Ain't No Sunshine pentatonic scales

Feeling accomplished today, been learning the A minor pentatonic scale in five positions over the chords to Bill Whither's Ain't No Sunshine. Can't beat a good bash at scales!

I don't quite understand. I am theory -challenged. How is this done? Do you have a link?

David

I recorded the chords to Ain't No Sunshine. Then starting on the open C string played the A minor pentatonic scale in each of the five positions up the neck. Great way to learn scales and see how different inversions of the scale sound and work

So you are playing the scales as the recorded chords play in the background, I think. It sounds like you are learning to how to play a solo. Am I right?

Sort of. Having the related chord playing in the background makes the scales themselves feel nicer to play. Having got the scales in my finger memory, then I can solo over the same chords!

Fuzzbass, you should feel accomplished. That's a significant step in your musical journey.

A little improvisational inspiration for you:

Joe Locke's combo jams on the tune and burns it up for 23 minutes straight.

After having been a bass player for twenty plus years, it's weird playing melody

That scale will change your life! I love that the uke tuning (open strings GCEA) all fall into that scale. It makes it somewhat "bullet proof". If you learn that scale and put your fingers anywhere there are notes in the pent. scale, it will sound great in any combination when finger picked. For example put your 1st finger on the second fret of the 4th (top) string and your 3rd finger on the 3rd fret of the 1st (bottom string) and finger pick in any pattern, it will sound very nice and then you can move your fingers around the fret board and use a combo of open strings and notes within that scale and it will always sound good! The penatonic scale (A natural) is basically like all of the black keys on a piano. If you've ever just run around on those only, it makes mathematical sense. Same on the uke. It will also open up your playing to leads, riffs and solos. As the key of the song changes, that scale is moved up and down the fret board respectively, so once you find that one pattern in the pocket, they will all align on the fret board the same way, just in a different position. With this scale, i am able to just sit and finger pick for hours on end without hitting a sour note, and it will be basically like a classical guitar tune.


http://www.traditionalmusic.co.uk/scales/png/ukulele-scale-a-minor.png

Spent the afternoon with the chords just going round on a loop, playing the scales up and down the neck and soloing. It's beginning to feel a lot more natural to me now, I'm so used to playing the bass, and in my band we have never had solos to speak of. I'm used to riffing with a huge fuzz pedal on my bass along to real drums and a drum machine, playing tight and keeping the beat, being free-er to make up a melody has been a good excercise

Just did a little video for the scales, mainly because I wanted to test out my MacBook and IMovie for the first time. It worked ok [video]https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/18047518/Ukulele%20Underground/A%20Pentatonic%20Minor.mp4[/video]