Are your guitar solos generally spontaneous...

or do you work them out?


Its safe to say that when it comes to guitar, after playing for three to four years straight, we cant help being perfectionists. Its obvious that we worry about the outcome of our compositions at times, and we wonder how long the magic will last. Well, I think that as long as you're constantly challenging yourself as a musician, you can't go wrong. Those who stick to one way of thinking throughout most of their lives are bound to fail in more ways than one, and somretimes they don't even notice how much they're stifling their creativity..

We all put ourselves in a delirious mind at one time or another, but whats really important is that we constantly ask ourselves what it is that we wan't to accomplish as musicians. We all set our goals, but we gradually change them in order to fit our mood and current purpose. When writing a song, whats most important to me is that it lifts me off of the ground, and gets me thinking at a whole new level. When it comes to solo writing, I've always used precision, and I tend to double check myself, which has been a habit of mine for quite some time. But Ive noticed, (over the past few years), that my best solos come from my impulsive moments. The times that I have the tape recorder running, and where I just let loose, without worrying about the key of things. And a few days later, I listen back to my efforts, and with my imediate re-action take what I feel is good and use for those songs that call for a little bit of extra power. This method has worked very well for me, and it takes a lot of pressure off trying to fit in the pieces to the puzzle. It just helps me focus on my natural abilities, without losing the original idea I had in mind. So perhaps ou guys have some unique methods when it comes to solos?

-Joseph

Come on guys, give me your two cents on this one.

-Joseph

I work around a melody... not necessarily the one used for the vocals, but if I sit back and listen to the chord progression for a while, something always suggests itself. Use your band practices to get loose and experimental. You're among friends, right? Later, on your own, play back the tapes and pick out the best bits from your sessions. [u]But don't over-analyze![/u]

I've been at this for long enough to believe that not every song has to have a solo. I find that a few deft phrases, sometimes between vocal lines, can get your point across in a memorable way. To paraphrase one of our member's sign-off, sometimes its what you don't play that makes you stand out from the crowd.

The solo's i make are melodic. Some of the solo's i'm still working on. If my technique is getting better I try to integrate it with a solo i've already made in the past, to keep it interesting also for myself, but the basic melody keeps the same. So when i play live I have a basic solo and if i'm playing good and feel fine i try out the new stuff i learned.

I always painstakingly compose all my solos beforehand.

A lot depends on the song. Lordathestrings is right to say not every song needs a solo, and Martin's idea of bringing new techniques to an existing solo is a good one. Some songs I play the solo note-for-note the same every time, but others I have a starting phrase and an ending phrase, and then just free-fall improvise in-between (that's where the joy is!). The ending phrase is usually important to the other guys in the band as a cue that the solo is finished, and it's time to pick up the song again.

This is a way late reply to this thread, but I never never never pre-plan my solos. They are always off the cuff and always different. Each time a tune is played is slightly different because the overall feel will be slightly different depending on the venue and a myriad of other variables...

Playing your own solo is easy than following somelese's solo. But to play our own very good and the best solo is harder. That means we have to improve ourselves. No matter spontaneous or work them out before playing on the real occasion, both are still considered the hardest because it is your own piece of creation. Plan or not to plan your piece, it will still be the same as the only differences is how variety can you play? If you can do spontaneous solo, but almost in every jamming session you played almost the same solo everytime. That means you gotta' plan next time in order to show variety. Same to those who plans or create their own piece ealier before jamming or live occasions, but variety must be there. So that means depends on songs and music you are soloing with and how many times you play that piece and be sure to make it at least a lil' bit different from what you have played. Why not you play spontaneously but plan your work just in case if you are facing some difficulties in following sudden chord changes, eg: What if the chords suddenly changes to this and that and etc? And say, I got off-tune to this note... Is there any way I can change this around or maybe add a few or more notes so that it won't sound so off-tune. Try to make it natural.

Hmmm... actually, all this can be compiled to and get one results... "PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT"... so either way you can be the best.

I never plan out an entire solo, but I do work on licks in the practice room. While I don't necessarily have the intention of playing them verbatim, sometimes I do. I just purchased the Charlie Parker Omnibook, which has transcription of most of his solos (I would've done it myself, but I mostly transcribe easier players.) I'm stealing lots of his licks, but only maybe 2-4 bar phrases, and i'm trying to tack them onto my own licks, to create long flowing lines that I can use. I think it's a good step towards getting me better at playing my own stuff in his style. I already find myself creating better licks on my own from having looked at his so closely.

