purpledoveuk said:

Odd question I know. When I was in my teens I bought a telecaster copy thinking an electric guitar would be easy to learn and, no matter what you did, would sound ace. I never really learnt to play it apart from 1 or 2 little basic duties that only required 1 fret at a time. A minor fault on the guitar saw it sidelined (would gave cost about £5 to fix) and eventually it got taken to a charity shop whete somebody now owns a £250 guitar. That's alway bugged me that I never put the effort in to try...now in my 30s I want another crack at it. I'm day 2 into self-teaching (with books and vids) on a really crap acoustic guitar that has strings hard to hold down etc and I can't stretch my fingers many frets and always play with the same 2 fingers...it's really disheartening to not get the right sound or catch other strings by accident. It's just early days right?...my fingers will stretch more, I'll get the hang if it and then justify buying a new tele in time...won't I? I know it's very early days yet [Edited 8/1/10 5:19am]

get the callouses built up. do finger stretches you'll get there takes time

Just takes a lot of practice and since you never use your hands like that you'll be rusty. Give it some time effort and dedication and it'll go much better.

You gotta have the talent for it and then it's takes a lot of working on your craft till you get it right. I play piano since age five and there hasn't gone a day by where I haven't practiced. I practice two three hours a day still and even then I notice improvement. All the best.

no

it requires talent

Dewrede said:

no

it requires talent

You need to stop it . . . !

Dewrede said:

Dewrede said:

no

it requires talent

can you play? no?...hush if he wants to play an instrument let him play whether he has it or not. That is up to him to create that. man play on and practice do not listen to what these naysayers here tell you. NuMusikasoul knows what he's talking about and can play as well as I do. and a few other musicians are here who will tell you.

Learn your instrument perfect it learn from your mistakes and make it fun

TD3 said:

Dewrede said:

no

it requires talent

You need to stop it . . . !

i never said HE can't

IAintTheOne said:

Dewrede said:

no

it requires talent

can you play? no?...hush if he wants to play an instrument let him play whether he has it or not. That is up to him to create that. man play on and practice do not listen to what these naysayers here tell you. NuMusikasoul knows what he's talking about and can play as well as I do. and a few other musicians are here who will tell you.

Learn your instrument perfect it learn from your mistakes and make it fun

i never said he can't or shouldn't try

i just answered the question

purpledoveuk said:

Dewrede said:

no

it requires talent

Oh well I'll still give it ago....I'm bit talking about amazing standard just being able to knock out screw renditions and jam It's positive that there are so many talented kids around then as they seem to be learning guitar by the bucket load (and that isn't a snide remark) The bit I can't get my noodle around is how you play a chord that has string in the middle not played...so you play the top E, miss the A but strike the others...that's some precision strumming...particular if/when it's a chord with miss, hit, miss, hit,hit,hit....unless I'm reading it wrong already [Edited 8/1/10 8:41am]

good luck man

you can play certain chords by using only a few fingers , pick the strings

i learnt how to play by playing along to music

[Edited 8/1/10 8:59am]

IAintTheOne said:

I hope so. I'm learning at 41.

Good luck.

Vendetta1 said:

It feels awkward for a while. Maybe for 2-4 months.

Of course. Anyone can learn some chords and how to strum. Finger picking is a bit more difficult. Scales more difficult, still. Like a lot of people have said - practice, practice, practice. At least an hour, a few days a week and you should start to notice a difference pretty quickly. And hey, if you only use two fingers, learn power chords, or bar chords. Just have fun with it.

I'm going to say "yes".

Of course you can! I teach guitar to people just like you, and trust me - you can do this!

Here's the advice I give my new students:

1. Have someone set up your guitar to make it as easy to play as possible. There are two things to do - (A) String the guitar with the lightest-gauge strings you can get (probably a set with the high E string being a 0.09 gauge); and (B) Have the bridge modified so that the strings sit as low as possible without rattling against the frets.

These two things make your guitar easier to play, meaning you don't have to press down as hard to make chords and notes. If you're playing on a cheap guitar with heavy, old strings that are high above the guitar's neck, that will make the guitar waaaay to hard to play, and you'll lose interest fast. So do these things. Any music/guitar shop can do it for you, and it won't cost much. But if you're serious about sticking with it, this will be the best $ you ever spend.

2. I ask my students what their favorite song is, and that's the first thing we learn. I *NEVER* start them off learning "Mary Had a Little Lamb" or some kiddie song that's supposed to teach scales and the like. You can learn the same thing playing your favorite song, so why not start there?

In fact, if you can, try to learn two songs at first. That way, if you get bored playing one song over and over, you have another to work on.

Choose simple songs. If you need some Prince recommendations, I'd go with "The Cross" (only two chords), "Raspberry Beret", or "The 1 U Wanna C". And there are more easy Prince songs so if you don't like those, OrgNote me and I'll give you more suggestions.

