creating leads

Anytime I listen to someone like Tom Scholz, Ace Frehley, etc for example, I hear these awesome leads pour out that perfectly in the song. I find myself always wondering, as an aspiring lead guitarist, how they create these leads. I know that everything on the guitar is relative, so I'm wondering if learning theory will make creating leads easier and more easier understood?

I've tried to create my own songs and such without knowing much about theory, however I'm starting to realize that knowing theory might not only help me to better understand where everything is on the fretboard and why, but also to help me create great leads and songs. Any suggestions or comments?

Thanks! \m/

For most of my leads, I've recorded several takes of improvisations and practice, then combined licks and phrases I like of each. I remember Jimmy Page saying that his lead to Stairway to Heaven was only one of several complete takes (although his favorite) in the studio. As for theory, the ultimate goal in the end is to not have to think about it, but feel it. I'd recommend learning as much as you can, but sometimes you gotta forget it all too...and just go with it!

For lead playing of modern music it's imperative you learn al least one pentatonic scale. Penta means 5, that five notes, Im sure you can deal with that. Dr. Simon on this site can get you well on your way. Peace!

I got lessons for about two months a long time ago, I learned two things. Key of C major basic scale over 2 octaves and a pentatonic scale over two octaves. That’s all I ever learned and it help a lot by demonstrating alternate picking and the basic shape patterns employed by "most" scales.

Personally I know my way around the fret board and can bang out most arpeggios and licks by ear but I can't even name the six strings on my guitar, all I know is high and low E and A! I never know what key I am playing in and couldn’t tell you if I was playing a dorian or a phrygian, all I know is that if you play enough you will get your own style and will be able to read the fret board by feel and will be playing theoretically correct, by ear.

If I sit down and try to analyse something it starts to sound like every other piece of lead out there, up and down fiddly diddly without any feeling or direction. I'll admit it though, most players swear by learning as much theory as possible and it probably a good idea if you are just starting to play.

However, I found I played better when I through it all out the window and made up what ever sounded best by ear.

Terrible advice but it works for me;-)

First off laern your scales, and I guess a little bit of theory doesn't hurt. But just play with people. There is no lessons tohelp you get better at lead playing. I can say play this:

e-1-2-4-2-1-

but that doesn't help you much. Playing leads and improvising comes from the heart. Just play and listen to other people play, you'll get ideas and you'll learn to make good leads sooner or later.

Good advice. The "X" factor in a good guitarist is if they can play with any body... in any situation... at anytime. You can sit in your room and run through scales back and forth and run through your sweep picking patterns up and down the fretboard... but when you jam with someone and they switch up a chord progression without you knowing it... you better be able to flow with it. Playing very theoretically correct and technical makes you sound mechanical... learn enough theory to where you have a good understanding of why... this enables you to develope a style because you have to basics of theory. The more scale structures you know the better you will be able to write things... but improvisation doesn't really come down to who knows more about theory. It's who can flow better between the scales, as I like to say.