Thursday, September 19, 2024 turned out to be one of the best days of my life. My wife left that morning. For a 5 day trip-to-the-mountains with her sister and our nieces. I looked forward to "working on guitar".
I've had decent electric guitars for almost 50 years. Never had a clue what to do with them. Put 'em away and get out the acoustic.
Recently, I had been teaching myself electric-rock-rhythm. While watching a video (on rhythm) a guy put up all 5 pentatonic patterns.
I've known about the main/first pattern for a long time (figured that out myself as a kid). I could always noodle around with that. It was barely serviceable. Boring, no real feeling, no "music". But I can do the backup leads and fills if ya want to play a few Jim Croce songs (did a duo act in bars). Just memorization. I also knew there were other patterns, but I never paid much attention. Occasionally, I've gone down the "guitar hero solo monster" rabbit hole. Always a huge waste of time.
I still always suck.
Seeing all 5 patterns at once, it occurred to me (duh) that they fit together. (that's how clueless I was) I decided to see if I could actually memorize them, figuring I would fail and then be able to put this away forever. Forever. Besides, I've realized that being a rock rhythm player is really where all the fun is anyway - and I've always got Brent to do all that soloing stuff. So I started playing the first "box" over and over. Then I added the 2nd box and worked at remembering that - and bouncing between those 2 boxes - etc., etc., blah, blah..add...add...add... ....going over and over and over that. All day. At some point, it started sounding like music.
I went to bed at 2 AM, after 10 hours of this. On Friday, I went at it again. This time, just.... playing. After 8 hours of that, I thought I would see if I could actually record something. BIAB. Another hour of playing/recording.
I could not touch anything with the fingers on my left hand for 3 days.
That's the story. This is what popped out. ....what I recorded for my first attempt, that second day. My first-ever instrumental. Although it's really just noodling. No real song structure. I'll call it my first journal entry of "walking a new path". (While continuing down those others)
RealTracks in song: ~684:Bass, Electric, PopHalfNotesSync Ev 120 RealTracks in style: 1262:Piano, Acoustic, Rhythm PopShiningHeld Ev 120 RealTracks in style: 2929:Guitar, Acoustic, Rhythm PopFunkyJoe Ev16 110 RealTracks in song: 2905:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm BrightBluesyPopColin Ev 100 RealTracks in song: 1399:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm Soul70sBrightSync Ev16 100 RealTracks in song: 4249:Guitar, Electric, Rhythm BluesFunky Ev 120 RealDrums in style:PopRock16ths^01-a:Snare, HiHat , b:Snare, Ride Shaker loop from Studio One Two tracks of Addictive Drums I played guitar. Fender Strat ('94) through Amplitube 5 (a preset I created)
Sounds pretty slick to me. I’m very much in the same boat as you were when it comes to electric guitar . . . difference is I don’t have the motivation or perseverance one needs to take that next step. Clearly you do, and it shows in this excellent instrumental. Congrats on an outstanding piece of work!! All the hard work decidedly paid off!
Pretty damn good! Yes, there is pattern and structure. I was gonna say this is dang good for a first instrumental - but, actually, this is very good, regardless if first attempt or not. Loved the sound, although I'm more of Tele guy than Strat. But you made that guitar perform like a seasoned pro. Nice tone, great distortion, and, well, nice everything. You should be very pleased with the results of the effort and time you devoted to this.
Yep, I'm impressed. And I remember those days and weeks of fingertips feeling like battery acid on an open wound. I had grooves in my fingers you could hide a telephone pole in..
Floyd, really nicely done, you should be proud! Super feel and tone. Love where you have the distortion set and how the tone breaks up when two notes are played. Think this develops really well. With a more structured ending I'd call this done. Nice work!
Spend about 20 years using BiaB as a backing track generator for guitar solos before getting into songwriting. Working melodic ideas over a backing track can be a lot of fun.
Very crafty and amusing post, too. THANKS for sharing!!
DC Ron BiaB Audiophile Presonus Studio One ASUS I9-12900K DAW, 32 GB RAM Presonus Faderport 16 Too many guitars (is that a thing?)
I really enjoyed that. Especially the struggle. The struggle is real.
I've always believed that being a solid rhythm player was way more important than being a flashy lead player. Having played in a trio for a large part of my gigging years, that was the only way to make it work. More than one venue owner/manager told us we sounded really full for being a 3 piece band. That was due to rhythm playing. My favorite rhythm player in the world: Malcom Young. Solid and always in the groove. Full concert>>
When it comes to playing the lead parts, the main thing there, at least to me, is playing tastefully. Flashy is cool and I know a few things that make people think I'm better than what I actually am, again, at least in my eyes. Shredding and tapping never really interested me much. I can do a little bit of it but prefer the tasty, soulful, from the heart kind of playing.
