Anatomy

of a Lick Volume 6

Pat Metheny Outside


mattwarnockguitar.com





























Written by: Matt Warnock
Matt Warnock Plays Koentopp Guitars
© Copyright 2017 All Rights Reserved
 Practice Guide
Welcome to Anatomy of a Lick – Essential Jazz Lines Volume 6, where
you study a Pat Metheny style outside lick.

Before you begin, learn why, how, and where to study licks to get the
most out of this eBook.

Learning licks is essential for any jazz guitarist, but you don’t want to
just repeat lines in your solos.

Check out these pointers to get the most out of every minute spent
studying lines in the woodshed.

Why Learn Licks?

There are many reasons why you should study, learn, and use licks.

Alongside scales, arpeggios, patterns, and chords, licks make up the
foundation of jazz techniques.

Here are some benefits of studying licks:


Ø Build soloing vocabulary.
Ø Sound like jazz from day one.
Ø Learn how legendary players thought about improvisation.
Ø Study jazz concepts in action.
Ø Expand your ear training.


Each of these items lift your playing to the next level, and they’re why
studying licks is essential.

But, licks aren’t the end of your studies, they’re part of a balanced
approach to soloing that includes scales, patterns, and arpeggios.
 How to Learn Licks
Besides learning licks note-for-note, you want to dig into each phrase to
get the most out of that line.

When doing so, practice the exact lick and personalize it in your solos.

Working on the lick as a whole includes exercises such as:


Ø Soloing over tracks using the lick from time to time.
Ø Targeting specific bars in a song with that line.
Ø Combining two licks in your solos.
Ø Starting licks on different beats, keep lick note-for-note.


You can also vary licks in your solos.

Some of the ways that you can vary a lick include:


Ø Changing rhythms.
Ø Adding notes.
Ø Taking notes away.
Ø Mixing two licks together.
Ø Using part of the lick - beginning, middle, or end.


By varying licks, you maintain the sound without running them directly.

Make sure to practice exact lines and variations to adapt prescribed
lines to a soloing situation.



 Where to Use Licks
Now that you know how and why to learn licks, add them to your solos.

When doing so, you want to avoid becoming a “line player,” which is a
guitarist who only plays prescribed lines.

Instead, use bits of lines, as well as underlying concepts from lines, to
build your phrases.

This maintains the essence of the line, while injecting your personality
at the same time.

Though you want to avoid only playing lines, there are times when you
want to run a lick in your solos.

These include:


Ø Solo breaks (first 2-4 bars of a solo at the end of a melody).
Ø Fills between melody lines.
Ø Short solos (i.e. Big band solos of 8-12 bars).
Ø Moments when you struggle for inspiration.


As you can see, using a lick gets you out of tough situations, such as
when you have a two-bar solo break.

By choosing your moments correctly, prescribed licks can be an
effective device; just don’t overdo it in your solos.




 Building Your Own Jazz Licks
The biggest reason to study licks is to build your own lines, beforehand
and in the moment, to use in your solos.

By studying the Pat Metheny inspired lick and concepts below, you learn
fundamental tools that you can use to create your own phrases.

As you learn each concept in this Metheny style lick, write out 4-5 licks
of your own based on each concept.

This gives you practice constructing licks, and more vocabulary to use in
your solos.

From there, create licks in the moment using these concepts as you
build lines in real time.

It takes time to create your own cool-sounding jazz licks, so start now.

Don’t wait until you cover every concept in this eBook, learn one
concept then write out licks based on that concept.

This practicing prepares you to create lines in musical situations, such
as jazz jams and gigs.

 Pat Metheny Outside Lick
Here are the concepts derived from the Pat Metheny style lick below.

Each of these concepts is explored further, with exercises for each
concept, in the following sections of this eBook.


Ø Side Stepping
Ø Blues Notes
Ø Passing Tones
Ø Descending 3rds
Ø Lydian Mode
Ø Altered Scale
Ø Melodic Minor Scale
Ø Diminished Scale
Ø Approach Notes


Here’s the Metheny style lick to learn and apply to your jazz guitar solos.

Because the lick is played over 8 bars, work slowly, break this line apart,
and then bring it all together when ready.

Even if you don’t have the lick perfect on the fretboard, head on to the
concepts below as you develop the skills behind this lick.

Then, keep working the lick with a metronome until you get it up to
speed, mastering the concepts in this eBook along the way.









