BUILD YOUR SOLOS... ...to a climax!
Richard Barrett looks at how repetition can serve you in creating dramatic, memorable and climactic solos, with exercises and example solos in the style of of some classic blues-rockers who use this approach.
Many of the greatest blues-rock guitarists use repetitive sequences of notes to bring their solos to fever pitch. Richard Barrett shows how they do it, and demonstrates how you can too.
As with any concept that relates to playing the guitar, there are various angles from which we can examine it. In this feature, we will look at various ways some of the acknowledged blues-rock greats have employed the use of repeating phrases; from the repetition of rapid-fire phrases like Gary Moore or EVH, to the patterns or motifs that recur in the phrases of SRV or Eric Clapton.
Some of the examples feature repeated groups of notes, but within that structure this also forms a rhythm that continues across or along the strings - or perhaps a longer phrase or rhythmic idea that crops up regularly. To analyse this in action, I’ve taken key phrases or approaches from 10 different players and condensed these into exercises over a backing track of drums and bass; starting with Eric Clapton, the repeated use of melodic and rhythmic motifs is something that has always characterised his playing.
Jimmy Page also has some favourite ideas which I’ve condensed into a four-bar exercise. For Angus Young, I’ve focused more on his use of repetitive rhythmic devices - through some Chuck Berry style double-stops to mixing open and fretted strings. Shifting things up a gear, Gary Moore made frequent use of repeated alternate picked sextuplet patterns - these require a great deal of stamina and accuracy, so approach with patience! Segueing into SRV, I interpret repetition as a series of recurring rhythmic and melodic ideas, fitting as many as possible into the allotted four bars, before heading straight to another master of the Strat, Ritchie Blackmore. Again, rhythm plays a key part in the unusual patterns he would play across the strings - not forgetting the repeated bends that feature so often in his solos.
It was pretty clear I should include some form of the ‘Sultans’ lick for Mark Knopfler, and this includes how he often takes a similar approach to crossing the strings, not just static licks. This is followed by a shift to Steve Lukather’s slick approach. Steve will often use repeated bluesy phrases to build intensity in live performance, and I’ve also included a repetitive descending lick more reminiscent of his studio work. Note the ‘straight’ semiquavers over a swung backbeat here, which gives an extra twist. Repeated tapping patterns is an obvious way to showcase how Eddie Van Halen harnesses the power of repetition, but repeated bends and rhythms also play a part, so I’ve included some of that in his section too.
Finally, we have John Mayer, who takes a little of the Clapton/SRV vibe and adds some flashy but relaxed backwards rakes across Pentatonic based double-stops. Something that sounds so relaxed it gives the impression it’s easy, but this may take a little time.
For the second set of examples, I’ve expanded similar ideas for each player into more of a ‘solo’ over eight bars, putting them into musical context, with some occasional rhythm guitar or keybs where appropriate.
I hope you enjoy these examples and that they give you some fresh new ideas!
“We will look at various ways acknowledged blues-rock greats have employed the use of repeating phrases”