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Learn to play blues guitar.

One scale. One position. Use what you already know! Don’t overcomplicate. Guitar Lesson – ML142

Description

The minor pentatonic scale is one of the first things most guitarists learn, but are you comfortable using it? In this lesson, we stay in one position and one scale to prove that you already have everything you need to play great lead guitar. We’ll cover safe target notes over a 1-4-5 jam track, fill patterns, and real licks you can use right away.

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Comments

  9. Lesley O says

    Thankyou Brian! Once again, you make a simple idea sound so great. Easy to play, but not so easy to play well….a great one to work on this week and to get these fingers working a bit faster

  11. Joel R says

    Hello
    Yes , i know the pentatonic scale, i am always thinking ,how do those guys playing fantastic licks sound so nice ,even on one position,and i cannot play the way they play;
    Very frustrating.
    May be there is in this lesson ,the beginning of an answer.
    Waiting for next lesson ,mixing major and minor.
    Thanks
    Joe

    • Rob N says

      Yeah, I think ‘chasing the next shiny new thing’ is part of the problem for many of us. Looking for the next piece of advanced knowledge or skill when we haven’t mastered the ‘basics’?

      Also…getting distracted…like answering comments when I could be knuckling down and practicing :).

  13. Guy H says

    Another great lesson, and great homework, improvise some pentatonic blues! Can you please provide an idea of what you think of to keep time? I have a tough time hearing the rhythm queues, and not sure if this is important ( hearing the rhythm that is); it seems like it is important, maybe there is a better way, I’m probably too analytical, but if I just let the melody part flow, at the end of a dozen bars or so I’m way off.

    Thanks!

    • Jack B says

      I have a similar problem. Bryon says to simply end the bar on the target note for the upcoming chord and play whatever you want for a lick up to that point. My problem is that I might be on the eighth fret first string and suddenly the end of the measure is the next beat, and then I have to hit the A note on the seventh fret of the D string. So my licks aren’t timed correctly to gracefully work my way back to the target note. A lesson on timing when improvising would help a lot.

      • Rob N says

        One suggestion is to really familiarise yourself with the chord progression/backing track first.

        Perhaps, loop the tab player and play along with Brian – just playing basic chords.

        This will help imprinting the chord changes in your memory. The progression here is a standard 12 bar blues – so knowing it well will be useful in multiple other examples/lessons. Maybe put the metronome on as well and count along as you play the chords.

        Then, moving to lead, maybe start with very simple phrases and licks – thinking ahead towards that target note. As you’re doing this – keep in mind the chord progression….’what’s coming next?’.

        Most of us on here are struggling to get good at this – so hang in there…

        Hope that helps.

  14. Imerio A says

    thies lesson has all the truth….the pentatonic is so easy but also very easy to play badly. this lesson helps for shure…full of great tips.
    waiting the next step. thanks Brian..so glad i found you on internet.

  17. Anthony C says

    This is great. I like to get together with a friend and try and jam a little. It might be nice to have a guide for playing the jam track rhythm portion and maybe a way to make it a little more interesting than just strumming the chords.
    Thanks

  18. Klaus G says

    you are right Brian
    I concentrated on your ML123 Music out of e licks
    Then came ML124 My go-to harmony licks and I thought I will do both
    Then came ML 133 and 134 Blues A-shape and E-Shape and I absolutely must start on these
    Then came EP632 Minor licks to cord chapes and i loved it and must do it
    And then came ML138 4 Level Rh/Strum pattern + melody line, a Must have
    Then came Blues solo out of chor shapes and I was cought
    But now I will try do concentrate on this lesson and the next that will continue the issue.
    But perhaps the strumpattern could one do on the sly too? hehe
    THX a lot Brian
    Greetings Klaus

  19. houliAK says

    Thanks Brian for pointing out the “diagnosis”. The next shiney object, flight of ideas, probably ADHD, all describe me. I think the internet and Youtube are a blessing and a curse but I find some consulation that I’m not alone and keeping plowing forward!

