Recommend me some lead guitar pieces.

slipss

Hows it goin, I've de3cided to learn to play guitar, so i bought my self a cheapo electric and it came with a video to teach you all the basics. I'm still trying to get fluid as far as stringing cords together and all that but I'd like to be able to play some actual songs while I'm learning to keep my interest in it and so i have something to show for me efforts.

Lead guitar seems to be coming to me a lot easier than rhythm so i was wondering if someone could recommend me a few songs with easyish lead guitar in them. Preferably something slowish tempo without too much hammer and pull and all that but a littles fine. Someone told me to give Paint It Black a try so I've been practicing that for a couple of weeks and I have most of it down so something similar or possibly a bit easier would be ideal, and preferably well known songs cause I'm having a bit of trouble getting the timing right from tabs alone unless I've heard the song alot. Thanks, any ideas would be appreciated.

Jonakin

A easy song to start is probably iron man, smoke on the water, highway to hell, smells like teen spirits.

Parsley

Learn the intro solo in Fade to Black, easy enough lead piece.

demanufactured

lol nt for begginners it aint.

Voodu Child

You say 'preferably something without hammer-ons and pull-offs, but they're pretty much a staple of most rock licks. So rather than avoid them, you should go out of your way to get comfortable with them.

I'd suggest spending at least some of your practice time on some simple excercises with hammer-ons and pull offs. That way you can build the technique and speed at your own pace, without worrying about trying to keep up with a particular song.

Paolo_M

Try the first solo on G 'N' R's Knockin On Heavens Door. It's split into easy to manage "phrases" and uses most of the basic techniques.
The Wind Cries Mary makes good use of hammer-on and "double stops" and is very manageable.
Californication by RHCP is a great example of a simple, yet effective and very melodic solo.
Dave Navarro's solo on My Friends by RHCP is another great example of a simple yet very effective solo.
The solo for Hero of the Day would be a better bet the Fade To Black for beginner trying out some Metallica stuff, though you do eventually want to be goin' back to Ride The Lightning and Master of Puppets for real guitar playin'!!
Hopeful this helps.

SirLemonhead

You really need something with hammer ons and pull-offs to gain finger strength. Find some nice legato runs and practice them till your fingers fall off

Jack Vegas

Whatever you do don't ignore your rhythm guitar work though! A great rhythm guitarist who can't solo worth a darn is alot more useful than a brilliant soloist who cant keep a riff going for ****.

slipss

Ok thanks for the songs, and the advice, I guess your right about the hammer-ons and pull offs, I didn't mean that I am avoiding them completely, it's just some of the songs I was looking at were packed full of them and looked kinda daunting, but I supose your right I just have to practice them like mad.

While I'm here, can you buy sets of replacement frets and change them like you can with strings or are they permanently glued in there, because I'm after taking a few little nicks out of two of them somehow and whenever I bend a string now its all fukked up sounding, thanks.

slipss

Frets? Anyone? Whats the deal there? I really don't wanna walk into some music shop and ask for a pack of frets if they aren't for sale. All those shops have been full of comic book guy clones so far, I'd rather know what I'm talking about.

Voodu Child

Changing frets is a job for a luthier (skilled guitar maker/repairman). Not something the average joe could do properly on his first go.

Whether you even need a re-fret is a whole other story altogether. But not one for the techniques section.

kawaii

Get an acoustic! You pussy!!

slipss

Somehow I don't think I will be taking the advice of someone that gives his location as marmalade forest and has nothing better to do with himself at 5:50 on a tuesday morning than try to come across as an indignant 10 year old on a message board. Get a life, heres hoping you contract hepatitis B, are diagnosed with testicular cancer and suffer multiple stab wounds to the lower back, I made sweet monkey love to your mother, fukk you and good luck.

kawaii

slipss wrote:

Get a life, heres hoping you contract hepatitis B, are diagnosed with testicular cancer and suffer multiple stab wounds to the lower back, I made sweet monkey love to your mother, fukk you and good luck.

And you're so mature. :rolleyes:

Seriously though, for starting out I strongly recommend you pick up an acoustic. Strengthens the fingers and stops you from diving straight into power chords and silly stuff...

And if I truly can't deter you than try:

Hey Joe - Jimi Hendrix (for a good feel of the pentatonic scale)
While My Guitar Gently Weeps (for your bends)
Bohemian Rhapsody - Queen (Just cos)
Sultans of Swing - Dire Straits (For legato (Hammer ons and pull offs!))

...well that's what I learned back in the day.

Focus on your weaknesses though, not your strengths! And that includes rhythm! Not everyone's aloud be B.B. King!

-B.B. is a good one too actually. All good and easy pentatonics. Great for beginners.

See! I'm not such a bad guy am I?? Don't be so firey!

-=al=-

Prob dont need a refret, dont skimp on rhythm work whats a lead guitarist with no sence of rhythm and time, ur only as good as what ur playing over start with the basics and get them down and work up slowly

try and branch out from the pentatonics and learn different techniques, learn all the ntoes on the fretboard and remember to have fun, my 2 cents

Rustar

Good on acoustic AND electric - Steve Howe's "Mood for a Day".

Tebbi

Alright this song did wonders for me playing. I love it. Its easy. A few hammer on and pull offs but well worth it and sounds really good.

Emily by From First To Last

(Ignore the singing its brutal)

slipss

kawaii wrote:

Seriously though, for starting out I strongly recommend you pick up an acoustic. Strengthens the fingers and stops you from diving straight into power chords and silly stuff...

Fair enough Kawaii, thats all you had to say, I thought you were just being sarcy, I don't hope you get Hep B...Hep C at worst...anyways thanks for the advice.

-=al=-

a good thing to do if u play alota electric and lead type stuff is

go back to an acoustic to play/write your songs, helps simplify things and make u think a lil straighter

It wasn't me!

If you're playing your leads on an electric, playing acoustic at first to "strengthen your fingers" will do you no good ultimately. Your muscles adjust to what they're doing. It's the equivalent of doing 50kg bicep curls to start off, then doing 20kg ones out of habit, when you need to be able to do the 20kg ones. The 50kg ones did you no good, because your muscles built up and then atrophied because they weren't being used to the same extent.