solo is over three basic power chords. Power chords are two note chords, or diads, that are found everywhere in rock, blues, and pop music. They are simple to play, and extremely useful musically. Because they are neither major nor minor, you can play major OR minor scales over them. They are usually called “5” chords, as in “C5” or “A5”, because they consist of a root note and the fifth note in the scale of that root note. For instance, C5 consists of a C and a G note. You start at C, and go up 5 notes….C, D, E, F, and G. As you’ll see later, you can double these notes at different places and make power chords that use all six strings. (AC/DC are the kings of ginormous power chords.) In this solo, I start with a phrase that resolves with a whole note on the root in the fourth measure. I start the same phrase in the fifth measure, but I resolve it differently, setting up a dynamic build-up utilizing high notes to create tension. I also use eighth notes starting in measure ten to add more texture to the solo along with the high notes. (When you play those eighth notes, try using down and up picking. It’ll help you achieve speed and smoothness. Try practicing your scales using the down/up picking technique as well.) I end the solo using a phrase similar to the one I started with. Even though this little solo is short and relatively simple, I tried to make a musical statement with it. Try to do the same thing with your solos, even at this early stage in your playing. Sometimes just repeating the same note over and over can be an effective way of creating tension within a solo; check out Neil Young’s one-note beauty on “Cinnamon Girl”. It was a brilliant move, and it was the perfect solo for that song. Over time, you’ll learn when to dazzle your audience with tsunamis of hot licks and when to tease ‘em with that ONE perfect note at just the right time. You’re already on your way…..

Solo Over Power Chords

Icons of Rock Lead Guitar DVD SoloFrom Over Power Chords: Greg Douglass Music by Greg Douglass A5

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Page 1/1

Shape 2 (Dm Shape): The Dm shape works the same way as in the key of E we worked with earlier. Now you can use the Dm shape as a base and move it up the fretboard. This exercise is in the key of A. Moving the Dm shape up the fretboard extends your playing positions and options.

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“Smoke It!” This piece actually uses three of the 5 lead positions. It starts with position #5, goes quickly in to position #1, and then to position #2. Try to identify where the changes take place, and how the fingerings are done so you can use them in making up your own solos and licks. It is very uncomfortable at first for players to get out of position #1 which is kind of the comfortable old couch of lead scale positions. Try some of these runs in different keys as well, so you’ll feel more confident in using them. There is no chord on the first measure; that opening run, done in the fifth position, leads into the rhythm. (Also, watch the count on that run; it starts on the second half of the first beat…”… and-2-and-3-and-4-and”). That transition from position #5 to position #1 allows for lots of great slides that ordinarily would never be possible when using our old four-fret buddy, #1 (specifically, check out the very first run in the song. Try using it in different situations.). Likewise, there is a cool transition from position #1 to position #2 in measure 5 that allows you a smooth entrée to the bends & licks that position 2 allows us to do.

Smoke It!

Smoke It!

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Shape 3 (Gm Shape): The Gm shape is a little harder to visualize. It is loosely based on the Gm chord. Take your time with these shapes and practice them in other keys. Simply keep the same shape just move up or down the fretboard to play in other keys.

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Bends: You can often tell who the guitarist is by the way they bend the notes. Bending is generally used in half and full steps. The best way to check for sonic accuracy is to play the note you want to bend and then play up a half step. Bend the first note until it matches the pitch of the half step note to which you are bending. For a full step bend play the note two frets or a whole step up to find the final pitch to bend to. On the 1st-3rd strings bend up towards the ceiling, and the 4th-6th strings bend down towards the floor. When you bend the note your finger will touch the next string. Use the flesh of your finger to mute the next string as you touch it to prevent you from creating unwanted noise. Check out the DVD to see and hear examples of bending notes properly.

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Shape 4 (Cm Shape): This shape is roughly based on the Cm chord. This example is in the key of A this time playing the A or root note on the 12th fret.

