Suggestions on Playing Lead guitar

[Jethro Rocker]

Yes trial and error using scales to begin with. Maybe add some chromatic notes in a pentatonic scale, bend to a note, skip a string, fast pick, hammer on, noodle with stuff. I personally dont worry too much about how it fits the song, just play for now. If it sounds good....just jam with stuff.

 

[EndGame00]

My cousin who is a great pianist in his own right, can't or doesn't know how to improvise... He is strictly a music sheet player... I dabbled with piano in the old days but some of the basic stuff i know still stick (I can't read notes), I played the piano piece to Savatage's "All that I bleed' by ear.... There are a few pieces I would love to learn and play....

 

[scat7s]

if you can jam a little on keys, you can find a working band in a snap. theyre rare

 

[SeanMichael]

I think one of the key factors in learning to play lead, is to be able to play something that YOU think sounds good, or cool. You can spend hours and hours learning theory, scales, notes and all that jazz. I would know. Because I have spent hours and hours learning that stuff. I studied jazz music theory for about a year and a half. But all that comes, after you realize what you can do. You use that stuff to improve and add flavor to your soloing. Once you realize, "hey, I can make this whizbang stick with strings sound cool", you can be driven to explore more opportunities.

Start by learning the minor pentatonic scale. It seems that thats where everyone starts. Its only five notes, and its an easy pattern to memorize. (The first position, that is.) Then, learn a lick. Any lick. Something thats simple enough for you to get down and play with ease. For ideas, listen to the solo in Freebird. There are shit-tons of repeating pentatonic licks to give you ideas. Then, just noodle around up the scale, play the lick, and noodle a bit more. BE. CREATIVE. Have fun with it. All you have to do is listen to some other people's playing, get some inspiration, and make it your own. Like it has been mentioned, don't necessarily "copy" people. All lead playing is about (or should be about) is having fun, and conveying some kind of message.

Once you get comfortable with doing that, learn the rest of the positions of the pentatonic so you can move up and down the neck with it. Or, learn a major scale, or minor scale. There is so much out there to learn, and all of it will just add to your playing.

Whether or not you decide to take advice from a "kid" is up to you. I am just sharing my experience on the subject.

 

[Australian]

I am embarrassed to say that I have been playing guitar for 35 years and still suck at playing lead guitar. I have been in a cover band and played a little lead guitar but I was just memorizing the leads that I figured out, got from sheet music or tab sheets. If someone had asked me to improvise, I would have wet myself.

Over the years I have collected various books. I have Mel Bay books (not real into playing "Go Tell Aunt Rhodie"), books on using Modes, Fretboard Logic, even "rock Guitar for Dummies". I am overwhelmed and suffering from information overload.

What is the "best' way to learn playing leads? The other guitar player that I was in a band pretty much just played the Pentatonic lead over everything he did. I just don't get how someone can memorize all the scales for all of the keys....

Learn solos. But easy ones for a few months. The technical standard is so high on some solos that they'll just give you a fail if you get too enthusiastic. Dont get caught up in the shreddy spagetti...yet!
Be patient and you'll one day be as good as me.

I suggest you learn(memorize) this solo first:
Californication-RHCP

...oh and practice your modes and scales and chords daily. Neglect your chords and you miss the other side of the coin. Strive to play Jazz and you'll get there.

 

[KISS NATION]

Does it really make any difference if you learn to play scales, or if you can read music, or if you have every note on the fretboard memorised?
I have never had a guitar/music lesson in my life and I can play quite a lot. more than most people who I have seen reading books on music theory. or playing nursery rhymes on one string with one finger. I can be quite impatient, I didn't want to read books. instead I just wanted to pick up a guitar and start learning how to play songs I liked. have I made a mistake?

 

[Australian]

Does it really make any difference if you learn to play scales, or if you can read music, or if you have every note on the fretboard memorised?
I have never had a guitar/music lesson in my life and I can play quite a lot. more than most people who I have seen reading books on music theory. or playing nursery rhymes on one string with one finger. I can be quite impatient, I didn't want to read books. instead I just wanted to pick up a guitar and start learning how to play songs I liked. have I made a mistake?

Unfortunately you will have to scrap all that and start all over again with the Mel Bay Guitar Method Book 1.


jk/

 

[Dogs of Doom]

Does it really make any difference if you learn to play scales, or if you can read music, or if you have every note on the fretboard memorised?
I have never had a guitar/music lesson in my life and I can play quite a lot. more than most people who I have seen reading books on music theory. or playing nursery rhymes on one string with one finger. I can be quite impatient, I didn't want to read books. instead I just wanted to pick up a guitar and start learning how to play songs I liked. have I made a mistake?

depends...