Audio Example 1

 Concept 1 - Side Stepping

The first concept, found at the start of the Pat-inspired line, is called
sidestepping.

Sidestepping is where you play inside the changes, such as an Am triad,
then you play a half step higher, Bbm, before resolving back to Am.

There are other sidestepping variations, but since this is the version in
the lick, and the most popular, start here in this eBook.

Sidestepping creates a tension-release sound in your lines that’s
characteristic of Pat’s soloing style, and modern jazz in general.

Here’s an example that uses Am and Bbm triads over a ii V I IV
progression in G major.

I chose Am as the “inside” sound as it lines up with the first chord in the
progression.

But, you can use any diatonic triad to sidestep through a line, so
experiment with other triads in your studies.

As long as you resolve back to the diatonic triad, the line will work out.


Audio Example 2

As well as starting inside the changes, you can start with the half-step
above chord, then resolve back into the diatonic changes from there.

Here’s an example of that variation in action, where you start on the
Bbm triad and resolve back into Am from there.

This is the approach you saw in the Pat-style line at the start of the
eBook, and it’s harder to hear than the first example.

This is because starting outside is very tense, and takes confidence to
start there and then resolve back in, instead of vice-versa.

Play this lick, see how it sounds to you, and then experiment over
backing tracks as you take this approach into your improvised solos.


Audio Example 3

Moving on, you can apply sidestepping to arpeggios, as you see here
with a Cmaj7 and Dbmaj7 arpeggio.

I choose this arpeggio, Cmaj7, at random, so feel free to work this
concept with other diatonic arpeggios in your lines.

The key is to move between an inside, diatonic, arpeggio and an outside,
sidestepped, arpeggio in your lines.

After learning this line, put on backing tracks and apply sidestepping to
arpeggios over different chords in a real-time situation.

Audio Example 4

The next example line begins outside the key, and then resolves back
inside as you navigate these changes.

When doing so, you start with tension, then release that tension, so it’s
more of an advanced technique compared to starting inside.

Take your time with this concept.

If you find it’s too harsh of a sound for now, no worries, start with the
inside first examples, then return to this line at a later date.


Audio Example 5

As well as using arpeggios to create sidestepping phrases, you can also
use scales in the same way.

Here’s a sample line that runs between Am and Bbm over a ii V I IV
progression in the key of G major.

The scale being used is A Dorian, or you can think of it as G major, as
they contain the same notes.

I prefer to think of it as A Dorian, since Am7 is the first chord of the
progression so it connects those two sounds.

Either way, have fun with this concept as you now apply sidestepping to
your scale runs.


Audio Example 6

You now learn a lick that starts outside, and then resolves back inside as
you alternate those two sounds with scales throughout the phrase.


Audio Example 7


The final application of this concept uses the famous 1235 pattern to
outline the inside and sidestepped chord over a ii V I IV progression.

This pattern, 1235, mixes the triad, 135, and a color tone, the 2, to create
a pattern that John Coltrane loved to use in his solos.

This first example line starts on the inside chord, then moves to the
outside chord to create tension and release throughout the phrase.


Audio Example 8

The final example starts outside the key, and then resolves back into the
key, using the 1235 pattern for each chord.

After working this line, create your own lines with this approach, and
improvise over backing tracks as you take this concept to real time.


Audio Example 9

 Concept 2 - Blues Notes

One concept that Pat loves to use in his solos, and that’s found in this
lick, is the addition of blues notes to arpeggios and scales.

By mixing blues notes with arpeggios and scales, Pat keeps the blues at
the forefront of many of his lines.

This is important not only because the blues is the foundation of jazz,
but also because it connects his lines to the history of the genre.

While the blues scale is the easiest way to accomplish this, sometimes
you want to mix a blues sound into your arpeggios and scales.

To do so, you need to know which blues notes fit over which chord.

Did you know there was more than one blues note?

There is.

In fact there are three possible blues notes depending on the chord type.

Here are the blues notes for each of the chords in a ii V I progression.


Ø Maj7 = b3, b5, b7
Ø 7 = b3, b5
Ø m7 = b5


Here are two blues scale fingerings to get this sound in your ears and
into your fingers.

After you can play these shapes from memory, focus on identifying the
b3, b5, and b7 intervals within these shapes.

This allows you to target those notes later on when you mix them with
arpeggios and modes in your solos.