Add to the pentatonic boxes and patterns some scales to hit those notes that make it sound fluid.
Sore fingers.... that doesn't last too long. Gotta push through it and get some callouses going. Playing is the only way to get that and to get better. If you play, you will get noticeably better in a relatively short period of time because it sounds like you have a fairly solid base from which to work.
Nice job.... Those "vacations" are great opportunities to focus on musical things.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
Sounds pretty slick to me. I’m very much in the same boat as you were when it comes to electric guitar . . . difference is I don’t have the motivation or perseverance one needs to take that next step. Clearly you do, and it shows in this excellent instrumental. Congrats on an outstanding piece of work!! All the hard work decidedly paid off!
Deej
Much appreciated, Deej.
Originally Posted by Al-David
Hey Floyd,
Pretty damn good! Yes, there is pattern and structure. I was gonna say this is dang good for a first instrumental - but, actually, this is very good, regardless if first attempt or not. Loved the sound, although I'm more of Tele guy than Strat. But you made that guitar perform like a seasoned pro. Nice tone, great distortion, and, well, nice everything. You should be very pleased with the results of the effort and time you devoted to this.
Yep, I'm impressed. And I remember those days and weeks of fingertips feeling like battery acid on an open wound. I had grooves in my fingers you could hide a telephone pole in..
This is good.
Alan
Thanks for that, Alan. Nice to get a thumbs up from the strong players here...
"Thursday, September 19, 2024 turned out to be one of the best days of my life. My wife left that morning." Man, Floyd, you sure know how to start a story to grab the readers attention. You do that with your songs, too. Hey, noodling is often the best part of a good soup. Those rabbit holes you mention are probably important, especially as your blisters develop. hehe Left brain stuff is for learning how to do it right, while that wild and crazy right-brain guy in us who imagines playing in front of thousands of screaming fans is the drive that stifles that boredom.
When I hopped over to your sock dance I could hear the passion in the blisters. Dang, if you didn't say anything, I'd say you've been playing for years, and those are hardened callouses we hear. I REALLY like your taste, but that's certainly no surprise becuase of all the other evidence you've given us. As Dave mentioned, those bends are so good they say, "I've been playing guitar since I was 3."
Enjoy whatever happens! marty
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@babumusic51 SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/marty-straub Band in a Box, Reaper, Cakewalk, Ozone 12, EZDrummer
If this is the first time out of the box for instrumentals...I'll bet there's a lot of great stuff still in there...really fine production...great tone!
www.soundclick.com/firesong BiaB 2024, Steinberg Cubase Pro 13, Wavelab 11.2, SpetraLayers Pro 10, Audacity, Steinberg UR44 Interface, Yamaha Genos, Roland FP60 and FP10, Windows 10
You are who you are because you do what you do because of what you believe.
floyd, Now you know that, you can try mixing the blues scale and the major pentatonic scales together for some added fun. Same shapes different positions on the neck. Sounds good.
That intro story was a definite rabbit hole, shock & then realization thing to read. You sound like you were born playing lead with bits of Santana and many others haunting the fingers. There was plenty to hod attention in the flow...much more cohesive than most BIAB soloist instrumentals. My 1st thought was to wonder if I could get you to play lead o a song for me. Everything fine is resource in my greedy head.
Cheers rayc "What's so funny about peace, love & understanding?" - N.Lowe
Floyd, those were some very impressive chops! Loved that axe's tone, great work on that patch. A very impressive first instrumental post.
PS - You can take one minor pentatonic pattern and play the same pattern up 2 frets and/or up 7 frets and it will work, i.e. sound OK. Be moving the pattern you are adding different extensions to the chord.
Life is short so make sure you spend as much time as possible on the Internet arguing with strangers.
64 bit Win 11 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware
Thursday, September 19, 2024 turned out to be one of the best days of my life. My wife left that morning.
Deliberately taken out of context, hehehe. Your wife will hate me
About the song, I fully agree with what Dave said (he is a guitarist after all): It's all about the feel and the notes you don't play. All very tasteful. More!
Really well done Floyd. Excellent playing. Loved the tone. Got a real chuckle with your description of your fretting hand after a marathon. Poor fingers can taking a beating especially if you are using lots of bends. Very cool jam. Easy to get lost in it..
Floyd, really nicely done, you should be proud! Super feel and tone. Love where you have the distortion set and how the tone breaks up when two notes are played. Think this develops really well. With a more structured ending I'd call this done. Nice work!
Spend about 20 years using BiaB as a backing track generator for guitar solos before getting into songwriting. Working melodic ideas over a backing track can be a lot of fun.
