No.
An hour long bitchin' solo. Maybe longer.
Got your guitar handy?
I do its about 10 inches to my left.
Correction.
I'm high.
B 9 - 11
E 9 - 11
Should be 8 - 10 for both.
However, you won't be playing those.
Well, it's time for you to learn something. Also, I just smoked some pot.
You have been warned!
I'm gonna show you how to discover a bitchin' solo. I'm not entirely sure that all bitchin' solos are composed so much as they are discovered - but that's not an important topic.
You have a fretboard and, across that fretboard, there's untold millions of bitchin' solos yet to be discovered. They pretty much start anywhere and end anywhere, across that entire fretboard. (I should probably use the term fingerboard. I ain't gonna.)
You can play a bitchin' solo with the natural scale. A bitchin' solo is more about how the notes are played.
No, I don't mean that doing a powerslide makes a bitchin' solo. I don't mean that growing your hair long is how. I don't even mean you have to play very fast.
Nope...
None of them are required.
I'm pretty sure I already showed you how to cheat and do the pentatonic anywhere and without any pesky worries about knowing what you're doing.
If not, here's a refresher. Play this.
E 0 - 3
A 0 - 2
D 0 - 2
G 0 - 2
B 0 - 3
E 0 - 3
Right...
Now, you can move that fucker anywhere. It's tit simple.
Let's move it to G.
By now, you already know G is the third fret on your fat E string (and it's also the same on your thin E string). If not, you know how to figure it out. No sharps between B and C and no sharps between E and F.
This means your fat E string has an F as the first fret - 'cause there's no sharps between E and F.
So, it goes E (open) F (first fret) F# (2nd fret) G. (G#, A, A# ... and on like that, but we're only going to G.)
So, we're at the third fret on the E string and that's a G.
Strangely enough, for this scale, this means we're in the key of G - but that's not important right now.
We can play that same damned scale there.
Remember, we're starting on the 3rd fret.
E 3 - 6
A 3 - 5
D 3 - 5
G 3 - 5
B 3 - 6
E 3 - 6
A careful observation will tell you that's the same damned pattern you played back in the open position.
If the second one was in G, what key was the first one in?
You can start the damned thing on the 5th fret. If you do, you're in the key of A - but that's not important right now.
Watch...
E 5 - 8
A 5 - 7
D 5 - 7
G 5 - 7
B 5 - 8
E 5 - 8
In other words, from the first fret you start on, you go up 3 on that fret, 2 on the next, 2 on the next, 2 on the next, 3 on the next, 3 on the next.
But... It's time to go back to that lesson about there being no sharps between B and C and E and F.
Watch! It's much easier than that.
Let's skip that E string entirely. Fuck it, it's fat.
Instead, we're going to start it on the A string. That's right, it's your damned fretboard and you can start it there if you want to.
So,
E - Leave that fucker right alone. Fuck 'em.
A 3 - 5 - 7 (see below)
D 5 - 7 (ha! stupid scale... We're just gonna jump back into that same pattern above.)
G 5 - 7 - 9 (see below.)
B 9 - 11
E 9 - 11
Alright...
On that A string, I want you to not fret from 3 to 5. I want you to use your pointer and press just behind the third fret so that you get a good clear tone and no buzzing. I want you to be as smooth as you can.
And I want you to slide that finger from 3 to 5th.
Trust me. It's fucking magical once you learn to do it. You can slide your finger from the 23rd fret to open - in one sustained note and while the guitar fucking howls!
Where were we?
Oh, yes...
When you get to your G string, I want you to do the same damned thing. You can slide using your middle finger, for now.
That's right, you're going to slide that fucker to the 9th fret.
You can stop there - or you can continue. To continue, you just go to the 9th and 11th frets on both the B and high E.
But, we're just gonna throw them out. We don't need the B and E string. Fuck 'em. I never did like those strings much anyhow!
So, for now, we're just gonna play with those few strings.
Yup...
We're gonna just stick with:
E (fuck 'em)
A 3 (slide) 5 - 7
D 5 - 7
G 5 - 7 (slide) 9
B (toss it in the trash)
E (fuck them too)
Alright...
You now have the basics. You got a shape. You've narrowed down what strings to play.
Inside just those notes, there's umpteen bitchin' solos.
It's how you play them.
We're gonna learn another trick.
On the A string...
E (fuck it)
A 3 s (that's slide) 5 h 6 h 7
What the fuck is that?
Oh, it's easy.
Watch...
Slide your first finger from 3 to 5.
Pluck 3 (or not - you actually don't have to)
Now, while that note is still ringing clearly, just put your middle finger on the 6th fret quickly and use a little force. Do the same thing with your ring finger on the 6th.
Go on, trust me. It's tit simple. Just follow those directions until it sounds right. You can't miss it.
Now, do the same damned thing on the next string.
So, when you go to the 3rd string, you just 5 h 6 h 7
4th string, same damned thing - mostly. 5 h 6 h 7 s 9
Alright...
Now, mix 'em together....
E (fuck it)
A 3 s 5 - 7
D 5 - 7
G 5 - 7 s 9
(fuck the last two)
Now, slide back down to 7, and you can even slide back down to 5.
It's time to learn some techniques!
Inside those, there's a bitchin' solo. There's infinite bitchin' solos and a billion blues songs. Go discover one.
(post is archived)