ZAK PLEET

Here we go again! For my second column I'm going to cover the grounds on 3 octave licks.

The first example is a 2 and a half octave lick. (If you're 7 string equipped repeat the last position on the 6 on the Low B to make it a whole 3 octaves). This is what I would call an old school descending lick. I play the notes in groups of 7s in the videos for all the example. With the tabs I've only done each position once to keep it simple to read, so repeat that going the opposite way (181615 the go 151618) and then bring it back once again. Feel free to group the notes to whatever your preference might be.

For example 2 I took a more modern approach to 3 octaves. For this lick, you're going to be adding another shape to each string. By doing this it brings a new sound to the previous lick, and introduces those that aren't formiliar with playing different shapes in the same lick. And on to the second example - 7 stringers, and on the shapes A G F# and G F# E on the low B.

Example 3 is a Rusty Cooley inspired version of the 3 octave runs. For this lick you'll be covering almost all the fretboard. Instead of adding one new shape to each string, you'll be adding 2 for all the strings except the High E which you'll just have one position on. For those of you with 7 strings only do the first 2 shapes on the low E, then shift over to the 7th position and the play A G F#, then switch to 5th position and play, G F# A and then first position with a E D C pattern.

For those who need a greater challenge or need more references on this, check out almost any instructional by Paul Gilbert or "The Art of Picking" by Rusty Cooley.

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the following bio material provided by Zak Pleet

I've been playing electric guitar for 3 years. After about a year and a half of playing, a friend that isn't too fond of the shred style of playing, kindly directed me to this site and introduced me to the likes of Rusty Cooley and Francesco Fareri.

Since then I've dedicated myself to extending the limits of my playing (that includes recently beginning the study of classical guitar), and soaking up as many Gilbert/Tull/Fareri/Cooley/Broderick licks I can.