| Guitar at About Featured Lick |
| P. Diddy - Bad Boy for Life |
This ongoing feature is designed to teach guitarists some great guitar riffs, drawn from classic guitar solos, via guitar tablature and mp3 clips. The goal is to help guitarists understand the concept behind these riffs, so they can try creating something similar on their own, and learn to use the licks in their guitar solos. You'll need to understand how to read tablature and be able to listen to mp3s to participate.
NOTES ON FEATURED LICK:
| PERFORMANCE: Okay, so I can hear you saying "P. Diddy?! C'mon.. I hate hip-hop! I thought this was a guitar site!" It's always been my belief that good music transcends genres, and there is great stuff to be found in ANY style of music. Fact of the matter is, this is a very cool riff, that has a few things going for it. The riff, which is repeated throughout the song, is a simple one, based on the F# minor pentatonic scale. This is just one of hundreds of riffs based on the minor pentatonic scale (for example, Led Zeppelin's "Moby Dick", Stevie Wonder's "Superstition"...) Play the riff in standard position, with notes on the second fret played with your first finger, notes on third fret with your second finger, notes on fourth fret with your third finger, and notes on fifth fret with your fourth finger. The notes in the riff itself should be easy enough to play - the tricky part is getting a handle on the rhythmic aspect of "Bad Boys for Life". The song riff is played in an intentionally awkward rhythmic manner, with many notes placed dramatically behind the beat to give the song it's really "loose" sound. Listen carefully to the mp3 clip, and try to mimick the exact rhythms being played (it's harder than you think!) For contrast, try playing the riff strictly in time, and imagine it being played that way on the actual recording. It wouldn't be nearly as effective. HOW TO UTILIZE: The minor pentatonic scale is one of the few really important scales in rock and pop music. Basic usage of the scale to make your own riffs is simple - just try and play notes from the scale in an order which sounds pleasing to your ear. Try finding a short riff (perhaps 8 notes, perhaps more) which sounds good when played repeatedly. Think along the lines of "Sunshine of Your Love". The trick is to use your ear, and trust your instincts. Have fun playing around with the minor pentatonic scale!
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ADDITIONAL NOTES/INSTRUCTIONS:
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