It’s not easy. But it’s worth the work.
Advanced
Intermediate
- Demonstrate a variety of Frank Zappa-esque guitar licks.
- Examine Zappa’s chord progressions and use of modes.
- Discuss Zappa’s guitar tone and rhythm sections.
This lesson simplifies Zappa’s ideas to make them more approachable and playable. Almost all of the examples begin on the downbeat, making them a bit stiff compared to Frank’s unpredictability, but easier to comprehend. I also repeated them several times, which Frank rarely did unless stating a theme or melody. This is the irony of Frank’s compositions versus his solos: The composed pieces are exacting and played meticulously, the solos are loose and performed with wild abandon.
That Ol’ Dorian, Santana, Zappa Thing
Before we get to the licks, we’re obliged to discuss the chord progressions and audio examples used in this lesson. Most of the time Frank would solo over a two-chord vamp and occasionally over one chord, or a one-note pedal. Check out “Cosmik Debris” below for an “occasional” 12-bar framework.
In the first few examples, the Dm7 to G7 chord progression implies the key of D Dorian (D–E–F–G–A–B–C), which is minor, yet more laidback than Aeolian. This is a mode Carlos Santana frequently solos in, so Zappa’s “Variations on the Carlos Santana Secret Chord Progression” is a pretty accurate name. My example’s vamp is based on Zappa’s “Son of Mr. Green Genes” and “Po-Jama People,” slightly slower.
Ex. 1 is common in Frank’s playing. Here, I use pull-offs to open-strings with a combination of triplet-based rhythms. You should also hear that I am subtly moving a wah-wah pedal. Nothing dramatic, just enough to highlight certain frequencies. A touch of wah is a key element of Zappa’s tone throughout his career.
Variation is key when dealing with repeated motifs. In Ex. 2 I moved the idea from Ex. 1 down an octave and tweaked the rhythm a bit. There is a triplet followed by four 16th-notes, then another triplet followed by two more 16th-notes. This grouping of different rhythmic figures is textbook Zappa.
Tremolo picking is a great technique that you can use to build energy and tension, while also adding a new melodic texture. In Ex. 3 I take a stab at something that Frank might play on the amazing live album, The Best Band You Never Heard in Your Life.
One of Zappa’s most adventurous solos is on the title track of the Apostrophe (') album. In Ex. 4 you can see how I emulated the off-kilter rhythms and combined them with open strings.
As you can tell by now, mixing rhythms is a hallmark of Zappa’s style. In Ex. 5 I leaned on both 16th-note and eighth-note triplets to give the lick an uneasy, frantic feeling. (Don’t forget to tremolo pick on beat 2 of the last measure.)
Ex. 6 is one of the most challenging licks in this solo. It features a combination of rhythms as well as tremolo picking. Use the slow-down feature to get this one right.
Ex. 7 introduces Zappa’s two-handed pick-tapping move. Several years before Eddie Van Halen’s two-handed tapping changed the world of guitar, Zappa was performing his own version of the technique. He would tap the frets with the round side of his pick, typically staying on one note for an extended period of time, while holding down a second note, or trilling (alternating between two notes) with his left hand. Full disclosure, I had to use a considerable amount of compression and gain to recreate this sound.
Finally, you can hear all these phrases in context in the complete solo below.
Two-Chord Mixolydian Vamp
These next examples emulate the solo section of what many consider to be one of the exemplary Zappa songs, “Inca Roads.” I might suggest that this could be the quintessential Zappa solo except for the fact that there are many versions of Frank improvising over this two-chord, IV–V Mixolydian vamp (this example features the chords D to E in the key of A major thus E Mixolydian). Note: I hate to contradict the master, as Zappa referred to this solo as being in the Lydian mode, but, at the risk of nitpicking, I hear this solo resolving to the V chord, thus Mixolydian, not Lydian.
In addition to several officially released versions of “Inca Roads,” this vamp, out of context, constitutes all three variations of “Shut Up ’n Play Yer Guitar” as well as “Gee, I Like Your Pants,” “A Cold Dark Matter,” and “Systems of Edges.” A similar vamp is also used in “Son of Orange County.” It might not be the definitive Zappa solo but it’s the definitive Zappa vamp. Let’s see what we can do with it.
Ex. 8 is another open-string lick, with a fast, grace-note slide that’s similar to the opening lick of “Son of Orange County” from Roxy & Elsewhere.
Just like we did in the Dorian examples, I took the motif in Ex. 8 and moved it up an octave for Ex. 9.
Ex. 10 is another pick-tapping lick, with more movement than the first one we played. You can hear this influence in Joe Satriani’s playing.
