Inside the Solo: Pink Floyd “Time”

David Gilmour's solo on "Time" is a masterclass in chord tone soloing using two very different approaches: lyrical bends up to chord tones, and melodic pentatonic phrasing along a single string. In this video, I break down the solo phrase by phrase and show how to visualize the fretboard in a way that makes both of these techniques practical (if not always easy) for improvisation.

This video almost broke me — the animations alone took five full days.

The PDF version of the lesson is available above. Silver members can read the written lesson on this page too, ending with a backing track player that follows the gear shifts chord by chord and loops any stretch of bars you drag across. Enjoy!

How to improvise over Pink Floyd's "Time"

Pink Floyd’s “Time” features one of the most haunting and melodic solos in rock history. David Gilmour's masterful approach to this solo demonstrates chord tone targeting, strategic use of pentatonic scales, and brilliant dynamic construction.

Gilmour’s solo was most likely composed rather than improvised, but in this lesson, we'll break down his approach and show you how to apply Fret Science techniques to create your own compelling improvisations over this iconic progression.

Section A: Verse (F#m - A - E - F#m)

Chord Analysis

The first section of the solo cycles through the verse chord progression, F#m - A - E - F#m. This progression is interesting because it’s slightly ambiguous.

F# is clearly the tonal center, but the chords only fall into two adjacent wedges rather than three, so this could be in F# minor (Aeolian), or it could be in F# Dorian.¹ Interestingly, the vocal melody includes D# notes (the natural 6 in F#) as passing tones, suggesting the Dorian mode, but then the chorus chord progression and vocal harmony use D natural, reinforcing that the song as a whole is in F# Aeolian.

F# is the relative minor of A major, so in the Nashville number system, we’ll name all chords by reference to A.² This gives us F# = vi, A = I, and E = V.

Scale Choices for Section A

The F# minor pentatonic scale is an obvious first choice for playing over this chord progression, and it’s precisely what David Gilmour used. It's what most guitarists would instinctively reach for, and there's a good reason for that—it just works.

If you want to add some more color to your note choices, you could use the F# Aeolian mode or the F# minor hexatonic scale.³ Because of the slight ambiguity in the chords and the verse’s vocal melody, I tend to prefer the minor hexatonic scale, which adds the 2nd scale degree (G#) but omits the 6th. It contains all of the notes in all three chords and nothing else.

In any case, like Gilmour, you’ll want to be able to find a chord tone to target each time the chord changes.

Applying Fret Science Techniques

These days, my go-to technique for soloing over any diatonic chord progression and nailing chord tones is Pentatonic Gear Shifts. For this chord progression, we would stay in the neutral pentatonic position for both the F# (vi) and A (I) chords, highlighting the minor and major triad target notes, respectively. Over the E (V) chord, we would shift down one string set and use the major triad targets.

To put this into practice, find any F# note on the fretboard and visualize a minor pentatonic rectangle and stack there. Going chord by chord:

• F#m (vi): From the neutral F# minor pentatonic position, emphasize the minor triad targets.
• A (I): Stay in the neutral position, but switch to emphasizing the major triad targets.
• E (V): Shift down one string set and emphasize the major triad targets.
• F#m (vi): Return to neutral position and minor targets.

If you prefer to stay put with F# minor pentatonic throughout the A section (which honestly feels more natural to a lot of players), you can use triad overlays to zero in on the right chord tones.

Over the F#m and A chords, this is precisely the same thing as the Pentatonic Gear Shift approach. When you reach the E chord, you will need to visualize the target notes for the V chord overlaid on the F# minor pentatonic.

For a full overview of triad overlays, check out this lesson on “Little Wing”.

Section B: Chorus (Dmaj7 - Amaj7 - Dmaj7 - Amaj7 - Dmaj7 - C#m7 - Bm7 - E)

Chord Analysis

The B section opens with Dmaj7 (IV), and suddenly, we're in entirely different emotional territory. Gilmour wasn't kidding when he described this as sounding "like the sky opening up and the sun coming through after a rain."

The full Chorus chord progression—Dmaj7 - Amaj7 - Dmaj7 - Amaj7 - Dmaj7 - C#m7 - Bm7 - E— translates to IV - I - IV - I - IV - iii - ii - V in A major. That heavy emphasis on the IV chord creates a Lydian flavor, and it feels like a departure from F# minor in part because F#m is absent from the Chorus altogether.

Scale Choices for Section B

Gilmour opens this part of the solo with an extended D major arpeggio over the Dmaj7 chord, adding G# notes as both target and passing tones, which reinforces the Lydian sound.

Over the rest of the solo, he shifts into E major pentatonic, which is a slight curveball. The notes of E major pentatonic all fit within the parent key of A major, and he may have chosen it because it’s the only major pentatonic scale that fits the key and includes the G# note that signals the Lydian mode. Throughout this part of the solo, Gilmour is still careful to target chord tones on every chord transition.

I’ve experimented with using A major pentatonic and D major pentatonic for this part of the solo instead of E major pentatonic, and they both sound great, as long as you target chord tones. In any diatonic chord progression, there are always three pentatonic scales that fit exactly with the key, and as Gilmour demonstrates with his solo, sometimes it’s worth choosing a different one to get a different effect.

