This is Why You Suck at Guitar: Learning Scales SUCKS!

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  • čas přidán 1. 06. 2024
  • Assets for this video, downloadable practice tracks, bonus guitar lessons, and MORE here: / benellerguitars
    Here's the Major scale video I mentioned (you need this): • This is Why You Suck a...
    Snag your official SHRED TILL YOU'RE UNDEAD merch here!!!! vonkowen.threadless.com/colle...
    Get sweet deals on all the nice things i use here @Sweetwater !!! Sick deals on all kinds of good stuff: imp.i114863.net/jxdA0
    This is why you suck at guitar 28: You suck at learning scales!
    Scales? What are those, something a fish wears on its outsides??? Nah man, they're the basic building blocks of all music, and most players SUCK at learning them.... well, to be more accurate, the way we are taught to learn them sucks. Endless numbers of shapes the memorize, none of them telling us what's REALLY going on inside a scale... all that does is keep you tied to playing PATTERNS instead of MUSIC!
    But if you take Uncle Ben Eller here's advice and approach every scale 4 different ways, you're gonna be free as a bird and covering that neck in sweet sweet music. Lets go!!!!
    Using my Jackson USA Virtuoso into a Marshall 1987X Plexi, into the UA OX.
    What do you want to see on the next TIWYSAG? Let me know in the comments!
  • Hudba

Komentáře • 337

  • @BenEller
    @BenEller  Před 2 měsíci +25

    Thanks for watching This is Why You Suck at Guitar: Learning Scales SUCKS! Grab the charts to go along with it here, plus HUNDREDS of other bonus videos, posts, TABs, and more: www.patreon.com/posts/this-is-why-you-100315149?Link&

    • @joemartinez6025
      @joemartinez6025 Před 2 měsíci

      HEY BIG BEN. GREAT VIDEO
      CAN I ASK WHERE YOU GOT YOUR HEAD STAND? THAT SOUNDS WEIRD BUT I DONT KNOW WHAT ELSE TO CALL IT
      HEAD FURNITURE
      HEAD HOLDER
      HEAD RACK
      FUCK I DONT KNOW
      LOVE YOUR VIDEOS MAN

    • @gib59er56
      @gib59er56 Před 2 měsíci +1

      Ben, my friend, you are the most accurate ,funny and solid type dude in what you teach. Take it from a guy who began in 1979 due to EVH and Joe Walsh, my main hombre`s along with a few others like Gibbons, Di Martini, Dimebag, Page, of course and Frank Zappa, jivin with his cosmic debris! I still learn every day and a big reason is your content on your channel. Keep it up Uncle Ben, ya don`t want a Sears Poncho, you need a real poncho, I mean Mexican pancho , hmmmmmm, ahhhh just forget it!!

  • @drnastybf79
    @drnastybf79 Před 2 měsíci +78

    My stepmom gave me few words of wisdom and encouragement: "Stepson, only I suck in this house."

  • @ponzo1967
    @ponzo1967 Před 2 měsíci +47

    "The missionary position of scale patterns." 😂

  • @zugunruhebirdingtours329
    @zugunruhebirdingtours329 Před 2 měsíci +47

    Whatever your pastor did to you, it wasn't your fault.

  • @theandiller
    @theandiller Před 2 měsíci +32

    Ben deserves an Oscar for ALL THE wordings in this video. 😂😂😂
    Dammit, he uploaded it over a week later!

  • @MehYam2112
    @MehYam2112 Před 2 měsíci +46

    7:40 no exaggeration, this tip about 1-string scales had a bigger effect on my playing than any other single bit of advice. Why:
    1) seeing the scale linearly gets all of the "guitar junk" out of the way - you see the scale for what it is, a set of intervals that define harmony. This keeps you in the zone more like a vocalist or keyboard player. Guitar string tuning turns the simplicity of a scale into a maze.
    2) memorizing scale boxes wasn't necessary anymore. You just start on one string, and then try jumping to an adjacent string from any and every scale degree. You start to see the boxes and positions yourself on the fly when you always know what scale degree you're on, because you know what the next interval is.
    3) it works really great with the pentatonic scale. I never rehearsed the 4 other pentatonic scale boxes much, now I just sort of know them.
    4) no need to memorize modes or their scale boxes *at all*. They're just different starting points on what you've already been practicing.
    5) it demystifies how chords and scales work together. Triads work linearly too (they're just 3-note scales), so building little chord fragments on the fly happens just like it does for scale boxes, because you always know what degree of the scale you're on. It also helps with chord extensions, 11ths, etc.

