Building a bebop vocabulary is essential in the development of any jazz musician, and learning jazz bebop guitar licks is an important part of practice. Even if you are not mainly a bebop player there’s still a lot to be gained from the bebop language that can spice up your own playing.

Bebop musicians love to play over II-V-I progressions and most of the bebop standards go through rapid amounts of II-V’s, therefore it’s vital that we have plenty of language and approaches to nailing them.

In today’s lesson we are going to be looking at how to play bebop licks on guitar by learning 3 lines that utilize some common bebop techniques to help you when soloing over bop tunes.

Bebop Guitar Licks #1

This is perhaps the most commonly played bebop lick. I have written the lick out in its simplest form here, but there are many alterations you can make to this line once you have nailed it.

Put on any 1950’s bebop record and I guarantee you’ll hear it in some way, shape or form!

The lick is implying a D-7 — G7 movement in the first bar starting out by first outlining the D-7 arpeggio (first 4 notes D, F, A, C) which sets up smooth voice leading for the B natural, the third of the G7 before finally resolving to the third of C major 7 (E) in the last bar.

Bebop Guitar Licks #2

The beginning of this lick starts with a 3-9 arpeggio, simply a descending B-7b5 arpeggio over the G7 which adds some tasty flavour as we start on the 9th. The last note at the end of bar 1 F#, provides a nice taste of the bebop scale before resolving.



Bebop Guitar Licks #3

Implying the b9 is a great and crunchy way to spice up playing over dominant 7th chords before resolving. This lick also incorporates the b13 over the dominant chord creating additional tension before finally resolving to E, the third of the C major 7 chord.

How to Practice The Licks

Work out them over the Different Chord Types

Practice Each Lick in all 12 Keys

Change the Rhythms

Start Each Lick on a Different Beat

Apply them over tunes

Do you have any favorite bebop jazz guitar licks? Who are some of your favorite bop guitarists to transribe? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.