Hi Marcus - welcome to GMC and nice playing + lesson! David
Fantastic lesson, and welcome.
Can you tell me some details about the very cool strat that you are using. I am looking forward to more lessons from you, but this will keep me busy for a long time.
Hey Marcus! Congrats on your first lesson! Great work! I especially love the lick in the video number 8!
Btw. Can you tell us how old are you, if it's not a secret? (or maybe i missed it in your introduction post)
Beautiful. I only post on video lessons unless I really like whats being done. Very nice lesson. Id also like to know about the guitar your using ? Looks like a strat right outta Ynwgies Closet
good job, -John
my god thats awesome! way beyond my skill level but thats a sweet lesson!!
I already posted on this one but again - Awesome tune man! I keep listening it again and again! And your sound is just in my taste! I love that spacey distortion/lead sound!!
Hey Marcus.
Nice playing, very tasteful
Great tone too.
Ben
Thanks guys! I really appreciate all your comments.
About the guitar; I actually built it myself (or at least some of it). I took parts from many different guitars I found in second hand music stores. It's very cheap, and nothing on it is high quality! But I figured If it sounds ok, it don't matter if it got the most expensive DiMarzio pickups. And what do you guys think about the Floyd Rose nut? (trying to mimic a brass nut) haha... =)
Building guitars is one of my greatest hobbies, and I'm always on the lookout for cheap crap guitars to strip down!
I'm afraid I can't give you more details about this guitar, other than that everything on it is the cheapest parts I could find. =)
Wow, great first lesson, loved the feel of the whole piece!
Sounded sick! Hope to see more great stuff from you soon.
Just one thing to say: WOAAAAA
Exellent first lesson!
Very Nice!!!
Hi Markus!! Welcome to GMC!! Amazing lesson and technique!! I really like how you use the tapping in this lesson!! The sound is also great!
cool!
I love it!
absolutely awesome. I just fixed up my 1970's strat copy and through my pod xtl i get the exact same sound.
My favorite lesson on this site!!
My God!!! Not so far away from imbossible You play exellent, awesome feeling
No question about it THIS IS THE BEST LESSON SO FAR!
Dude this lesson is awesome, love the feel and atmosphere you give off in your playing, and im lovin' the tune in general.
Great Lesson
dude nice handlin' on that guitar, and awesome 1st lesson.... looks like malmsteen's sig... nice job
I haven't been crazy about all the new lessons here, but this one blew me away. Really hope to see more from you. Your playing is just so smooth, it's awesome.
AWSOME!!
WWWOOOOWWWW
DUDE this is crazy playing ! Great lesson
good job
AWSOME LESSON! Your guitar reminds me of the one Yngwie Malmsteen plays most of the time.
I saw your amazing youtube videos Please Please make an Yngwie style lesson!! Btw This is one of the best solos ive heard!
Marcus,
How about a GuitarPro tab? Makes it a lot easier to practice.
Thanks,
Boris
PS Kris, GuitarPro tabs should be mandatory for every lesson.
Could you post the patch please?
Boris, I'm not too familiar with GuitarPro.
But I will read up on it and see what I can do
-Marcus
Thats a beast solo my man.
That was insane.I loved it.Are you using a scalloped fret board?It looks like you are and i was wondering if that helps make playing sweep and with speed easier.
he is using scalopped neck, awsome control of pickups
Love that lick with the pre-bend and the artificial harmonic. Hey Marcus, at what age did you start playing?
^ Birth ?
I started playing electric guitar when I was 13 (i'm 28 now).
Yeah, it's a scalloped fret board! But it don't help you to play faster, at all. You get a little bit better grip of the string while doing vibrato, but I'd say it's more a matter of taste.
- You could do all the techniques just as well, on a non-scalloped neck.
thats the best playing i have ever seen my life not only with such great speed but also with amazing feel and emotion, do u have any albums or are you working on any i would be very interested great job again
That is one incredible solo Marcus! I can't get that song out of my head. It flows so well man. What a great lesson. If you built that guitar and get that kind of sound out of it then you should be in the guitar making business! Thanks for sharing!
Yes I really like this Marcus. It would be great to have a Guitarpro tab so we can check out the timeing info!
also, what scales is this based on please?!