I play in both ways...sometimes they're spontaneous, sometimes I listen to the melody and play some lick on it to see if it works or not...I usually have a lick in my mind before playing, always combined to the melody...it's just something I play before in my mind then on the guitar.

Really i never play a solo on stage the same way twice.
once its worked out with the band from the melody of,
the song you bet its going to change once,
we hit the stage.
And its also according to how we feel that nite.
If were really cookin were going to try to play over,
the top of are heads,on the solo part of the song.
I think the most important part of a song on stage,
is how you do the intro of the song.
If you kick the intro off and it falls apart with the crowd,
i don't think they will care about your solo.
I also do preplan the solo before i do it but you bet your,
sweet a$$ its going to change when i play it live on stage.

Mark
My 3 cents!

[Edited by skee1 on 08-07-2001 at 01:28 PM]

Solos evolve over time, until you just have to say "that's enough". I'm playing Blues lately, so I'll take my examples from that genre.

Blues just naturally involves playing a lot of covers of other artists' work. Usually, the axemen take turns stepping out to do their bit towards adding something fresh to a song that's been around for years. Your own material gets the same treatment as the band works it out. The trick is to keep it just familiar enough fhat the audience can follow you, and fresh enough that they'll want to. Eventually, a point is reached where its 'just right', and further messin' with it just takes away from it.

Check out "Blues at Sunrise" from Albert King's "Live Wire/Blues Power" album. Thats a lot of solo work. Its been polished and worked on for a lot of years, starting from an amalgam of at least two much older songs. My point is, once he got it to where he was satisfied with it, he let it be. It stands on its own as one of the blues masterpieces. Even when Albert and SRV did their duet on it, they didn't change it much, just took turns at it.

At some point, a song reaches maturity, and its time to invest your creativity on other material. You can always come back to it when its been around long enough to get 'stale'.

I generally play around the melody. Sometimes, however, we'll put together an instrumental with some odd chord changes. When that happens I take the time to analyze the chords to see if they are diatonic or altered. If altered I'll look for the common notes and work the improv around that shared tonality. This helps a lot. Especially if the tonal shifts are fairly radical.

Well, i have 2 solo creating stages.

1) This would be the i'm in the mood to get crazy where i improvise on the spot and let it all flow, this usually works well and of course with several rerun-throughs and touching up here and there, it becomes perfect.

2) This is what i have been resorting to lately. I think of what it should sound like in my head and then work it out on the guitar. This is great because i get that, ah!! it's perfect feel. Although, many times it's just alot more empty than when i hear it in my head. I thinks it's because i hear the band with it.

Well, with the way music has progressed in this day and age a lot of people consider "guitar solos" to be insignificant, especially if you're only thinking in terms of instant success. But with a guitar solo, and with the knowledge to choose how you want to play it, it expresses of personality through music in more ways than one. It's great once we can get to that point where we can just rely on our immediate reaction in songwriting. A lot of us aren't quite sure what direction we want to go in as musicians, but with proper knowledge and a good tape recorder, just play from your hearts and let the tape roll. After a few weeks you'll begin to create an interesting pattern, and a better understanding of which style you have a natural flair towards...

-Joseph

Hey over there in USA,I am a new member from london England and I am burning the midnight lamp. I have been playing rock and metal since the late 70s and moved over to jazz and funk and fusion and now just about anything goes for me as far as style is concerned (not to dis the guys who play country but oh no, I do have to draw the line somewhere you know)
I always remember that saying "guitarists always practice what they already know how to play" I think that there is a certain ammount of truth in that since one has to be quite familiar with certain methods of passing through chords for example or stunt techniques like pinch harmonics or tapping stuff to be able to pull it off live.However there is also the saying that jazz musicians have which is that you practice all that theory and chord/arpeggio stuff to get up on stage and forget it, not literally but one does not play from books on stage.The theory and techniques are training that must have already been digested enough so that when on stage inspiration and subliminal intuition can take control of your creativity. I like to go out on a limb myself and see how I can get back inside by making my way through what are sometimes clearly very weird and seemingly unconnected ideas.Hence the forum name. Want to talk about inside/outside sounds?I like chords and think very in a very harmonic manner even when it comes to scales and modes etc.Ever heard of Rammon Ricker?
Wierdomusic AKA: The Wizard of Odd