Read Before Learning Another JazzGuitar Lick

Learning the art of the jazz guitar solo is a worthy aspiration formany guitarists, but with all the information available on theInternet, it can be difficult to fully digest the material you’vefound on-line.

If you’ve been from lesson to lesson and site to site, learning lick after lick, and notfeeling like you’re getting any more comfortable with improvisation, you’re not alone.One of the most common issues I encounter with my students is the sheeroverwhelming volume of licks and solos available online. Learning lick after lickwithout knowing what to do next can make it difficult to truly progress as animproviser.

The good news is that the licks and material you’ve already learned throughout yourtravels on the web will not be wasted. After reading through this step-by-stepinstructional lesson you’ll finally be able to internalize and apply the licks you’vealready learned in order to create a great jazz guitar solo.

If you don’t know any jazz guitar licks yet, no problem, in this lesson I’ve included aseries of licks from some of the greatest Jazz guitarists of all time to ensure that youget on the right track when it comes to learning licks off the web.

Let’s get started right away. This lesson will cover 4 exercises that you need to know

in order to get the most out of lifting and learning licks on the guitar.

You can jump to each exercise through the menu below.

Learn each lick everywhere (Joe Pass Lick)

Transcribe the rhythm from solos (Wes Montgomery Lick)

Check for harmony and patterns (Barney Kessel Lick)

Play in all 12 keys (Jim Hall Lick)

1) Learn each lick everywhere

Guitarists have a unique challenge on the instrument. Not only do we have to play indifferent keys, but we also have to play in different areas of the guitar. The sheernumber of ways to play a tune or a lick on the guitar is staggering compared to mostother instruments.

For every interesting lick, solo, melody or phrasing you hear and enjoy, learn how toplay it everywhere on the guitar. In order to develop a true mastery of theinstrument, or just avoid getting ‘stuck’ in certain areas of the guitar, it’s imperativethat you learn licks on the guitar in as many ways as possible.

Let’s take a look at a Joe Pass lick over a minor II V I in C minor to begin. Use thetabs/notation as needed in combination with the video to get the exact rhythm andfingering (you’ll also find a button to download a PDF copy at the end of the lesson).

Before moving too far on the fretboard, see if you can find another way to play the lickin the same key (C minor), in the same position on the guitar. The example belowtakes the Joe Pass lick and lowers it down an octave in relatively the same positionon the fretboard. Check out the video and tab below for all the information you need toplay the Joe Pass lick an octave lower.

Next, you’ll play Pass’ lick in the same octave range as the original but in a differentposition on the guitar. Knowing each lick in multiple positions will allow you to keepyour lines sounding smooth and allow you to incorporate ideas as you wish.

Now, you’ll start from the same 2 notes as the previous lick but change the positionslightly. You’ll end playing the lick in the same octave range as the original but in anadditional position.

The last position you’ll play the Joe Pass lick in is up near the 12th fret of the guitar. Thisversion of the lick is an octave higher than the original, but contains the same notes inthe same order using the same rhythm.

Finally, the ultimate challenge – both technically and for the ears – is to play the lick ona single string. Depending on the lick, you may be limited to certain strings for thisexercise. If you run out of space working out this exercise using other licks or melodies,just move to the next higher or lower string and continue.

This lick takes place on the E string. Play the lick slowly at first. Make sure you canincorporate the rhythm slowly before increasing the tempo of the lick.

After covering 4 variations of the Joe Pass minor II V I lick, you’ll begin to see thescope and detail this exercise demands. We’ve covered 4 different variations, but thereare many more ways to play a given lick on the guitar. Spend time determiningfurther possibilities for playing this lick and every other lick you learn on the guitar.

Being on the lookout for new fingerings and ways to play material will strengthen therelationship between mind and instrument like nothing else!

2) Transcribe the Rhythm from Solos

Rhythm is arguably the most important element of Jazz music. Without a keen senseof rhythm, there would be no swing or straight, ballad or up-tempo tunes.

Keeping in mind that rhythm is a defining feature of not only Jazz, but all music, it onlymakes sense that looking at the rhythmic approach of great jazz guitar soloists wouldyield invaluable results.

The jazz guitar solo excerpt in this example is from one of the greatest jazz guitarists ofall time, Wes Montgomery.

The lick takes place over an Ebm7 chord and focuses on Ebm7 arpeggio chord tonesand extensions. Listen to the video and read the tabs to get an idea for the lick andthe rhythm.

In looking at the lick and playing through it, observe the recurring rhythmic pattern ofan eighth note followed by a triplet figure every 2 beats.

Now, if you forget about everything but the rhythm, you’ll end up with the examplebelow – a purely rhythmic representation of the Wes Montgomery lick.

There are a few different ways you can internalize the rhythm before beginning toform licks. I recommend playing along to a metronome and either clapping the rhythmor picking a single note on the guitar. Once you can play the rhythm at a number ofdifferent tempos between slow and up-tempo, start filling in the blanks with notes.