Wow! That's great! That's a lil bit above my skill level though. I'm gonna try it though. =)
That was great just like the style i want to play eventually. 1 question what effects pedal are you using for this?
mattacuk,
this solo is based on the regular e-minor scale (not harmonic minor). I promise I'll look into the GuitarPro thing! Bare with me
steve25,
I only use a PODxt and plug it directly into my computer, so there's no pedal involved.
I can post my POD patch here, if anyone might be interested in it?
Ah ok yeah i've heard of those but i don't know what POD patch is sorry
Dude this has to be by far my favorite guitar part i have ever heard on here.You play it so smooth and make it look so easy.This blows my mind .I will enjoy breaking this down and trying to pick it up.I really hope you put more stuff like this out soon.
Agreed ^...
Any tips on building up speed and a general flow when playing video number 8 ? I have a hard time going from the sweep into the fast tap's.
Thanks- John
steve25,
The patch is a small file which I could e-mail to you. Then you could just load it into your PODxt (that is, if you got one of course) and you'd have the exact same sound as me.
Just let me know your e-mail and I'll send it a.s.a.p.
and that goes for all of you guys aswell
Eat-Sleep-andJam,
If you look close at my right hand/arm you'll se that I move it towards the first tapping note, while sweeping. - that helps a bit.
Also you must be VERY relaxed in your lefthand, and just barely touch the strings. If you press it too hard you'll just become tense.
It would be easier to help you if I heard you play it though.
Any chance you could make me a video? (on YouTube for example)
-Marcus
Lavendell - if you want, you can post it on the forum and we could link to it from yuor lesson. I believe uploading podfiles should be possible - we have one somewhere on the "aspiring instructors" board.
By the way - I get chills each time I listen to Winding Roads solo - IT ROCKS!!
Same here Marcus - this solo blows my mind. Hey, I was looking at the video's and I don't see the part where you take your left hand over top of the neck and tap that note that looks to be on the 12th fret and hold the whammy bar down. How do you do that? I've tried it but I get a lot of noise.
thanks
Marcus: Impressive. REALLY impressive. Very fluent and amazing technique, together with a very strong melodic element. Best so far (which is saying a whole lot). Looking forward to more like this!
And please, post your Pod XT file! Actually, it would be great if all teachers (who uses a Pod of course) would do the same (cheers to David who gave detailed instructions in his The Edge lesson).
yes please that is one of my absolute favorite sounds
The PODxt patch can be downloaded from here: http://www.box.net/shared/hvayxvaif3
jeff,
I see now that I missed to include that technique. It's really simple though, you just do regular harmonics on the 12th fret on the G- and B-strings. You don't have to hit them from above - that's just show off!
Thanks Marcus!
can pod's patches be used in guitarport? If so, count me in
Man that is by far my favorite lesson, is there any way i could hear the whole song somewhere?
Same as the guy above me, where can I hear the whole song?
Thanks guys, you can download the complete song from here:
http://www.box.net/shared/iszoe2llia
Please note that it's just a demo, recorded in my bedroom. The song is more of an experiment about "new ways" to build up songs. As you'll hear, it's not built in the standard "intro-verse-chorus"- way.
I appreciate all kind of feedback!
-Marcus
whoa....what an amazing song...i loved it! keep up the good work
Great! Who's singing, are you in a band?
That's probably going to be my favourite solo for a while ^^
Great! Who's singing, are you in a band?
That's probably going to be my favourite solo for a while ^^
is that you singing?? i still cant get over how good a song that is
believe you are missing a note on the tab, 4th lesson, 15th fret, first string, towards the end.
marcus thanks for the infor on the scale thats great!any luck with the GP tab? or do you have any musical notation for this at all?
many thanks
wow! that´s soling I love to listen to not only because I love strat...but really good feeling and tone! respect! I will check this one out on my own later...GREETZ! Kai
unbelievable that was the greatist vvid here
did u make this solo just for gmc or is this a solo for a song that u have. cuz if u have a full song i want it=)
I'm telling u man if im ever feeling like stopping guitar i go into this lesson and just listen to it for a while, so inspiring... I hope i can play as good as u someday=) great job make us some more!
Thanks for your comments guys!
Jeffrey,
This solo is from a song that me and one of my friends wrote a few years ago.
Wow, that's a very kind comment you put in there. Thank you very much! I'm really glad you like it! You can get the full song here: http://www.box.net/shared/iszoe2llia
Awesome tune Marcus!!
No need to say anything about the solo
That song is so great I want to hear more! do you have any more songs?
