About this recording
Ride the Lightning · 1984 · Original album studio recording
Playing level: advanced · Theory level: beginner
Work on the closing solo by itself. Use B minor as a listening guide and listen for the places where the fast lines come to rest.
The scales at a glance
Compare the notes
Learn these shapes, then see how they help explain each solo below. Some are extra ideas for your own practice.
| Scale | Notes | Intervals | Use in this study |
|---|---|---|---|
| B Minor Pentatonic | B · D · E · F♯ · A | 1 · ♭3 · 4 · 5 · ♭7 | Listening guide |
| B Natural Minor | B · C♯ · D · E · F♯ · G · A | 1 · 2 · ♭3 · 4 · 5 · ♭6 · ♭7 | Listening guide |
Solo breakdown
Main solo
Guitar: Kirk Hammett
Where is this solo?
The extended lead over the closing fast section. The quiet opening melody and earlier lead fills are separate.
B Minor Pentatonic
Listening guide
B minor pentatonic is a smaller listening guide for the closing lead.
B · D · E · F♯ · A
◎ Outlined dots = B, the home note.
Standard tuning (teaching setup) · frets 7–10 · high string 1 at top · toward nut →
These dots show where the scale notes are. They do not show the order of the solo.
Read the note positions
- String 1, fret 7: B, interval 1, root
- String 1, fret 10: D, interval ♭3
- String 2, fret 7: F♯, interval 5
- String 2, fret 10: A, interval ♭7
- String 3, fret 7: D, interval ♭3
- String 3, fret 9: E, interval 4
- String 4, fret 7: A, interval ♭7
- String 4, fret 9: B, interval 1, root
- String 5, fret 7: E, interval 4
- String 5, fret 9: F♯, interval 5
- String 6, fret 7: B, interval 1, root
- String 6, fret 10: D, interval ♭3
More about these scales
B Minor Pentatonic Listening guide
B minor pentatonic is a smaller listening guide for the closing lead.
B · D · E · F♯ · A
B Natural Minor Listening guide
B natural minor adds C♯ and G. Compare those notes in the connecting runs without applying this label to the opening solo.
B · C♯ · D · E · F♯ · G · A
How the chords shape the solo
Chords and note choices
Listen for the landing note
Listening idea A solo can use different note choices from an earlier melody in the same song. Keep the closing section’s home note and chord changes in mind. Find B, D and F♯ before adding the rest of the map.
Technique tips
Technique and phrasing
- alternate picking: Alternate picking means taking turns with downstrokes and upstrokes. Use a small movement and keep each note clear before increasing speed. Practice suggestion
Practice ideas
Try the ideas yourself
Original practice suggestions; these are not the recorded solo.
Try this slowly
Choose four notes from one string pair. Play them as two slow groups with a gap between. End the second group on B and keep that ending longer than the other notes.
Check: You can keep a steady pulse and hear the final note clearly.
A simple practice plan
Put the study into practice
- Listen to the chosen solo and identify its beginning and ending.
- Find the root notes: the notes the scale is named after. Say their names, then play them.
- Add one new note, or aim for a note from the chord. Make a short phrase of your own.
- Listen to the solo again. Can you hear where the phrase comes to rest?
Updated 2026-11-10
This analysis may contain errors or inaccuracies.