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Learned how to play.
What do you wish you would’ve done differently?
- Thread starter metropolis_4
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This is my biggest one.
As a kid I spent so much time focusing on speed. I hit a point where I could play fast, but I had nothing to say. I was really good at repeating what others had played, but I didn’t have anything of my own to play.
I thought I need to prepare for playing in prog bands, and then ironically my first band was a jam band that was all original improv and it completely kicked my ass!
Man, imrpovising is all we did back in high school…..but with no theory knowledge + metronome, I basically just assaulted my friends with a whole lot of really wrong notes, repeatedly.
In case anyone forgot-
la szum
Goatlord
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Oh, I was totally Captain Shreddy McShrederson Wanna-Be. 
Not that anyone else was.
It was inspiring and brutal. Like an odd combination of music and athletics. The Guitar Olympics.
I honestly didn't get my head out of my ass about it all until I hurt myself pretty badly trying to
force feed myself a bunch of reps on guitar. That resulted in an 11 year absence from playing
electric. So I strummed chords and wrote songs, and got back to what I loved about music
in the first place. Songs. After I got done being depressed and feeling defeated.
Obviously, speaking only for myself here. The trends at the time were right in step to conspire
with a young man's need to be competitive and ambitious. I don't miss those days and my direction
at the time. Glad I had it, though. Learned a lot about what I wanted, what I didn't, and what I was,
and was not, capable of.
Not that anyone else was.
It was inspiring and brutal. Like an odd combination of music and athletics. The Guitar Olympics.
I honestly didn't get my head out of my ass about it all until I hurt myself pretty badly trying to
force feed myself a bunch of reps on guitar. That resulted in an 11 year absence from playing
electric. So I strummed chords and wrote songs, and got back to what I loved about music
in the first place. Songs. After I got done being depressed and feeling defeated.
Obviously, speaking only for myself here. The trends at the time were right in step to conspire
with a young man's need to be competitive and ambitious. I don't miss those days and my direction
at the time. Glad I had it, though. Learned a lot about what I wanted, what I didn't, and what I was,
and was not, capable of.
- Messages
- 3,842
Luckily, I never fell into the whole competitive shred thing. I enjoyed it enough to push myself, but by the early to mid 90's there was a huge shift, and my band was more of a songwriting, jam style band. Most of my tones were clean with the occasional wah, phaser, and od.Oh, I was totally Captain Shreddy McShrederson Wanna-Be.
Not that anyone else was.
It was inspiring and brutal. Like an odd combination of music and athletics. The Guitar Olympics.
I honestly didn't get my head out of my ass about it all until I hurt myself pretty badly trying to
force feed myself a bunch of reps on guitar. That resulted in an 11 year absence from playing
electric. So I strummed chords and wrote songs, and got back to what I loved about music
in the first place. Songs. After I got done being depressed and feeling defeated.
Obviously, speaking only for myself here. The trends at the time were right in step to conspire
with a young man's need to be competitive and ambitious. I don't miss those days and my direction
at the time. Glad I had it, though. Learned a lot about what I wanted, what I didn't, and what I was,
and was not, capable of.
la szum
Goatlord
- Messages
- 11,089
I don't think I knew it was competitive at the time, FA, but I sure was measuring my abilities against a very
narrow stream of what music is. I don't regret it. I learned a lot about theory and it pushed me. I just think
it was more guitar-centric and a little narrow in its focus. Feel like I grew more as a "musician" after I got hurt
and had to give up electric for all those years.
Sascha Franck
Rock Star
- Messages
- 4,275
I was lucky/talented enough so that a lot of things came to me pretty much by nature. So I concentrated on those, which defenitely was a good thing. However, as I am quite lazy (one of the things I defenitely regret as it's quite a recurring theme until today...), I simply skipped the things that didn't come by nature way too often. Namely many organisational things such as sight reading. Or fixed practice blocks where I would concentrate, say, on single techniques at least for a bit. Instead, I just noodled.