    • @erichobbs4042
      @erichobbs4042 Před 2 měsíci +2

      Yes. This is exactly what worked for me. Learning the interval pattern and then just applying it to the fret board. After a while you just know where all the notes are and even if you are in an alternate tuning, you can just make it work.

    • @jaredlackey9177
      @jaredlackey9177 Před 2 měsíci +1

      Totally agree, and I'd add that if you learn scales and triads on piano/keyboard, that helps with understanding a ton, too.

    • @julhelm1821
      @julhelm1821 Před 3 dny

      It's also the case that, depending on the context, you do not necessarily need to be 'in scale' all the time, as long as you start and resolve in key.

  • @ShredwoodForest
    @ShredwoodForest Před 2 měsíci +10

    the pun per minute ratio is Airplane level. A++

  • @ValSchnitzel
    @ValSchnitzel Před 2 měsíci +15

    JESUS CHRIST!!! THIS IS THE BEST CLASS ON SCALES I'VE EVER HAD!

  • @alortmeier
    @alortmeier Před 2 měsíci +18

    Holy crap!!! Commentary was freaking on FIRE!!! Best. Channel.EVER!!!!

  • @DapperHesher
    @DapperHesher Před 2 měsíci +9

    When I get good by the year 2160, my fusion band is soooo going to be called Intentional Holdsworth.

    • @Doomchild2XL
      @Doomchild2XL Před 2 měsíci +2

      Mine is forever gonna be called Unintentional Holdsworth. For accuracy.

  • @KevinNolin
    @KevinNolin Před 2 měsíci +6

    Shoutout to your pastor for impregnating all this knowledge into you. Very helpful video Uncle Ben!

  • @stevecaststringtheory8691
    @stevecaststringtheory8691 Před 2 měsíci +3

    When you said “corrected” I thought, “did he just slip in a reference to the Shining?” Masterfully done - the reference, the jokes, and most of all the lesson

  • @haetfull
    @haetfull Před 2 měsíci +4

    I stumble upon your channel every few months and think "how do I keep forgetting about this guy." Your knowledge will hopefully go down in youtube history as one of the great YT guitar teaches. I hope your videos live on for generations because the knowledge and technique is so crucial, especially as modern metal progresses the way it is. Much love from a long time silent follower!

  • @minisurfbanana
    @minisurfbanana Před 2 měsíci +1

    Ouch...."tell her I said hi" 😂😂😂

  • @hikimad1523
    @hikimad1523 Před 2 měsíci +26

    When I think of scales I think of reptilian scales. Man I suck!

    • @GonnaGetYouBoi
      @GonnaGetYouBoi Před 2 měsíci

      sounds like something a reptilian would say..

    • @B.O.L.T.
      @B.O.L.T. Před 2 měsíci

      No you don't. Reptilians are cool as long as you don't attack them. Then it's your problem. 😂

    • @user-jo4tq5tk3i
      @user-jo4tq5tk3i Před měsícem

      😂

  • @Mojen_Marc_Music
    @Mojen_Marc_Music Před 2 měsíci +5

    I just kept thinking you were about to bust out Sails of Charon 😁😁

  • @rianjohnsonsux4344
    @rianjohnsonsux4344 Před 2 měsíci +3

    I literally laugh out loud to the video…cause Ben is a MASTER who doesn’t take himself too seriously. Channel is bad ass 😎👍🏻

  • @KILLA-J
    @KILLA-J Před 2 měsíci +4

    The incredibly useful lesson was great but . . . when you top it off with humor, then it's better than great . . . thank you (I'm 65 and learning howta shred mang)

    • @mikemorgan4774
      @mikemorgan4774 Před 2 měsíci

      Me too, right! At 65 I'm just learning what I shoulda known back in 1966.