Applying Fret Science Techniques to Section B

My recommendation for most players is to use Pentatonic Gear Shifts for this section, matching a minor or major pentatonic scale to each chord in the progression. Start by identifying a neutral-position F# minor pentatonic scale. Then, for each chord:

• Dmaj7 (IV): Shift up one string from your neutral position and emphasize major triad targets.
• Amaj7 (I): Return to neutral position and emphasize major triad targets.
• C#m7 (iii): Shift down one string set from neutral and emphasize minor triad targets.
• Bm7 (ii): Shift up one string set from neutral and emphasize minor triad targets.
• E (V): Shift down one string set from neutral and emphasize major triad targets.

With the maj7 chords, the major 7th interval is not inside the pentatonic scale, but you can always find it one fret below the root.

This works well, but it doesn’t quite match the sophistication of Gilmour’s choices. To follow his approach, you’d start by identifying a neutral-position F#m pentatonic scale, shift it up one string set to play D major pentatonic, and shift down one string set from neutral (or up two frets) to play E major pentatonic.

It’s not hard to visualize the scales this way, but to target chord tones, the standard triad overlay method won’t quite work. This is because our Nashville numbers are tied to A major, not E major. To use triad overlays, we’d need to translate the Nashville numbers to the key of E, and we’d end up with some non-diatonic chords (e.g., Dmaj7 would be bVII and Bm7 would be v in E). To target those chord tones, we’d have to memorize some new overlays. Ick.

Another way to tackle this is to rely on your knowledge of triads and visualize the triad for each chord independently of the scale. This is the classic “CAGED system” approach to improvisation, and it can be a big challenge for your working memory. It definitely goes beyond the “101” level of improvisation, but it’s a skill worth developing as you continue to grow as an improviser.

To follow Gilmore’s approach, practice visualizing the E major pentatonic scale on the B string. Then, for each triad, you can visualize your three-string triads on either the GBE or DGB string set. Here they are on the GBE string set:

This technique of playing pentatonic lines on a single string while simultaneously targeting chord tones sounds amazing, and although it isn’t easy, it is well worth practicing!

Overall Dynamics and Construction

Gilmour is a master of using his solos to tell a story, or even to take us on a journey. This solo is a journey from darkness to light and back, and every choice he makes supports that narrative.

In the A section, Gilmour starts down low on the neck with those long, crying bends. He's in no rush. Then, with each repetition of the chord progression, he climbs higher up the fretboard, building tension and energy. It's like watching someone slowly emerge from underground. I think he’s using his neck pickup here, which gives him a thick, warm tone.

The solo cycles through the A section chord progression four times, but each pass tells a different part of the story. It's repetition with purpose:

1. First time (2nd position) - Setting the scene with long bends and deliberate phrasing
2. Second time (5th and 9th positions) - Starting to climb, expanding the range
3. Third time (14th position) - We're getting somewhere now, building toward the climax
4. Fourth time (14th position with variations) - Maximum intensity, everything's about to explode into that beautiful B section

Right when the Dmaj7 hits, everything changes. Gilmour flips to his bridge pickup, and suddenly the tone is brighter, more focused, cutting through. It's like stepping out of a dark room into sunlight. It’s cool that even a change of tone can communicate to the listener that something important just happened harmonically.

Toward the end of the solo, when the minor chords hit and the progression grows darker, Gilmour returns to second position and long bends, going full circle and sticking the landing.

From beginning to end, the solo follows an arc, building up in pitch and energy and then ramping back down.

Practice Tips

Whenever you’re working on improvising over a new chord progression, it’s worth plotting out some options and making a roadmap before diving in. If you decide ahead of time which scales you’ll use and which parts of the fretboard you want to cover, you can practice visualizing scales and chord tone targets beforehand, while still leaving plenty of room for in-the-moment creativity. When you build your roadmap, include some ideas about tone, articulation, dynamics, and speed. Gilmour constructed his solo as an arc, but many great guitar solos keep building up to a climax. Try out more than one approach and see what you like.

For “Time,” experiment with branching out beyond F# minor pentatonic in the A section. Try the minor hexatonic scale or Aeolian mode, and see what you like. In the B section, experiment with using D or A major pentatonic instead of E. If you use A major pentatonic, you can use the triad overlay method by leveraging the Nashville numbers for each chord.

It’s tempting to dive into the whole solo at once, but it’s worth practicing each section separately before you try to connect them. I recommend looping the F#m - A - E - F#m sequence from the A section and practicing targeting chord tones in multiple positions of the F# minor pentatonic scale. It’s also a good idea to loop just Dmaj7 - Amaj7 from the B section and practice those transitions. Then you can treat Dmaj7 - C#m - Bm - E almost like a turnaround. Once you have at least one viable strategy for each loop, then start putting them together.

It’s okay to mix and match the gear shift and triad overlay methods. Experiment with both and decide what you like.

Conclusion

What makes the "Time" solo special isn't just the notes Gilmour plays—it's how thoughtfully he approaches the entire musical conversation. He understands that melody, harmony, and dynamics are all part of the same story. When you nail the chord tone targeting, use scales effectively, and build your dynamics with intention, you're not just playing guitar—you're communicating.

All of these techniques work well beyond just this one song. Think of "Time" as a practice laboratory. Once you've internalized how this kind of musical thinking works, you'll find yourself applying it everywhere. And honestly, that's when improvising stops feeling like a technical exercise and starts feeling like having a real conversation with the music.