As a result, when I made this thing my profession, I often ran into situations where this lack of discipline (both in the past and at that very moment) was good enough to keep certain doors closed. Which I sort of realized but didn't really care about because during most of the times I was still playing very well paid gigs. The fact that they were partially shitty corporate gigs didn't put me off all too much as long as I could party and have a rather relaxed life.
I only started to truly realize what I might've missed out on during the last years, seeing folks coming from my kinda ballpark/area/enviroment, possibly even less talented than me but vastly more successful in the long run simply because they knew how to organize things.
It's especially frustrating because these days, when I actually manage to sit down and concentrate, there's pretty much instant success. Just that it's too late in my life to start all over or so. So all I can do is some small steps to at least improve some parts of the overall situation.
Guess my point is this: Analyze the situation, then look at your talents and improve there, but also look at the shortcomings and aquire some discipline to care about those. And only party when it's party time. And don't drink.
As a result, when I made this thing my profession, I often ran into situations where this lack of discipline (both in the past and at that very moment) was good enough to keep certain doors closed. Which I sort of realized but didn't really care about because during most of the times I was still playing very well paid gigs. The fact that they were partially shitty corporate gigs didn't put me off all too much as long as I could party and have a rather relaxed life.
I only started to truly realize what I might've missed out on during the last years, seeing folks coming from my kinda ballpark/area/enviroment, possibly even less talented than me but vastly more successful in the long run simply because they knew how to organize things.
It's especially frustrating because these days, when I actually manage to sit down and concentrate, there's pretty much instant success. Just that it's too late in my life to start all over or so. So all I can do is some small steps to at least improve some parts of the overall situation.
Guess my point is this: Analyze the situation, then look at your talents and improve there, but also look at the shortcomings and aquire some discipline to care about those. And only party when it's party time. And don't drink.
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Alright, deep breath. Let's see if TGF can actually store a post this long. With the "benefit" of hindsight (ugh) I'd say I got nearly everything backwards. So here's all my, "Do as I say, not as I did" advice. I can't believe I'm posting this...
-Humiliate Yourself Early and Often
The minute I picked up the guitar, and for reasons still unbeknownst to me, the people around me started telling one another what a brilliant musician I was. This, despite barely (or in some cases never) having heard me play. It's not that I "bought into my own hype". Quite the contrary. But when people are arbitrarily singing your praises, it becomes incredibly challenging to pick up your instrument and prove them wrong. (Or even right. Either way.) So instead of performing, even for casual audiences, I tucked myself away and prepared... to prepare... to prepare... to finally present something that would rise to these increasingly demented expectations. (Mine and theirs.)
But you can't learn to perform without performing. I wish I had gotten out there and played terribly in absolutely terrible bands at absolutely terrible gigs. Immediately. You're supposed to suck in the beginning, because you're a beginner. If you wait until you've become an avowed, middle-aged "guitar expert", it's going to be harder to convince anyone you were shooting from the hip at last night's open mic. And that pressure will take its toll on the music.
-Learn a Zillion Covers
Learn everything. Learn it the right way. Learn it the wrong way. Learn good music. Learn shit music. Learn so much it all blurs together and you forget the parts. Learn it again. Or don't. It doesn't matter; you're a better musician now.
I got it in my head at an early age that I should be writing original material instead. I had a good foundation of technique and music theory, but almost no repertoire, and no idiomatic vocabulary or extended technique for established genres. So I spent many years reinventing wheels and then throwing them away because they didn't feel "important". (See also: "Nothing Is Original".) I also had it in my head that my capacity to learn was limited, so I should focus only on the music that was nearest and dearest. This too is folly: anything you learn supports everything else you want to learn. Want to get better at that song you're struggling with? Work on a different one (or three) for a while. Want to be a better guitarist? Learn the horn parts. Want to be a more interesting heavy metal soloist? Learn some country licks. And so on.