Very crafty and amusing post, too. THANKS for sharing!!
Thanks, Ron. Yea, pride sorta strutted around here for a few days. I have no desire to shred so, tone and feel will have to suffice. I got an appreciation for that edge-of-breakup-distortion from spending many hours on Tim Pierce's channel. That's one of his main things....
Originally Posted by rsdean
Floyd,
That is one great jam! It sounds like an experienced and confident player. Love the tone you're getting.
I also love the backstory - it's as awesome as the instrumental!
Bob
Very much appreciate that, Bob...
Originally Posted by BlueAttitude
You have good feel, and that's what I always look for first in a guitarist, if there is no feel what's the point?
And your bends are in tune, nothing worse than out of tune bends
Nice melodic lines too. I really like what you have done here, hope to hear more!
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We've extended our XPro Styles PAKs and Xtra Styles PAKs sale until September 15th, 2026!
It's the perfect time to expand your Band-in-a-Box® style library with XPro and Xtra Styles PAKs. These additional styles for Band-in-a-Box® 2026 offer a wide range of genres designed to work seamlessly with your project. Each style is professionally arranged and mixed, helping enhance your songs while saving you time.
XPro Styles PAKs 1-11 for Mac or for Windows are on special for only $29 each (reg. $49 ea), or get all 11 PAKs for only $149 (reg. $299)!
XPro Styles PAKs are styles that work with ANY version (Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition) of Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (or higher). XPro Styles PAKS 1-11 includes 1,100 styles!
Xtra Styles PAKs 1-22 for Mac or for Windows are on special for only $29 each (reg. $49 ea), or get all 22 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! .
Xtra Styles PAKs are styles that work with the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (or higher). Xtra Styles PAKs 1-22 includes 3,900 styles (and 35 MIDI styles)!
Note: XPro and Xtra Styles PAKs include additional styles for Band-in-a-Box® that work seamlessly with your project. Xtra Styles PAKs and XPro Styles PAKs are NOT included in any Band-in-a-Box® package!
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Introducing XPro Styles PAK 11 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
XPro Styles PAK 11 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box® version 2026 (and higher) is here with 100 brand new RealStyles, plus 31 RealTracks/RealDrums!
Guess who’s back again? That’s right! It’s our XPro Styles PAK’s triumphant return with the 11th edition in this series! 100 new styles are coming your way spread across the rock & pop, jazz, and country genres. And this edition's wildcard genre explores the immense and far-reaching catalogue of electronic music! The included 31 RealTracks and RealDrums can be used with any Band-in-a-Box® 2026 (and higher) package.
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the XPro Styles PAKs 1-11 are on sale for only $29 ea (Reg. $49 ea), or get them all in the XPro Styles PAK Bundle for only $149 (reg. $299)! Order now!
XPro Styles PAKs require Band-in-a-Box® 2026 or higher and are compatible with ANY package, including the Pro, MegaPAK, UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, and Audiophile Edition.
Introducing Xtra Styles PAK 22 – Now Available for Mac Band-in-a-Box 2026 and Higher!
Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Mac & Windows Band-in-a-Box version 2026 (and higher) is here with 200 brand new RealStyles!
It’s time to celebrate! Xtra Styles PAK 22 for Band-in-a-Box® is here, and we've got 200 brand-new styles coming your way!
No Xtra Styles PAK is complete without the classic rock & pop, jazz, and country volumes you know and love, and we’ve got plenty to share, with 150 styles spread across too many genres to list! Of course, it also wouldn’t be complete with our special wildcard volume to add a little spice and pizzazz to the mix. This year, because we loved it so much the first time, we’ve decided to make the second iteration of our SynthMaster volume, full of new sounds, interesting genres, and 50 engaging styles, all making use of the diverse SynthMaster plugin! Here you can find genres such as airy yacht rock, sultry electrotango, and even some synth soca funk. Don’t wait, pickup up Xtra Styles PAK 22 today!
In this PAK you can find: dulcet folk ballads, funky gospel country, Brazilian jazz fusion, upbeat 1980s pop, classic Americana, a plethora of breezy bossa novas, indie singer-songwriter, scintillating synthwave, exuberant electronica, and many, many more!
Special offers available until August 31st, 2026!
All the Xtra Styles PAKs 1-22 are on special for only $29 each (reg $49), or get all 22 PAKs for $199 (reg $399)! Order now!
Note: The Xtra Styles require the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition of Band-in-a-Box®. (Xtra Styles PAK 22 requires the 2026 or higher UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition. They will not work with the Pro or MegaPAK version because they need the RealTracks from the UltraPAK, UltraPAK+, or Audiophile Edition.
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Special thanks to the team at zplane for their continued support.
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