Early Guitar Playing Milestones

[zigzag]

when I discovered (w/o help, or Tab, or reading music) the ancient "Box-Blues" pattern.

 

Me, too, but it wasn't the blues pattern, it was the A, G, and E patterns of the pentatonic scale. By 1985, I had been playing chords for 20 years and decided I wanted to learn how to play lead. I stumbled onto the major/minor pentatonic scale thru trial and error and realized that I could play it over almost anything.

[milod]

Well, I've been pickin' over 50 years. It's almost as though I learn something new every time I play. Dunno how or why, nor can I say how, but... it just happens that way.

 

m

[darling67]

When I learned it was completely by trial and error. There were no videos, no tabs, no lessons, no nothing. Just playing along with records.

 

One time I saw a picture of Hendryx playing a 9 chord with his thumb over the top and I was like "Whoa that's cool." So I was doing that for the next six months.

 

At one point I finally figured out a scale that I later found out was the dorian mode. I called it the Allman Brothers scale. Hendryx and Clapton were playing that too. I played it at certain positions on the fretboard. When I picked up the guitar again like 30 years later I realized that I was playing the dorian mode in the three most popular positions the whole time. I realized that I had been on the right track the whole time. I was like "O.K. I'm not as big a dummy as I thought!"

 

badbluesplayer, you sound like me… I could have written the above myself! LOL!

 

I don't know much "theory" when I comes to playing. All my learning—my early formative learning—was done from listening to my records and playing along. I'd tell other musicians, "Play the "Driven To Tears" chord, or "Play that final 'No Reply' C chord...", etc., etc.

 

Many years after—when I'd been playing for a while—I took lessons and learned (rather, was informed about) what it was I'd been doing all that time, in official musical theoretic terms. I was like, "Ok! So I am playing a mixolydian scale here! Got it!"

 

Other milestones were learning the riff to "Day Tripper", but not only that… figuring out, all on my own, that it's the same riff for each chord—just moved up a one or two strings on the neck....

 

... a bit later on, figuring out the, "Mine's a tale that can't be told..." guitar part, following the solo from "Ramble On". A lot of hammer-ons was the key to that

[charlie brown]

I too, am completely "self-taught." I'm sure (now) that theory, and lessons,

would have made my learning easier. BUT, knowing me, I'm not at all sure I

would have been nearly as interested/intrigued, by the process? It might have

seemed more like "work"/Study, and less like FUN?! Who knows? I did learn,

and share things, from others, with others. That was half the fun, alone.

 

I still don't know, what I'm doing, technically! But, it's still FUN!

 

 

CB

[darling67]

I too, am completely "self-taught." I'm sure (now) that theory, and lessons,

would have made my learning easier. BUT, knowing me, I'm not at all sure I

would have been nearly as interested/intrigued, by the process? It might have

seemed more like "work"/Study, and less like FUN?! Who knows? I did learn,

and share things, from others, with others. That was half the fun, alone.

 

I still don't know, what I'm doing, technically! But, it's still FUN!

 

 

CB

 

There are times—which are few and far between—where I wish I knew a little more "theory". Usually that's when I am playing with people who ARE more schooled. I just pretend I am listening and know what they're talking about when they start going on about "5ths" and ""pentatonics", etc., etc... Once they're finished with their mumbo-jumbo, I just play what feels good. LOL!

 

I agree, CB. I just had very little interest in "book learning" when it came to the guitar. It was much more fun—much more of what I set out to accomplish—learning from listening, and then playing over and over again until it sounded good. By the time I was a senior in high school, I had advanced enough to be able to figure out how to play songs like, "Starship Trooper" by Yes (the descending guitar part that has all the phaser applied to it). I remember one afternoon, up at school, I was playing that song in my dorm room and a guy who lived in an adjacent dorm heard me. He didn't know how to play the, "Though you've seen there, please don't say a word" lick. So, I showed him.

 

I mean, why would I have wanted to "read" how to play that when I knew that—with practice and a lot of listens—I'd figure it out myself and be able to show someone how to play? LOL!

