Just begun really playing -advice wanted

johncleesefan · December 2017

good day everyone.
firstly I have been playing bass for 13 years and gigged/recorded and had lots of fun. I also dabble in the electric however never seriously,

i now have children and have purchesed and acoustic to play to them.
im after advice as to how best to approach learning please.
I have a chord book and know the usual major and minor chords and am starting to learn 7ths now.

I am am also learning basic scales too and easy songs to jam.

does what I’m doing sound about right or is there something I should focus on first?

many thanks

Flink_Poyd · December 2017

johncleesefan said:

good day everyone.
firstly I have been playing bass for 13 years and gigged/recorded and had lots of fun. I also dabble in the electric however never seriously,

i now have children and have purchesed and acoustic to play to them.
im after advice as to how best to approach learning please.
I have a chord book and know the usual major and minor chords and am starting to learn 7ths now.

I am am also learning basic scales too and easy songs to jam.

does what I’m doing sound about right or is there something I should focus on first?

many thanks

Focus on enjoying it, learn songs you like and have fun with your kids. Drunk advice sometimes makes the most sense

Sassafras · December 2017

Focus on the sound.
I'm often surprised at how some players appear technically proficient but sound awful.

Clashman · December 2017

What I do is listen closely to songs I want to play and without looking on the internet or in a book
I attempt to play them, when I think I have them about right I google the song, the more you get right
the more confident your ears and fingers become.Well that's my approach anyway.

mgaw · December 2017

sounds good to me. I personally think its a good idea to learn how to play a song you love, focus on that until you have it down. Move on to the next one, if you choose a wide ranging style of songs you will develop varied technique etc.

harry · December 2017

I’ve only been playing ten months. I choose a song I like, then find it on the internet and get really good tuition from various videos. Really has helped me get to grips with some songs and chord shapes.

Lestratcaster · December 2017

Start with songs with the least amount of chords possible, i.e 2/3 chords and focus on just enjoying playing and training your ear to hear the movement of the chords. Some good examples would be Knockin' on Heaven's Door (3 chord progression which changes slightly the second time right but its literally the same throughout the whole song) or Songbird by Oasis, 2 chords through the ENTIRE song!!

For scales Rockschool do really cool melody arrangements of contemporary songs (Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, etc) which are great for playing single notes on. I use them a lot to train my students to read tab and get the version to a recognisable standard of the original

Roland · December 2017

Justin Sandercoe’s web site is a good resource.

Chris_J · December 2017

If you're new to acoustic guitar spend some time practicing strumming patterns, even if it's just one to suit each song you're learning. I know a lot of people that strum everything the same way.

Also, don't be afraid to hit the thing, likewise, learn subtlety in your strumming, the variances in your right hand really bring songs to life and can make even simple chord progressions sound interesting and refreshing.

Clashman · December 2017

I'm that good I now play with one hand.

johncleesefan · December 2017

Thanks all for your replies. All taken on board. I’m getting more into the strum now and what sort of attack on the strings sounds good. Just completed my first song. Went for hey there Delilah as it was a fave back in the day. Challenging for me but sounding good. Requested some Xmas pressies haha. A capo and some new strings

ditchboy · December 2017

I sit every night and practise chord shapes even if I can’t strum if the tv is on. My left hand has improved massively. Been doing this for 8/9 months now. Only problem is my strumming hand lets me down.

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Just begun really playing -advice wanted

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