Purely amazing, most of the reason I signed up for the site is this solo alone. The song itself is great, I've listened to it at least 30 times over. This is the exact kind of music I want to get into.
One thing though,I believe fkalich is right when he says you're missing a note somewhere.
Other than that, the entire lesson is flawless, I hope to hear more like this in the future from you
Update for this lesson:
1) The TAB should be correct now!
2) A GuitarPro5 file is now avalible to download!
-Marcus
Sweet man. I really like part 9. The alternate picking is tight. I am a blues player from Austin/Houston Texas area, so give me some time on this one. This is new stuff to me. My muscle memory is pretty good though. I been playing 39 years. And yes I am old.
I need to get info on a good video setup so I can lay some of my stuff down. Thanks.
Darrell
Hey Marcus,
Where can someone get a scalloped neck like that?
@jeff "Where can someone get a scalloped neck like that?"
One way is to do the scallop yourself (I did that). It's not difficult, but it takes long time. Be prepared to spend a whole weekend the first time...
Otherwise I'm sure you can find some scalloped necks at ebay, but they are often quite expensive.
-Marcus
Incredible lesson !!! You use your technique to do a very melodic solo with lot of feeling.
On the other hand... can you tell us how to do the scalloped neck ?? (I only want to sacalope the last frets)
Thanks and congratulation for this great lesson !!
did you guys hear that....that was the sound of my f'in jaw hitting the floor...
i'm stuck at the beginning with the arpeggio sweep, do you baré something in that part? it looks like you only use your pinky on the first hammer-on,
forget to say it's clip nr.8 i mean
I feel the same way you do...about the "cheap" guitars. I can never afford a n expensive one, so I buy chepaer, but good quality copies, and replace the pu's, tuners...etc. Are those DiMarzio's you are using? If so, what model(s)?
You should try www.rondomusic.com They have some GREAT stratocaster and LP copies.
do you think you could send me the tab for that whole song marcus? pleeease?
Bloody brilliant, maestro...
ah this was awesome!
thanks marcus :-) :-) :-)
still one of my favourite GMC lessons but now i can actually play a fair bit of it, not at full speed but much quicker and clearer than before
Thanks guys!
Wow, such an emotional solo, BRILLIANT... Now, where did I drop my jaw?
Btw, where can one buy or get the song Winding Roads from? iTunes? Seems like a pretty amazing song!
i signed in to learn this song. i give myself 5 years
@ Nidaros
You can download the full song here: http://www.box.net/shared/iszoe2llia
@ gorki
5 years seem like a long time! let me know if you need any help!
Still the best lesson on Gmc
Marcus, you are a special person, I feel like I know you through your playing,you have an old Deep soul my brother. I love your playing.
Thank you shammy for your overwhelming compliments! It means a lot to me, I truly appreciate it!
Let me know if you need any help with this lesson
This is on of the best solo i ever heard.I became a member of this website just to learn it and get all the videos. I had started learning it by ear, but with the tab ill play it soon.
Keep posting new videos!
Charles-P
Many thanks Charles! I'm very glad to hear that!
I've got a lot of bookmarks on GMC, but this is the one that I return to above all others. So much incredible sole in this lead, Marcus. I've heard it a thousand times and I can't quite explain it, but I've never heard such a beautifully written lead in my life. Every note seems to have an exact perfect placement and tone. I really don't know how you did this one but it's magical!
Thank you very much Jeff! It means a lot!!
That fender is lucky...
Its as if your "Making love" to your Axe
Still My Favorite Lesson on GMC
Thanks guys!
I really cant believe it... I joined GMC 3 month ago or something like that, and i couldnt do the intermeditate on three level solo, and now im actually playing this one!?
You have tought me so much marcus... Thanks a lot!!
By the way, do you have a tab for the whole song?
I Love it:)
Thanks Pizzoaro!
Wow! It's great to hear you're learning that fast!! Fantastic!
Sorry, I haven't made any tabs for the full song
i want to coevr it with my band:P
I just cant stop listening to it:P
Cool
I guess I could make a lesson of the full song, but I'd like to see few more requests first
OMG!!! The full song would be awesome:D:D
@Lavendell: I would also love it if you made a full song lesson, just like you did recently with Historical Failure. The thing I learned from that one was the harmonies and how riffing and soloing come together, which too me was a VERY valuable lesson!
