Learning scales. Help needed!!!

[Swirly]

I have got to the point where i would like to start writting some of my own stuff. And to do this i feel i need to have some scale knowledge.

The thing is, im not sure where to start. Some people say, learn all the modes of xxx, some say learn all the major scale etc, some say learn all of this in so & so.
And before i know it i have a dosen people giving me loads of things to do that is just getting me even more confused.

Where do i start? I mean, i tried finding all the major scales (just the basic ones, 7 i think there is) and i kept getting loads of **** about modes, and playing them in octaves, and differnt patterns to play them in. Well seing as i dont know any of this, it dosnt help. I go on scale finding sites and i type in say A major, and get it al over the fretboard, now should i learn all the positions of A first of all then move on to the other, and isnt that modes anyway....GAH to much thinking involved

I know theres hundreds of threads on scales but i cant seem to find what im after.Even after going on sites where there is lessons they start confusing me. All im after is a starting point, as otherwise ill get so bugged down with random stuff i wont ever learn anything.

Please if someone can break it down and say, these are the basic scales, heres what you can do etc etc.

Ta

[baileyk85]

I nice place to start on scales is to learn the major and minor pentatonic shapes (penta meaning five so there's only five notes in these scales).

Its a little difficult to write them out here but if you do a little looking, you'll find them.

You can get some really cool sounds out of pentatonics too. If you listen to any Gun's N Roses, Slash was a firm believer in these. He used them all the time.

[Carlo]

Modes can be interpreted in a number of ways:

-Major scale starting at a different degree

eg. C major scale

C D E F G A B C (C major, D Dorian, E Phrygian, etc.)



-Major scale with alterned notes

eg. C major- C D E F G A B C
C dorian- C D D# F G A A#
C Phrygian- C C# D# F G G# A#



- or adding notes to the pentatonic scale (pretty self-explanatory there)



I hope that sorta helps. Interpreting modes that way was always a good starting point for me when I practiced them.