5 Pedal Point Licks That Make Great Lead Guitar Exercises
A Pedal point, or pedal note, is a sustained or repeated note. They’re used in rhythm playing as well as leads and you hear them often in rock, metal, and neoclassical music. In this lesson, I’m going to give you 5 examples of pedal point licks that also make great lead guitar exercises. They’re great for building left hand and right hand technique. Enjoy!
Pedal Point Licks
As is the case when practicing pretty much anything on guitar, start slow and build up to the proper tempo. If possible, use a metronome as well.
Lick #1
The first pedal point lick is from Anastasia by Slash feat. Miles Kennedy and The Conspirators. This intro uses multiple pedals, but the example here just includes the first. The pedal note in this lick is the F note on the high E string.
Listen to the lick: Anastasia pedal lick
Lick #2
The second lick is from Skid Row’s I Remember You. This lick pedals on the G note of the B string and walks down the G major scale to end on G note of the D string, which is an octave lower than the pedal note.
Listen to the lick: I Remember You pedal lick
Lick #3
The next pedal lick comes courtesy of Metallica’s The Struggle Within. It’s a classic example of the heavy metal pedal point.
Listen to the lick: The Struggle Within pedal lick
Lick #4
The fourth pedal lick comes from the icon intro to Thunderstruck by AC/DC. In addition to being a cool pedal point lick, this lick is a great exercise for improving picking/fretting hand synchronization.
Listen to the lick: Thunderstruck pedal point lick
Lick #5
With this lick we’ll venture into the world of classical music and pull an example that’s been adapted to the guitar in many ways…Toccata and Fugue in D Minor by JS Bach.
Listen to the lick: Toccata and Fugue in D Minor pedal lick
Wrap Up
While applications of pedal points vary, I particularly enjoy them in lead playing. Pedal point licks make great exercises. They are fun to play and help build timing and coordination.
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