The next step after internalizing the rhythm from Wes’ lick is to apply new notechoices. The original lick takes place over an Ebm7 chord using arpeggios in the Ebm7chord and certain extensions, so you’ll start by using similar note choices.

The Ebm7 chord contains chord tones – Eb Gb Bb and Db

The two links below will take you to the corresponding m7 resourcepages if you need any further information.

m7 arpeggios

m7 chords

The lick below is an example of what could happen if you combined notes of the Ebm7arpeggio with the rhythm from Wes’ lick.

However, using the Wes rhythm is not limited to playing over only Ebm7 chords. Youcan apply the rhythm from Montgomery’s lick to any key or chord progression.Here’s a further example of using the same rhythm over a II V I progression in Dbmajor.

Before moving on, here’s a quick review of what you need to do in order to learn licksfrom a rhythmic perspective:

Isolate the rhythm of the lick – You can clap or simply play the rhythm on a1.single string until it can be played fluidly.Apply similar notes to the rhythm that were found in the original lick –2.Don’t try to be too complex right away; mix and match arpeggio and scale notesto create a lick with the same rhythm. If the original lick features a G7 arpeggio,start by playing notes in the G7 arpeggio.Stretch out – Start playing the rhythm over different chords, and finally chord3.progressions. The mileage you’ll get out of a few great rhythms is astronomical.Your lick vocabulary will sky rocket by working from rhythms.

3) Check for Harmony and Patterns

Harmonic analysis of a jazz guitar solo or lick will help to fine tune your solos. Start byanalyzing a lick note-for-note relative to the given chord changes. Look for anyrecurring themes that emerge in note selection, whether it be a scale pattern,arpeggio pattern, specific chord tones or chromatic notes. Analyze every note in thesolo then see if you can apply what you’ve learned to create new lines.

Get started by playing through the Barney Kessel solo excerpt below. Written aboveeach note is the chord tone which the note corresponds to. The lick itself takes placeover a II V I progression in Eb major and features a number of chord tones.

Analyzing the note choices in the Kessel solo excerpt indicates that chord tones wereused extensively in combination with a few passing notes and chord extensions. Thehighlighted section of the solo is a neat melodic pattern that we’ll take a deeper lookat in a moment.

Using a similar contour as the original lick and chord tones from each chord, you canconstruct licks in a similar style. The lick below shows an example of borrowing notesfrom the original lick to create a new lick. In the new lick you’ll be focusing on mainlythe R, 3, 5 and 7 of each chord in the II V I progression in Eb major.

Try working out different combinations of chord tones to create your own BarneyKessel inspired licks. You can even change the rhythm up if you’d like, but keep thefocus on hitting similar chord tones for this exercise.

After your finished here, I recommend checking out this lesson onthe approach note technique in order to continue your studies insoloing with chord tones.

Finally, let’s get back to that melodic pattern that was highlighted in the originalBarney Kessel lick. In every great jazz guitarist’s repertoire, you’ll find hundreds of littlemelodic and harmonic patterns that appear again and again in their playing.

A large part of a guitarist’s playing style can be derived from a complex combination ofsmall patterns. Pick up the patterns you hear and enjoy and come up with your ownas well.

The lick below features the same melodic pattern highlighted in the first BarneyKessel lick, but this time you’ll repeat it over each chord in the II V I progression.

Generally, you wouldn’t play a single melodic pattern again and again over the periodof an entire solo. However, once you practice enough melodic patterns and come upwith your own, you’ll have created an engaging and unique soloing style.

The benefit of pulling small fragments from jazz guitar Greats is often over looked, butis one of the most effective ways of improving your improvisational ability (especially if

you play these fragments in all areas of the guitar as you did in the first exercise).

4) Play in all 12 Keys

The last and one of the most important things you can do on the instrument is to take amusical idea through all 12 keys. Playing music in all 12 keys is not only beneficial toyour understanding of the fretboard and music theory, but also your ears.

Using a Jim Hall solo excerpt from a II V I progression, you’ll develop an easy methodfor transposing licks.

Start by playing through the Jim Hall lick below. Be sure to use the notation and video tocheck your accuracy.

If you’re unable to transpose to a different key by ear, don’t worry, that will come withpractice and listening. For now, you can determine the correct notes of the Jim Hall lickin a different key with a bit of analysis.

Firstly, you’ll need to know the chord progression that goes with the lick in all 12 keys.I’ve included a list below of the II V I progression in all 12 keys. If you’re unfamiliar withany of the progressions, work towards memorizing the complete list.

