Active Melody

Learn to play blues guitar.

B.B. King Inspired Lead Guitar Lesson with a Key Change – EP339

Description

In this week’s guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a slow and easy, B.B. King style lead by using the major pentatonic scale. I’ll show you my trick for finding the major pentatonic scale triangle so that you can easily translate these licks to any key. The jam track for this lesson has a key change as well.

Part 1 - Free Guitar Lesson

Part 2 - For Premium Members

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Slow Walk-Through

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Video Tablature Breakdown

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Comments

  2. klox says

    Hi Brian,
    Nice lesson, as was last weeks.
    The print option on the onscreen Tab Viewer does not seem to be enabled – could you please fix?
    I prefer this notation + tab view.
    Thanks
    Ken

  6. Jack F says

    Good one Brian don’t know how you come up with all these ! My hat is off to you. Thanks for the inspiration and all the different ways to see the fret board. And Merry Christmas to all.

  14. Andy N says

    Another great lesson Brian. Can really focus on trying to make the notes sound as I’d liked them too and it follows on nicely from last week’s EP338. Like the thinking in shapes method which works better for me, particularly if try to play over chords.

  20. sunburst says

    I think your explaining BBKing style is awesome,, one thing I like to aid/add is for those not well rehearsed in tuning strings..especially LesPauls like my Standard..is stretching the strings before tuning.. why I think it is critical mentioning stretching strings?

    you will be bending a lot of BB king stuff.. how do I know when my strings are stretched is after an initial hand stretch pulling slightly up on each string,, than tune with an electric tuner.. play practice bends.. check with a tuner again.. repeat until the strings stay in tune after the stretching.

    Some guitars need more string stretching than others because of the bridge and headstock design

    • JohnStrat says

      John what you say is a good tip but switch to Elixirs and get virtually no settling in, great tone coupled to longevity that makes them more economic. And because their tensile is up you will have a heck of a job to break one, its a no brainier for me.

      • sunburst says

        I haven’t changed any of my strings on my electrics in months lol.. i tell you from experience.. the Gibsons both SG and Les Paul always need stretching regardless which brand… i still have a full ten pack box of Dunlops nickle wounds 10-46 medium electric.

        The thing is we discussed this while back and I verified it too over hands on comparison .. my Gibsons need frequent stretching between playing… it’s no big issue.. just aware it is standard procedure .. not so much for my other guitars but, it is a good rule of thumb.. yes old strings too can be the cause for tuning issues.. I was told if you have hard time tuning a guitar even though intonation is correct.. new strings can make all the difference.. but new strings definitely need time to stretch

        • Robert Burlin says

          I have some ghs strings on my martin acoustic guitar that have been there for 3 or 4 years now and are always in tune. I do play alot of guitar too. I love when strings settle in like this and last for years and almost get better with age. You ever have that happen?

        • Roger says

          I have found that with locking tuners stretching happens almost immediately. After experiencing that on my two guitars with locking tuners, I started working on just getting two coils on each of my tuners for my non locking tuners. My theory was that the coiled string has to be stretched too. And sure enough when putting minimum coils on the tuner my strings do stretch faster (less tugs before they stay in tune). Now I pull the string in just far enough to almost reach the next tuner, mark that spot, and push it back in the hole, then tighten. That always seems to put just enough slack in the string for about two wraps.

  24. Biker13 says

    I love lessons like this on so many levels. First off there’s immediate gratification – the material is very “attainable”. But they also offer so much opportunity to focus on dynamics and delivery as opposed to just remembering more complex fretboard work. And just as importantly they provide lots of inspiration and leave plenty of room to expand one these concepts and start improvising beyond the original composition.

  27. Glen G says

    Fantastic lesson Brian!!! Per your comments, I so much more relate to these more soulful pieces. It’s like making the guitar cry tears of joyful bliss. And this inspired me to go find some B.B. King performance videos to watch on You Tube. A buddy of mine also told me to listen to the B.B. King “Live At The Regal” album from 1964. I found it on Apple Music and will be losing myself in Mr. King’s world….

  28. Michael W says

    Great lesson- Playing this on my acoustic, I find I have better luck sliding up to the target notes than bending up to them (especially on repeated bends) A little trick I learned from Brian’s Chuck Berry lessons.

  29. James H says

    What would change this from a really good lesson to a great lesson, would be to add another video on how to play the jam track. That way I could use a loop pedal, do the jam track and then thelead over my own jam track

    Perhaps you do this and I just don’t know where to look

  31. Rich F says

    Hi Brian,

    Brilliant lesson! So pleased to see a BB King lesson! This is how I found Active Melody, and all of Brian’s brilliant blues lessons, when, a few years ago, I was searching for a BB King lessons online, and found an early excellent one from Brian. I then signed up to AM, and discovered many more!

    Keep the BB coming, please, Brian!

    Cheers,

    Rich F

  33. Gilles C says

    Great fun lesson… again… You made me re-discover the fun of practicing using short solos.
    I used to do that many years ago when I started practicing again after a long break.
    I am in the same case of yin out o long break gain

  34. mritalian says

    Brian thanks for another great lesson, I have a question about harmonized notes in a scale my understanding is that you have to know what key your in and then figure out the intervals accordingly, major, minor, diminished. Dependent upon your string configuration determines the pattern is that not correct? So my question is sometimes when you explain that what your doing is a harmonized 6th, 3rd etc I get l get lost. Maybe in the future you can reiterate how your doing that again. I know you have had lessons and I need to go back to the woodshed as they say. Thanks again for the amazing lessons you do online you really are teaching how to play. Much appreciated Ron T

  38. Jack D says

    Hi Brian, having lots of fun learning your great songs.
    I’ve learned to read music and it’s really much easier if
    I could read the notes you provide at the bottom of your lessons
    Is there any way this can be printed out in a sheet format with the music notes in each measure?
    Thanks, Much – Have a GREAT and Merry Christmas.

  43. Robert B says

    How do you decide when to pick the bend and release note sequences once or twice. ( adding a second pick at the end of the bend release)? You appear to pick most of them twice? The exception is the full bend release pull off sequence .

    thanks

  44. Bill C says

    Good lesson. Timing is a bit tricky but it’s good when you hit right. Is there any chance you could pick something out of the public domain? Sometimes it’s easier to learn a song that the tune is already in your head.

  45. Jason K says

    Hi, I’m not a good guitar player, but this is exactly the type of music I want to know how to play. I know there is a key change, but the instruction says don’t worry about what chords are being played in the background. Why does it not matter in this song, but does matter in others?

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