Audio Example 10

Here’s a slippery, Wes Montgomery inspired lick that uses the blues
scale over each chord in a ii V I IV progression.

After learning this lick, put on a backing track and add the tonic blues
scale to your solos over changes and full tunes.




Audio Example 11

You now add blues note to arpeggios in your solos, starting with the D7
in the example below.

In this example, you add the b3 and b5 blues notes to the underlying
arpeggio shape.

As you take this concept to other arpeggios, make sure to use the
appropriate blues notes for that shape when mixing them together.

Here’s how the mixed arpeggios-blues concept looks on the fretboard
over a D7 chord.

Once you can play these two shapes, take them to other keys, and then
apply blues notes to other arpeggio types in your studies.














Audio Example 12

This line mixes the D7, Gmaj7, and Cmaj7 arpeggios with blues notes to
create a bluesy line over the ii V I IV progression.

Work this lick in a few keys if possible, then solo over changes as you
mix arpeggios and blues notes in your improvisations.


Audio Example 13

The next mixed blues concept is taking the three blues notes, b3-b5-b7,
and mixing them with the full major scale.

Here’s how that looks in the key of G major.

Notice that this is a highly chromatic concept, so while you can play all 3
blues notes with this scale, it’s good to start with one in your solos.

Learn these full shapes, then put on backing tracks and solo while
focusing on adding one blues note at a time to the major scale.

From there, combine two and then three blues notes as you work the
entire mixed scale in your solos.

Doing so allows you to target specific blues notes in your lines, and
prevents you from sounding like the chromatic scale in your solos.


Audio Example 14

The final lick uses blues notes and the G major scale mixed together as
you apply this concept to the first four bars of Autumn Leaves.

After you learn this lick, put on a backing track and mix blues notes and
the major scale in your solos to expand on this concept in your playing.


Audio Example 15

 Concept 3 - Passing Tones
The next concept is one of the most essential in jazz, passing tones.

Passing tones are chromatic notes that connect two diatonic notes a
tone apart.

In guitar language, this means that when you have two notes that are
two frets apart, you connect them with a chromatic note between.

That’s a passing tone, or passing note, on the guitar.

Here’s an example of ascending and descending passing tones
connecting G and A on the 4th string.

After you play this example, pick other notes in the key of G major and
connect them with passing tones where appropriate.


Audio Example 16

Here’s a G major scale with passing tones added wherever possible.

Can you find all the passing tones?

Here’s a hint, as the scale is descending, look for b’s or natural signs to
indicate outside notes.

Once you can play this example as written, take it to other keys, scale
positions, and other scales in your studies.

You can then add passing notes to your ascending scale practice as you
expand this concept in your practice routine.


Audio Example 17

To see this concept in action, here are three licks that use passing tones
in different musical situations.

The first lick uses the passing tone over three chords in a ii V I IV
progression, the same as the first four bars of Autumn Leaves.


Audio Example 18

The next passing tone lick is over a minor ii V I, where you use the
passing tone over the V7alt and Im7 chords respectively.
Audio Example 19

Here’s a final passing tone lick, a minor ii V I, to study, take to other
keys, and add to your soloing vocabulary.


Audio Example 20

 Concept 4 - Descending 3rds

The next concept is one that’s found in many of Pat’s solos, as well as
many other jazz guitar greats, descending 3rds.

Descending 3rds are built by playing the intervals 3-1, 4-2, 5-3, etc. up
and down any scale you apply them to.

Here’s an example of descending 3rds applied to a two-octave G major
scale from the 6th string.

After learning this example, move it to other keys, other scales, and
apply descending 3rds to your solos over changes and full tunes.


Audio Example 21

As well as applying descending 3rds to scale positions, you can use them
horizontally on the fretboard.

Doing so opens your fretboard when soloing, but takes a lot more
fretboard knowledge to apply.

Here are descending 3rds on the 6th and 5th strings to get you started.

When you take this exercise to other keys and chords, write out the
notes or tab out the exercise if it helps.

From there, your long-term goal is to apply these 3rds to any scale in
real time without visual aids.

But, for now, any visual aid that gets the technique under your fingers is
perfectly fine to use in your studies.


Audio Example 22

You now take descending 3rds to the 5th and 4th strings as you expand
this concept in your practice routine.


Audio Example 23

The next example uses descending 3rds on the 3rd and 4th strings.


