In my quest to become the quintessential rock star, I have started learning how to play the guitar. The first week was awful. My fingers hurt, my wrists hurt, my ego hurt. I was ready to throw in the towel. But then I asked myself "What would The Edge do? Did he give up after 1 week? No. He kept going." So I played throw blistered fingers and tender wrists, and 6 weeks later, I can actually play. And I can sing along! It isn't perfect, but it is better than it was 6 weeks ago. Any tips for this noob? I haven't taken a real lesson- all of my learnin' has been online. Here are a few of the resources I have been using and loving:
Chordbook.com:
This is a great site that shows you exactly how to finger a chord and
then lets you strum it so you hear how it is suppose to sound. You can
add your chords to a chord book so they are always there for you. You
can change the key of your guitar if you need to. This has helped me so
much! I keep it open while I play.
Gieson.com provides a great guitar tuner. I think it is very accurate- not as accurate as a store bought, hand held tuner, but pretty close! I use this all the time too. I don't know why, but my guitar tends to get out of tune very easily. The weather? My clumsiness? This site is very convenient for someone who can't tune by ear yet.
Marty Schwartz has been my online guitar instructor. I love his style- he is funny yet serious about music. He is not condescending to a new player and he explains things in a way that I can understand. He takes popular songs and breaks them down so they aren't intimidating. He is a very talented musician and teacher. He has a Youtube page that I visit all the time and his own site- Guitarjamz.com where he offers lessons- some free, some at a small cost. Check him out!
I use Chordie.com to find my chords- very simple. You have to know fingering before you can use this site.
Learnacousticguitar.com is a great resource for players who are ready to learn some songs. It is a one stop shop for chords, tabs, lyrics and videos of the song you are learning.
The only thing that I am having trouble with is locating strumming patterns. I am still too new to watch someone play and figure out the strumming pattern. I need someone to tell me dduudd... I will get there! Post your favorite guitar links and tips in the comment section! I am only a few lessons away from becoming a real rock star... right?
I know nothing about playing guitar, but I have heard about your rock star status. Glad you are keeping up your image :) Good luck with your playing!
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