Learning the guitar

[Dark]

Has anyone on here learnt to play the guitar recently?

 

I've tried a few times but i think i'm going to make a concerted effort to learning something on it.

[Leykis101]

It's something you have to practically give all your spare time to, I have ADHD to the worst degree, I was never able to sit down and practice the hours and hours it takes to get good, ive played since 92, I can play, but im absolutely mediocre at best, you are as good as you make yourself, it's not something you can half assed do, not if you want to be good anyways.

[Dark]

I have the patience and can dedicate time to it. It's just the hardest thing i've ever tried to do. I've normally been able to pick up everything i've tried but playing an instrument is so damn hard! On the flip side it makes me appreciate what i hear more.

[Geoff]

Yep, what Cody says and it's the reason I could never do it. I just don't have the patience for it, and definitely not the time either. I also believe it's a thing that comes naturally to certain people and if it does you should be playing, but if it doesn't... maybe there's a reason it's so hard to pick up. I know my brother has learnt recently and it takes up a huge portion of every single one of his days.

[Dark]

In the past i tried to learn from books and by ear but this time i've found some great resources on the net.

 

This site has some pretty good lessons http://www.justinguitar.com/en/BC-000-BeginnersCourse.php

 

I've started at the very bottom and i'll work my way through them and see where i get to. Justin recommends 15 mins a day and at the end i should be able to play a basic song. If i could progress to playing Firehouse's All She Wrote in a few years i'll be as happy as Larry

[Leykis101]

Firehouse play some ok riffs, but a few years? dude if you practice 2 hrs a day, which is what I believe you need to do, 15 minutes is laughable, especially if its not coming easy to you, no bro, you should be able to play All She Wrote, soon, just learn some Tablature, then download Guitar Pro 7 or whatever it is now, and download that song, the tab will show you exactly how to play it, now maybe playing Nuno, or EVH will be a little longer.

[Dark]

I'm not greedy. I'd be more than happy if i got to the level to play something like All She Wrote or Ratt's Round and Round. Even some nice acoustic ballad stuff like Thunder's Love Walked In, W.A.S.P.'s The Idol or Posion's Every Rose.. would be great. Talking of Nuno or EVH levels of ability is bonkers

 

My fingers need to build up callouses again so 15 to 30 minutes is it until they do. I'm just re-learning open chords at the moment and trying to unlearn some bad techniques i picked up when i taught myself.

 

I've been given an old copy of Guitar Pro 4 and a load of tabs and i've been looking at them the last couple of days. I can now read tab sheets. I just need to figure out the best way to get from one note/chord/power chord to another. Watching someone cover it on Youtube is helping there (hence why i posted a couple recently )

[All Nights Reserved]

I play the guitar for 20 years and I can tell you the best way you can learn if you form a band and do covers. Just sitting and practicing is boring as hell. Try to play songs, no matter how bad you are.

[Dark]

Not gonna happen i'm afraid. I don't know enough people geographically close enough who are interested in playing or learning. Nope i'm on my own for a while i think.

[Nightrain]

I think the best way to start is to pick up acoustic guitar and strumming some easy songs like Def Leppard - Two Steps Behind or maybe Poison - Every Rose Has Its Thorn, and if you can get past to it, learn the solos. After that, try harder songs with picking like Harem Scarem - Honestly, White Lion - You're All I Need or Extreme - More Than Words.

 

The key is to play those ballads first because it's slower in tempo and usually don't consist of difficult riffs. I played a bit since I was junior high but never get serious, just for fun

[DaHun72]

Definitely start acoustic, or even simpler.... Bass. That said I could never stick with it. It went something like this....

https://youtu.be/9DbUPjEbIvA

[martinsane]

Definitely start acoustic, or even simpler.... Bass. That said I could never stick with it. It went something like this....

https://youtu.be/9DbUPjEbIvA

So ridiculous... this doesn't sound anything like what I am trying to play! WEll how's about tuning your flippin' guitar!

 

 

As for playin gitar, I have been for too many years never too seriously but my best advice will be to play by ear and bang away until you learn all your favorite tunes, worked for me. Course when I was playing sort of seriously we didn't have the interweb and all the amazing cheats that exist today.

[Dark]

Definitely start acoustic, or even simpler.... Bass. That said I could never stick with it. It went something like this....

https://youtu.be/9DbUPjEbIvA

 

That is the funniest thing i've seen in ages!!

[Dark]

I think the best way to start is to pick up acoustic guitar and strumming some easy songs like Def Leppard - Two Steps Behind or maybe Poison - Every Rose Has Its Thorn, and if you can get past to it, learn the solos. After that, try harder songs with picking like Harem Scarem - Honestly, White Lion - You're All I Need or Extreme - More Than Words.