-Don't Put Anyone (or Anything) On A Pedestal
This one is kind of crazy - maybe even unique to me - but I actually never learned to play my favorite songs as a kid. I couldn't quite distinguish between the playing (often overdubbed to hell and back) and the production. I'd listen to the records and think, "Yeah, this guy is some kind of god. I could never do that." It didn't quite occur to me that all of the notes are right there, somewhere, on the fingerboard. It wasn't until my 40's that I started to double back and learn songs and think, "OMG this is all so simple..." A bit sad.
-Nothing Is Original; Just Go With It
Everything is subject to influence, just as everything is subject to cause and effect. If you sit around looking for the completely unprecedented riff, or chord sequence, or rhyme scheme, or anything else... then you're going to be sitting around for a very long time. (Especially if your first love is 3 minute, 3 chord rock songs anyway.) That guy whose lick you're worried you may have stolen? He stole it from Chuck Berry.
-Resist Inertia and Be Mindful of Opportunity Costs
Focus is all well and good, but don't paint yourself into a corner. (See also: "Learn a Zillion" and "No Pedestals".) I'm not a multi-tasker by nature. As a younger player, I had a tendency to choose an approach, and commit to the point of obsession. E.g. I had a very prescribed approach to theory; I had a very prescribed approach to left hand and right hand technique; I had very strong opinions about gear; and so on. I could have benefitted by keeping my mind more open to alternatives. (In keeping with all of this/ perhaps the cause of some of this: A few years after I began playing, I got involved with... let's just say "an unconventional school of music", and focused on their approach for many years. I considered myself a "lifer". I came out the other side disillusioned - perhaps even embittered - and had to take a post-mortem. I had experienced a lot; learned a lot. But there was also a tremendous opportunity cost. Through the years invested in this very specific approach to the instrument, what might I have accomplished by following another path, or paths, instead? On some scale, we make these decisions every day.)
-Record Everything (Or As Much As Possible)
And don't delete it. Share it even if it sucks. That's you on the tape, whether you like it or not. "But I was playing so much better earlier; the red light just freaks me out!" Then I guess you're going to have to learn how to play whilst freaked out. (Aside: oh, have I not mentioned stage fright yet? See: "Humiliate Yourself Early and Often".)
-Don't Be Afraid to Spend a Little Money On Gear
(Also, don't spend all your money on gear LOL.) I grew up afraid to spend money in general, and when that came to bear on guitar-related decisions, it definitely robbed me of some opportunities. I probably should have "geared up" with a proper amp much earlier in life, which might have gotten me into some (terrible: see above) bands. And I somewhat regret having gone all-in on modeling back when modeling still sounded like ass, but that's what I felt my budget allowed. In retrospect, if I'd educated myself to better understand what kind of amplification I preferred (and how to buy and sell used without taking a bath), I could have been rocking good tube amps straight through.
-Don't Try To Be the Drunkest Guy In the Room Every Night
This one's a no brainer, of course. But everyone from "Arthur" to Ozzy left me in a pretty confused state as a young (and eventually not so young) man, and I wasted a lot of time trying to be as "rock and roll" as possible. Wish I could get that time back.
And that's my confessional/ self-help book. You're welcome/ I'm sorry, depending.
With the "benefit" of hindsight (ugh) I'd say I got nearly everything backwards. So here's all my, "Do as I say, not as I did" advice. I can't believe I'm posting this...-Humiliate Yourself Early and Often
The minute I picked up the guitar, and for reasons still unbeknownst to me, the people around me started telling one another what a brilliant musician I was. This, despite barely (or in some cases never) having heard me play. It's not that I "bought into my own hype". Quite the contrary. But when people are arbitrarily singing your praises, it becomes incredibly challenging to pick up your instrument and prove them wrong. (Or even right. Either way.) So instead of performing, even for casual audiences, I tucked myself away and prepared... to prepare... to prepare... to finally present something that would rise to these increasingly demented expectations. (Mine and theirs.)
