baritone wes

7/28/2019 Baritone Wes

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S E S S I O N S

A STUDENT OF MINE IS FOND OF

Lynyrd Skynyrd, and asked me to transcribe a

few of their licks. While we were working

through some phrases, I noticed one that was

strikingly similar to something John Scofield

might play.

Here’s what I mean: E x. 1—our starting

phrase—is similar to one in Skynyrd’s “That

Smell.” Although the original starts on beat four,

we’ll begin on beat one for simplicity. This lick

is based on a fifth-position A -minor pentatonic

scale, and uses a combination of picked notes

and hammers.

To spice up the line for a jazzier sound, we’ll

start by changing the fingering. E x. 2 shows the

same phrase, but this time played only on the

third and fourth strings. Notice how the second

C (the and of beat two) is now a pull-off. This

small change gives the lick a more liquid feel.

The next variations feature chromatic pass-

ing tones. E x. 3’s is on the third string, while

Ex . 4 has one on the fourth string.

Finally, Ex . 5offers chromatic passing tones

on both strings. The slurs and chromatics make

this line sound jazzy, yet notice how it still re-

sembles our original phrase.

Rework your own favorite rock licks: Refinger

them, add slurs and passing tones, and tweak

their rhythms until the phrases morph into cool

lines for funk, bebop, Latin, or fusion. g

Alex Skolnick leads workshops, teaches pri-

vately, and plays in jazz combos throughout

the San Francisco area. For info on his jazz/fu-

sion group the Skol-Patrol, visit www.skol-pa-

trol.com.

TAB

44

5 75

5 77

55 7

1 13 1 11 33

4

TAB

44

5 57 79

( )

57 6 5

57

21 4 33 3

11 12

TAB

44

5 57 79

6 57 6

57 6 5

57

21

423

3 31

121

TAB

44

5 5 55 7

7 77

9

41

24

31 1 3

Lynyrd

Scofield

TAB

44

5 57 79 6 57 5

57

1 2 43 32 1

1

Ex. 1

Ex. 2 Ex. 3

Ex. 4 Ex. 5

B Y A L E X S K O L N I C K



SO-CALLED “GYPSY” SCALES

are derived from Middle Eastern

modes. Harmonizing these modes

is an innovation of flamenco gui-

tarists. This results in some inter-

esting chord forms, a few of which

are shown in E x . 1. The sequence

of modes follows an oud style, and

these phrases are meant to have a

free, improvisatory feel.

(The oud is a round-backed,

fretless lute played in Africa and

the Middle East. It’s mostly fin-

gered in the first position and is

good for playing quarter-tones—

modal intervals that fall between

major and minor with a “sweet

and sour” sound.)

Ex. 2 is a selection of modes

played in the style of a “long-

necked” lute. Played from Morocco

to India, these are the oldest

known fretted stringed instru-

ments. This family includes the

bouzouki, saz, rebab, and sitar.

They usually have three or four

courses of double strings; melodies

are played mainly on the top

course, while the lower strings cre-

ate droning rhythms.

The shape of a long-necked

lute’s neck dictates that the scale

motion moves vertically up and

down the string (as opposed to

across the fretboard, as on guitar).

Approach thes e lines with the

same spirit as you would the blues.

In this example, the open-B

string adds a drone quality. Note

the large stretches, and the way

the first finger changes fretting po-

sition to support the trills and em-

bellishments. This technique was

explained to me by Yanaris Ase-

makis, who plays excellent Greek

bouzouki on my Guitar Bazaar

S E S S I O N S

TAB

( ) 3

21

4 42 1

1

0

24

00

31 4

0 034

X 1 3

Bmaj7

2 ( )

( ) 2

12

2 2

2

31 1

3 2

0

0

3 3 2 2 0 0 03 3

30

2 30 1 1

00

3 2

Em

2

TAB

44

Free time

( ) 64( )

3 ( )

Em add9

13

21

4 41

24

13

34

23

4

1

2

0

40 3

0 1 40

4 1 003

4 2

2 11

3 21 1

4

2

3 4

2

00 02

3 3 04 4

0 1

X X1 34F add4

X 3Am 5 5

2

2

0

1 1 23

0 10

04 12

1 4

Ex. 1

B Y T I M S P A R K S

Gypsy Scales &

Oriental Modes



CD. Yanaris says he learned this

style from a Gypsy violinist, so

there you are.

Also, thanks to Sakher Hat-

tar, oud virtuoso and director of

the National Orchestra of Jor-

dan for his explanations and in-

spiration. g

Odd-meter specialist Tim

Sparks is the 1993 National Fin-

gerpicking Champion. His Gui-

tar Bazaar CD features intense

fingerpicking compositions in-

fluenced by Middle Eastern and

Balkan music. You can see

Sparks perform his music on a

companion video [both from

Acoustic Music, 1610 Crestview

Ave., Seal Beach, CA 90740].

