Originally Posted by: sacamanoI've been practicing my pentatonic scale positions and have them down pretty well individually. My problem comes when I want to play into adjacent positions above or below the one I'm playing in. I know to use the common note that is shared between two neighboring positions on a given string, but I seem to get lost on the fretboard sometimes when I try. I know the answer is always "practice, practice, practice," but I'd welcome any suggestions from others who may have overcome this issue. Thanks and thanks for this great forum!

What do you mean the "common note?" If I understand you correctly, you're doing the right thing, especially if the common note is the root note of the key you're playing in. Using that note would be my first suggestion.

You could also shorten the length of the scales, play only a half or a quarter of each one. But it sounds to me like you've just got to get comfortable shifting frets and strings and being able to get your bearings.

Start by taking one scale shape and repeating it on different frets, then you can try adjacent positions again.