      • Rob N says

        Hi Lennart,

        Yes, you guessed right. The CAGED shapes are referring to the standard open chords or ‘cowboy chords’: chords that include open strings (notes you don’t need to fret) and are played in the open, or first position, meaning within the first three frets.

        So, A major (played open E, open A, D 2nd fret, G 2nd fret, B 2nd fret, open E) is the ‘A shape’ in the CAGED formula.

        Barre the first fret and move all that up 1 fret and you’re playing a Bb/A# major chord in the ‘A shape’……up another fret and it’s a B major in the ‘A shape’…and so on.

        The same formula can be applied to minor chords (although C minor and G minor are not commonly known open chords – so the minor version is a little less intuitive).

        Hope that helps.

        • Lennart v says

          Thanks Rob . if i want to improvise a lead on top of that basic A..Witch pentatonic number or shape do i need ?I understand it depends on if you go major or minor but those two.I can look it up or write about it .to get it

          • Michael Krailo says

            Playing over an A major chord means you can play any A major scale notes, A major pentatonic, A minor pentatonic, or a blend of the two scales. Just know that Brian was not using a major chord in this backing track. He used power chords or chords with no 3rd in them, which means they are neither major or minor. Suspended chords also have no third in them and could have been used in the backing track to create the same effect but he kept it very simple.

          • Michael Krailo says

            I didn’t read your question close enough. The shape you use totally depends on which root note you are working from and on which string that root note is on. So for Am pentatonic, there is an A root note on your 4th string at the 7th fret. If you start that root A note from your ring finger your in pattern #1, if starting from forefinger you go up a minor 3rd to your b3(C), then continue up the pattern #2. It’s interesting that you also have the option to keep that same minor 3rd interval pattern by sliding your pinky up two frets into pattern #3 after playing that C note. Most don’t use that pattern as much but it’s great because you can go up through the strings using your forefinger and pinky a total of three times. Yes, there is a shift when moving through the 2nd string due to the tuning, but you just have to get used to that fact. This is great for strengthening your pinky. You might notice Brian uses a ring finger stretch instead of using the pinky. It’s up to you, but both techniques are valid and useful to know.

            While in pattern #2, going down the scale from forefinger on that A note at 7th fret, the finger pattern still remains 1, 4, 1, 4, slide pinky down to C note from D and your right back into position #1 again. Try it, and you will see what I mean.

            If the root note A is on the 3rd string up at the 14th fret you are now in pattern #4 minor pentatonic. Make sure you hit that note with your ring finger so you can easily play in that area easily.

            That’s enough information for now. The key is being aware of the location of those root notes on each string. And then making up licks out of those scale notes. Don’t just play the scale up and down. After learning the scales practice making up licks from those notes being aware of where those landing A root notes are.

          • Rob N says

            Hi Lennart,

            As Michael says: over an A major/A5 power chord you can play A major or A minor pentatonic (as well as other scales like the full A major scale).

            Brian concentrates on the A minor pentatonic for this lesson. Great for blues, rock etc.

            The pentatonic scale is 5 notes. These 5 notes repeat all across the fretboard. To simplify things they can be learnt in many different patterns but most people learn the 5 patterns first – starting with pattern 1 (as in this lesson).

            (A quick warning: when looking up these patterns online be aware that there are two different numbering systems which might confuse beginners. Pattern 1-5 in minor is the same in both systems but they differ with the major pentatonic)

            While learning the shape/pattern maybe think about where the root notes are (then 3rds, 5ths, flat sevenths etc. as Brian explains).

            Or, just play…improvise and listen to what sounds good to you.

            It’s best to have a A chord looping in the background as you improvise.

            As you get confident maybe try looping a simple two chord progression – Amajor to D major for example. Listen to how the same notes sound ‘different’ over each chord.

            (Brian’s lesson expands on that by thinking about the D and E chords (IV and V in the key of A). As he explains, you can still play the A minor pentatonic over these chords – but maybe try and hit the respective root notes for those IV and V chords. This is called Chord Tone Targeting.).