I'm not the greatest player by all means, but, when I was young, I took a hand full of lessons. I was the worst student back then, but the lessons have been invaluable. I learned early on that I had some bad habits. Bad habits are easier to break early on. I still use those bad habits, but I have also learned better techniques & use those...

Also, learning theory has helped me actually become like a conductor in most band situations I've been in. I can play a lot of instruments, so no matter the band, I can translate the keyboard to the guitar & the guitar/key to bass & drums.

Even, while I played bass for years, I was the one who brought it all together & made me an in demand sort of guy, whereas, there were a million guys who could play just about everything you threw at them, but they are a dime a dozen, whereas the guy who understands everything from every aspect makes the project more complete.

Imagine playing in a band where everybody could play everyone else's parts, including vocals & drums. Now, put everyone on their own instruments & you know what the other guy is going to do, because you know what it is he's doing. You don't even have to think about it anymore, just let it rip. When it comes to improv, you know the other guy's theory so much, you can guess which direction he's gonna go.

The same w/ theory & scales, harmony, etc. in general. The more you know, the less you have to think about once you figure it out.

example: think about the most difficult rhythm/riff by Randy Rhoads. You might think, damn, that's difficult. To Randy, it was something that just came naturally. That's because he practiced doing the difficult things & just happened across it one day while messing around. Same w/ VH. I remember people spending months/years trying to learn eruption. Well, Eddie was just noodling & has since moved on - far on...

It's easy to want to do ___ & _____ (fill in the blanks), but not want to put in the effort to do it & do it well. In the examples I posted above. Will playing those things make you a great lead player? Not directly, but indirectly, they will get you to play things that are not natural & you'll hear things that you will not hear otherwise. Then, once you master those things, they are part of your musical vocabulary, that you have to draw from. If you don't ever do them, you'll never have them to begin w/...

 

[diesect20022000]

it varies from person to person but for ME it was straight foreward: guitar grimoire book of scales and modes and learning a scale a day. started off one "block" then the whole scale for the neck then a couple a day then after i had them memorized i closed the book and hit the metronome for about 1-2 hours a day just drilling those in alternate picked succession for about two years then i starte playing them on the fly with songs rythms then i wrote my own. all of it was a three year fairly intensive process but now i can write freely, solo freely etc. i can write guitar parts in many fashions you hear about such as composed, free style or feel (which is picking a basic starting point/mode and just winging it). the latter seems to be my most common in yt clips like this one:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAw6PAHBcj0
i'm just free flying in this short clip. mistakes are therefore present but i like the riffs ebough i'm going to use them


but learn some scales and modes (look up the ones used in your musical genres/styles you play and learn those first) and play to a clock. or play to a rhythm that has been set to a click so it's on time and just GO.


you get the info first then work on the feel and sound, nailing the sound you hear in your head. at least for ME this method has been successful i've been playing off and on for 10 years, got serious in 09 when i got that book and have from then on played every day save 1 day every couple of weeks (summer varies a bit more) but i've been playing for a total of 10 years now but only started learning how to PLAY in 09. that's when i learned all but the chords. i couldn't solo at all. clean hybrid chords or metal rhythm (power and barr chords, diads and triads) until 09 to present. now i can do mostly what i hear in my head or others play. i'm infinitely lazy learning covers however so i tend to just play a major lick like a chorus or verse and corus etc purely out of apathy. i like playing them but i hate learning them lol. so i don't. i write.

i have a LOT of songs i need to get recorded. i am sitting on a ton of unfinished work right now i need to get on the ball with lol. probably around 6 albums minimum.

 

[NewReligion]

IMO. I would learn a couple of modes Aolian and Mixolydian then just start playing them in different keys over different songs. Before you know it you will have developed your own technique and be kicking a$$ on every song played. Go back and study how Paul Gilbert and Marty Frieman jammed together and played.

This is how you learn to play guitar solo's.

David ♫

Guitar Exercise Practise Practise Practise.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XC8nem0_hag

 

[blues_n_cues]

not trying to be a smartass but this probably couldn't hurt.
you may be able to find it used for less than $5.00 online-

a little simplified theory never hurts.