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“ Sneakin’ Up on Molly” This song involves all the techniques we’ve covered so far; slides, hammers, and LOTS of bends, both whole and half-step bends. Those first half-step bends are pretty easy, but watch out when you get to measure #4. There’s a whole-step bend followed immediately by a 2-string barre, followed by a quick slide that goes all the way up to that A note at the 10th fret of the second string. It all happens really fast. I use my second finger to do the whole step bend, sort of roll my first finger over to hit that barre, and then my third finger is ready to fall in on that slide to the 10th fret. This is a really common blues/rock run, and it’s a great arrow to have in your quiver of licks. Measures 9-14 give you an example of the comfortable fingering access that position #2 allows you for doing Clapton/BB King type bends up there on the neck. In measure 15, WATCH THE FINGERING CHANGE! You switch into position #3, which allows for some bends using the root note (measures 17 & 18 are perfect examples) that allow more chance for throbbing vibrato and meaty expression than doing the same bends on the first two. Please, take your time on getting these bends down. Check the notes for pitch. If there’s a half step bend on the 7th fret of the third string, play the 8th fret on the third string to check your pitch. A lot of checking out your bends involves listening with your ear. Play these exercises with a backing CD or another guitarist. Having those chords behind you will keep you harmonically honest. A whole-step bend bent too high or too low will be really obvious with the correct chord behind you.

Sneakin' Up on Molly From Icons of Rock Lead Guitar DVD Greg Douglass

Sneakin’ Up on Molly Music by Greg Douglass A5

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Shape 5 (A minor): Look at an Am chord. Notice how 3 of the 5 notes of the Am pentatonic scale form the chord shape.

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Five Main Minor Pentatonic Positions: There are five main minor pentatonic positions. The first, and most commonly used one, is the one we’ve already studied, the “Em” position. The beginning, or “root” note, naturally occurs on the sixth string. It is very important to keep track of that root note. When we solo, phrases tend to begin and end on the root, as it sonically defines the key we’re in. It’s a solid, safe place to start and end our musical thoughts. These positions are loosely based on chord shapes. We’ve already seen how the first position is structurally similar to the Em chord shape. When chords are built, they use a triad, or three note, structure. All three of the triad notes tend to be where phrases are begun and ended upon, as they define the key we’re in. (They are referred to as the I, III, and V notes, using roman numerals for 1, 3 & 5.) I want you to be very aware of the location of the root note in all of these positions, as they link the different shapes together. For instance…I call position 2 the “Dm” position, as it has its structural basis in a Dm chord shape. If you took a Dm chord shape and moved it up to where the first finger was on the eighth fret, you’ll have an Am chord using a Dm shape (your root note would be on the seventh fret of the fourth string.) Position 3 is loosely based on a Cm shape, position 4 an Am shape, and position 5 a Gm shape. (By the way, the Cm and Gm shapes are virtually impossible to play as actual chords; I just use them as ways to keep track of the triad positions.) Keep very close track of where those root notes are located, as those are where you can launch into the next position, which will carry you from one shape to another. When I’m in the key of Am, use the seventh fret of the fourth string as a springboard to jump from the first to the second position, which gives me access to all those cool bends at the tenth fret on the first string. EEEEE-hah! That root note at the tenth fret on the second string also allows me access to the third position, with all its wild bends on the second and third strings. The quicker you learn the positions, the quicker you can get out of that boring first-position ghetto.

Experiment with ways of getting from one position to another. The notes on the bottom two strings in the second position allow you nice access to the third position, for instance, which allows all kinds of neat slides that aren’t possible in the first position. Each position has its own set of tricks. Experiment! Go crazy! One of the reasons you’re using this course is to get out of your “comfort zone”. Try to identify how I’m using transitions in some of the tunes and use them to create your own ideas. Look for and identify these positions when you’re figuring out solos by other players. Analyzing other guitarists’ brains is a great exercise! So….when dealing with these positions, here are some important things to ponder: • Make sure you know where the root notes are on each position! That will help you know how to transition from one scale position to another. • Pay close attention to the suggested left hand positions! It’s extremely important in places like the second position. That third-string-to-second-string transitioning is crucial in getting you set up to do some of those wicked bends and pull-offs!