Ex. 11 features more unusual rhythmic groupings, alternating eighth-notes and eighth-note triplets. Though relatively manageable to play on their own, this combination of rhythms can be tricky to perform if you’re not used to interspersing them. One thought to keep in mind while working on these seemingly uncommon rhythms (I’m paraphrasing Zappa here): People don’t speak in 4/4 time or in straight eighths. The rhythms of human speech, in one way sound weird, but they also sound totally natural. If you keep this in mind in general, your solos could become more rhythmically imaginative.
One of the most intriguing parts of Zappa’s playing and musicianship is the use of dynamics. Rather than solo at a continuous, steady volume, he would play from very quiet to extremely loud and all points in between. He would do this both throughout his solos and also in short, discreet phrases such as Ex. 12.
Ex. 13 is our first example of low-string playing. Many players find this range too muddy for solos, but Frank spent considerable time improvising at the low end of his register.
Lydian Arpeggio Vamp
This final set of examples exhibit three different Zappa tendencies:
- Odd-metered progressions. Frank composed too many of these to count them all. This example is in 7/4.
- An arpeggio vamp. You can hear this in “Treacherous Cretins,” “The Deathless Horsie,” and “Watermelon in Easter Hay.”
- The Lydian mode. As mentioned earlier, the Mixolydian sound emphasizes the V chord in a IV–V progression.
The Lydian sound conversely emphasizes the IV or the 4th degree of the scale in the bass, as demonstrated in Ex. 14. These two chords, Add9 and Badd11/A are the IV and the V in the key of E, however, as the bass continues to drone the note A throughout, the tonal center of A Lydian is firmly established.
Ex. 15 provides more open-strings and bursts of notes. This particular lick shows how you can move around the fretboard, sustaining certain notes over others, all the while continuing to use the same phrasing and open-string ideas.
Ex. 16 is similar to a phrase heard in “Watermelon in Easter Hay,” with another dynamic, tremolo note to finish the line.
Ex. 17 is harder than it looks. It appears to run straight up the minor pentatonic scale at the 9th fret, but the double-picked notes, the added A(creating a hexatonic scale), and the unusual rhythmic groupings produce an unexpected challenge.
Ex. 18 has a combination of numerous approaches we’ve already covered: low-note playing, open-string pull-offs, and quintuplets…not to mention the slides to end.
Ex. 19 proves that Zappa wasn’t one to neglect classic blues-rock cliches. This example is like countless pentatonic blues licks yet with the added dimension of starting in an unexpected place, the second note of an eighth-note triplet figure, followed by unusual rhythmic groupings. For as Zappa-esque as this lick is, it would not be unusual to hear Jimi Hendrix to play such a phrase.
Zappa’s Rhythm Section
To faithfully imitate Zappa, you need a world-class rhythm section. Throughout his career, Frank’s various band lineups included outstanding bass players and drummers. So, while a drum loop and rudimentary vamp might serve the purposes of practice and a lesson, to recreate the Zappa sound, find yourself a like-minded bass player and drummer who are as committed to Zappa as you are—it will make all the difference.
Zappa Recommendations for the Newcomer
For those of you that are new to Zappa, here are a list of tracks that highlight his guitar playing within the context of unique songs and instrumental compositions.
“Son of Mr. Green Genes” Hot Rats (1969)
“The Grand Wazoo” The Grand Wazoo (1972)
“I’m the Slime” Over-Nite Sensation (1973)
“Stink Foot,” “Uncle Remus,” “Cosmik Debris” Apostrophe (’) (1974)
“Son of Orange County” Roxy & Elsewhere (1974)
“Inca Roads,” “Po-Jama People” One Size Fits All (1975)
“Black Napkins” Zoot Allures (1976)
“Inca Roads,” “Pygmy Twylyte” You Can’t Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 2 (Recorded 1974, Released 1988)
“Watermelon in Easter Hay” Joe’s Garage (1979)
“Heavy Duty Judy,” “Andy,” “Inca Roads,” “Zomby Woof” The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life (1991)
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An ode, and historical snapshot, to the tone-bar played, many-stringed thing in the room, and its place in the national musical firmament.
Blues, jazz, rock, country, bluegrass, rap.… When it comes to inventing musical genres, the U.S. totally nailed it. But how about inventing instruments?
Googling “American musical instruments” yields three.
• Banjo, which is erroneously listed since Africa is its continent of origin.
• Benjamin Franklin’s Glass Armonica, which was 37 glass bowls mounted horizontally on an iron spindle that was turned by means of a foot pedal. Sound was produced by touching the rims of the bowls with water-moistened fingers. The instrument’s popularity did not last due to the inability to amplify the volume combined with rumors that using the instrument caused both musicians and their listeners to go mad.
