Hopefully, some advice...

Panama_Jack666 · December 2014

Learn songs and whatever inspires you to keep learning!

LastMantra · December 2014

Wisdom for @Nomad

Alnico · December 2014

After i had been playing electric for about a year i got a knock on my bedroom door and the best piece of advice i've ever had, still to this day.

My Dad taught me, or at least he taught me the basics and then taught me how to learn to play by ear. He had noticed that whenever i played i was just playing *Bits* of songs so maybe i would cover 10 different songs in 10 minutes. He said "It's no wonder you're not progressing, you're playing is good but you're not really playing anything. You need to play a song from the very start to the very end".

So he got me to get out a piece of A4 paper and write out the top 10 songs i really wanted to learn to play.

I always learned / practiced by playing along with my Hi Fi so he told me to record those 10 songs onto a tape and ONLY play those songs until i could play along with the band from start to finish.

He said.............

"If you concentrate on being *Part* of that band and playing as if you're *Part* of the entire sound they're making, you'll be a much better player. Most guitar parts sound disjointed when played on their own because they are supposed to be part of a band mix so stop pretending you're impressing your mates with endless showing off and play as if you're on stage. A good guitarist knows his parts backwards, can play with his eyes closed and he knows when to let rip and when to shut the fuck up" !

If you try this structured approach to songs, maybe it will help. In those days there was no you tube, google or even very much tab so now there's so much more opportunity available. If you get stuck on something, there's so much resource to get you going again.

If you can learn 10 songs properly, you will sound better and feel better about it than playing riffs and bits of 20 songs that you can't play from start to finish.

Really hope that helps you out man.

kin · December 2014

Agree with Alnico and Nomad . I Started playing again after a long lay off and went the route of method books/ dvds, trying to memorize scales etc, pretty dull.

I downloaded the free trial of Transcribe last night and had more fun and played for longer working out and playing along to Skynryd's I know a little, reminded me of being 14 again and trying to work the whole of 2112 by ear.

Playing should leave you with a smile on your face or what's the point.

Alnico · December 2014

Also, try downloading and using RIFFSTATION.

It really is one of the best learning tools i've ever seen.

Covers every aspect and it allows you to slow the track down and even isolate the guitar.

Clarky · December 2014

my take on this is that repertoire is king..

learn songs.. lots and lots of them..

technique, theory and general knowhow you'll pick up along the way..

try not to get too bogged down with endlessly playing exercises and scales, and reading volumes about theory... cos that's the quickest path to boredom and ultimately turning your guitar time into a chore..

Alnico · December 2014

Clarky said:

my take on this is that repertoire is king..
learn songs.. lots and lots of them..
technique, theory and general knowhow you'll pick up along the way..
try not to get too bogged down with endlessly playing exercises and scales, and reading volumes about theory... cos that's the quickest path to boredom and ultimately turning your guitar time into a chore..

I have to agree with @Clarky on this entirely. My point was to learn songs in 'Batches' for want of a better description, so that you learn them properly before moving onto the next batch and avoid only knowing parts of songs, however Clarky raises a very valid point here. You tend to find that certain phrases, chord progressions and riffs from one song, appear in another and often the two songs are quite unrelated. The more you learn the more you will find the time spent learning one song will give you 60% of the knowledge you need to play another, if that makes any sense to you.

On a very basic level, try playing 'Wild Thing' and then see how many other songs you can fit those chords into using a different tempo and rhythm. A lot of songs share very similar chords and riffs so the more repertoire you have, the more confidence you will gain and quicker.

I also have to completely agree with not turning guitar playing into a chore. Yes you need to push yourself and it can be frustrating at times but it must always be fun.

cacophony · January 2015

there is lots of good advice in these posts, thank you to all, this is the sort of stuff i want and need. i do jam along with songs, but find that i only play sections of them, not bothering with the bits i know are beyond me, so the "learn to play xx number of songs, completely" is good advice. i value this chaps, thanks.

Frankieabbot · February 2015

I am doing something now that I wish that I had started earlier. At first I was doing what probably most beginners do when starting. Guitar and chordbook and playing and learning the basic major minor and seventh chords. Getting nowhere really until someone got me a songbook for Christmas. I like REM and received a songbook that contained the usual words and chords...but also with tablature and notes on the stave. I can now see where the notes are played on the fretboard with the TAB and see above where these notes look to be on the stave. Also I see chords played with only 2, 3 or 4 notes (rather than my usual desire to play as many strings as I can.....that's why we play grande barre chords isn't it?). So, I'm learning triads, tablature and notes all in one place. It's great playing a chord with only 3 notes rather than trying to barre everything. It's motivational too.....makes me want to play for longer more often.

cacophony · February 2015

just had a look at `riffstation`, that looks very interesting, thank you. have a wisdom...

Phil_aka_Pip · February 2015

You could try a friendly book such as Ralph Denyer's "The Guitar Handbook" (pub. PAN, IIRC available on Amazon) and dip into that for when you feel the need to know stuff or find out about something. While I think there's a lot to be said for a structured course of instruction, if you want to go about it in an ad-hoc way and learn the bits that grab your attention first, the aforementioned book will help you quite a lot.

BilliBob · February 2015

If it sounds good, play it again.........if it don't then don't.

DJW · April 2015

I learned to play back in the sixties. There was no internet, no guitar teachers that my family could afford, no tab so it came down to this. I used to put records on my Dad's old Dansette that I wanted to learn and listen to them. I tried to play the guitar along to them; sometimes it was all shit but sometimes I hit the right notes. Eventually I got used to the sound of the right notes and chord sounds and I could tell what the right notes and chords would be on a new record. I learned a long time later that I had learned to play chords and scales but I didn't know it at the time.

The thing that playing along to records gave me was rhythm and an ability to play by ear. I could play in time and I could pick up a new tune and riff almost instantly by the time I was about fifteen. I learned all of the theory stuff later but it was just putting a framework and names to what I could already do and play.

The other overiding and essential factor was that I wanted to be good at guitar so badly that I used to practise along to those records for four-five hours a night. You can't help but get good ears if you do that.

All of the technical stuff on forums like this is all good, but the first thing you need is an ear and rhythm and a real burning desire. If you ain't got those then it's going to be a long road.

I'll edit that: It's going to be a longer road than if you have a good ear and rhythm and the desire. It's still a bloody long road anyway. After 47 years and 20 of those as a professional guitarist/teacher I'm still learning new stuff virtually every day. However, playing the guitar is the best thing in the world and if I can pass that feeling on then I've done my job and earned my loot.

cacophony · May 2015

a good post, thanks. i think that the old "best advice anyone can give to someone who wants to learn to play guitar is `start ten years earlier`," is true!.

thomasross20 · June 2015

One of the best threads I've read!

andyoz · June 2015

Just from my experience, I spent years on and off learning. I finally got serious within the last year with a dedicated music area, proper seat, etc... away from the TV.

The big change for me was finding a good teacher. If you have slogged away for a while and then go to a teacher they will pick up on your bad points and correct them quickly enough. I had a couple and they were seriously holding me back. They will also enforce your good points. Teachers are good at getting learners to loosen up and enjoy playing.

Having to face up to someone every week focuses your practice. I'd even recommend it for a few months and then take a break and come back.

Some people are natural mimics of other players and can pick up the little things that make guitar paying look easy. If you're not like that, a teacher really speeds things up.

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