Getting Your Lead Guitarist In The Mode

Most lead guitar players started out by hearing some great guitar playing somewhere and saying, "Wow, I wanna do that!!" The trouble is the inspiration of wanting to emulate a guitar hero may not provide you with enough energy to carry you through the boring bits of your guitar journey. Learning modes for instance.
Modes are basically just scales, i.e. a string of notes. The good news is there's only seven of them. The other good news is they're no big deal.
Here is a basic rundown of the modes with thanks to Wikipedia:
The Ionian mode. The term "major" refers to the Ionian mode. Most common songs, including such simple classics as "Happy Birthday to You" and "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star," are in the Ionian mode.

The Dorian mode. "What shall we do with the drunken sailor", "Greensleeves", and "Scarborough Fair" are in the Dorian mode.

The Phrygian mode. This mode is quite common in flamenco music and is often referred to as the "Spanish" mode. The Jefferson Airplane song "White Rabbit" is in Phrygian mode.

The Lydian mode. The theme song from the TV show The Simpsons is an example of the Lydian mode.

The Mixolydian mode. The Beatles song "Norwegian Wood" and the ABBA Song "The Visitors" are in Mixolydian mode. Jazz and boogie woogie are often written in the mode as well.

The Aeolian mode. The Aeolian mode is more commonly known as the Natural minor scale. In cases where the Aeolian mode has the same key signature as a particular major key but with a different tonic, it is referred to as the Relative minor scale. For example, A Aeolian is the Relative minor of the C major scale. The guitar solo in "Achilles Last Stand" by Led Zeppelin is in Aeolian mode. Many popular children's songs such as "The Ants Go Marching" are in the Aeolian mode.

The Locrian mode. B to B on the white keys of a piano. While this mode theoretically existed in medieval times, it was never used.

There are more detailed musical explanations of the various modes but if you are not big on theory, they'll just bore you witless. It's best to find some examples of the modes and get a feel of them for yourself. Here you'll find interactive fretboard and tab diagrams of the modes. A little experimentation will give you a better understanding than a bunch of theory. If you feel you need more info you can make Google your mentor.
For alot more free info on modes for the lead guitarist visit Lead Guitar Secrets and go to the "Sample Videos" page.