• Calliope, which was patented in 1855 by Joshua Stoddard. Often the size of a truck, it produces sound by sending steam through large locomotive-style whistles. Calliopes have no volume or tone control and can be heard for miles.
But Google left out the pedal steel. While there may not be a historical consensus, I was talking to fellow pedal-steel player Dave Maniscalco, and we share the theory that pedal steel is the most American instrument.
Think about it. The United States started as a DIY, let’s-try-anything country. Our culture encourages the endless pursuit of improvement on what’s come before. Curious, whimsical, impractical, explorative—that’s our DNA. And just as our music is always evolving, so are our instruments. Guitar was not invented in the U.S., but one could argue it’s being perfected here, as players from Les Paul to Van Halen kept tweaking the earlier designs, helping this one-time parlor instrument evolve into the awesome rock machine it is today.
Pedal steel evolved from lap steel, which began in Hawaii when a teenage Joseph Kekuku was walking down a road with his guitar in hand and bent over to pick up a railroad spike. When the spike inadvertently brushed the guitar’s neck and his instrument sang, Kekuku knew he had something. He worked out a tuning and technique, and then took his act to the mainland, where it exploded in popularity. Since the 1930s, artists as diverse as Jimmie Rodgers and Louis Armstrong and Pink Floyd have been using steel on their records.“The pedal steel guitar was born out of the curiosity and persistence of problem solvers, on the bandstand and on the workbench.”
Immigrants drove new innovations and opportunities for the steel guitar by amplifying the instrument to help it compete for listeners’ ears as part of louder ensembles. Swiss-American Adolph Rickenbacker, along with George Beauchamp, developed the first electric guitar—the Rickenbacker Electro A-22 lap steel, nicknamed the Frying Pan—and a pair of Slovak-American brothers, John and Rudy Dopyera, added aluminum cones in the body of a more traditional acoustic guitar design and created resophonic axes. The pedal steel guitar was born out of the curiosity and persistence of problem solvers, on the bandstand and on the workbench.
As the 20th century progressed and popular music reflected the more advanced harmonies of big-band jazz, the steel guitar’s tuning evolved from open A to a myriad of others, including E7, C6, and B11. Steel guitarists began playing double-, triple-, and even quadruple-necked guitars so they could incorporate different tunings.
In Indianapolis, the Harlan Brothers came up with an elegant solution to multiple tunings when they developed their Multi-Kord steel guitar, which used pedals to change the tuning of the instrument’s open strings to create chords that were previously not possible, earning a U.S. patent on August 21, 1947. In California, equipped with knowledge from building motorcycles, Paul Bigsby revolutionized the instrument with his Bigsby steel guitars. It was on one of these guitars that, in early 1954, Bud Isaacs sustained a chord and then pushed a pedal down to bend his strings up in pitch for the intro of Webb Pierce’s “Slowly.” This I–IV movement became synonymous with the pedal-steel guitar and provided a template for the role of the pedal steel in country music. Across town, church musicians in the congregation of the House of God Keith Dominion were already using the pedal steel guitar in Pentecostal services that transcended the homogeneity of Nashville’s country and Western clichés.
Pedal steels are most commonly tuned in an E9 (low to high: B–D–E–F#–G#–B–E–G#–D#–F#), which can be disorienting, with its own idiosyncratic logic containing both a b7 and major 7. It’s difficult to learn compared to other string instruments tuned to regular intervals, such as fourths and fifths, or an open chord.
Dave Maniscalco puts it like this: “The more time one sits behind it and assimilates its quirks and peculiarities, the more obvious it becomes that much like the country that birthed it, the pedal steel is better because of its contradictions. An amalgamation of wood and metal, doubling as both a musical instrument and mechanical device, the pedal steel is often complicated, confusing, and messy. Despite these contradictions, the pedal-steel guitar is a far more interesting and affecting because of its disparate influences and its complex journey to becoming America’s quintessential musical instrument.”The author dials in one of his 20-watt Sonzera amps, with an extension cabinet.
Knowing how guitar amplifiers were developed and have evolved is important to understanding why they sound the way they do when you’re plugged in.
Let’s talk about guitar amp history. I think it’s important for guitar players to have a general overview of amplifiers, so the sound makes more sense when they plug in. As far as I can figure out, guitar amps originally came from radios—although I’ve never had the opportunity to interview the inventors of the original amps. Early tube amps looked like radio boxes, and once there was an AM signal, it needed to be amplified through a speaker so you could hear it. I’m reasonably certain that other people know more about this than I do.
