[Kato]

Alright. I've learned the minor scale and the blues scale.. and can play them pretty well.. I just can't figure out how to play them over songs. I try to play the notes through out the song (I've been doing it in the key of Em, just because I figured it'd be a good start.) and I just can't form anything that sounds like a good lead. Can someone maybe give me some exercises, espically if you can give me an example of a song it would fit over well? Or just some basic guidance?

[coupon]

im no expert on this subject as im still learning too, but for most worship songs you want to play major instead of the ones you are learning. major pentatonics work but i think that regular major ones work better.

[RubberChipmunk]

Originally Posted by Kato

Alright. I've learned the minor scale and the blues scale.. and can play them pretty well.. I just can't figure out how to play them over songs. I try to play the notes through out the song (I've been doing it in the key of Em, just because I figured it'd be a good start.) and I just can't form anything that sounds like a good lead. Can someone maybe give me some exercises, espically if you can give me an example of a song it would fit over well? Or just some basic guidance?

What sort of leads/styles of music are you going for?

[Jenacen]

Well, you want to make sure that you're playing the scale that's the same key of the song you're in, otherwise it just won't sound good. Figuring out a song's key takes a bit of patience. Either train your ears to hear music, or you could duplicate the main vocal melody of the song on your guitar and from there try to figure out the key by looking at the notes you're playing. I've done it that way once with "Here I Am to Worship." After that, just play the scale of that key, and there you have it! Now just write a good melody to go with it! Takes a bit of patience, but keep at it.

[gtrdave]

Melody, melody, melody...

[Darrell999]

And phrasing. Play a few notes, rest, play some more, rest, etc. so it almost mimics singing and breathing. Good places for fills are at the end of vocal lines, unless it is an extended solo.

[Only Alive]

Originally Posted by Darrell999

And phrasing. Play a few notes, rest, play some more, rest, etc. so it almost mimics singing and breathing. Good places for fills are at the end of vocal lines, unless it is an extended solo.

This is good. Just because you're playing a solo doesn't mean you have to play all the time. A lot of good solos are small phrases or parts all strung together. When you think of it that way, it isn't as daunting either.

-Nick

[plawren53202]

I'm going through this learning process right now. What has helped me:
(1) Listen to lots of P&W and identify the kinds of solos/leads/fills you like;
(2) Learn those solos/leads/fills and play along with the CD;
(3) You may be able to copy some of them, esp. if you are doing the same song, but more importantly, by playing along you start to see how that particular guitarist has constructed a solo/lead/fill out of the structure of that song. You start to gain insight into the process of creating them, and as you learn the process, you can then apply it for yourself to other songs.

As the others have said, I quickly learned that the basis for many P&W solos/leads/fills is the melody of the song.

[Dbmaj7]

Originally Posted by Darrell999

And phrasing. Play a few notes, rest, play some more, rest, etc. so it almost mimics singing and breathing. Good places for fills are at the end of vocal lines, unless it is an extended solo.

That is excellent advice. Phrasing is key in adding flavor to a song. The end of vocal lines are great places to add little fills... it gets old at the end of every vocal line though. The notes you don't play are as important as the ones you do. Try starting with two to four note fills at the end of a vocal line. When you discover a nice little phrase don't be afraid to repeat it... just don't wear it out throughout the song. Try playing those notes with feeling... using bends, hammer-ons, pull-offs, and slides... instead of cramming a bunch of notes in. The first position on the pentatonic scale is a good place to start... say on the 3rd, 2nd, & 1st strings.... the pentatonic "box" that begins on the 12th fret in the key of G (or em pentatonic). I hope that makes sense and helps.

[metropolis4]

Originally Posted by Kato

Alright. I've learned the minor scale and the blues scale.. and can play them pretty well.. I just can't figure out how to play them over songs. I try to play the notes through out the song (I've been doing it in the key of Em, just because I figured it'd be a good start.) and I just can't form anything that sounds like a good lead. Can someone maybe give me some exercises, espically if you can give me an example of a song it would fit over well? Or just some basic guidance?

Try this for an exercise. Instead of focusing on playing the scale, record a progression you can play along with. In this case a simple em blues wil do. Now focus on finding the notes that sound good over each chord. Instead of thinking about the scale, feel it, use your ears and listen to what sounds good and what doesn't. Also think about movement, how notes that sound good over one chord correspond to notes in the next chord.
Another thing to do are exercises like this: Limit yourself to playing on one string only! Now play over your progression, but only play on one string, and instead of worrying about playing the scale use your ears and listen to the way each note sounds over each chord; how does that note feel? You can also do this limiting the size of the scale you are playing. Try playing your minor pentatonic scale, but only use one small section of it, maybe 4 notes. Now using ONLY this small section start soloing over a progression, again using your ears and listening for what sounds good to you.
Use this section of the scale for practice:
Em pentatonic. Root in ()

e-------------3--5
b------3--(5)-----
g---4------------
d----------------
a----------------
e----------------

Now only using this small portion of the scale try creating lines that sound good to you over your progression. A lot of famous blues players used only a small section of a scale for lots of their work. I belive the above is sometimes referred to as the Albert King box...

Learning scales is important, but somtimes when you're just starting out it can be a little overwhelming trying to memorize the notes, and you forget to focus on the sound, and the feel that the notes create. By focusing more on the sound and the feel you can learn to develope lines that fit harmonically and melodically with your song, and creating a voice on your instrument that is more personal, and unique.