 

[milod]

Something unlikely to shock anyone here, I figured when I was starting up that I'd do like the old "folkies," be they blues, jazz, country... and basically watch a lot, etc. Yes, I was just turning 18 which made me "old," but I'd already played music longer than I could remember even then, so although my sight reading skills still stink, I knew enough to play by ear with others - in short, the concepts of keys, chords, etc. I'd already played trumpet and once or twice in a gig some drums for both jazz and "rock" of the era.

 

But I wanted too much for a teacher. Still, I was playing in public decently enough as a "folkie" that nobody was embarrassed. Not having started watching folks fingerpick, I kinda picked up how to get pretty much the same results in different ways.

 

I don't think that "loose" perspective that made me want to be able to play Bach and Delta Blues, Carter Family and "Stormy Weather," is necessarily what everybody should do. Almost certainly to the contrary.

 

But... I'd say that in general it reinforced my inclination to learn, learn, learn, and yet to do my own thing regardless. That didn't always go over with some folks who wanted a direct copy of what somebody else did and that wasn't what I wanted to do.

 

Life's interesting. I figure if I don't do my own thing, it ain't me but an imitation of somebody else. But I learn something new at times even without picking up the guitar, just thinking about it.

 

So... I have no claim to be all that good, but at least it's what's in my head, not an effort specifically to copy anybody. Yeah, if I flatpick "Wildwood Flower" it sounds like everybody else; fingerpicking it, it's more "me" and somewhat different every time.

 

Izzat good or bad? Dunno.

 

m

[Izzy]

For me an "aha" moment was letting go.

 

I play piano and I can, with a warm up, "loosen" my fingers so that I can pass from key to key with ease following a pattern in time. Piano feels like a regimented, familiar, comforting task and I fear no songs on piano. I get very irritated with the difficulty level of some songs and quit prematurely because I know I need more exercises and better technique (which self-taught pianists gotta figure out on our own) before I can tackle something like Chopin's Fantasie, but I do not fear piano.

 

I fear guitar. Last month I let go of some of that fear. I let go of trying to be good and trying to be perfect and I let myself play, not sloppy because I kept on time, which is key (thanks milod) but less scared. "It doesn't have to be perfect." I told myself. That made a difference, you won't believe.

 

Guitar is that hot girl I asked out and she said yes. "I can't believe she likes me," is all I can think when we're together and it keeps me from being comfortable on our dates and I can't muster the courage to kiss her. Well, last week I stopped thinking about my hair or if I smelled okay or wondering if she really liked me. I just kissed her, damn it. And she kissed back

[rct]

It was a long time ago, and there were many. Most had to do with people, and I've managed to thank all of them at some point. One moment with a record that stands out was Christmas of 76, Wipe The Windows Check The Oil Dollar Gas, mmkay? Can't Lose What You Never Had, getting to the last verse there are, as usual, about thirty things going on and Butch gets them to where they have to get back to something normal, Betts taps a note with his right hand. Took me a while, but I got it.

 

rct

[vangoghsear]

My other Ah haaa moment was when I discovered that scales could be moved up and down the neck. When I learned this, I created a slide rule out of illustration board and some clear plastic that represented the fretboard and strings and the slide had the scale painted on it. I could see every note where it occurred on a fretboard in whatever pattern slide I was using moved to any key. My lead play jumped forward that year.

[cookieman15061]

I just remember how proud I was to have finally figured out Blackbird on my acoustic.

 

Proceeded to play for anyone and everyone that would sit still for a couple minutes.

 

My family may still hate that song. lol

 

 

 

[saturn]

I remember years ago when I learned to play "Lenny" by SRV. Once I learned that technique, I realized I could easily play similar songs like "Wind Cries Mary". It also opened my eyes on how to mix the major and minor pentatonic scales.

[BigDave78]

As funny as it may seem one moment that really got me was when I learned the classic riff from the movie top gun. Loved that movie as a kid so when I got my first guitar that was the first riff i wanted to learn. Havent played it in about 20 years, maybe I'll re learn it.