Chester 524 Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 I started messing around with a guitar I borrowed from my brother at the start of quarantine. been playing every day for about an hour and am getting to be OK at it. I was watching a documentary on Prime yesterday about Slash and he talked about a book he got which taught him chords and stuff like that. does anyone here have a book (or an online course) they could reccomend for me? I'm not looking to be I a band, just want to be able to cover some GNR tunes for my own amusement and maybe jam with some friends. Anyone got any advice for a new guy? how about how you learned, what you learned and what you would do differently? I'll eventually get a guitar teacher to teach me In person just not quite ready for that with Covid still going on. thank you in advance! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoSoRose Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 Learn open chords first A, Am, G, F, D, C, E, Em You'll be able to play along to a lot of songs to get started 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lame ass security Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 10 minutes ago, ZoSoRose said: Learn open chords first A, Am, G, F, D, C, E, Em You'll be able to play along to a lot of songs to get started Great advice, it will help get those callouses going. Don't forget your pick hand, versatility there is important. Like learning fingerpicking and different pick techniques. There will be a time when you get discouraged, it happens. Don't let it get you down, just work through it. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NeonKinight Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 Stay away from modern metal and their sweep picks, fast-as-ass tempos and all that stuff. Try learning easy n' rockin songs first, like Pentagram, Saint Vitus, or even Black Sabbath. If you are more interested in GN'R Songs, start with izzy's guitar first. And remember : Rhytm is more important than notes, and the places you are not playing matter more than those you are playing. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WhazUp Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 (edited) I would say open chords are definitely a great place to begin. Open chords and learning both chord symbol notation and how to read guitar tablature in general - so that way you can work out both some chord shapes and starting to learn some guitar riffs and basic licks from the songs you really dig From there I would say the basic barre chord shapes are a great next step as well as the basic major scale and pentatonic scale. Another thing that could really help in terms of just preparing to start tackling songs could be looking up various warmups for both the fretting hand and the right hand - the right hand especially in terms of different strumming patterns/techniques and picking individual notes Edited August 21, 2020 by WhazUp 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Len Cnut Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 6 hours ago, lame ass security said: Great advice, it will help get those callouses going. Don't forget your pick hand, versatility there is important. Like learning fingerpicking and different pick techniques. This is really important. I 'learned' (still can't really play jack shit, did it for a laugh more than anything) but you quickly get bored unless you realise that half of the work is what your fucking strumming hand is doing, I was so obssessed with the other hand, strumming just looked fuckin' piss easy...but its fuckin' not or rather it requires attention as much as the other hand. Especially if you're into more rhythm orientated shit, the strumming hand is everything. I realised how shit I was at the guitar when I found I could do this: 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dazey Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 7 hours ago, Chester 524 said: I started messing around with a guitar I borrowed from my brother at the start of quarantine. been playing every day for about an hour and am getting to be OK at it. I was watching a documentary on Prime yesterday about Slash and he talked about a book he got which taught him chords and stuff like that. does anyone here have a book (or an online course) they could reccomend for me? I'm not looking to be I a band, just want to be able to cover some GNR tunes for my own amusement and maybe jam with some friends. Anyone got any advice for a new guy? how about how you learned, what you learned and what you would do differently? I'll eventually get a guitar teacher to teach me In person just not quite ready for that with Covid still going on. thank you in advance! This guy's site is really great for beginners. https://www.justinguitar.com/site-map-and-lesson-structure 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silverburst80 Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 (edited) have fun, don't pressure yourself. Learn easy one note cool riffs....Smoke on the water(Deep Purple), Come as you Are(Nirvana), Walk(Pantera)etc....yknow ones you can crank up and that have a good rythm....rythm is key and you can really lock into those without being Malcom Young if ya know what i mean. Learn the basic chords obviously Edited August 21, 2020 by Silverburst80 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Voodoochild Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 (edited) Besides all of what those gentleman already said, I would add: try as hard as you can to develop a good ear. Do not rely only on online tabs and chords, try to learn how to play a song by ear. Obviously, you should focus on easier songs first. Edited August 21, 2020 by Voodoochild 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soon Posted August 21, 2020 Share Posted August 21, 2020 As far as instruction goes. Theres lots of good video series for free on youtube. In my opinion its important to find one you like and stick with it from the start the the end of the series. But also do one-off video lessons with others to keep things fun and varied. Most of all, watch Stevie T when the going gets tough! Sometimes after the amps turned off for the day and Im still working to burn a scale pattern into my brain, I like to watch guitarists vlogs on YT as I play. It makes me feel plugged into the wider world of guitar and keeps me hungry. Mary Spender comes to mind. And I agree with others about everything said, including the importance of the right hand. Picking techniques and rhythmic technique. Cash, Willie and Bluegrass music was where I really had my breakthrough with the importance of even very subtle rhythmic technique. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chester 524 Posted August 21, 2020 Author Share Posted August 21, 2020 sincere thanks to all of you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post Towelie Posted August 22, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted August 22, 2020 Give up now. 1 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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