 

The key is to play those ballads first because it's slower in tempo and usually don't consist of difficult riffs. I played a bit since I was junior high but never get serious, just for fun

 

That's pretty much the plan actually, i have an acoustic and an electric and i'm mainly practicing on the acoustic. The main problem i had when i first tried was a complete lack of rhythm. I couldn't match my strumming hand to what i was hearing. If i can work that out this time i should be ok.

[Dark]

 

I have massive respect for people that are self taught and can play by ear. Those tend to be the type that have a natural aptitude for it where as blokes like me need all the help they can get so i'll take all the cheats that are available!

[simo]

Isn't it easier to learn on an electric guitar? That's what I did, more comfortable, thinner strings, takes less effort to press the strings down or bend them. Only thing you have to learn is to get the noise under control with muting etc. when you're plugged into an amp but once you have that down eletric is much cooler.

[Geoff]

Haha, that video was hilarious.

 

You should learn how to play guitar from this girl:

 

[Dark]

Wow, just wow! and a pretty good acoustic cover of Highway To Hell too

[Dark]

Isn't it easier to learn on an electric guitar? That's what I did, more comfortable, thinner strings, takes less effort to press the strings down or bend them. Only thing you have to learn is to get the noise under control with muting etc. when you're plugged into an amp but once you have that down eletric is much cooler.

 

Yes it is. I'm relearning the chords on acoustic which i'm managing to do and when i try on the electric its a piece of piss in comparison plus it's strengthening my hands nicely. I will switch to electric completely soon i think but unplugged. I can't control the noise at all so it sounds like shit as soon as add any kind of distortion!

[Geoff]

Wow, just wow! and a pretty good acoustic cover of Highway To Hell too

 

I have a mate at work who basically worships her and yeah, he reckons she actually does know her craft well too.

[simo]

 

Isn't it easier to learn on an electric guitar? That's what I did, more comfortable, thinner strings, takes less effort to press the strings down or bend them. Only thing you have to learn is to get the noise under control with muting etc. when you're plugged into an amp but once you have that down eletric is much cooler.

 

Yes it is. I'm relearning the chords on acoustic which i'm managing to do and when i try on the electric its a piece of piss in comparison plus it's strengthening my hands nicely. I will switch to electric completely soon i think but unplugged. I can't control the noise at all so it sounds like shit as soon as add any kind of distortion!

 

That's how I started out as well, unplugged electric. Thanks to a friend who encouraged me to plug it in I got the hang of it. Sure it sounds terrible in the beginning but you could use headphones until you gain a little confidence if you don't want to embarrass yourself in front of your neighbors ;-)

[Dark]

 

Wow, just wow! and a pretty good acoustic cover of Highway To Hell too

 

I have a mate at work who basically worships her and yeah, he reckons she actually does know her craft well too.

 

 

and in my opinion she is something worth worshiping. A lot of people worship worse things in the world!

[Geoff]

 

 

Wow, just wow! and a pretty good acoustic cover of Highway To Hell too

 

I have a mate at work who basically worships her and yeah, he reckons she actually does know her craft well too.

 

 

and in my opinion she is something worth worshiping. A lot of people worship worse things in the world!

 

 

Quoted for truth.

[Nightrain]

 

Wow, just wow! and a pretty good acoustic cover of Highway To Hell too

 

I have a mate at work who basically worships her and yeah, he reckons she actually does know her craft well too.

 

 

That's very hard to learn when your eyes stuck on her cleavage instead of the guitar neck

[Leykis101]

Well Dark, after playing for 25 years, and having people who only played a couple totally smoke me, here's what Ive learned to do, 1st, I banned myself from anything acoustic back in 98, 2nd, I use so much distortion, wah wah, and overdubbing, that by the time im finished tracking my own guitar, I sound amazing, now, I stay away from playing anything live, unless it's Rhythm Guitar, if a rare chance comes up I do play something live, It is so over-processed and full of digital effects, that it's basically just the fine tuned effects being heard, and hiding the absolutely unreal shitty unpracticed riffs im playing, and that's what Ive learned in my 25+ years of guitar, recording, and hiding instead of practicing, if I spent the amount of energy and time just practicing that I have figuring out how to sound good and not practice, all kidding aside, i'd probably be pretty good, becacuse I do have a natural knack for song writting, but once again, I digress, it's of no use as the same ADHD once again prevents my writing talent from having any sort of arrangement attention and therefore leads to my songs turning out tons of potential, but always sounding really off in terms of fine tuning. so yeah, that's my 2 cents