What do you suggest?

Hi,

I haven't played guitar in a while ever since my band broke up but I do know a little bit about the guitar. I'm looking to take this time to become a better guitarist and also write my own songs.

I have a basic understanding of open chords

(However that Dm chord...I've always had trouble playing that chord quick enough in a chord progression. I always have to have a little time to put my fingers in the right place. Not sure why. All the other basic open chords are fine)

I can play power chords

I can play barr chords to a certain degree. My hands will hurt after a while playing them. I might have carpel tunnel lol

I can play the minor pentatonic shape when it comes to scales but don't know how to use them properly.

I'd like to learn how to play lead and solo.

I think I should probably learn some theory too because I don't know all the notes on the fret board and it takes me a really long time to figure out where the notes are.

My influences are The Beatles, Oasis, The Cars, Alice in chains, Stone temple pilots, Ac/DC, Guns n Rose's, velvet Revolver, green day, the ramones, social distortion etc...

My favorite guitarists is Slash

So my question is, with the information I've given, where should I start?

I think If I started from the very beginning I'd get bored learning open chords again but would I miss vital information that I need to understand the fret board, scales and how to improvise with a band?

That's another thing, when I do get a band going again, it would be good to know how to improvise with the band and know what chords, notes or scales to play over stuff we make up.

Ok, thanks

Nick

Go into the Toolbox section of Guitartricks and learn note positions with the Fretboard Trainer.

To increase your speed, start to see patterns like B-E-A-D especially on the 7th fret because it is close to being in the middle of the fretboard between octives. From that position start making note connections like A is a whole step below B and C is a half step above it etc.

Notice that B-C and E-F are half steps and that E-F is directly below B-C on the fretboard (other than the B (second) string).

Notice A-D-G patterns on the fretboard. Remember it by the mnemonic devices like "add a G" or something that makes sense to you. I dated a girl from the Delta Gamma sorority in college, we called them DGs. So I remember those note positions by remembering I dated "A-D-G"

Start seeing the fretboard patterns while you imporve your speed on the Fretboard Trainer. Think about the fretboard positions as you fall asleep, where the notes are in relation to one another. Have fun with it. Build from there.

Originally Posted by: NickFerra

I can play power chords

I can play barr chords to a certain degree. My hands will hurt after a while playing them. I might have carpel tunnel lol

[/quote]

Barre chords are kind of always the bain of guitar player's existance. In most instances, I find that rock songs work just fine with power chord style barre chords. Though you do want to use them if or when it seems appropriate, don't let that stop you. Point to me any guitar player at any level and that guitar player has certain 'cheats' they do in order to play. We all have them. Our hands are not universally the same so due to those mechanics, we all find out cheats.

Just don't let it stop you. It's not about being stopped by what you can't do but by finding a way that lets you continue on as a player.

Originally Posted by: NickFerra

I can play the minor pentatonic shape when it comes to scales but don't know how to use them properly.

So here's a breif primer on how to use pantatonic scales. Overwhelmingly, the pentatonic scale will central to any lead playing. Get comfortable with this any the rest opens up for you.

You know the pentatonic shape, but how do you use them? Major versus Minor? All that stuff.

When I was learning this a long time ago, I found that everything I was being fed overcomplicated the key/scale question. If I'm playing in the key of C, what is 'in bounds' to play and why?

Short cut to keep in mind: Pinky versus index (pointer) finger.

What does that mean?

You'll see example below but the example is if the song is in the key of C. The 6th string root note is the 8th fret. That 8th fret is like an anchor from which either scale can spring.

So, the pinky v. index?

If you're in the key of C and what to play -

Key of C (Major) - Your root note is the 6th string pinky (8th fret) of the pentatonic scale

---I----O----I----------I----------I----O----I--- 1

---I----O----I----------I----------I----O----I--- 2

---I----O----I----------I----O----I----------I--- 3

---I----O----I----------I----O----I----------I--- 4

---I----O----I----------I----O----I----------I--- 5

---I----O----I----------I----------I----O----I--- 6

Fret 5 (A) ---- 6 (A#) ---- 7 (B) ---- 8 (C)

Root

Key of C (minor) - Your root note is the 6th string index (8th fret) of the pentatonic scale

---I----O----I----------I----------I----O----I--- 1

---I----O----I----------I----------I----O----I--- 2

---I----O----I----------I----O----I----------I--- 3

---I----O----I----------I----O----I----------I--- 4

---I----O----I----------I----O----I----------I--- 5

---I----O----I----------I----------I----O----I--- 6

Fret 8 (A) ---- 9 (A#) ---- 10 (B) --- 11 (C)

Root

You'll note that your root is the same (C - 6th string - 8th fret) but it's actually your hand placement moves. If you want to be in C Major; your root is that 8th fret but you're really just playing a pentatonic with your index finger starting on the 5th fret. If in C minor; your index finger starts on the eigth fret.

So what's the difference between major and minor?

The simplest explanation is happy versus mean. That is a way oversimplification but it helps. When you hear a solo and it sound very pleasant and 'up', it's more likely being played as a major. If it sounds darker or more agressive, it's more likely in minor.

This is just a very simple rule of thumb. Lot's of hard rock is in minor scales. Why you use one of the other depends on the vibe of the song (though there is more theory on this subject, I'm only giving you a mental starting point). If the song is a happier progression of strummy open chords, then it's likely a major scale will fit better. An agressive metal song? Minor.

Unless you're Angus Young, he switches bank and forth between them all the time in the same solo.

That's the point too; these are guides for what and how these scales work but in the end, it's a guide and not a law. Keep that in mind if you're learning a solo and all the sudden the guitar player ignored the rules. It happens. Nothing to worry about.

So how do you use these tools?

Learn other peoples solos and songs. There is no better way to learn how to play stuff than to walk in the steps of people who are great at this stuff. You start realizing the there is a vocabularly of licks common amongst guitar players. It's like a language with speech patterns. Leaning other peoples solos helps you emulate those patterns and lick. It also teaches you timing of playikng licks. In the end, you're playing along with beats and measures and timing and great solos teach you this skill.

[quote=NickFerra]

I'd like to learn how to play lead and solo.

I think I should probably learn some theory too because I don't know all the notes on the fret board and it takes me a really long time to figure out where the notes are.

Mostly see above but learning theory is a great thing to do. Ask someone (me) who ignored that stuff for a long, long time. I was lucky that I kinda got it by ear but there were, and are, huge gaps in my knowledge.

Once you're comfortable with using (not mastering) the pentatonic, you will want to stretch out more to learn the different modes on the fretboard in any given key. It seems scary to learn all the modal positions in any key but it's not. They are just puzzle peiced note patterns that you learn and become comfortable with and eventually learn how and why you use them.

Don't get ahead of yourself on this one though. The pentatonic is by far your meat and potatos scale that will comprise the bulk of everything you learn. Get comfortabel to the point that if someone say the solo will be in the key of D minor, you'll know where that's at and at least have a sense of how to use it.

Long? Yes but I hope that helps.