            Hope that helps

  22. Matthew B says

    Great lesson! This put me back on track instead of letting myself get caught running down every rabbit hole I come across. I gotta tell you, I get more from your lessons than from anyone else. I don’t know how many hours a week you work putting all these together, but I’m really impressed. And to think that you give away so much for free and only ask a small price for Premium membership is mind blowing! Thanks so much!

  23. Tom M says

    I think of this lesson as an excellent grounding “rule” or norm in the pentatonic scales no matter which position. Another great lesson. I don’t know how you do it – but please keep at it.

  24. Bob B says

    First time I’ve picked up the guitar in a couple of weeks, and I really don’t know why, but this lesson is perfect for me. When I have picked it up, I’ve been guilty of the Youtube ramble just mucking around with whatever songs come up. This lesson brought me straight back to basics, just what I needed. Thanks Brian!

  25. obie123 says

    Nice have a lot of trouble with what you teach in this lesson, already looking forward to next weeks lesson. Been working on learning the natural minor scale and having some success working it in now that I understand a little bit better tks

  26. JJ F says

    Hi Brian

    Great lesson once again !
    Could you explain in a future lesson what difference it makes to start a piece by playing on time 1 , or 2, or 3, or 4 ?
    This is unclear to me, since anyway 1 comes again after 4, I imagine that shouldnt do any difference. I presume thats wrong but can’t understand why…

    • Michael Krailo says

      The difference is simply musical timing. You can take any phrase and move the timing around the bar to any beat or off beat. As an experiment, you should try this your self and see how it sounds to come in on different beats other than the one using a simple strumming pattern or riff that your know. A measure of time can roughly be broken down into eighth notes. Try playing a phrase you know and starting it on the & of one, 2, & of 2, 3, & of 3, 4, or the & of 4. Coming in on the ONE is very predictable and not as musically interesting as all the other options mentioned.

      There are other musical timing tricks that can happen in a song that adds one or two beats from one specific measure to coincide with a particular melody. A few examples are Led Zeppelin “Black Dog”, The Beatles “All You Need Is Love”, Dire Straits, “Money for Nothing”, and The Police “Roxanne” all employed this technique to great effect.

  27. Jeff M says

    Hello Brian, As a long time fan of your style I have To say this might be the best lesson I’ve watched. I think it turned on the proverbial “lightbulb” moment that I’ve long waited for..

  29. Mark S says

    Hi Brian,
    I greatly appreciate your teaching style and explanations with repetition. Just by putting in a bit of time week after week I have slowly become a much better guitarist.
    I think this website is awesome and your approach is wonderful. I mix things up by playing certain songs I know just from chords, but then mix in your weekly lesson.
    Even some weeks when I don’t get to it as much, I can always come back to it later.
    Very much appreciate your style and enthusiasm for music. Sincerely Mark S.

  30. Thomas W says

    Light bulb moment for me – The idea of looking for interval numbers (e.g., 1,flat 3, 4, 5) and locations rather than note names (e.g., A,flat 3rd, D,E) will make it easier to locate notes when playing the scale in different keys .

    Great lesson – thanks Brian

  31. Kenneth C says

    No way this lesson should be underplayed, Brian. It is excellent! I really like the triplets on the way down the scale. The first position sounds rather “Claptony” doesn’t it? Really liked this lesson, and looking forward to next weeks.

  34. Tim Moran says

    Your intro hit the nail on the head – I get too distracted by different videos, songbooks, etc. This is a great lesson in targeting notes – my challenge will be keeping track of the timing to land them in the right spot. Thanks!

  35. MANUEL M says

    Bonjour Brian,
    Je pense que des musiciens célèbres comme Éric Clapton et d’autres pourraient apprendre beaucoup de vos talents de guitariste. La différence c’est que vous chantez pas.
    Manuel,

  37. Michele S says

    Hey Brian! This lesson was awesome! I like how you explain everything.

    I too, get easily distracted, going from one lesson to another.

    I’m looking forward to working on this lesson.

  38. Paul K says

    Great lesson…. Thanks…. I’m trying to integrate this lesson and EP143 into/with some turnarounds I found… Maybe not the most profound thing, but widens my scope into improvising

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