I would love to have a full song lesson as well. I'm definitely up for that!
+1 to Lavendell!
see marcus?
told u we wanted a full lesson
this rocks
hard but it rocks
anyway
i air guitar to this cos i am cool
Full song lesson would be awesome, love the intro!
ok, I think I got enough requests! Thanks I'll do a full song lesson!
... stay tuned!
Hey, I bought the PODxt Table version... What sounds do u use in this song and the three levels?
Thanx a lot:)
this is still hard, but i can do some of it !
yay!
though i wish u had a backing track that was slower than 100bmp.
i cant do that yet!
Could u e-mail me the lyrics?
I LOVE the song:D
I don't know why, but I still cannot quit listening to this lesson. I hear the full version about twice daily, and practice it about 4 hours every day after I get warmed up.
Every single lesson that you've done just blows me away. My goal from actually joining GMC was playing this song, and instead it's now to get your Vibrato and style instead. I've been trying to incorporate it into my style.
Thanks again for this lesson.
Oh, and I forgot to mention. One of my friends came by my house yesterday and I showed him this song. He just said, "Wow, I want to learn to play guitar now; can you play any of that?" and I replied, "yeah, some.."
So I played him the little parts and pieces of what I've learned so far from this lesson and he just sat in amazement, wondering why this song isn't more famous than it is. He loved it!
So, in his words: "Marcus Lavendell, your technique, playing, tone, and all around style are awesome and inspiring! Congratulations on the affiliation with Elixer Strings, and well.. congratulations on being the great player that you are."
I definitely agree with what he said. Hope my friend and I made your day.
@Erik Johnson
Thank you so much for your kind words! I really appreciate it, and you definitely made my day!
Thanks again
How do I add your sounds into my PODxt?
Do I need the Line 6 Monkey?
@ Pizzoaro
I think you'll need Line6 Edit.
After much deliberation with my friends and myself, I've come to realize that these 44 seconds of guitar playing is pretty much my favorite guitar solo of all time.
great lesson!!!!!!!!!!
beutifull job!!!!!!!!!!
thanks marcus!!!
Cant wait for the full song:D:D
You are amazing!!!
watched it some time ago and didn't think it really was anything special but that was just because I was retarded back then...now I freakin love it. Amazing composition really...practicing it atm.
The full song still remains the most played song on my ipod after half a year!
i honestly dont know how you do it... its incredible
Thanks guys
Marcus this solo is just amazing - I can't get enough of it! It's such a cool mixture of styles and feelings - totally unique!
Thanks Kris!
this solo is so awesome marcus
wow
Thank you Nick and TreyDeschamp. Let me know if you need any help with it
That's amazing.. what an entrance:O
This is killer!
Whoah! Amazing! I just love all your lessons. Also can this patch be loaded on a pod xt live?
Thanks David! Yes, the patch should work on a PODxt Live
Goose bumps... How long did it take you to write that solo?
@SonofDestiny
Sorry, I don't remember how long it took (I wrote it ten years ago)
Wow... you already kicked ass back then. Haha.
So you forgot everything about the writing process then?
Thanks man
Well, I know I studied a lot of Chopin's music back then so I was probably influenced by him. But I can't remember anything about the actual writing process for this solo I'm afraid.... it's all blank.
Anyways, I can probably help you or give you some tips if you want to write a solo in this style. Just ask and I do my best to answer
it is my dream to be able to write a solo like this... That is all i will say haha
same comment as sami!
Thanks shideru_guitar
I love your new picture so much more marcus. Sorry if this comment is off topic, just my 2 cents.
"I started playing electric guitar when I was 13 (I'm 28 now)."
Well, I started when I was twelve, so hopefully by the time I'm your age, I'll be at least slightly better.
This remains ever popular, I believe unsurpassed in long term popularity. That being said, breaking sections 2 and 3 apart from each other was a bad idea. There is no break there. Section 3 presents a accented attack on the first note, and that does not exist, it is a flow from notes of the 2nd section. Hopefully this comment will help some inexperienced person not to get mislead (as I was when I first encountered this piece). This one of the finest compositions on GMC in my view.
Not to belabor the point, but listening closely, the third note in section 3 is also a problem, when he plays it slow, he does not play it like that in the song, he does not accent it, and that long pause before the 4th note does not exist. I really think sections 2 and 3 should be redone and combined, considering how popular this piece always is.
Best ever still
Phenomenal!!