But you can't learn to perform without performing. I wish I had gotten out there and played terribly in absolutely terrible bands at absolutely terrible gigs. Immediately. You're supposed to suck in the beginning, because you're a beginner. If you wait until you've become an avowed, middle-aged "guitar expert", it's going to be harder to convince anyone you were shooting from the hip at last night's open mic. And that pressure will take its toll on the music.
-Learn a Zillion Covers
Learn everything. Learn it the right way. Learn it the wrong way. Learn good music. Learn shit music. Learn so much it all blurs together and you forget the parts. Learn it again. Or don't. It doesn't matter; you're a better musician now.
I got it in my head at an early age that I should be writing original material instead. I had a good foundation of technique and music theory, but almost no repertoire, and no idiomatic vocabulary or extended technique for established genres. So I spent many years reinventing wheels and then throwing them away because they didn't feel "important". (See also: "Nothing Is Original".) I also had it in my head that my capacity to learn was limited, so I should focus only on the music that was nearest and dearest. This too is folly: anything you learn supports everything else you want to learn. Want to get better at that song you're struggling with? Work on a different one (or three) for a while. Want to be a better guitarist? Learn the horn parts. Want to be a more interesting heavy metal soloist? Learn some country licks. And so on.
-Don't Put Anyone (or Anything) On A Pedestal
This one is kind of crazy - maybe even unique to me - but I actually never learned to play my favorite songs as a kid. I couldn't quite distinguish between the playing (often overdubbed to hell and back) and the production. I'd listen to the records and think, "Yeah, this guy is some kind of god. I could never do that." It didn't quite occur to me that all of the notes are right there, somewhere, on the fingerboard. It wasn't until my 40's that I started to double back and learn songs and think, "OMG this is all so simple..." A bit sad.
-Nothing Is Original; Just Go With It
Everything is subject to influence, just as everything is subject to cause and effect. If you sit around looking for the completely unprecedented riff, or chord sequence, or rhyme scheme, or anything else... then you're going to be sitting around for a very long time. (Especially if your first love is 3 minute, 3 chord rock songs anyway.) That guy whose lick you're worried you may have stolen? He stole it from Chuck Berry.
-Resist Inertia and Be Mindful of Opportunity Costs
Focus is all well and good, but don't paint yourself into a corner. (See also: "Learn a Zillion" and "No Pedestals".) I'm not a multi-tasker by nature. As a younger player, I had a tendency to choose an approach, and commit to the point of obsession. E.g. I had a very prescribed approach to theory; I had a very prescribed approach to left hand and right hand technique; I had very strong opinions about gear; and so on. I could have benefitted by keeping my mind more open to alternatives. (In keeping with all of this/ perhaps the cause of some of this: A few years after I began playing, I got involved with... let's just say "an unconventional school of music", and focused on their approach for many years. I considered myself a "lifer". I came out the other side disillusioned - perhaps even embittered - and had to take a post-mortem. I had experienced a lot; learned a lot. But there was also a tremendous opportunity cost. Through the years invested in this very specific approach to the instrument, what might I have accomplished by following another path, or paths, instead? On some scale, we make these decisions every day.)
-Record Everything (Or As Much As Possible)
And don't delete it. Share it even if it sucks. That's you on the tape, whether you like it or not. "But I was playing so much better earlier; the red light just freaks me out!" Then I guess you're going to have to learn how to play whilst freaked out. (Aside: oh, have I not mentioned stage fright yet? See: "Humiliate Yourself Early and Often".)
