Playing guitar

[Old Blue 2]

Practice practice practice and then practice again. In time it will all become very natural to your hands and fingers.

Been playing for about 45 years all in all although not so much over the last 10 years. You never forget anything though, just get a little rusty. Still have my 1980s Tokai Goldstar with Seymour Duncans on and it still sounds really sweet. Might have to get it back out again soon actually. Doesn't take much to get the urge to play again.

This.

But, a big BUT. Never practise if your head is not into it. Put the guitar down and walk away. Go back to it when you are ready again. You WILL go back to it. Happens to everyone I've ever met.

And, don't worry if you think you are not progressing. You will feel sometimes that you have 'hit the wall'. Happens.

But when you get it right, and it flows, it's a blast...!

 

[sdk]

So maybe this sort of thing has been covered, but at a glance didn't see this question in this thread. Looking to get a basic guitar for my two oldest to learn to play and welcome any advice on this. They're both trained as musicians (and i'm not), but they play cello and violin. So they'll need lessons but I think they'll pick it up pretty quickly, and they can play by ear and read some music as well. Anyway, I was thinking an Epiphone Les Paul or a Squier Telecaster would be a good starting point. If they like it and want a better guitar, they can get a job, but I was hoping to get them something useful for both to play. Any thoughts on these or other guitar setups I should look at for them?

Thanks, -SN

If you're getting a Squier Tele, I'd recommend one of the Classic Vibe models, which come in 1950s and '60s variants. They're a few hundred bucks new and you can find 'em cheaper used, of course, but new or used they punch above their weight. Usually by swapping out the pickups you'll have a guitar that's very close in sound and playability to a standard Fender Tele that's worth several hundred dollars more.

 

[sdk]

I took guitar lessons for two or three months in 1976 or '77 from an old hippie with anger management problems. He was a beautifully fluid player and a real fingerpicking expert but when I messed up he'd become enraged and start screaming and throwing things, so I left him for another, nicer teacher, who within two lessons revealed that his real interest wasn't teaching me guitar, but teaching me Jesus. So that was the end of formal instruction.

And it's a shame: I've been whacking at guitars for years and years now and I'm still pathetically limited in skill and knowledge because I've never approached it systematically. I don't practice; I just play. I don't have a particularly good ear or sense of rhythm and I've retained gross ignorance regarding the least bit of music theory. But even playing at a sub-garage rock level of proficiency is one of the best parts of my life. I've no other means of becoming so quickly self-forgetful without the aid of illicit chemicals. Paradise.

I don't give advice about stuff I don't understand, like music, so instead I'll offer a related tip on a practical matter. If you have a particular chair in a particular room where you customarily sit, keep a guitar there. I always have a guitar on hand next to my main relaxation spot at home and it really facilitates playing a lot when you don't have to get up to grab an instrument. Best pastime that doesn't require a surfboard for sure.

 

[Sid James]

I've had a guitar now for 14 years (inexpensive midlife crisis purchase) I'm still bad but can manage a fair number of chords even barre chords, strumming is always a rough estimation of what's required but the notes are right.. its great for drunken sing alongs in the days when you could have mates round. The important thing is no matter how bad my playing is, I really enjoy it and its a great stress reliever

 

[arch stanton]

I've had a guitar now for 14 years (inexpensive midlife crisis purchase) I'm still bad but can manage a fair number of chords even barre chords, strumming is always a rough estimation of what's required but the notes are right.. its great for drunken sing alongs in the days when you could have mates round. The important thing is no matter how bad my playing is, I really enjoy it and its a great stress reliever

I've never been able to play when I've had a drink, even one can affect me enough to know that if I'm going to have a play, I wont drink until afterwards. Hats off to those who can play leathered/stoned/both

 

[navidson]

I used to play loads as a teenager - Spent hours writing tabs out for whole albums and sharing them with friends

Still play a little bit but have to admit I probably enjoy collecting guitars nowadays more than playing them - I think real life just gets in the way of me playing now

Generally pick up my Thinline Telecaster when I fancy a plink and a plonk

 

[Sid James]

I've never been able to play when I've had a drink, even one can affect me enough to know that if I'm going to have a play, I wont drink until afterwards. Hats off to those who can play leathered/stoned/both

Tbf my mates are tone deaf, so I get away with it

 

[SerenityNigh]

Picked up a used Ephiphone Les Paul and a small Fender Mustang amp for Son2 and he's currently teaching himself with Fender's Play app. So there it is.

