I found this video of a master class by the guitar player Oz Noy where he demonstrates different scale choices over dominant chords. It's a 12-bar I-IV-V blues in G with the chords
He then plays one or more choruses using only one type of scale to demonstrate the sound of that scale over dominant chords. E.g., when playing mixolydian he would choose G-mixolydian over the G7 chord, C-mixolydian over C7, and D-mixolydian over D7. He continues in this way using the following scales:
The first three scales are pretty much inside and will not cause too much friction. However, the whole tone, the diminished and the altered scales contain quite a few outside notes, and they might simply sound wrong to you if you use them for the first time. Anyway, Oz Noy manages to use them in a very musical way. Check out the video and start transcribing (starts at 6:46)!
I found out that many guitar players wanted to know how to play the intro and the main riff of the song Desire by The Winery Dogs. So I made a little youtube lesson to explain how I think that Ritchie Kotzen plays it.
Hope it helps and thanks for watching!
Also check my post on the solo of this song!
OK, I did it. I recorded myself playing a guitar solo in order to enter a contest. It's David Wallimann's 60 Second Solo Contest on Youtube. David recorded and shared a backing track and everybody can show what (s)he came up with over this backing track. So why on earth would I do such a thing? OK, you can win some pedals or something, I don't even know exactly what it is. But winning a pedal, or even winning the contest, was not what motivated me to participate. I know that there are zillions of awfully good guitarists out there that have enough time to record some amazing guitar solos which will make mine look rather modest.
So what else could it be then? I'll tell you and I'd also advise you to at least think about it and consider entering this or any other guitar contest at some time. What makes it really worthwhile for me is the feedback you get on your output. You can be sure that most contestants will be eager to see and hear what the others did, so you will get quite some exposure to a critical and possibly competitive audience. This feedback will help you put yourself and your playing in a new perspective. Don't worry, most people won't put you down, but they might be critical, and if you're able to take it, it will help you to keep moving in the right direction. The other important motivation for me is the opportunity to take the time to sit down and get inspired by someone else's music (in this case David's backing track). It's a very smooth and peaceful track which (at least for my understanding) asks for some emotions in what you add to it. I tried to come up with melodies and phrases in my head, not on my guitar, because in the latter case you're tempted to do what your fingers do best and not what the music is actually asking for. Whatever other people will think about my entry, I know that I found and played what was inside of me, triggered by the music. This makes me happy and satisfied, regardless of who's gonna win the pedal, or whatever it is that can be won ... :)
I recently discovered the all-star trio band The Winery Dogs featuring Richie Kotzen (gu), Billy Sheehan (b) and Mike Portnoy (dr). These guys need no introduction, they've been around for quite a while, and obviously they're all excellent musicians. So I was very curious to hear them play together and I didn't get disappointed. They have a classic rock trio sound, think Hendrix and Cream with some more modern influences like Lenny Kravitz and Soundgarden. Good songwriting, impeccable playing, and also Kotzen's great soulful voice.
When I heard their song Desire, I was surprised by Kotzen's guitar solo. When you hear the song you - or at least I - would expect some typical pentatonic or maybe dorian rock solo, but Richie Kotzen chose to use a lot of chromaticism in a way that I found interesting. So I transcribed his solo and I'll also use it in my lessons. It's only in the last two measures that he shows off some nice pentatonic bending licks played through a wah-pedal. Enjoy!