Send us your candidate for Lick of the Month (preferably notated and

on cassette), along with a brief explanation of why it’s cool and how to play

it. If we select your offering, you’ll get a funky custom T-shirt that’s available

only to Lick of the Month club members. Mail your entry to Lick of the Month,

Guitar Player , 411 Borel Ave. #100, San Mateo, CA 94402. Include your name,

address, and phone number. Materials won’t be returned, and please don’t

call the office to check the status of your submission. You’ll get your shirt

if your lick is chosen. g

TAB

44 ( )

6-string elec. bass

* Notes sound one octave lower than written.** Hammer-ons, pull offs and slides optional.

**4 41 3

31

1

133

3 3

3

2 1 112 23 1 1

44 1( )

3 2 1

1

1

32

2

3

= 190* F7(I) B 7(IV) F7 B 7

85 7 8

5 77

7 755

87

6 8 97

7810 9 8

8

1010

78 7 6

778 6 4 5

6

(Cm7) (F7)

(G m7) (C 7) 2

TAB

( )54

3

( )64 ( )

3

1 1 2 21 1 1 21 12 21 1 2

40

002 4 5

0 04 45 2

04 0

000 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

1 3 4 4 3 31 1 1 13 0

B A R I T O N E W E S

L i c k o f t h e M o n t h

DON WARE, OUR AUGUST LICK CHAMP, HAILS FROM

Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. He writes, “Wes used a 6-string bass guitar(tuned an octave lower than standard, à la Danelectro or Fender

VI) for three tunes on Movin’ Wes —‘Sandy,’ ‘Tune Up,’ and ‘Body

and Soul.’ While commonly heard in country, the 6-string bass is

almost unknown in jazz. This lick shows that Wes was as agile on

thick strings as he was on a regular guitar. Note the E n against F7 .

This n7-against-b7 rub creates a characteristic bop sound that says‘Charlie Parker.’ Check out bar 4, where Wes implies a IIm-V7 move

heading into the IV7: Cm7 -F7 into B b 7 . (You can also hear this as

a b5 substitution, G b m7 -C b 7 .) Wes didn’t play the slurs and slides,

but I’ve included them as optional ornamentation.” g

TAB

Free time

( )5

4

3

1 1 1 1 1 1133

( )7

4

3

3 33

1 12 221

11 1 122 2 21

00 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

1 4 5 7 75 5 54 7

( )5

40 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 07 78 6 7 12 1211 1111 8 87 7 76 8 7 75 5

Ex. 2



S E S S I O N S

TAB

44

G

Open-G tuning, w/ slide

G7

30

0 020 0

3

0 020

00

03

3

DBGDBG

TAB

44


G

G7

00

0 00 3

3

2

00 0 0

003

32DBGDBG

TAB

44

G7


0

2 3 33

0

3 323

3 3 32

0

3

DBGDBG

3

IN THE BEGINNING, THERE WAS EARL SCRUGGS.

His brilliant banjo picking and flashy syncopations started

a 5-string revolution, and laid the foundation of the bluegrass

banjo style. When Scruggs and singer/guitarist Lester Flatt

hired Buck “Uncle Josh” Graves to play Dobro with them in

the early ’50s, Graves began to do for the “acoustic Hawaiian

steel guitar” what Scruggs had done for the banjo. Instead of

pursuing the languid Hawaiian sound on his resonator in-

strument, Graves developed a highly charged technique that

combined bluesy slide riffs and syncopated three-finger rolls.

In the late ’60s, Dobroist Mike Auldridge picked up thethread of Graves’ approach. Notes tumble from Auldridge’s

squareneck guitar in sparkling, syncopated cascades.

The following examples are meant to be played lap-style,

in high-G tuning (G, B, D, G, B, D , low to high) with a thumbpick,

two fingerpicks, and a Stevens-style solid bar for a slide.

Much of the momentum in bluegrass-style Dobro comes

from moves such as Ex. 1. This banjo-style roll breaks up

a measure’s worth of eighth-notes into a combination of

two three-note groups and a two-note group: 3+3+2. Fea-

turing the same syncopation, Ex. 2 is a classic Scruggs

Ex. 3

TAB

44

G

30

0

3


2 00

02

DBGDBG

Ex. 2

Ex. 4

Ex. 5

B Y D A V I D H A M B U R G E R

TAB

44


G

30

0

30

0

2 02 5

DBGDBG

6+6+4=BluegrassEx. 1

L A P T O P G U I T A R



#9-3-5 lick recast for Dobro.