(I will play around on it as well and try to follow the Fender app myself, but I doubt I'll learn half as much, nor half as fast, as my kid.)

 

[evilwebby]

This is why Guitar Hero was invented

 

[arch stanton]

I'm looking for a Les Paul Junior/Special DC if anyone knows of one for sale

 

[ClausThomsen]

I took guitar lessons for two or three months in 1976 or '77 from an old hippie with anger management problems. He was a beautifully fluid player and a real fingerpicking expert but when I messed up he'd become enraged and start screaming and throwing things, so I left him for another, nicer teacher, who within two lessons revealed that his real interest wasn't teaching me guitar, but teaching me Jesus. So that was the end of formal instruction.

And it's a shame: I've been whacking at guitars for years and years now and I'm still pathetically limited in skill and knowledge because I've never approached it systematically. I don't practice; I just play. I don't have a particularly good ear or sense of rhythm and I've retained gross ignorance regarding the least bit of music theory. But even playing at a sub-garage rock level of proficiency is one of the best parts of my life. I've no other means of becoming so quickly self-forgetful without the aid of illicit chemicals. Paradise.

I don't give advice about stuff I don't understand, like music, so instead I'll offer a related tip on a practical matter. If you have a particular chair in a particular room where you customarily sit, keep a guitar there. I always have a guitar on hand next to my main relaxation spot at home and it really facilitates playing a lot when you don't have to get up to grab an instrument. Best pastime that doesn't require a surfboard for sure.

I'm absolutely atrocious but I've learned to live with it via 3 easy steps.

1 - Learn some power chords. The easier the better.
2 - Buy a cheap fuzz pedal or overdrive.
3 - Gain up to MAXIMUM.

 

[sdk]

I'm absolutely atrocious but I've learned to live with it via 3 easy steps.

1 - Learn some power chords. The easier the better.
2 - Buy a cheap fuzz pedal or overdrive.
3 - Gain up to MAXIMUM.

Fuzz is essential, especially when you're going for those '60s garage tones to harken back to the days when rank amateurism was king.

 

[Jamo Martinez]

A further tip about practising, and it applies to all players, I believe.

There will be times when you will pick up the guitar, play it for a few minutes, and feel you are getting absolutely nowhere. Nothing is happening. Put it down, and walk away. Go again the following day, and it is likely that things will be OK again. There will be times when you practise and you feel you are improving, and other times when you feel you have 'hit the wall', and you are getting nowhere. Happens to everyone. You just have to battle your way through it. Playing guitar is not a flat-line graph - it is little peaks and troughs. Enjoy the peaks and work your way out of the troughs. It IS worthwhile.

I think that's true of any learning process tbh. The times you feel like you're not progressing is when you're assimilating information internally and, in the case of physical skills like playing an instrument, developing muscle memory.

 

[Jamo Martinez]

should use your little finger to fret those chords all the technical players do

I play the B shape like Old Blue. Unlike him, I can't bend my ring finger so that the top string sounds. And if it does sound, it doesn't sound very happy

 

[Jamo Martinez]

Used to play a little. The big problem I had was owning a dirt cheap Peavy where the strings were about six miles from the fretboard. Many years later, I picked up a basic Gretsch and what a revelation having something that played like butter instead of a cheese grater.

This is part of my problem* and is a good reason why it's actually a good idea to invest in a decent guitar with an easy action.

*It's only a tiny part of my problem though. the major part is a lack of talent and not enough dedication to make up for it.