Audio Example 24

Moving on, here are the descending 3rds on the 3rd and 2nd string set.


Audio Example 25

The final example takes descending 3rds to the top two strings.

After learning this exercise, pick a scale, and then run descending 3rds
through each string set.

This opens up your neck, teaches you notes on the fretboard, and gives
you ample material to solo with over changes and tunes.




Audio Example 26

 Concept 5 - Lydian Mode

After you learn to use the major scale over maj7 chords, the next scale to
explore is Lydian, which is found in the Pat inspired line.

Lydian contains the #4 interval, creating a maj7#11 sound in your
playing, as the 11th is the same as the 4th, just up an octave.

Here are two Lydian fingerings to learn, move into other keys, and add
to your solos over maj7 chords.


Audio Example 27

Besides working on Lydian fingerings, one of the most common ways to
bring this sound into your solos is to use triad pairs.

In this case, you play a tonic triad, C, followed by a major triad from the
2nd note of the scale, D.

When doing so, you outline six of the seven Lydian scale notes, and
bring a cool new sound into your solos at the same time.

Here’s an example of that approach in action, as you play up a C triad
and down a D triad over Cmaj7.


Audio Example 28

You can also play up the D triad and down the C triad.

After working in this key, take this exercise to other keys, and then use
it to solo over maj7 chords to imply a Lydian sound over those changes.


Audio Example 29

To finish your Lydian studies, here are the C and D triads in inversion
going up and down over a Cmaj7 chord.

After working this position, move the pattern to other keys, positions,
and add it to your solos over maj7 chords.


Audio Example 30

 Concept 6 - Altered Scale

The altered scale is a sound that is found in many of Pat’s solos, and it’s
an essential scale that every jazz guitarist needs to know.

Altered scales have the intervals b9, #9, b5, #5, creating the highly tense
sound that this scale is known for.

As these notes outline the 7alt sound, they also create high levels of
tension in your lines over dominant chords.

Because of this, you need to work on resolving these tension notes over
this chord, or the next chord in the progression.

Here are two fingerings to get you started with the altered scale.

Start by memorizing these shapes, working them in other keys, then
adding them to your solos over dominant chords.



















Audio Example 31

As this scale is full of altered notes, creating tension in your lines over
dominant chords, here are three licks to get this sound in your ears.

Over the years, whenever I struggled with a new scale, I was able to get
it into my ears and playing by studying phrases.

These phrases give you a lick to use in your solos, as well as get the
sound of the altered scale into your ears.

Wes Montgomery, Pat Martino, and others use the first lick in their
solos.

Learn the lick, then when ready, move it to a few other keys as you
expand it in your studies.

Audio Example 32

I first heard this phrase used by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner, and it creates
tension in your lines by ending on the b9, C, over B7alt.

For the fingering, try a few out and see what you think, but I find that 3-
4-1-4-2 is the best way to go with your fretting hand.


Audio Example 33

The last phrase comes from the Joe Pass repertoire, and it uses a quick
pull-off on beat two of the line.

You can pick each note in this line, or in Joe Pass style, pull off from the
D-C-B in the last three notes of the lick.

Either way, this is a classic 7alt line that you need to have in your
improvised vocabulary.

Audio Example 34

 Concept 7 - Melodic Minor Scale

In the next concept, you use a very popular scale in Pat’s solos, melodic
minor, used to add tension to m7 chords.

Melodic minor has a raised 7th interval, creating a mMaj7 sound when
applied to m7 chords.

This 7th is a tension note in this instance, which you have to resolve
when using it in your solos.

As you work this scale in your practice routine, pay attention to how
that raised 7th sounds in different situations.

As well, use a backing track to practice this scale, even just up and down,
to hear that raised 7th against a m7 chord in your playing.

Here are two melodic minor fingerings to learn, practice in multiple
keys, and add to your guitar solos over m7 chords.


















Audio Example 35

Now that you know how to play this scale in two positions, apply a scale
pattern from Pat’s lick to those positions.

The pattern is built off of diatonic triads found within the melodic minor
scale, played 3-1-3-5 for each diatonic triad.

To being, here’s that pattern through a melodic minor shape from the 5th
string to learn and apply to your solos.








Audio Example 36

You now take the ascending pattern to the 6th-string fingering.

With this pattern down, you cover a lot of the fretboard between these
two positions.

Move between both with a metronome before taking this pattern to
your solos over m7 chords and progressions.