Each group of eighth-notes is twice as

long in E x . 3. Stretching across two bars, the

16 available eighth-notes are subdivided into

two six-note groups and a four-note group:

6+6+4. In E x. 4, the second group of six notes

echoes the first six, an octave up.

Got a little too much free time on your

hands? Ex . 5 is the bluesy solution, a 6+6+4

lick that lends itself to infinite repetition.

Finally, E x. 6 turns things inside out with

a 6+4+6 syncopation. g

David Hamburger teaches at the National

Guitar Summer Workshop. Check out Ham-

burger’s Electric Slide Guitar [Hal Leonard].

For David’s solo album, King of the Brooklyn

Delta , or info on clinics and private instruc-

tion, write to Chester Records, Box 170504,

Brooklyn, NY 11217.

TAB

44

G7


0

DBGDBG

3 0 0

0 13 3

20

0

0 00

3

23

Ex. 6



S E S S I O N S

TAB

44

6 610

8 68

85

6 610

8

68

85

= 110

44

Cm or C7

6 610

81110 10

6 6 81110 10

6 6 11 6810 10

6 11 810 10

6 6 11 8

Cm or C7

TAB

44

= 116 Cm7

88

81212 12 12

11 101012

10 9 8 7 11 99

9 8 1010 10 77

6

TAB

44= 110

E7alt

7 79

9 10 7 12 99

9 15 13 131614

1515 12

12 10 1013 131513

1314

BECAUSE SAXOPHONE PLAYERS SPEND

their lives developing melodic skills, they can

teach us a lot about building single-note lines.

Tenor titan Michael Brecker has an incredible

command of improvisation, so let’s transfer

some of his ideas to guitar. In the spirit of free

play, I haven’t included fingering. Try rendering

each phrase at least two ways.

E xamples 1a and1bare two “false fingering”

sax licks. You can emulate this sound by playing

the same note on two different strings—check

out the B - and G -string F , for instance. Pay close

attention to the pull-offs.

Ex. 2 starts with another “false fingering”

idea and features chromatic colors. Notice the

E triad in bar 1, beat one (here, the 3—G # —is

written enharmonically as A b ), and the B b triad

spanning beats two and three. Brecker always

finds clever ways to superimpose chords over

the harmony.

A beautiful symmetrical pattern over E7 ,

E x. 3 sets up an altered dominant sound.

You can hea r Brecker’s lat est concepts

on his new Two Blocks from the Edge [GRP/

Impulse]. g

New York session player, performer, and

teacher Gil Parris says, “Thanks, Michael, for

your continued support and inspiration.” Gil’s

new self-titled solo album [RCA/BMG] features

David Sanborn, Bob James, and Harvey Mason.

Ex. 1a Ex. 1b

Ex. 2

Ex. 3

Sax Lines for

6-StringersB Y G I L P A R R I S

Hanging in New York: Parris with archtop

and mentor Michael Brecker.



ACCESSING NOTES ON CALL

To sample or record any lesson in

this month’s Sessions, call 1-900-370-

0020and enter the appropriate four-

digit code. It costs 75¢ per minute.

You’ll need a touch-tone phone and

parental permission if you’re under

18. To better control your phone time,

use these touch-tone commands: 7= forward ten seconds; 8 = rewind ten

seconds; 9 = pause ten seconds; # =

skip to end; * = repeat lesson.

This month’s lessons are also

available on CD for only $6.95 (plus

$3.95 s/h). For credit card orders call

1-800-222-5544, or send check or

money order to Notes On Call, August

’98 Lessons, 146 2nd St. N., Ste. 201,

St. Petersburg, FL 33701.

Crank up the inspiration with GP ’s Sessions sampler CD.

You get 11 high-voltage lessons for only $5.00. Call 1-800-222-5544.

Net-heads: For the lowdown on GP ’s music notation symbols—and to hear

Sessions sound samples—visit ww w.guit arpla y er.com.

N O T E S O N C A L L

August ’98 Guitar Player lessons:

1649 - 6+6+4=Bluegrass: DAVID HAMBURGER

1650 - Sax Lines for 6-Stringers: GIL PARRIS

1651 - Lynyrd Scofield: ALEX SKOLNICK

1652 - Gypsy Scales & Oriental Modes: TIM SPARKS

1653 - Cutting Edge Blues Guitar : MARK DZIUBA

1654 - Lick of the Month: BARITONE WES

1655 & 1656 - Leni Stern lesson: ANDY ELLIS

AUGUST 1998 GUITAR PLAYER 154

baritone wes

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