3. Use YouTube! For many songs, there are people that post online video lessons. Say you want to learn The Beatles' "Eight Days a Week". Go to YouTube and search for "Eight Days a Week guitar lesson". You'll find several. These are great, because usually they are very basic, and you can stop, rewind or pause the video as much as you want.

4. Buy or download a chord chart book, and buy music books. In the olden days, we all started with the "Mel Bay's Chord Chart" book. It shows you how to make every chord. Nowadays, I think you can find that online if you search for "Chord Charts". In fact, I just did. Here's the link for the search:

http://www.google.com/sea...p;oe=UTF-8

This stuff is all free. Don't be overwhelmed by the sheer number of chords. There are only a few that are used in the vast majority of songs.

Speaking of which, go buy the sheet music book for your favorite album. These books will have guitar chord charts over the sheet music. This is how I learned to play guitar. I bought the book for "Purple Rain", and learned all the songs by making the chords that were printed above the music. Little did I know that "Purple Rain" was so sophisticated, but that was great because after that album, everything else seemed simple!

5. DON'T go to tab sites until you can make chords. Tab sites are great, but if you can't make chords, and can't figure out what all the little numbers mean, you'll be wasting your time. Save www.ultimate-guitar.com for when you can make chords.

6. DO tap your foot from the very beginning! This is the most important thing to learn right off the bat. When practicing ANY song, tap your foot to establish rhythm. Tap your foot as slow as you need while first learning the song, then increase your tempo until you can play it at the right speed. Trust me, tempo is EVERYTHING.

7. Last but not least, if you have any friends that can play, ask them to teach you how to strum properly. I think the strumming hand is the most important hand of the two. It's what makes the guitar talk, and what gives the songs you play texture and feel. I don't think strumming is something you can generally learn playing by yourself (although some people do), and I definitely know you can't learn it from a book. You might get some good tips from YouTube videos, but nothing is better than learning it from a real, live human being sitting across from you.

Most of all, have fun! Playing rhythm guitar is not hard. Don't get discouraged if you hit a bump in the road.

If you're able to put in any practice time at all, you'll be playing those first two songs you chose reasonably well within two weeks. Good luck!

Greg, you are just awesome.

Vendetta1 said:

Greg, you are just awesome.

What songs are you learning to play?

purpledoveuk said:

Odd question I know. When I was in my teens I bought a telecaster copy thinking an electric guitar would be easy to learn and, no matter what you did, would sound ace. I never really learnt to play it apart from 1 or 2 little basic duties that only required 1 fret at a time. A minor fault on the guitar saw it sidelined (would gave cost about £5 to fix) and eventually it got taken to a charity shop whete somebody now owns a £250 guitar. That's alway bugged me that I never put the effort in to try...now in my 30s I want another crack at it. I'm day 2 into self-teaching (with books and vids) on a really crap acoustic guitar that has strings hard to hold down etc and I can't stretch my fingers many frets and always play with the same 2 fingers...it's really disheartening to not get the right sound or catch other strings by accident. It's just early days right?...my fingers will stretch more, I'll get the hang if it and then justify buying a new tele in time...won't I? I know it's very early days yet [Edited 8/1/10 5:19am]

Only DAY 2? It will take some time and practice but YES. All the things you've mentioned everyone goes through this it's a stage and if you can stick with it, it shall pass. As long as you are disciplined and willing to practice.

Some advice & suggestions

It's going to take time for your fret hand (I'm assuming your left) to gain the type of strength and stretch in ways it's not use to doing. Even so pressing those string onto the frets should not be a struggle. Even if you aren't getting the correct sound or hitting other strings, it sounds like the action on your guitar is high. Take you guitar into a guitar tech and have them do set-up, depending where you live this will cost between $25 to $40. A properly set guitar will make all the difference in the world and though you may not play clean chords just yet, you'll notice that it take less effort when you apply presser from the string onto the frets, your guitar will stay in tune, and sound better. Besides, you should never have to play a guitar tense, you should be loose.

If your guitar is beyond a set-up and the good news is, you can get a lot of guitar for $200 - $300 dollars. Yamaha make damn good guitars at every price point and I'd suggest getting a solid top, since most of the sound comes from the top, they sound better. There are also some other things to take into consideration here's a link http://prince.org/msg/15/340991 to some advice I gave someone looking to buying an acoustic guitar.

Tips Learning and Practicing

If you can I'd strongly suggest a music/guitar tutor, he or she will get you there faster, keep you

disciplined, and keep the frustration level way down. I found that DVD and book were a lot easier to understand after, I had a year and half under my belt. The disadvantage with DVD and books, there is no feedback when you aren't doing things correctly and sometimes it's very subtle things like the angle of your fretting hand or the way your are holding the pick. This is crucial because since half the struggle is to have your hand move automatically - by memory - you maybe developing bad habits which later will be harder to unlearn. Besides, a teacher can break things down and offer tips on things you thought were difficult: such an alternative chord if one is just too hard to play. I took 30 min classes on Mon. and Thurs for the first 3 years; it kept me focused and when I became frustrated and anger by Friday I knew in two to three days I would be seeing my guitar teacher. Pick a teacher around your age (they'll tend to like and play the same music you do) and you should to pick someone who will throw you into play songs, though simple right away. Cool thing about having a teacher, you can ask them to transpose a song or two you've always wanted to play into an easier music tab, which keeps you motivated.