For me, the story of guitar amps picks up with early Fenders and Marshalls. If you look at the schematics, amplifier input, and tone control layout of an early tweed Fender Bassman, it’s clear that’s where the original Marshall JTM45 amps came from. Also, I’ve heard secondhand that the early Marshall cabinets were 8x12s, and the roadies requested that Marshall cut them in half so they became 4x12s. Similarly, 8x10 SVT cabinets were cut in half to make the now-industry-standard 4x10 bass cabinets. Our amp designer Doug Sewell and I understand that, for the early Fender amps we love, the design directed the guitar signal into half a tube, into a tone stack, into another half a tube, and the reverb would join it with another half a tube, and then there would be a phase splitter and output tubes and a transformer. (All 12AX7 tubes are really two tubes in one, so when I say a half-tube, I’m saying we’re using only the first half.) The tone stack and layout of these amps is an industry standard and have a beautiful, clean way of removing low midrange to clear up the sound of the guitar. I believe all but the first Marshalls came from a high-powered tweed Twin preamp (which was a 80-watt combo amp) and a Bassman power amp. The schematic was a little different. It was one half-tube into a full-tube cathode follower, into a more midrange-y tone stack, into the phase splitter and power tubes and output transformer. Both of these circuits have different kinds of sounds. What’s interesting is Marshall kept modifying their amps for less bass, more high midrange and treble, and more gain. In addition, master volume controls started being added by Fender and Marshall around 1976. The goal was to give more gain at less volume. Understanding these circuits has been a lifelong event for Doug and me.
Then, another designer came along by the name of Alexander Dumble. He modified the tone stack in Fender amps so you could get more bass and a different kind of midrange. Then, after the preamp, he put in a distortion circuit in a switchable in and out “loop.” In this arrangement, the distortion was like putting a distortion pedal in a loop after the tone controls. In a Fender amp, most of the distortion comes from the output section, so turning the tone controls changes the sound of the guitar, not the distortion. In a Marshall, the distortion comes before the tone controls, so when you turn the tone controls, the distortion changes. The way these amps compress and add harmonics as you turn up the gain is the game. All of these designs have real merit and are the basis of our modern tube–and then modeling—amplifiers.
Everything in these amps makes a difference. The circuits, the capacitor values and types, the resistor values and types, the power and output transformers, and the power supplies—including all those capacitor values and capacitor manufacturers.
I give you this truncated, general history to let you know that the amp business is just as complicated as the guitar business. I didn’t even mention the speakers or speaker cabinets and the artform behind those. But what’s most important is: When you plug into the amp, do you like it? And how much do you like it? Most guitar players have not played through a real Dumble or even a real blackface Deluxe Reverb or a 1966 Marshall plexi head. In a way, you’re trusting the amp designers to understand all the highly complex variations from this history, and then make a product that you love playing through. It’s daunting, but I love it. There is a complicated, deep, and rich history that has influenced and shaped how amps are made today.
Lenny Kravitz’s lead-guitar maestro shares how his scorching hit solo came together.
Hold onto your hats—Shred With Shifty is back! This time, Chris Shiflett sits down with fellow west coaster Craig Ross, who calls in from Madrid equipped with a lawsuit-era Ibanez 2393. The two buddies kick things off commiserating over an increasingly common tragedy for guitarists: losing precious gear in natural disasters. The takeaway? Don’t leave your gear in storage! Take it on the road!
Ross started out in the Los Angeles band Broken Homes, influenced by Chuck Berry, Buddy Holly, and the Beatles, but his big break came when he auditioned for Lenny Kravitz. Kravitz phoned him up the next day to tell him to be at rehearsal that evening. In 1993, they cut one of their biggest hits ever, “Are You Gonna Go My Way?” Ross explains that it came together from a loose, improvisatory jam in the studio—testament to the magic that can be found off-leash during studio time.
Ross recalls his rig for recording the solo, which consisted of just two items: Kravitz’s goldtop Les Paul and a tiny Gibson combo. (No fuzz or drive pedals, sorry Chris.) As Ross remembers, he was going for a Cream-era Clapton sound with the solo, which jumps between pentatonic and pentatonic major scales.
Tune in to learn how he frets and plays the song’s blistering lead bits, plus learn about what amps Ross is leaning on these days.
If you’re able to help, here are some charities aimed at assisting musicians affected by the fires in L.A:
https://guitarcenterfoundation.org
https://www.cciarts.org/relief.html
https://www.musiciansfoundation.org
https://fireaidla.org
https://www.musicares.org
https://www.sweetrelief.org
Credits
Producer: Jason Shadrick
Executive Producers: Brady Sadler and Jake Brennan for Double Elvis
Engineering Support by Matt Tahaney and Matt Beaudion
Video Editor: Addison Sauvan
Graphic Design: Megan Pralle
Special thanks to Chris Peterson, Greg Nacron, and the entire Volume.com crew.
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