-Don't Be Afraid to Spend a Little Money On Gear
(Also, don't spend all your money on gear LOL.) I grew up afraid to spend money in general, and when that came to bear on guitar-related decisions, it definitely robbed me of some opportunities. I probably should have "geared up" with a proper amp much earlier in life, which might have gotten me into some (terrible: see above) bands. And I somewhat regret having gone all-in on modeling back when modeling still sounded like ass, but that's what I felt my budget allowed. In retrospect, if I'd educated myself to better understand what kind of amplification I preferred (and how to buy and sell used without taking a bath), I could have been rocking good tube amps straight through.
-Don't Try To Be the Drunkest Guy In the Room Every Night
This one's a no brainer, of course. But everyone from "Arthur" to Ozzy left me in a pretty confused state as a young (and eventually not so young) man, and I wasted a lot of time trying to be as "rock and roll" as possible. Wish I could get that time back.
And that's my confessional/ self-help book. You're welcome/ I'm sorry, depending.
Last edited:
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False modesty, methinks. Your recordings are fantastic!Learned how to play.
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- 13,457
Thank you sir. It's been too long
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- 3,684
We all agree! :)Thank you sir. It's been too long
itchyfingers
Roadie
- Messages
- 497
I try to always look at the positives in life and I don’t really have any regrets, but if I could go back and do it over again, I would:
1. Start playing at an earlier age. I didn’t pick up guitar until my last year of college, and I missed out on those years of teenage woodshedding.
2. Stick to lessons. I got some very basic knowledge under my belt and bailed on my first instructor so I could focus on learning songs for my band(s). Then slowly improved for the next 10-15 years. Almost all of my growth toward becoming a well rounded guitarist has come from the time I’ve put in with my current instructor.
1. Start playing at an earlier age. I didn’t pick up guitar until my last year of college, and I missed out on those years of teenage woodshedding.
2. Stick to lessons. I got some very basic knowledge under my belt and bailed on my first instructor so I could focus on learning songs for my band(s). Then slowly improved for the next 10-15 years. Almost all of my growth toward becoming a well rounded guitarist has come from the time I’ve put in with my current instructor.
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- 3,684
I think about this one a lot. The trouble is, after a certain point, you need to find the right instructor. Not just a good player, but a good teacher - one who can identify your needs and address them efficiently. You've gotta kiss a lot frogs, as the saying goes.
And these days, there's so much instructional material available online... I'm not saying it's a substitute for a good teacher, but if you keep at it, it can be better than a mediocre one. :)
Sascha Franck
Rock Star
- Messages
- 4,275
Oh, I should've learned to like (or at least like to play) Country way earlier. Instead I hated it. In the end, there's possibly nothing else that taught me so much about certain aspects of guitar playing and music in general than country (could get into the details, but not in this thread). Possibly could've been German Schlager or some other kinds of folk as well, but in my case it's been Country.
Fwiw, I also learned a hell of a lot of things from playing waltzes and such at weddings (similar ballpark as Country).
What I'm saying is: Don't fear looking at things you don't instantly like, rather check them out. You can still ditch them later.
Fwiw, I also learned a hell of a lot of things from playing waltzes and such at weddings (similar ballpark as Country).
What I'm saying is: Don't fear looking at things you don't instantly like, rather check them out. You can still ditch them later.
Bruce
Shredder
- Messages
- 1,859
I thought I had things pretty well figured out, and then I went to a Brad Paisley concert.
As far as regrets, I regret my unrealistic goals early on. Although being young and dreaming of taking over the world is fun, it’s a huge waste of time and energy.
I also regret not protecting my hearing. Like so many others my age, 6-8k is my permanent neighbor living in my head.
Bruce
Shredder
- Messages
- 1,859
I firmly believe young minds work differently and fuse to things in a way that cannot happen later on in life.
Red Solo Cup
Groupie
- Messages
- 80
Kept up with formal learning since a kid. I could play and read for French horn, trumpet, cornet, baritone and piano back then. As an adult, I am self-taught and a by ear learner, mostly just for guitar. I just wish I knew what I was doing and why certain stuff works and other does not.