  • @daveydumpling
    @daveydumpling Před 2 měsíci +4

    Nice shining reference

  • @patrickdallaire5972
    @patrickdallaire5972 Před 2 měsíci +1

    The chromatic scale is so underated.

  • @huffdm
    @huffdm Před 2 měsíci +9

    (1:41) excellent choice of axe Uncle Ben! Love the color too...❤

    • @BenEller
      @BenEller  Před 2 měsíci +3

      Thanks!

    • @APK-pn4qh
      @APK-pn4qh Před 2 měsíci +1

      ​@@BenEller I will be buying that exact guitar in a couple months. Is it as amazing as it looks and sounds?

    • @BenEller
      @BenEller  Před 2 měsíci +2

      @@APK-pn4qhYES! It quickly became one of my favorites. It’s a 10.

    • @APK-pn4qh
      @APK-pn4qh Před 2 měsíci

      @@BenEller ooh I can't wait! 🤘😎🤘

  • @billhicks9056
    @billhicks9056 Před 2 měsíci +4

    Funny bugga!
    "Eddy Van Scalin'" 😂
    And leave my mum out of this and I'll leave *this* out of your mum
    Cheers for the video!

  • @EclipseAtDusk
    @EclipseAtDusk Před 2 měsíci +3

    This is why I like Open C-esque tunings. Scales become less “a pattern to play on the neck” and more a proper roadmap because it’s Easier to learn

  • @nunolance23
    @nunolance23 Před 2 měsíci +1

    This was a step up in the humor part of the videos, stellar teaching as always hahaha

  • @fortisch
    @fortisch Před 2 měsíci +1

    Bro. I literally figured this out on my own yesterday and now i see this. Damn^^

  • @jrflattop
    @jrflattop Před 2 měsíci +1

    After mentioning the helicopter move I lost my train of thought and didn’t get it back. Hmm, guitars, helicopters, step moms, unsheathing….oh yeah something about Phrygian style.

  • @BrandonEht
    @BrandonEht Před 2 měsíci +2

    That Jackson gets me bricked upppp ❤

  • @jesselucero8503
    @jesselucero8503 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Fantastic explanation and demonstration. Thanks man!!

  • @andyracksthecams
    @andyracksthecams Před 2 měsíci +2

    Great video made even better with mention of the almost forgotten Bubble Trousers and the almighty Alvin. Thank you. Some important messages and tips here and some answers to awkward questions too...

  • @n00n3r
    @n00n3r Před 2 měsíci +1

    The innuendos are slaying me!

  • @saltyphucker777
    @saltyphucker777 Před 2 měsíci +5

    Awesome as usual, Uncle Ben! My stepmom says hi.

  • @duwaynesteurer4287
    @duwaynesteurer4287 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Damn Ben, slid the "your mom" joke in there in the first 90 seconds.

  • @polishamoou
    @polishamoou Před 2 měsíci +1

    Such a great lesson! Thank you for sharing! Also these tones are amazing. Would love to learn more about the gear you’re using.

  • @blakeanderson7906
    @blakeanderson7906 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Great lesson Ben! Rock on!

  • @lhcsouth
    @lhcsouth Před měsícem

    I see Pazuzu hiding out in the background. 🤘👿
    Love the pixelated video game intro on the videos!

  • @dylangrey2003
    @dylangrey2003 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Dude have you ever considered doing stand up? Cuz u r HILARIOUS!!!!

  • @ianisaacs2340
    @ianisaacs2340 Před 2 měsíci +2

    Thank you uncle Ben! I’m an intermediate bassist trying to get to the advanced stage. I want to lay down some Cliff Burton style bass.

  • @TheMirrorify
    @TheMirrorify Před 2 měsíci +3

    One of your best videos. Great info and very funny too. I absolutely concur about the single string scales. I instinctively learnt those first as it was way easier for me and I've never had too much trouble breaking out of boxes as a result.