 

[TwinACStacks]

IMO. I would learn a couple of modes Aolian and Mixolydian then just start playing them in different keys over different songs. Before you know it you will have developed your own technique and be kicking a$$ on every song played. Go back and study how Paul Gilbert and Marty Frieman jammed together and played.

This is how you learn to play guitar solo's.

David ♫

Guitar Exercise Practise Practise Practise.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XC8nem0_hag

Don't listen to David. Guy can't play a lick....

TWIN

 

[duncan11]

not trying to be a smartass but this probably couldn't hurt.
you may be able to find it used for less than $5.00 online-

a little simplified theory never hurts.

I have guitar exercises for dummies as a matter of fact! I got it in 2011 when I got back into playing. What I've noticed about my playing is, I have always found it easier to go DOWN as in a descending pattern than ascending. I dunno what it is! Seems I get more fuddled when trying to string together a long ascending run of notes.

 

[poeman33]

My cousin who is a great pianist in his own right, can't or doesn't know how to improvise... He is strictly a music sheet player... I dabbled with piano in the old days but some of the basic stuff i know still stick (I can't read notes), I played the piano piece to Savatage's "All that I bleed' by ear.... There are a few pieces I would love to learn and play....

I have a friend like that. She can play beautifully with sheet music, or even memorization of sheet music. But she can't jam at all, not even to simple chords. It really a right left brain kind of thing I think. I'm exactly the opposite. I can't read a single note, and when I tried very early on to learn, I knew it ruined what I could do naturally. It would take away any feeling or soul. And it was so slow! I could hear something and play it. Well...simple stuff at first anyway. But I just couldn't follow the notes and make anything sound good.

 

[duncan11]

I have a friend like that. She can play beautifully with sheet music, or even memorization of sheet music. But she can't jam at all, not even to simple chords. It really a right left brain kind of thing I think. I'm exactly the opposite. I can't read a single note, and when I tried very early on to learn, I knew it ruined what I could do naturally. It would take away any feeling or soul. And it was so slow! I could hear something and play it. Well...simple stuff at first anyway. But I just couldn't follow the notes and make anything sound good.

That's an interesting point. Perhaps it could be something with classically trained musicians also. I'm a classically trained violinist, played it all thru high school and in college. I started at age 4 with it, can read music and all that. I've been playing guitar for 25yrs and added guitar about 10yrs after playing only violin. I suck at keyboard/piano (which made piano lab really fun as a music ed major in college....) I can play what's on the page written, OR ear out what I hear, but basically am good at 'copying' and not good at the improvising thing too. I know I'm very left brained, creative only in adaptation to a certain extent, any song or riff that I've come up with in my day, if I was forced to listen to them, I'd probably cringe as they're really elemetary and basic, which doesn't show the moderate level of prowess I know I have on the instrument. I know I'm not a shredder or one who can play a billion notes in 7 bars, but I know and believe I'm good enough to carry my end down, and no one has ever flat out told me 'hey you really suck'

 

[big dooley]

Don't listen to David. Guy can't play a lick....

TWIN

right, that was my beverage all over the screen...
you idiot...

 

[TwinACStacks]

right, that was my beverage all over the screen...
you idiot...

I owe you one of whatever you're drinking Dooley. Maybe a new screen too.

Usually I get the keyboard with my spray.

TWIN

 

[big dooley]

I owe you one of whatever you're drinking Dooley. Maybe a new screen too.

Usually I get the keyboard with my spray.

TWIN

make it a good scotch... always makes me happy

 

[CaptainZero]

I also really like this site. You can pick the key, and the type of music. Unlike YouTube, it will just keep playing.

JamCenter.com | Guitar Jam Tracks

 

[EndGame00]

I do a lot of noodling when I play lead solo... It kinda helps me familiarize with notes and their relation to the chord progression, but it doesn't help me keep my sense of timing and tempo... I usually record a 3-note chord progression, then work a solo over it.... As far as technique, I'm still stuck in the big-hair, 80's... When I see these young kids running circles on me, then I realize I have a lot to learn.... It took me at least 10 years to get both left hand/right hand coordination to work in sync, and most of the time I can't get it to work.... It's frustrating.... The biggest eye opener for me is when I use less gain when I attempt to speed picking, I felt naked and exposed... I tend to dig harder on the strings to make it ring louder and then mistakes becomes very obvious..... I am more exposed with my guitar playing when using my Marshall clone than with my Mesa Mark IV...