Hello and welcome to my first instalment of guitar tuition articles for Lick Library. I’m going to be covering several different topics, but before we get too involved, we should really get back to basics and make sure everyone has a good grounding in basic scales. The first scale we are going to look at is the minor pentatonic scale.

Now before you roll your eyes in disgust and close your web browser, just ask yourself.. “How well do I know the scale? Can I play it in all five positions up and down the neck? Can I play it in all twelve keys, in all positions? Could I change key at the drop of a hat, and keep each scale in the same area?”…. I expect for a lot of you here the answer would be NO!

Many players learn a couple of shapes and then think that they have the scale down, but being able to move the scale around the neck, and play successfully in different keys takes time and practice. To be honest, that is what you should be able to do in order to be a competent and confident player. That’s why so many of our favourite players make simple scales sound so effective and interesting.

First, lets take a look at the minor pentatonic scale. The scale itself evolves from the major scale of the same name, but it has a slightly different formula that results in the pentatonic. Lets take a look at the A major scale and the A minor pentatonic scale, and compare formulas:

A, B, C#, D, E, F#, G#, A
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 1

A, C, D, E, G, A
1, b3, 4, 5, b7, 1

You can see that the scales are quite closely related; we simply flatten the 3rd and the 7th by a semi-tone, and remove the 2nd and the 6th.

Now we need to find a way of remembering the scales. For this task I use a system known as the ‘CAGED’ system. The idea is that you base each scale shape on one of the five major or minor movable barre chords of C, A, G, E, and D. If you look at the chord and scale diagrams you will notice that Pattern 1 of the A minor pentatonic scale fits over the E minor barre shape of the A minor chord, and that they also share the same root note.

This idea continues through all of the shapes, and is as follows:-

E minor shape – Pattern 1
D minor shape – Pattern 2
C minor shape – Pattern 3
A minor shape – Pattern 4
G minor shape – Pattern 5

All of the above scales are located in the same area as their matching chord shape, and also share the same root note. Remember the root note is very important, as this is the note that gives the chord/scale its name and is essential when it comes to moving the chords or scale shapes to new keys.

All you have to do is find the root of the relevant key on a chosen string and then move a chord or scale to that position, starting from the chosen root note. The idea is the same as when we move basic barre chords around the neck….. simple! Practice each scale around the relevant chord shape, starting from the lowest possible root, and resolving to that root. Then practice this in the remaining keys. Try practicing all over the neck, and then in small area, trying to change key but stay in the same position, utilising the five different shapes.

Once you have learnt the scales, you can begin practicing this month’s solo. I have tried to make the track as interesting as possible, as some backing tracks are so uninspiring and sound like lift music! The whole of the track, including the riffs, were constructed using only the pentatonic scale. In other articles we will discuss composition around this scale, but for now lets have some fun!

The solo uses one of my favourite players for inspiration, Mr Zakk Wylde. Zakk uses the minor pentatonic pretty much all of the time, and is a very exciting player. The solo is meant to cater for all levels. The most part uses some simple bluesy bending licks, plus plenty of position shifts to get you moving around the neck. I have also included a couple of Wylde style shredding licks just to keep you on your toes.

The main backing track is an extended version of the track that I soloed over, so feel free to experiment with ideas of your own. Enjoy and stay tuned for the major pentatonic next time.

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