Practicing is something you'll have get a feel what works for you. Depending on my work schedule I practiced every day between 30 minutes to an 60 minutes everday. I broke it up, 15/30 minutes in the morning chord / practicing scales and 15/30 minutes in the evening learning to play A song. I didn't wander off that song until I could play it well, then moved onto the next song. Take it slow, because speed isn't the issue this will come. You want to play chords, strumming, flat-pick, or finger-pick those strings smoothly and correctly. Timing in important in music so use a metronome. Play with others, get with a group of players near your level and well advance of you; I played with two groups and those guys helped me become a better player.

At this point I'd stay away from the contorted chords shapes and stick with the basics, you can play a lot of song play C, C7, D, Dm, D7, E, Em, E7, F ( tuff one but essential), G, G7, A, Am, A7, B7. The only difficult chords I'd tackle now are Bar Chords, they are really cool, song nice when played correctly - A, BM, C (at the third fret) , F, G and GM (at the 3rd fret), Checkout the two links below.

http://www.guitarchordsmagic.com/guitar-chord-charts/free-printable-guitar-chord-chart.html

http://www.guitarchordsmagic.com/guitar-chord-charts/guitar-chord-chart-bar.html

That's it, if you have anymore questions Org me or ask here, if I can I'll help.

RodeoSchro said:

Vendetta1 said:

Greg, you are just awesome.

What songs are you learning to play?

Another One Bites The Dust and Found A Job.

Vendetta1 said:

RodeoSchro said:

What songs are you learning to play?

Another One Bites The Dust and Found A Job.

Awesome! "Another One Bites the Dust" is a VERY funky song.

RodeoSchro said:

Vendetta1 said:

Another One Bites The Dust and Found A Job.

Awesome! "Another One Bites the Dust" is a VERY funky song.

It is.

The thing I need to work most on is my fretting though. I need some exercises to help with it.

Vendetta1 said:

RodeoSchro said:

Awesome! "Another One Bites the Dust" is a VERY funky song.

It is.

The thing I need to work most on is my fretting though. I need some exercises to help with it.

Have you had your guitar set up to be easy to play? If not, that's job 1. Definitely put the lightest strings on that you can.

If you're not fretting chords right, the problem is probably in your thumb. It's probably resting too high on the top of the neck. Try moving it down towards the underside of the neck. This will make your fingers stand more up-and-down, which will get them out of the way of each other.

Let me know if that helps.

purpledoveuk said:

Thanks to everyone for the advice...I am indeed using a terrible acoustic guitar with heavy strings and high action...it's not mine so I can't modify it. I'm only really using it to see f I can do anything before buying the cheapish electric I have my eye on (squier Tele affinity). Because I sent my old tele to a charity shop about 6 years ago afte having and never playing it for about 10yrs my wife is understanably reluctant for me to spend if I won't use especially in these times. ..

Hey, here's some good advice that follows what TD3 said about guitars.

If possible, try to buy something that's not a "cheapo" guitar. First of all, it will be easier to set up and easier to play. It will sound and look better. And, if you decide to quit, you'll be able to sell it and get some money back, which is not something you'll probably be able to do with a cheapo guitar.

TD3 is right - $100 or so can make a HUGE difference.

If you have any friends that know guitars, see if one will help you find a good one for the right price.

RodeoSchro said:

Vendetta1 said:

It is.

The thing I need to work most on is my fretting though. I need some exercises to help with it.

Have you had your guitar set up to be easy to play? If not, that's job 1. Definitely put the lightest strings on that you can.

If you're not fretting chords right, the problem is probably in your thumb. It's probably resting too high on the top of the neck. Try moving it down towards the underside of the neck. This will make your fingers stand more up-and-down, which will get them out of the way of each other.

Let me know if that helps.

Yep, my guitar has been set-up and I even had the action re-set because it didn't sound right to me. the guy looked at me like I was crazy because I had never played before so he thought I didn't know what I was talking about. Turns out i was right.

Thanks for the tip Greg. I'll let you know if that helps.

Vendetta1 said:

RodeoSchro said:

Awesome! "Another One Bites the Dust" is a VERY funky song.

It is.

The thing I need to work most on is my fretting though. I need some exercises to help with it.

One of my friends vouch for this guy DVD lessons. The lesson here I think is the 2n or 3rd but all 4 lessons are there on the website.

http://www.5min.com/Video/How-To-Play-The-Bass---Fretting-Hand-Technique-85012538

How To Play Bass - http://www.how-to-play-bass.com/