I already own 7 basses and guitars

HarleyQ said:

tomasz said:

Cloreen said:

swissbeats2k said:

I was looking at a Purple acoustic/electric starter. I only know the A chord. Any thoughts on brands?

...and when you are buying, tell 'em PRINCE inspired you

[Edited 7/11/20 22:06pm]

I bought an acoustic last September & remember looking at youtube tutorials for Purple Rain. I'm still trying to get the basics. Prince truly is genius. I refuse to use the past tense.

slvrhrt7 said:

Cloreen said:

There are Cloud, Symbol copies out there. Copies. Not the real deal. Cheap knock offs made in Korea. Be like buying a Ferrari made by KIA. Do you really have a Ferrari?

As long as it says Ferrari...

...but, seriously, playing Prince songs on a guitar or the piano is fun. Songs like reflection on guitar and Nothing Compares 2 U on piano put a smile on my face every time. Music for the sake of music is a good way to enjoy life and enjoying life and making the best of it is the best way to tribute someone, isn't it?

Don't know to insert an image on here but I ordered a Prince symbol guitar in memory of Prince!

ComeHereLetMeCutYourHair said:

I ordered a Prince symbol guitar in memory of Prince!

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When you get it, please come back here and give us a review of it. Pictures, too.

Cloreen said:

ComeHereLetMeCutYourHair said:

I ordered a Prince symbol guitar in memory of Prince!

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When you get it, please come back here and give us a review of it. Pictures, too.

How do upload pictures?

I tried to upload it from my computer... but that didn't work.

I posted it on facebook and then copied the link to the picture... but that didn't work.

What am I not doing right?

I press the button with the tree in the reply message to try to upload it but it doesn't work for me.

Is there another way to do this?

Because I received this great photo of it in early production that I want to post.

Thanks Cloreen for your response.

And thanks to anyone in advance for their help on how to upload a photo onto this thread.

redaddict said:

redaddict said:

I just wanted to pop back in here and update... Ever since I saw this tread I've been working like a woman obsessed on my guitar. I can now play and sing The Cross. Clearly it doesn't sound amazing yet but it's something! I've chopped my fingernails off and the tips of my fingers hurt like crazy but I love it because I feel like I am achieving something. I just wanted to say thanks again for this thread. I feel like you gave me the shove to stop crying and feeling depressed and to channel that energy into something creative and beautiful. (Hopefully I'll learn to overcome my freakishly small little finger!)

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Bravo! Excellent! This is great!

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I myself have been playing "Chelsea Rodgers" over and over these past few days. Why that one? Who knows. It just is fun as hell to play.

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Keep going on "The Cross." A far more difficult song (though not impossible for a beginner) is "Sometimes It Snows In April." These days I get a lot of feeling behind that song when I play it, and in some way it is actually comforting to play. The verses can be faked just by playing an E into a F# (leave the B and high E strings open), and then slide that shape to the fifth fret to play an A (top two strings open again). There you have it, the verse to one of Prince's most perfect songs.

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By the way, best tip I could ever give to a person getting the guitar buzz is to spend nine dollars on a guitar stand. If you put your guitar in a case and shove the thing under your bed, you are less apt to play it, Put the thing on a stand and there it is, just calling for you to play it. Watching TV, hey, let me grab that guitar off that stand and strum some chords. A guitar in ful view on a stand is more apt to be played. And the more you play it the better you get. And the quicker you get better.

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Keep going. Heck, I'm going to strum "The Cross" right now. You've inspired me.

Rainbunny said:

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I think you get a better appreciation for and understanding of a piece of art if you try to do it yourself.

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So true.

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The snobs always mock people who play covers of other artists' songs. "Play your own music," they always sneer. But they miss the point you make - a fuller appreciation of that artist is obtained by attempting to play their material. And there is something else; something glorious to be gained out of covering another's song. A sort of communion with that artist is obtained. That communion is something I love. Learning and playing a John Lennon song gets me closer to John Lennon than just listening to his stuff ever can. Same with playing a Prince tune. That musical communion is magical.

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[Edited 6/1/16 18:51pm]

[Edited 6/1/16 18:52pm]

Cloreen said:

You can also buy an electronic keyboard for well less than $100 and play some of his songs. I want to learn to play Father's Song again. That's the only song I could play but that was 20 years ago.

Rainbunny said:

redaddict said:

Any other suggestions you think of for songs that I could have a go at would be very very welcome 😃

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I would again say "Snow In April." No way could a beginner get through the chorus, but the verses as I described above can be played. Why that song even though only half can be played? Because it really is a special song...most especially right now. It should be played.

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Some songs, even though guitar is not on it or buried in the mix, you can just play along to.
"Space" is just two chords all the way through: C to F. Start with a C ("I've never been one to") then go to F ("hide my feelings"). The back to C , then F, and so on all the way through. Unless you have the acoustic mix, there really is no guitar on the track, but you can play along to it as though you are part of the record or just strum on your own and sing the lyrics on top. Good song to work on the timing of your rhythm playing. Just back and forth C to F, C to F, C to F...

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Other Prince songs involve multiple chords. "Never Take The Place Of Your Man" uses basic beginner chords, but there are a lot of them. May take some time for a beginner to get there, but a fun one to play.

FunkiestOne said:

You can also buy an electronic keyboard for well less than $100 and play some of his songs.

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So true. I have a Yamaha keyboard that produces a variety of accurate keyboard tones. I freaked out when I set it to 'Pipe Organ 2' and banged out that famous intro to "Let's Go Crazy." Dearly beloved....YES!

Rainbunny said:

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Cloreen, that was really beautiful what you wrote about communing with the artist! What a great thread!

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But it is true. It comes across a bit snobbish and childish to say, but when you start playing an artist's music you really do become attached to that artist on a much higher level. There is this communion that occurs. I know that is a strong word with pretty heavy religious overtones, but that really is the best word to describe it. You become one with the artist when you immerse yourself into their very work.

Cloreen said:

Great idea. You can put it next to the exercise machine that you bought to honor yourself -- but now only serves to put still wet clothes on to dry.

I wish I could, and I did in 1997 when I was 21, but I could not play it as my fingers are too fat and short and I have autism which causes cognitive difficulties in playing chords (Uncordinated) and the like. Also I found the strings saw on my hands.

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I honoured him instead by buying 7 mini guitars of Prince's most famous axes. I mean I love guitars and guitar music, but I have no musical talent at all.