Guitar Soloing
i need to get better at guitar soloing and need help?
i have been playing guitar for about 8 months and can play about any song i can think of (mettalica, acdc, black sabbath etc) until i get to the solo. i can do all the most basic technics, like hammer ons and pull offs, but just cant solo. please give me help in any way shape or form!
Dude, you’re doing great – 8 months is nothing, it’s great that you’re even THINKING about soloing. But think about it… when you were a baby did you start right out talking or typing questions on the web ? Of course not. You had to learn to express yourself slowly… a few words MaMa DaDa…Hungry….. then a sentence…Mommy I’m Hungry…. then a few years later…. “hey ‘rents, let’s stop for some food…”
Right?
Do you play any sports ? In basketball you don’t dunk before you learn to dribble, pass, and do a lay-up.
Same thing here. There’s a lot to learn. But you can start soloing right now.
- The language/vocabulary: Positions, Scales, “Boxes” (those blues patterns on the guitar), Classic “licks” that the monster players have made their trademarks. Music theory (what notes can I play over which chord and why…) and on an on. It’s something you study for the rest of your life, not just a few months. There’s so much to learn it’s unbelievable – you will never stop learning. Since the ’80s there’s a whole new level of virtuosity.. guys like Steve Vai have taken electric guitar to a level unheard of before… but everything the ‘masters’ of the ’60s and ’70s did is still important. There’s a ton of stuff to listen to and learn.
- The structure: Good solos have a beginning-middle-end . They tell a story in music. Usually they start low-key.. then build to a climax… then cool off to take the listener into the next part of the song. But not always. The exceptions are as much fun as the rules.
- The “Feel” – Then there’s the emotional part. Can’t teach it, you just have to feel it. I don’t care if all you know how to play is a couple of notes.. you can still do it with feeling.
While it’s really great to be able to copy solos and play them note-for-note… that’s only part of the game of learning to play. You definitely need to do that so you have that “vocabulary” but it’s really more important for you to express _yourself_ . It doesn’t matter that you’re not a great shredder yet – all that will come as you continue to learn. The important thing right now is to give it a try with what you DO know how to do.
If you’re into rock music.. you need to learn the 2-3 rock/blues “boxes” . These are pentatonic scales, both major and minor. that will give you the ability to play a decent sounding solo in any key, because there are no “wrong” notes when you play a blues scale. Just Google or YouTube “blues guitar” and you’ll find all kinds of resources. This is the starting point for all Rock solos. Minor pentatonic for AC/DC type stuff…. Major Pentatonic for “Country / southern rock” type stuff. Learn half a dozen of these patterns and you’re on your way.
There are a ton of resources online now – great websites that have video tutorials, tabs, regular sheet music, you name it. If I was your age I’d be all over that 24/7 learning everything I could.
Next thing is to get with some other players. Make sure they’re a little better than you so you can learn from them. Mix it up and play with as many different people as you can – make it a priority. Ask them to show you little things that they’re doing. I learned more this way than in all my years of taking lessons.
So … in a nutshell
1- Learn the major and minor pentatonic “blues boxes” in a few places on the neck. Don’t worry about speed, flash, or anything else. Just memorize the positions for now. Find free lessons all over the place online. Use YouTube .
2- Start Jamming with everyone you can. Solo using what you know . Experiment. It’s more important to play with FEELING than to know all kinds of fast licks… those will come later. Play from the heart.
3- Listen and try to dissect anything and everything (but don’t start with the fastest craziest thing you can find… start with the slower, easier stuff so you have a shot at figuring it out. If you can’t figure it out… ask one of the guys in #2 you’re jamming with if they’re a little better – they’ll help you.
4. Keep repeating 1,2, and 3 over and over for the rest of your life… learning more complicated music theory and more advanced guitar techniques as you go. At some point you should learn how to read not just guitar tab, but actual written music. You should learn scale and chord structure. Once you understand how chords are formed from scales, you’ll be “running” instead of crawling.
Also learn some Piano. Nothing like keyboard skills to learn and visualize music theory.
5. Also read read read and listen listen listen.
Good luck – you’re going to do fine.
How to Play a Guitar Solo : How to Build a Showcase Guitar Solo
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