Guitar Lick Lab v2.0
Brought to you by Music With Marky
Enter a chord progression — G D Em C, Am F C G, whatever you're working on — and instantly see the likely key, the best scales to solo with, simple pentatonic options, and chord tone targets for each chord as it passes by. With a fretboard map, position filters, and left-handed mode.
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The simplest way to solo over a progression is to find the key first. If most of the chords belong to one key, you can usually use that key's major or minor scale across the whole progression.
Roman numerals (I, IV, V, etc.) describe each chord's role in the key — useful for understanding why certain chords sound like home and others sound like tension. The Chords in Key Finder shows the full diatonic set for any key.
For most guitar players, pentatonic is the best starting point. Fewer notes to manage, and it usually sounds musical faster than running a full seven-note scale.
Major-key progressions like major pentatonic. Minor-key progressions like minor pentatonic. That's the rule that gets you 80% of the way for 20% of the effort.
The next level is targeting chord tones — when the chord changes, aim for notes inside the chord instead of just wandering through the scale.
Land on the root or the 3rd as the chord changes and your phrases will lock in. The Arpeggio Finder shows the chord tones for any chord across the entire neck.
If one chord in your progression doesn't fit the detected key (this tool will flag it), you have two options: stay in the main scale and let the chord pass briefly, or target the notes of the borrowed chord when it appears.
The single-chord view in the Scale Over Chord Finder is useful for figuring out what to play over those passing chords.
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Pair this with the scale, arpeggio, and chord tools to build a complete approach to soloing over any progression.
Explore all Guitar Lick Lab tools →