A Long Road Ahead

[rdnzl]

Well, its been two weeks since I got my Am Dlx Strat.

I can see that its going to be a long time before I am any good.

I think I need to some books or something.....

I suck, big time.

I've hit a few of the "Tab" websites, just so I can try and make something resembling a song, but I have a heck of a time figuring out how to place my fingers, so I can make a smooth change to the next combination. My hand ends up looking like a crab.......

Should I get a "chord book" and concentrate on that?

Should I concentrate on learning music, and forget about tabs?

Thanks

p.s. I've actually got my fingers built up, so they don't hurt :)

[Jesse S.]

rdnzl (do you have an easier name to spell?),

What kind of music do you like? If you are at all interested in blues, or music that evolved from blues (like much of rock and roll), I have found "Blues You Can Use", a book and CD by John Ganapes, to be extremely helpful.

This book probably isn't for complete beginners, though. Do you know the basic "cowboy chords"? E and A form barre chords? Once you're comfortable with those, that book might be a good tool for you.

When I first learned to play, I learned those chords and played a lot of acoustic "rhythm guitar". I had a big Beatles songbook and I would just flip through and play songs, learning new chords from the diagrams when I needed to. I learnt a lot about common chord progressions that way, and how to play different strumming patterns, and so on.

Music notation vs. tab: learn both. Traditional music notation doesn't tell you where on the fretboard to play, so that's where tablature comes into play. I think tab is also more clear at showing bends, slides, etc. But tab has a hard time showing the correct rhythm and other musical aspects. Knowing musical notation will help you a lot if you want to use books to learn from. Lots of guitarists seem scared to learn to read music, but it isn't that hard at all. It's certainly easier than actually learning to play the instrument!

I think it would be good for you to learn some songs that you like. If you know 3 chords (D,G,A or G,C,D, for example), there are a ton of easy songs that you can strum and sing. I always found learning "real" songs to be very motivational for me.

Your fingers may start hurting again, if you start bending notes a lot. I got blisters when I started learning "lead guitar"!

Good luck and have fun!

[rdnzl]

I'm having a real hard time with barre chords.

[sabby]

It's all muscle memory. Keep a guitar in your hand as you watch TV, whatever. This stuff just comes one day without you noticing it.

[rdnzl]

I think starting off with Blues in mind, will be the direction I'll be going.

I spent the majority of my first two weeks just messing around, and buying more guitars and pedals. Now, it's time to learn to play.

But hey...I CAN already play country and western, with my few chords!

D Major and A7, with alternating bass notes......

Poorly, but it DOES sound country :)

[DanTheBluesMan]

they don't call 'em cowboy chords for nuthin'.

Work on getting comfortable with chords. Once you can master changing from C to G, you are halfway there. Get the F under your belt, and you can grab a fake book and strum away in the Key of C ad infinatum.

Welcome to the journey, enjoy your trip.

:wail2

[BlueFrogs]

I would recommend you find a teacher in your area and take lessons. As you might have noticed in the 'Anyone over 30 taking lessons' thread, there are many of us here doing just that. And I gotta add, many that are taking lessons are already damn fine guitar players!

You will excel so much faster by doing that than trying to learn from scratch by yourself. Good luck my man!!!

:)

[Tele-Bob]

I would recommend you find a teacher in your area and take lessons. You will excel so much faster by doing that than trying to learn from scratch by yourself. :)

Very good advice.

The other important thing to remember is to not try and see "the big picture." Looking at music from the standpoint of how much you have to learn is totally overwhelming and can make a person feel hopeless at times.

I'll never forget learning to opening riff to "Let it Rain". What an awesome moment that was. I couldn't play it well for months, but I heard the sound and for a brief moment I was Clapton. That's the kind of cool stuff to focus your attention on at this point.

[Thunder]

BF and TB are right.

I think the biggest obstacle for me was pride. "I don't need lessons. If other guys can figure this out without lessons, so can I." Hey, if Hendrix could do it, why can't I? Because those guys eat, sleep and drink music and the people they hang out with are musicians. They must be picking up something, I wouldn't call it lessons exactally, maybe OJT? Something you can't get out of a book.

Once I got beyond that, I found a few guys who showed me some things I could really use. Lets put it this way, my wife can actually stand to hear me play now :rofl and BTW I'm over 30 too.

[Offshore Angler]

Concentrate on learning tunes and not licks. Figure out what makes each song unique from a rythym and melody standpoint. Then after a while, you'll realise there are only about 10 songs in the world with lots of small variations!

[Jesse S.]

I will echo the suggestion for lessons, unless you have somebody around giving you lessons for free. When I first learned, my father showed me all the basic chords and stuff, and taught me some chord progressions. I've never taken guitar lessons from a teacher, I guess because I feel that I am progressing on my own at a pace that I am comfortable enough with that I don't feel a need to spend $50 a week on lessons. But for a total beginner, that might be just what you need to make sure you get started on the right foot!

Also, I learned to read music and count time in grade school, and later took piano lessons in college, so I guess I did have some formal musical schooling (just in different instruments).

At all points in your musical development, I think it will be very helpful to be working on real tunes that are at (or a little beyond) your current ability level. After all, that's why we play the guitar - to make music! Don't get so hung up on the "long road ahead" (it never really gets any shorter!) that you forget to enjoy the scenery at your current position.

[Tele-Bob]

I break songs down into 4 major sections.

1) Intro
2) trick part
3) mystery chords
4) dismount

On a gig, or at the open mic, or rehearsal, I am often asked to play a song I have never played before. So I quickly ask "What key?" "How does it start?" (intro)

"Is there a bridge?" (trick part)

"Any weird chords in the middle?" (mystery chords)

"How does the song end?" (dismount)

As we say at the open mic, "It's all about the dismount." A few errors in a song will quickly be forgotten if you nail the ending. The Russian attendees can be tough at times though. :rofl

[Offshore Angler]

"Dismount" !!!

LOL, I love that term! Sure better than "coda".

[JAM]

I would recommend you find a teacher in your area and take lessons. As you might have noticed in the 'Anyone over 30 taking lessons' thread, there are many of us here doing just that. And I gotta add, many that are taking lessons are already damn fine guitar players!

You will excel so much faster by doing that than trying to learn from scratch by yourself. Good luck my man!!!

:)

I agree, a good teacher can help you avoid bad habits that might have to be unlearned at a later time.

[Plugger]

I think that realistic expecations will make the trip all the more enjoyable. Think "glass half full", i.e., how much you've learned already, rather than thinking about how much there is to learn.

A lot of people seem to give up too early, perhaps not realising that learning is in plateaus, rather than a steady climb. You might struggle with a certain thing (e.g. barre chords), seemingly getting nowhere for days or weeks, and then suddenly "what was ever the problem?" I'm watching my son learn at the moment; he's been playing seriously (by that, I mean he takes it very seriously :)) for about 6 months, and I see a lot of this.

I think you said in an earlier post that enjoying playing is key. You're right... when hard work is enjoyable, it's amazing how much gets done. Keep plugging away. Two weeks, two months, two years... I've been playing for thirty years (scary), and I'm still working hard at it! But I'm still enjoying it... :)

-Mark

[MMP]

Once, a 71 year old man came in our shop and said his wife had passed and he wanted somthing to do to pass the evenings. He said he had always wanted to learn to play the guitar. He took lessons for about a year and while he didn't become Clapton, he did learn chords (both block and barre) and some changes and how to transpose keys. And his voice wasn't too shabby either. More importantly, he had fun. It's never too late to start.

Take some lessons to get you going. Keep having fun and you will keep on progressing. Enjoy the journey.


________
"Can you hear me now?"