my thoughts on playing the guitar

Interesting read!

I think all of us do what you do in some form or another, whether we want to admit it or not. I don't constantly think all the time about my really successful, RnR Hall of Fame career,( :oops: or lack of it...) but I DO think about it.

I do play a lot in front of the idiot box, but when I'm working on something new or difficult, I really try to listen without distractions. Headphones, quiet room, etc... I'm finding out that the more I listen and the less I worry about the mechanics or technique, the better I get.

BUT, just mindless noodling is fun in it's own right, this is where I discover that I can do things that I thought I couldn't before. Nice when it happens!

Yeah, I do need to practice technique, scales, theory and I do, but I'm getting more and more convinced that I haven't spent enough time in the past to "really hear" what I was playing. H, I just might be able to play that "dim Hungarian Mixolydian/ Ionic hyperspeed super-modified scale" but if it don't sound good in the end, then what the H is it good for?

I STILL live for those moments when my wife is sleeping in the big comfy chair while I play and when I stop, she'll wake up and say, "That was pretty, what was that?" :shock: :D :D (that's when the ego kicks in and I start to think that my middle name has "Eric" or "Clapton" in it! :wink: 8)

I often just let my hands do what they do while occasionally giving them mental nudges in different directions. And despite what some would say, it is music, and not just noodling ... and very often it does sound good. (Ah well, more ego issues over here, Jason).

I'm actually reaching across my guitar to type this, as I often like to noodle along while I read posts.

i NEVER sit and read guitar noise posts without my Fender in my lap. ever

Oh good.
I thought I was the only one.

i just think in terms of pictures

a harsh riff = = skeletons walking

nice eddie hazel sounding light distorted melody = = bird flying or something

classically inspired arpeggio patterns = = count dracula

That's funny, when I listen to music I start to see fingers playing on a fretboard in my mind. That is how I come up with a lot of my stuff, do whatever the fingers in my head are showing me. 8)

that's cool

it's amazing to me how everyone visualizes and perceives music differently, part of the beauty of the art

So many of my heroes licks are burned into my head, I just play til it sounds like them. I don't formally practice. Noodling in front of the TV is a frequent occurance. Sometimes I'll sit down and learn something from sheet music or tab. Bottom line is, I have fun and I (at least I think I) can play. I sing too and I know for a fact I can't do that to save my life. :lol: