Learning Progression

Are you located in an area without guitar teachers? If not, IMHO a few hands on lessons would be of great value to you. If no teachers are available, I would try to find someone at work (school) who plays that you could get together with. For me, it was much easier to have someone show what they were doing rather than just reading about how to do it. Good luck.

Denny

There might be some songs you want to learn on YouTube. And there might even be lessons for that song on YouTube. Lots of great stuff there.

I think you should try to find a couple of good guitar songs you want to learn and then find the material or teacher to get you there. Scales are fine but making music (doing songs) is what gets most to work at it.

Denny-

I've been searching for teachers in the area, and not having much success. If there are private guitar teachers in the area, they have not learned about this thing called "advertising". Its actually quite strange, where I live is a very "artsy" area. And yet, its a 45 minute drive just to get to a store that carries simple things like picks and strings. If I lived a reasonable distance from that place, I know for a fact they offer lessons; but thats not a practical solution in my case.

As for work; I dont think there is anyone there who plays guitar, and its not a big place. Anyways, I cant say that I would want to spend any more time with any of my co-workers then I absolutely have to :?

Ive been considering the local community college, I know they have a music program.

There might be some songs you want to learn on YouTube. And there might even be lessons for that song on YouTube. Lots of great stuff there.

I think you should try to find a couple of good guitar songs you want to learn and then find the material or teacher to get you there. Scales are fine but making music (doing songs) is what gets most to work at it.

Ive started using stuff on justinguitar.com, the videos are very helpful.

Actually, I have a couple specific songs Id like to learn; unfortunately, its going to be a LONG time before I am able to play Voodoo Child. See above re: finding a teacher.

Ive started using stuff on justinguitar.com, the videos are very helpful.

I came across another free lesson video site recently which you might like:

http://www.vanderbilly.com/videoList.aspx

I think people over-complicate things like this. It simply, IMHO, boils down to this: what can't you do that you wish you could? Answer that and you'll know what to do. All the things you mentioned must be learned one day or the other so just pick one. Play a scale over a metronome while saying the names of the notes out loud. Then get a backing track, or play on your own with that scale. Try bare-chords, fingerpicking, whatever. Just do it.

So you want to play Voodoo Chile? Get the tab and play it. Sure, it might take a week before the first five notes sound well but who cares. Once you're done with it you'll find yourself being much better able to quickly learn songs you never dared to try before. Every next step is going to be tough, and if it ain't tough it ain't the next step. Get an instruction book with cd on whatever topic you like and do every excercise in it. Keep on reaching for higher branches and soon you'll be way up in the tree.

I think people over-complicate things like this. It simply, IMHO, boils down to this: what can't you do that you wish you could? Answer that and you'll know what to do. All the things you mentioned must be learned one day or the other so just pick one. Play a scale over a metronome while saying the names of the notes out loud. Then get a backing track, or play on your own with that scale. Try bare-chords, fingerpicking, whatever. Just do it.

So you want to play Voodoo Chile? Get the tab and play it. Sure, it might take a week before the first five notes sound well but who cares. Once you're done with it you'll find yourself being much better able to quickly learn songs you never dared to try before. Every next step is going to be tough, and if it ain't tough it ain't the next step. Get an instruction book with cd on whatever topic you like and do every excercise in it. Keep on reaching for higher branches and soon you'll be way up in the tree.

Thanks for the wisdom . . . I think you are right, I was overthinking the whole concept. I was looking at all the things that I needed to learn, and it seemed kind of overwhelming. I guess I need to stop being scared of things and get on with learning them . . .

When you start out learning guitar, it is pretty simple and obvious where to start. You have to learn how to hold the guitar, how to fret the strings, how to play chords; and somewhere in there you get the lesson about "You are not going to be Eddie Van Halen anytime soon". :lol:If you get the POD, Pick of Destiny you can be like Eddie :P

But What do you want to do on the guitar?

Do you want to play Metal, Rock, Blues? Slide guitar? Do you want to stay in standard tuning?

Lots of questions here.

It's all good.

I'll play the fool and answer your rhetorical question 8) I lean towards blues/rock, and I really like that Texas blues sound, a la Stevie Ray Vaughn, ZZ Top, and lots of guys who I've heard but cant name :roll: Slide guitar? What Ive heard of it, I like the sound, maybe I'll try it some day. Standard Tuning-I dont know enough to answer that question yet LOL

I think people over-complicate things like this. It simply, IMHO, boils down to this: what can't you do that you wish you could? Answer that and you'll know what to do. All the things you mentioned must be learned one day or the other so just pick one. Play a scale over a metronome while saying the names of the notes out loud. Then get a backing track, or play on your own with that scale. Try bare-chords, fingerpicking, whatever. Just do it.

So you want to play Voodoo Chile? Get the tab and play it. Sure, it might take a week before the first five notes sound well but who cares. Once you're done with it you'll find yourself being much better able to quickly learn songs you never dared to try before. Every next step is going to be tough, and if it ain't tough it ain't the next step. Get an instruction book with cd on whatever topic you like and do every excercise in it. Keep on reaching for higher branches and soon you'll be way up in the tree.

+1 to that!
Here's another way of looking at it. Put a stake in the ground and start marching towards it. Set an obtainable goal. Do what you have to, to reach that goal. What you'll need to learn will become quite visible to you in no time. :D

Blueline's right about Ignar being right. (Sorry, old movie line reference) :lol:

Sometimes you do not discover what you need to learn until you try to learn it. Furthermore, even after starting to learn something, you may find it difficult to articulate the most prominent question.

Oh, and you may find that you need to learn an easier song in order to get some knowledge to apply to a more difficult song. Many people put songs on back shelves for months or even years until they get.

Lots more i could say, but much of it could be irrelavant. The bottom line, is, are you still stuck? I'm not sure if we helped at all or not. We certainly can.....like it or not. :twisted:

The bottom line, is, are you still stuck? I'm not sure if we helped at all or not. We certainly can.....like it or not. :twisted:

:lol: :lol: :lol: That's right. Expect the unexpected. One night, you'll be sitting in your living room. There'll be a soft knock on the door.

You: "WHo is it?"
Us: Ummm..candy gram

You: "Who, I didn't order any candy'
Us: "Um...Jehovah's Witness"

You: No one's home
Then we breakdown the door...Ha ha...

(The old SNL bit- "Land Shark"...went something like that , eh guys???) Or was that the Killer Bees?

Restraining orders.....HAH! Don't even bother. We don't need to shteenkin' restraining orders. :mrgreen:

Thanks for the wisdom . . . I think you are right, I was overthinking the whole concept. I was looking at all the things that I needed to learn, and it seemed kind of overwhelming. I guess I need to stop being scared of things and get on with learning them . . .

This is one of the reasons I stopped taking lessons after 6 months. I don't want to do pentatonic scales, or chord theory or anything like that right now. I don't want "homework". Later down the road, yes. Right now I just want to put chords and notes together, figure them out and have them sound like the songs I like. I want to work on it at my own pace and have fun.

All great advice, I'll add that if you are into instructional materials, I'd suggest "Blues You Can Use"...I think its a great resource and the lessons are presented very well. Good luck and enjoy the ride.