Elite Music Technique in Action Am Pentatonic Blues Licks

Musical Style: Rock/Blues

Skill Level: Intermediate

Focus Technique: Minor Pentatonic Scale licks.

Combination of bends, hammer-ons and pull offs over a minor pentatonic shape.
Perfect for intermediate players working on fluency, feel and pitch bend accuracy.

Pentatonic Solo Licks

 

Musical Style: Rock/Blues

Skill Level: Intermediate

Focus Technique:  Pentatonic Solo licks.

Combination of bends, hammer-ons and pull offs over a minor pentatonic shape.
Perfect for intermediate players working on fluency, feel and pitch bend accuracy.

Pentatonic Solo Licks as the name suggests are phrases or lines of notes played using the Pentatonic Scale. A ‘Lick’ is a slang term for a stock pattern or idea which is used in soloing. A guitarist will generally use a combination of guitar licks to form a well rounded solo and this is referred to as improvising. The more Solo licks the guitarist can use, the more complex and interesting the solo will sound. The Pentatonic scale uses five notes per octave which is derived from many ancient civilisations and is still used in traditional music today. There are two types used in modern music, the Major Pentatonic and the Minor Pentatonic. Is this video the guitarist is using the Minor Pentatonic scale which is based on The Natural Minor Scale, less two notes. This scale is widely used in Blues and Rock and has a darker, edgier sound than it’s major counterpart.  When listening to artists like Joe Bonamassa, Eric Clapton, Jim Hendrix, Eric Johnson, Jimmy Page, John Lee Hooker etc., you will hear many Minor Pentatonic Licks. Confusing as it may sound a well rounded guitarist can use both Major and Minor Pentatonic Licks together especially over a 12 Bar Blues. We will stick to the Minor Pentatonic for now.

 

Am Pentatonic Blues Licks

In Lick 1. we see the Classic Chicago Blues Lick starting with a full bend from the D note (7th fret of the G string) to an E note. Followed by the bend is an ascending group of two notes, E and A (enabled by the barred finger on the B and E string.) Finishing Lick 1. is a bend of the G note to A (8th fret B string) and some vibrato added to the bend.