Five Main Minor Pentatonic Lead Positions All scales are in the key of Am Five Main Minor Pentatonic Positions From Icons of Rock Greg Douglass Lead Guitar DVD �

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Prozackly Blues: I was listening to a blues band a couple of years ago at a local San Diego night spot, and at some point they launched into a long, long, lo-o-o-ong minor blues instrumental whose tempo moved at a glacial pace and whose length could be measured in geologic time. A song title was born! I based this short minor blues on the playing of one of my favorite guitarists, Peter Green, who was the main picker for the early, non-Stevie Nicks version of Fleetwood Mac. Brilliant player, the master of good taste and tone. This one is played primarily in position 4, or what I call the “Am position” because it corresponds to the shape of that chord. I LOVE this position, because there are so many accessible bends; check out measure 10, for instance, where you do a full step bend on the second string and then play fretted note on the first string. It’s a very cool, bluesy sound that alludes to the sound of a seventh chord. (Try doing this lick playing both notes at the same time, by the way.) This one is pretty self-explanatory. Make sure you get those bends all the way up to pitch, and try to play with some vibrato; it adds that human voice touch to the proceedings. Play from your heart.

Prozackly Blues Prozackly Blues From Icons of Rock Lead Guitar DVD Greg Douglass �

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A Visit to Major Pentatonic Scales Minor sounds, in general, are sad tonalities (think Metallica). Major sounds are happy, upbeat (think Allman Brothers on “Ramblin’ Man”). I’ve tried to keep this course simple and focused, and I’ve found in teaching private lessons that most of my students want to concentrate on the minor scales, at least at first. However, just for fun, I wanted to throw in a major pentatonic riff or two. This song is based on the fifth position major pentatonic scale in the key of A. It uses all the tricks; hammers, pull-offs, and slides. It’s a short piece, but it’s got some fairly tricky things happening. Take it slow at first; you may hear rubber squealing when you first take some of those corners on this tune. Play the A major pentatonic scale this song is based on. Feel familiar? It should; it’s the exact same fingering as the first position Am pentatonic! The “A” root note is on the fifth fret of the sixth string. As a matter of fact, here’s a great little cheap trick you can use if you want to experiment more with major pentatonics in your playing without having to work hard! Take any minor pentatonic scale, (take position one of the Am pentatonic scale, in this case), and move the fingering down 3 frets (from the fifth to the second fret). Finger that same scale shape. You’re still in the key of A, but now you’re playing in A major. Cool, huh? You can do that with any of the scale positions you’ve learned so far. Go down three frets and, presto! you’ve gone from some dark, spooky sonic place to a sunny peach orchard just outside of Macon, GA. Ain’t music grand?

A Major Pentatonic

From Icons ofPentatonic Rock Lead Guitar DVD A Major Greg Douglass

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Copyright ©2004 Sendyt Music All Rights Reserved - International Copyright Secured

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Copyright ©2004 Sendyt Music All Rights Reserved - International Copyright Secured

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“Slap Upside the Head” This tune uses all five lead positions, in the key of Em. The first eight measures mix up the first and second positions. Measures nine through fourteen use the third position, and measures fifteen through eighteen morph into the fourth shape. Measures nineteen and twenty hit upon the fifth position, and the song finishes out using the first and second positions again, but this time an octave higher. Obviously, playing this a lot will give you a good perspective on transitioning from one position to another, but try making a copy of the music and labeling exactly where the changes take place and what position you’re in. I have also provided you with some alternate ways of doing power chords. Some people mistakenly equate power chords with the standard two-finger-beginningof-Iron Man/Beavis & Butthead stuff. It doesn’t have to be that way, bubba, as you can see from the different takes on these simple chords. Use these to make your rhythm playing more interesting and dynamic without having to buy that new distortion pedal.

Slap Upside the Head From Icons of Rock Lead Guitar DVD

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Blank Manuscript Paper ° & ¢⁄ ° & ¢⁄ ° & ¢⁄ ° & ¢⁄ ° & ¢⁄

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