Key iim7 V7 Imaj7

C Dm7 G7 Cmaj7

F Gm7 C7 Fmaj7

Bb Cm7 F7 Bbmaj7

Eb Fm7 Bb7 Ebmaj7

Ab Bbm7 Eb7 Abmaj7

Db Ebm7 Ab7 Dbmaj7

Gb Abm7 Db7 Gbmaj

G Am7 D7 Gmaj7

D Em7 A7 Dmaj7

A Bm7 E7 Amaj7

E F#m7 B7 Emaj7

B C#m7 F#7 Bmaj7

Next, you can work out each note in a new key based off the original analysis of thekey. Included is another list of the analysis of the Jim Hall lick in some of the 12 keys.Take another look at the original lick and check out the analysis of each note writtenabove the staff to review the analysis.

If you write out the lick and the relative chord progression on paper you get this:

b3 4 5 b7 13 5 R 13 5 3 9 R b7 3

Cm7 ————–————–

F7 ————– ————– ————– ————–————– ————– Bbmaj7

Eb F G Bb D C F D C A G F Eb D

The first row in the chart above displays the chord tones that each note in the lickcorrespond to. The second row indicates the chord changes of the II V I progression inthe given key (Bb major) and the third row shows the actual notes of the lick in theappropriate key.

So, if your new to transposition you can write out each key in the same manner as thechart above to get started.

Continue transposing by playing the Jim Hall lick through the keys of C and Eb major.

Jim Hall lick in C major

You can use the chart below as a reference to see how the notes in the key of C weredetermined.

b3 4 5 b7 13 5 R 13 5 3 9 R b7 3

Dm7 ————– ————– G7 ————– ————– ————– ———- ———- Cmaj7

F G A C E D G E D B A G F E

Jim Hall lick in Eb major

Moving on, play through the same Jim Hall lick, but this time in Eb major. Again, youcan reference the chart below to see how the notes for lick were determined.

b3 4 5 b7 13 5 R 13 5 3 9 R b7 3

Fm7 ————–————–

Bb7 ————– ————– ————– ————–————– ————– Ebmaj7

Ab Bb C Eb G F Bb G F D C Bb Ab G

Once you’ve played the Jim Hall lick in the Bb, C and Eb major, take the lick througheven more keys. Use the chart as a quick reference to determine the notes of the lickin all 12 keys. Even if you have to constantly refer to the chart to determine the notes,you’ll still be training your ears to get the rhythm, and your mind to determine thelocations on the fretboard.

The charts can only help determine the correct notes for lick, they cannot help withpositioning or rhythm. Use your ears to determine the rhythm for the Jim Hall lick inother keys and look for as many positions as possible to play the lick in.

b3 4 5 b7 13 5 R 13 5 3 9 R b7 3

Dm7 ————–————–

G7 ————– ————– ————– ———- ———- ———- Cmaj7

F G A C E D G E D B A G F E

Gm7 ————–————–

C7 ————– ————– ————– ————– ————–————– Fmaj7

Bb C D F A G C A G E D C Bb A

Cm7 ————–————–

F7 ————– ————– ————– ————– ————–————– Bbmaj7

Eb F G Bb D C F D C A G F Eb D

Fm7 ————–————–

Bb7 ————– ————– ————– ————–————– ————– Ebmaj7

Ab Bb C Eb G F Bb G F D C Bb Ab G

Bbm7 ————–————–

Eb7 ————– ————– ————– ————–————– ————– Abmaj7

Db Eb F Ab C Bb Eb C Bb G F Eb Db C

Ebm7 ————–————–

Ab7 ————– ————– ————– ————–————– ————– Dbmaj7

Gb Ab Bb Db F Eb Ab F Eb C Bb Ab Gb F

Abm7 ————–————–

Db7 ————– ————– ————– ————–————– ————– Gbmaj7

Cb Db Eb Gb Bb Ab Db Bb Ab F Eb Db Cb Bb

Am7 ————–————–

D7 ————– ————– ————– ————– ————–————– Gmaj7

C D E G B A D B A F# E D C B

Em7 ————–————–

A7 ————– ————– ————– ————– ————–————– Dmaj7

G A B D F# E A F# E C# B A G F#

Bm7 ————–————–

E7 ————– ————– ————– ————– ————–————– Amaj7

D E F# A C# B E C# B G# F# E D C#

F#m7 ————–————–

B7 ————– ————– ————– ————– ————–————– Emaj7

A B C# E G# F# B G# F# D# C# B A G#

C#m7 ————–————–

F#7 ————– ————– ————– ————–————– ————– Bmaj7

E F# G# B D# C# F# D# C# A# G# F# E D#

What next?

Take each of the 4 jazz guitar lick exercises covered in this lesson and apply them toevery lick you know. It may take a while, but the benefit is immense.

Want to check out 141 more licks? Follow this link to learn more Jazzguitar licks.

Please feel free to leave a comment in the space below and let me know what youthink about the lesson.

You can also let me know how you approach learning licks or solos, I’d love to hearfrom you.

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