  • @dorianfrank5024
    @dorianfrank5024 Před 2 měsíci

    This is amazing! Thanks Mr.Uncle Ben Sir, I've been so stuck in box patterns of scales for a long time ,this lesson is totally going to assist me in navigating my way outta there😀👍

  • @randykalish7558
    @randykalish7558 Před 2 měsíci +1

    I visited Mel Bay in '91 at his store in Kirkwood, Missouri, where he tried out and liked a guitar I had built. And yes, I seem to recall that even he employed some scale forms in his recital 😃

    • @jeffro.
      @jeffro. Před 2 měsíci

      @randykalish7558:
      Are you sure you were talking to "The" Mel Bay, and not Junior, or some other random person working there?
      Cuz I'da thought ole Mel would be RIP in '91, lol.
      That guy's been around for a looooong time.
      I had his books when I was a kid, by the photos he was a grown-ass man. An' THAT was a loooong time ago!
      🤪

    • @randykalish7558
      @randykalish7558 Před 2 měsíci

      "The" He showed me photos of himself with Johnny Smith aboard their boat, fishing on a high Colorado lake: their favorite thing to get away from it all, except they couldn't get away from the scales. Mel Bay: Feb.25, 1913 ~ May 14, 1997 🙏

  • @bladezstudio666
    @bladezstudio666 Před 2 měsíci +2

    Explained in a way even my crazy brain comprehends!

  • @mhenkka
    @mhenkka Před 2 měsíci

    Excellent Ben. Thank you!🎉

  • @paulcollins8122
    @paulcollins8122 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Brilliant video, yes you're right I too always seem to start on the root note on the bottom e string...good advice

  • @michaelduncan2995
    @michaelduncan2995 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Thanks Ben, good video!

  • @juturna
    @juturna Před 2 měsíci +2

    your lessons are the best sir, Thank You!

  • @johnfeole1971
    @johnfeole1971 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Excellent overview!

  • @mukmuk775
    @mukmuk775 Před 2 měsíci +2

    Ben’s got spring fever.

  • @gloriahancock8358
    @gloriahancock8358 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Very Rad!! Love that guitar and color too!!!

  • @drewh7437
    @drewh7437 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Haha .."tell her i said HI" LMAO😎🤘

  • @bodhiboy4775
    @bodhiboy4775 Před 2 měsíci

    Great advice! Thanks UB!

  • @TheTeaDubz
    @TheTeaDubz Před 2 měsíci

    Yet another banger of a video, friend. You are an excellent teacher! I have spent time learning a lot of scale shapes and I know the shapes but as you've pointed out I have never been able to pull back the curtain and learn to have freedom across the whole neck. I can see how combining the vertical shape, three note per string shape, one string shape, and the little shape provides a clear roadmap to getting there. Your videos always make me feel excited to pick up the guitar and learn something new!

  • @DrJamesAshfield
    @DrJamesAshfield Před 2 měsíci

    Good video . Thanks for posting :) Gonna go try this out

  • @allengarrow6295
    @allengarrow6295 Před 2 měsíci

    Very helpful! I’ve been doing the single string scales using a metronome and doing legato, helped tremendously!

  • @PeterLucibelli
    @PeterLucibelli Před 2 měsíci +3

    Incredible knowledge and dude you are hysterical

  • @vomito72
    @vomito72 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Great lesson and fun as usual ! thanks!

    • @BenEller
      @BenEller  Před 2 měsíci +1

      Glad you enjoyed it!

  • @pinkyellowblue007
    @pinkyellowblue007 Před 2 měsíci +2

    I've never had a problem learning scales, it's the other stuff like really understanding theory, phrasing and being musical I suck at.

    • @crouchjump5787
      @crouchjump5787 Před 2 měsíci

      Never learn a scale without knowing all intervals

  • @mikemorgan4774
    @mikemorgan4774 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Thanks Ben, this is the absolute best video on the Phrygian scale ever created for guitar players. I absolutely heard and saw all the biblical references to Vai, Satch, and Edward. And accidental Holdsworth (LMAO) is where I live most of the time. I got it now!