Audio Example 37

Moving on, here are the melodic minor diatonic triads, with the Metheny
pattern, descending an E MM scale.

After working this pattern, pair it up with the ascending version with a
metronome, before doing the same in your solos.


Audio Example 38

The last exercise is the same as the previous one, though now you apply
diatonic triads to the 6th-string melodic minor fingering.

Once you have this pattern down, mix it with the ascending version, and
5th-string versions in our practicing.

From there, mix them together in your solos as you apply this triad
pattern, and diatonic triads, to improvised lines and phrases.


Audio Example 39

 Concept 8 - Diminished Scale

The next concept deals with a symmetrical scale that Pat uses in his
solos, the half-whole diminished scale.

Symmetrical scales are built with repeated interval patterns, in this case
alternating half and whole steps, to build the scale.

When doing so, you produce the following interval pattern:


R-b9-#9-3-#4-5-6-b7


This creates the chord symbol 13b9, as the 6th when raised an octave is
a 13th.

This differs from other 7alt scales, such as altered and Phrygian
dominant, as it has a 13th interval, compared to b13 in those scales.

Here are two fingerings to learn and add to your scale practice routine.

Memorize these shapes in a number of keys before moving on to the
scale patterns below.













Audio Example 40

As well as learning fingerings for this scale, here is a famous jazz scale
pattern to apply to your HW diminished scale practicing.

After you work this pattern with a metronome, in a number of keys, put
on backing tracks and add it to your improvised solos.


Audio Example 41

Moving on, you now play the same pattern from the 5th-string HW
diminished scale position.

With this pattern under your fingers, you cover a large part of the
fretboard with this scale in your solos.

So, put on a backing track and solo as you move between the 6th and 5th-
string patterns in your lines.


Audio Example 42

You now descend the pattern through a 6-string HW diminished scale.

After working this pattern on its own, play the ascending version
followed by this descending version in your studies.

Then, add both to your solos as you take this new pattern to your
improvisations over progressions and jazz standards.












Audio Example 43

Here’s the same pattern applied to the 5th-string HW diminished scale.

After working this pattern, put on a backing track and add it to your
improvised lines over 7alt chords.


Audio Example 44

 Concept 9 - Approach Notes

The final concept from this Metheny-style line is approach notes.

Approach notes, in this context, are playing one note a fret below any
chord tone, and then resolving that chromatic note into the chord tone.

Here’s how an approach note looks leading into the root of Em7.

After playing this example, move it around the fretboard as you add an
approach note below E notes on each string of the guitar.

When you can do that, and have this concept in your ears, move on to
the arpeggio exercises below.


Audio Example 45

The first exercise adds an approach note below the root note of an Em7
arpeggio shape.

After working this example in a few keys, move it to other positions, and
then add approach notes below roots on other chords, such as maj7.

Lastly, be sure to add approach notes below the root of any chord you’re
soloing over as you take this concept to your improvisations.


Audio Example 46

You can also add approach notes below the 3rd of any arpeggio, such as
the Em7 chord here.

After you learn this, or any subsequent approach note, combine them
together as you add two or more to any arpeggio in your solos.


Audio Example 47

The next example places the approach note below the 5th of Em7.

After working this exercise, take it to other keys, fingerings, and chord
types in your practice routine.

Then, when comfortable, jam over backing tracks and add approach
notes below the 5th of any chord you’re soloing over.



Audio Example 48

The last exercise places an approach notes before the b7 of this Em7
chord in both octaves, up and down the shape.

After learning this exercise in a few keys, take this approach note and
apply it to other fingerings and other chord types, such as 7 and maj7.

From there, put on backing tracks and solos using approach notes below
7th intervals to hear how this concept sounds in a musical situation.


Audio Example 49

 Pat Metheny Autumn Leaves Solo

To finish your study of this Pat inspired line, you learn how to play a
solo over the chords to Autumn Leaves using material from this eBook.

Work each phrase one at a time, and then bring them together as you
work on the solo as a whole.

Once you can play the solo with a metronome, slowly, put on the audio
track and play along to check your notes and timing.

Then, put on the backing track and play the solo without the aid of the
guide audio track.

Lastly, write out your own Autumn Leaves chorus using lines and
material from this eBook in your solo.

Then, play that solo along with the backing track before improvising in
the moment over that same track.


Backing Track 1

Audio Example 50