Learning To Play The Guitar

[Hou]

I have decided to try and learn how to play the guitar, anyone know how hard it is?

Looking on eBay now for one and I have a ebook on how to learn to play, but im useless so i say give it a few weeks before i brake down crying

Anyone in the yorkshire area wanna teach me?

[Robie]

I have just bought an electric guitar to play around on and I generally use guitar tabs and listening to the songs to learn to play bits. Not very good theory wise but good fun.

http://www.fretplay.com

[Nick SR]

Hmmm,

Well i started uni 3 years ago, bought a guitar 4 months in and have just sold having not had the motivation to learn.

I'm not musical so will leave it to someone who is.

Nick

[stevetubbyturbo]

I went through a phase and learnt to play guitar, its something you will not pick up in five minutes but with time you will get better.

What i found help me was when i brought Metallica's black album and the tab book of the same album and within a day i was plays the first few bars of Enter Sandman, Sad But True and The Unforgiven.

just keep trying until you get it.

All the best with it mate

[Hou]

Cheers guys its something i have always wanted to do since school just for my own pleasure but have never gotten round to it. I feeel nows the time when i can just sit back and relax with nothing important to do on a night

[chris202]

practise practise practise ! Dont be put off at first as it is hard but once you begin to get better you'll enjoy it ! I had a teacher at first , i would advise the same ! just to get you under-way

[King Rocco]

I have decided to try and learn how to play the guitar, anyone know how hard it is?

Looking on ebay now for one and I have a ebook on how to learn to play, but im useless so i say give it a few weeks before i brake down crying

Anyone in the yorkshire area wanna teach me?

Yo dude, its not easy... unfortunately!

Like everything, practise makes perfect, but you need to be committed as it'll take a fair while to get good (i'm still useless!!). When i started i learnt the basic chords, and barr chords (important!!) and looked at tabs too. Guitar tabs are an easy way of starting off...

see www.olga.net (on-line guitar archive) for tons of the stuff.

If your getting an electric its worth knowing what sound you want to go for... if you want to sound like hendrix get something with single-coil pick-ups which gives a kinda cleaner sharper sound, or if you want drrrty harder rock, like queens of the stone age, go for something with humbucker type pick-ups.

Either way, stick with it and be prepared for your finger tips to hurt like hell!! :D

MiKe

[martin_longbow]

It's great. I would go with an acoustic, its cheap, you can take it anywhere. Nothing fancy. If you give up then no big cost issue.

Once you start learnig the finger moves and chords thats when it takes the time and dedication, but with only a few chords you can be strumming along with your favourite tunes, or at least something familiar and that will help the motivation.

If you give yourself a few months you will be strumming along no probs. Give it three to five hours a week and youll be surprised at what you can achieve. Start with lessons or more than 5 hours a week and you will get even farther.

get into it

[Bibbs]

I started about 14 years ago .. and was never any good.

I put it down for about 10 years (I play about 3 times a year).

I've finally got enough time now where I'm willing to pick it up again and try and re-learn.

[Caz SR]

I went through a phase and learnt to play guitar, its something you will not pick up in five minutes but with time you will get better.

What i found help me was when i brought Metallica's black album and the tab book of the same album and within a day i was plays the first few bars of Enter Sandman, Sad But True and The Unforgiven.

just keep trying until you get it.

All the best with it mate

I'd agree with that method of you're learning by yourself It can be quite motivating to know you're learning tunes you like too and if you have something to listen to and compare, it'll help in the early stages. This is how my Brother taught himself to play guitar a few years ago... 6 (or so) electric guitars, several amps and one band later, he's really enjoying it - but it takes a long time.

If you're a bit more serious about it, then how about a few lessons? :)

[Braindead]

Lessons are the key I think. And don't spend a fortune on kit till you're sure it's for you.

Be warned, my son has a bedroom full of kit and this happens at a volume that makes the pictures on the walls shake!

CLICKY

PS It's a 4MB mp3

[GiJoe90]

As said above really. Learn the basic chords first and when your fingers stop bleeding...........try to learn a few songs you like to make it more interesting. It depends on how musical you are as to how quick you'll pick it up.

I'm self taught and have been in a few bands over the last 13 years or so (My God I'm getting old!) When I first started playing I was into Nirvana etc. which is really easy stuff to learn (Power chords all the way baby!)

Stuff like Wonderwall and many other popular songs can be picked up fairly easily. Just make sure you do the things you enjoy and want to learn as well as the boring stuff. I only really play my acoustic these days but I'll have to dust down the electric and effects pedals sometime to rock some tunes out!!

If I still lived in Yorkshire I'd love to come over and show you a few of the basics. If I were you I'd buy a chord book and see how you go, then if you want to go further, get some lessons booked.

Joe

[Woody27]

It's pretty easy to start tbh! But then when you want to move on its hard imo! But yeah i would disagree with an acoustic to play as the action is all wrong (how easy it is to push the strings to the frets in basic terms :P) But yeah i got loadsa mates who play as i in that kinda group! My mate is amazing now and spent loads on it and literally sits in his room playing all day long! I got a bass and just mess around every now and then! They are good fun and learning bar chords, power chords (easy as and you can basically make any song with them :P) and then just some basic fingering songs and you will be away!

Have fun, enjoy and use tabs for easy learning! Also learn things like "wild thing" first to get started! It sometimes helps to look at it first before you even pick up so you get it into your head etc! Tell us how you get on!

[JappyBeast]

I tought myself using chord books and TAB.. its awsome learning your fav songs, you defo have to keep up the practice tho... you grow little pads on the end of your fingers from holding the strings.