  • @donaldlaporte4227
    @donaldlaporte4227 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Absolutely gold right there folks!!!

  • @reverendg5937
    @reverendg5937 Před 2 měsíci

    Love the fret board on that guitar!!!❤❤❤

  • @TheAlexCruz
    @TheAlexCruz Před 2 měsíci

    Duuuuuuude!! The snark jokes were off the charts for this one! 😆 Well done!...oh yeah, the video was helpful, too

  • @robertmeyer4318
    @robertmeyer4318 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Uncle Ben is giving us the keys to the Lamborghini. Let's ride Shredmaestros....🤘

  • @edskiedski6256
    @edskiedski6256 Před 2 měsíci

    Great lesson, that one string scale pattern was game changer for me when I learned it years ago.

  • @rynoriffs6505
    @rynoriffs6505 Před 2 měsíci

    Funny, informative and Useful information, Thanks my good friend Uncle Ben!

  • @steph4n
    @steph4n Před 2 měsíci

    thanks for your great videos and the eloquent stuff, my kind of humour 👍

  • @jeremyquinlan7245
    @jeremyquinlan7245 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Amazing Uncle Ben. You make my guitar playing mo better.

  • @franksutopiahead940
    @franksutopiahead940 Před 2 měsíci

    Thank you Uncle Ben... love you man! ✌️💜🙋🏻‍♂️

  • @CounterRhythms
    @CounterRhythms Před 2 měsíci

    Endlessly entertaining and instructive. I feel more better now.

  • @brendanshervington3560
    @brendanshervington3560 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Thanks Uncle Ben!Whow!what a lesson, Something for everyone, and everyone gets a mention, Mel Bay, Tom quale, Allan Holdsworth!but pastor Frank sounds disturbing 🤔🤔

  • @johnstillwell4353
    @johnstillwell4353 Před 2 měsíci

    I forgot how much I enjoyed being told why I suck on guitar. Ben has a special quality that allows to say stuff like that. It would probably get me killed. Seriously though, Ben is the best teacher on the internet and helped me out of a deep hole and back to really enjoying playing. Thanks again Ben.

  • @johnamcclintock1
    @johnamcclintock1 Před 2 měsíci +1

    I come here for the Dad jokes and you never let me down Ben!

  • @psneary88
    @psneary88 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Love this channel! My guitar teacher loves this channel! #BenEller for prez! Make America shred again!

  • @afterstars
    @afterstars Před 2 měsíci

    I kind of hit a wall with my guitar playing years ago because I never fully decided to dive head first into learning this stuff. I’m going to really make a challenge for myself and check out your site and give it a go.

  • @jimforce2690
    @jimforce2690 Před 2 měsíci

    This is one of my favorite videos that you have done. Gave me a new way to look at things that I already use. Also a master class in double entendre lol

  • @shadehunter
    @shadehunter Před 2 měsíci +2

    Very useful information. You explained it way better than I ever could when I've tried.
    Also, heavy on the Uncle Ben jokes. Loved it. Lol

  • @EL_DUDERIN0
    @EL_DUDERIN0 Před měsícem

    My brain mostly knows this stuff, but it gets a lot more better to my hand fingers when Uncle Ben 'splains it.

  • @andrewsmall4865
    @andrewsmall4865 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Ben your metaphor game was on point for this one. 😂

  • @theogdw1
    @theogdw1 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Some legit advice and a great lesson, questionable comparisons. Classic Uncle Ben

  • @al6377
    @al6377 Před 5 dny

    Top notch humour and top notch lesson!!

  • @petemeyers5342
    @petemeyers5342 Před 2 měsíci +1

    You should patent the phrase “accidental Holdsworth”!

  • @eddiejr540
    @eddiejr540 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Uncle Ben (and his similes) is on fire 😎

  • @vethwynwetfeather
    @vethwynwetfeather Před 2 měsíci +2

    UNC! Creepin up on 500k. Woot! 🤘

  • @CookbookAdventures
    @CookbookAdventures Před 2 měsíci

    I have to sub, this is too funny. You had me rollin in less than 3 mins with useful info. Plus that is a pretty nice gitfiddle you got there.

