Philosophical Question

When I try to pick up a new lead ( like a heavy solo) it takes me eon's to try to figure it out.. or using tab. For example the solos in Cross Roads.. However I played with some people in the past that It looks to be instinctive like whistling.. But looks can be decieving. Did they spend weeks, months, days fiquing this out prior to this. ( I am not a newbee at this. I took lessons from about 13 to age 18.. I am 52 now) I suck but still haven't gave up.. Iplayed with this kid once ( I play the Bass also I am better at that) He was roaring drunk he was playing a blue tune and just cutting up the frets every one there was in ahhh. Even as he was falling to the floor just before he past out he was great.. So this is a question for all you good players out their. What is your thought process when you are playing? Do you do this as you would whistle. Can your hear it and your fingers just know where to go??

personally speaking, playing someone elses solo i can't do just by ear (unless its slow) but i can easily pick up chords etc.

as for improvising, i've played that many solos you just kinda get used to where you're going with it, then try and change it to make it ever so slightly original :p

Trying to learn complicated stuff can take a while. I've been working on the "Mr. Crowley" Solo for about a month. I figure I got a while before I can play it cleanly straight thru without stopping. The guitar is definatly a labor of love.

Doesn't this belong in "Guitar Basics?"

Originally Posted by: sailorjimWhen I try to pick up a new lead ( like a heavy solo) it takes me eon's to try to figure it out.. or using tab. For example the solos in Cross Roads.. However I played with some people in the past that It looks to be instinctive like whistling.. But looks can be decieving. Did they spend weeks, months, days fiquing this out prior to this. ( I am not a newbee at this. I took lessons from about 13 to age 18.. I am 52 now) I suck but still haven't gave up.. Iplayed with this kid once ( I play the Bass also I am better at that) He was roaring drunk he was playing a blue tune and just cutting up the frets every one there was in ahhh. Even as he was falling to the floor just before he past out he was great.. So this is a question for all you good players out their. What is your thought process when you are playing? Do you do this as you would whistle. Can your hear it and your fingers just know where to go??

when tackeling a solo, i reference some theory. identify what mode(s) are being employed, practice modal patterns similar and let it rip! also, dont play drunk!

Originally Posted by: Jolly McJollysonDoesn't this belong in "Guitar Basics?"

Your wish is my command.

it's been said before, but i just think about scales. when i was learning guitar at 12 i hated scales, but then i realized a lot of solo's are just notes strategically placed around the scales.

I generally build a solo...long painstaking spells where I sit and workout any modes or triads I could fit into the solo...it takes a while,but at the end, I'm happy.
When I do improvise a solo, I find I tend to sound the same each time...just pentatonic stuff...I have gotta get out of that habbit...

Some solos that I copy seem to make sense to me, so they are like whistling.
I can just "feel" where the next note should be. Other solos are completly purplexing. Even looking at the tab and playing it at half speed it just never makes any sense-why would you jump from the 5th fret on g to the 15th on a-or something similar-and then back again...
I find that listening to a song over and over and not thinking about playing it-but listening to where the music goes gets it into my mind enough to get it to where I can whistle it. When performing, I guess I don't think-I just know-
I think were it starts and where it ends only. Usually the middle just fills itself in. Could be magic, but it is probably just hours and hours of practice.
When improvising-just play what you know and feel. Play different styles-a little blues, a little country, and little classic rock. Someday, you will be able to mix them up within the same solo and be a star...

I usually get as close as I can by ear then start using tabs. If you already know roughly where you're going on the board then the tab makes more sense and you'll find your way a little quicker.

anything you ever play should be as easy as whistling. And you should be able to do it without a thought at all ( though it is not encouraged ). I only have like 13 months or so under my belt but it has always been true that if I learn something EXTREMELY slow, and do it everyday, making a jump up in tempo of about 3 bpm every other day, it'll be easy as hell when it gets to 208 in 32ths.

when tackeling a solo, i reference some theory. identify what mode(s) are being employed, practice modal patterns similar and let it rip! also, dont play drunk!

One time ( I'm through with alcohol now ) I was at my bassist's house and he invited a bunch of people for his birthday. I don't remember much about that night but he says I took some girls in his room an plugged it up and he had never heard anything like it. Patricia tells me I fell over when I was playing and just kept on and on until I started puking and they took the guitar away.

I run mostly rhythm chord-work, but when it's time to wail, I take my cues from the jazzers. Put all your theory and such away, way out of sight, and just play! It should flow out of you like humming or whistling. The theory you've learned will give you the grammar and vocabulary to work with, but it all means nothing unless you have something to say.

yeah just noodle till ya feel what your doing.
the best teacher is yourself with a looping pedal www.loopers-delight.com
playin and learning stuff note for note is boring to me...improvising is much better for the artist and audiance...

Classic question. Man You just gotta let go and grab what feels right. I've learned stuff from tab and I still don't get it and some of it just falls in my lap. You just gotta take the best and run with it and keep on workin on th stuff that is sohard. usually it comes into play in something a little more natural. Like bending strings. I felt it but just didn't know where to bend. Tabs helped me there. I have a brother that tells me if you can't sing it you can't play it. I personally don't agree totally. But then again singin in your head is easier than singin w/ your mouth. :cool:

I have friends that, from the first time they pick up a guitar or bass, can listen to a song once and play it exactly the way it is written. Hate them but in a good way ;)

If you are trying to learn a lead that someone else wrote and you are like me (from what you wrote you are) then you will just have to keep at it over and over. Start off slow and when you have it nailed increase the tempo. It may take you a week or even months but it will come over time.

I tend not to worry about playing a song, be it lead or rythm, exactly as it sounds. I just get the basics and then add my own "flair" to it since I have no need to be precise. Still sounds good when played with the accompaniment of others and you can tell what I am playing, most people hear a difference but can not tell what exactly that difference is.

If you get to frustrated with it then just make up your own lead for it :p

MSF