A minor pentatonic for improvising

The A minor pentatonic scale has five notes: G A C D E

You can play it starting on the low E string at the fifth fret like this:
A C D E G A C D E G A C
Here’s the tab:
E———————————5–8—-
B————————–5–8———–
G——————-5–7——————
D————-5–7————————
A——5–7——————————-
E-5-8————————————-
For variety you can also begin this scale pattern at the seventeenth fret. There are other patterns in other positions on the neck, but now you know the names of the notes you can find them for yourself. Here’s a guitar fretboard diagram.
Learn the pattern above for a start. Try working out some licks using these notes. You’ll be surprised what you can do with five notes!
To go further with improvisation, start listening to your favorite guitar players with a new ear. Pay attention to what they are doing. Take note of how their solos are composed: are they scale passages? Are they questions and answers? What does the guitarist do to fill twelve beats (for instance)? Does he bend the strings, use hammer-ons, all downstrokes? Try and analyze some guitar solos a little bit and apply them to your own playing.
More pentatonic minor patterns here.

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