  • @ocpblo
    @ocpblo Před 2 měsíci +1

    Great, thanks!

  • @BonesJonesMusicMD
    @BonesJonesMusicMD Před 2 měsíci

    So good. Wish I could those references 😂😂 love it! 🤟🤟🎸

  • @hopingtocollidewith
    @hopingtocollidewith Před 2 měsíci +1

    Gotta love Francis Bubblestrausers

  • @musicafteroldage
    @musicafteroldage Před 2 měsíci

    Well, you Sir, were on a roll ! LOL (extremely useful information btw!) Thanks for sharing Sir!!

  • @Cbuzz1399
    @Cbuzz1399 Před 2 měsíci +5

    Meow at 2:00

  • @curtiseickhoff5189
    @curtiseickhoff5189 Před 2 měsíci +1

    :41 in, what do I suck at the most…? This is broad, it encompasses a LOT and not to say I don’t have hundreds of other issues but clicking my brain on AS I’m playing. Making it multi-task. Can’t plan much further ahead than identifying octaves for position shifts while keeping my groove and playing my changes and lines.

  • @BillieSwift
    @BillieSwift Před 2 měsíci

    Thanks for another hilarious but informative video uncle Ben. I suck at trempicking. Curious what's your take on those black metal trem-picked riff.

  • @humphet
    @humphet Před 2 měsíci +1

    Can't think of a better sales pitch. Thanks again Uncle Ben

  • @Chris_Nouvelli
    @Chris_Nouvelli Před 2 měsíci +1

    O’ how ironic it is that the ‘Breakthrough Guitar’ bloke is the ad that appears before Uncle Ben comes to teach something of actual value. Thanks, Unc.

    • @BenEller
      @BenEller  Před 2 měsíci

      And for cheap as free, no less!

    • @Chris_Nouvelli
      @Chris_Nouvelli Před 2 měsíci

      @@BenEller 100%. Although I am one of your ever-loyal Patrons so here’s a big bundle of literally some cash 💰
      In all seriousness, this is a great lesson. Many thanks. Glad you’re loving the KM Schecter too. I’m a recent convert to Schecter with my Aaron Marshall and Nick Johnston Indonesian models. Incredible instruments.

  • @davidsk8rz
    @davidsk8rz Před 2 měsíci

    A piece of gold to start the weekend, thanks uncle, what do you think is best learn the scales with intervals or with the half full system (if that's what it's called)?

  • @tHiNk413
    @tHiNk413 Před 2 měsíci +1

    I have no business with playing guitar, only listening, but you are so effin entertaining, this is a like and subscribe. Oh, I suck at playing Warhammer 40k. Doing it for 12 years now and can't, for the love of the False Emperor, build a competetive list. Not if my life depended on it!

  • @chucksaeger7500
    @chucksaeger7500 Před 2 měsíci

    You’re as entertaining as you are brilliant on guitar! I suck at speed although I have improved.
    Thanks for all your lessons!

  • @time3947
    @time3947 Před 2 měsíci +1

    I thought the single string scale pattern was more like the reverse cowgirl position, because it looks good as it is all going up and down.

  • @CyberDocUSA
    @CyberDocUSA Před 2 měsíci +1

    Scales and Mel Bay, Hal Leonard publications, and many others were the backbone of my learning. Those crusty, brittle yellow pages are missed. P.S. Mom says hello.

  • @clemclemson9259
    @clemclemson9259 Před 2 měsíci +1

    Ben you are very funny and are awesome thank you. for all your hard work- I love the channel!

  • @bobh757
    @bobh757 Před 2 měsíci +1

    When are you going to teach us the 'girl on top' scale pattern?

  • @novelty_nostalgia
    @novelty_nostalgia Před 2 měsíci +1

    That guitar looks awesome

  • @randykalish7558
    @randykalish7558 Před 2 měsíci

    I had a Mel Bay book in the late '60s, but I never finished it, which I regret because if I had gotten through it I'm sure I'd've been ready for this lesson.