The "learn more boxes" thing just completely changed my mindset. When I was studying music in Australia (Dan, you'll know the teacher, and the reputation that went along with them), I was told I can't keep playing pentatonic based solos. I've never been able to break out, but learnt other boxes without realising, I had that hang up for 20 years. You guys just lifted that guilt. Thank you!!!! Also, can I suggestion some other "things I wish I'd known" Switch between playing with your fingers and your pick Use a heavy pick, but experiment with different shapes - this was a huge game changer for me when I found the Jazz III Sing along with your solos (even if you can't sing, you'll focus on the rhythm) Rhythm is more important than the notes Don't listen to yourself when you're playing live, listen to the band Write on an acoustic guitar, then take it to the electric Practise going up an arpeggio and back down the scale and vice verse (another huge game changer) An octave is up 2 frets and down 2 strings (except when you land on the B string) Practice playing a solo on a single string Repeat an idea to build tension, repeat it until it's uncomfortable Transcribe horn solos Don't start playing right at the beginning of your solo, wait for the 4 chord in a blues to build tension Flirt with playing a semi-tone up in a blues when you're on the 1 chord Stand up when you practise Practise in front of a mirror to judge your technique Try bends with different fingers (eg bending with my middle finger gives a different effect to my 3rd) Learn some right hand classical guitar techniques. Keep a guitar out and available all the time. Great episode guys, you lifted my curse!!!!
LOVE the comment about playing to AC/DC records. Story time: When my instructor first started introducing scales, modes, and playing blues/rock licks, there was basically no mention of timing, rhythm, or anything particularly musical. Quite frankly, I didn't enjoy it and nearly gave up. Then I put the new (at the time) AC/DC album "Black Ice" into my brother's stereo CD player, and instead of the Angus solo blaring through the speakers, I turned up my amp just a bit and started to play a groove that I thought was cool, but not quite spot on with the record. Fast forward about a week or two, and my father comes barging into my room with his head rocking to some AC/DC, but he is shocked when he sees me playing guitar over the blaring stereo with my amp absolutely DIMED. I turn it down quickly and prepared myself to be berated for my "loud" behavior. He asked me, ".... that was you?" I nod my head and reply, "Just practicing and having some fun. Sorry it was too loud." He laughed and said, "I literally thought that was my man Angus playing that solo!" Whether he was just being encouraging when I really sucked is besides the point. That moment proved how influential other musicians can be, and how I can greatly improve my playing by simply jamming along and feel the groove. Thanks Dan and Mick!
Hello men ..I have learned so much from watching you both over the years.. today you have freed my mind....thank you so very much for your channel.. on a serious note.. I lost my 19 year old Daughter two years ago.. and honestly between Dan and Mick and Josh Smith.. You have kept me sane .. thank you for the entertainment....education and the laughs....Declan :)....I am Currently building a pedal board that runs off drill batteries....so all good :) :)
Declan, thank you for the kind words. That you can find any kindness at all after such a loss must be testament to your courage sir. Thank you for being with us - we are humbled that it helps in some way!
12:40 One other thing that’s crazy handy to know when it comes to timing is, that we measure time by our heartbeat. That’s why time seems to speed up when you’re excited, and slow down when you’re bored. So when you’re in the studio or practice space, you have one sense of time, yet when you’re on stage, you start playing crazy fast all of a sudden. If you’re aware of this fact, you can start playing agonisingly slow when you feel your heart rate/breath rate speed up to compensate for it. This also works for speeches. Speak so slow that it feels awkward when in front of a group, so they can at least follow what you’re saying.
Point 5 was my father's best advice, " son, if you want to be a professional musician, you can't afford to be a musical elitist." At the time, all I listened to or played was hard rock and heavy metal, and I thought at 18 that was the only music worth listening to! What a difference 40 years of playing made to that attitude!!
Don't try to learn the stuff that everyone else plays, learn the stuff you love. If you believed RU-vid demos you'd think that to be a proper guitarist you'd have to be a master of blues noodling. It's absolutely fine not to know a single lick if that makes you happy. The TPS episode with Ed OBrian reinforced this 100% for me :-)
Two things: 1) I purposely switched to a short scale guitar for several years to force myself to have a more delicate touch. It was my observation when playing Les Pauls that when I dig in it would push the string(s) out of tune. I guess a lot of the heavier gain players who play short scale guitars use super thin pics. I recently am now 100% all about Telecasters and will never go back to a short scale, but what I learned makes a HUGE impact on my playing. I can now play "softly" most of the time, and then when I hit a note or phrase hard it really feels right dynamically. Same with chords. 2) I loved the #2 "Find more boxes" segment. As always you do a great job in explaining something that is complicated and abstract. First learn all the root note positions like you said. In G learn where all the G notes are on the neck. Then learn where all the 5ths are, in this case D. Then learn the minor/major third positions. Use those triads as the "home box" areas. In a Blues progression what you describe is good advice for an introduction to this philosophy; Minor scale over the I chord, Major over the IV chord and Minor of over the V chord. That is a good jumping off point. So here is what you were playing I believe; over a G major Blues progression. Please correct me if I am wrong! These are all pentatonic G minor over the G C major over the C D minor over the D You can change it all up too, of course! Try this over a G7 Blues progression: G mixolydian (major with b7) over the G G minor over the C G minor Blues over the D in the turnaround & then G mixyolodian over the G Of course not all notes will work. The key is to use the key chord tones of each chord as a base and the others as passing tones. Same G7 progression: G mixolydian (major with b7) over the G - Focus on the 3rd, (B by bending up to it from the A note), the 7th (F) and also the G (I) and D (IV) notes. The rest of the notes are for passing notes to bridge phrases to the other chord tones. G minor pent over the C - This is usually also a C7 chord. So you have G, A#, C, D, & F as the G minor pent notes that have to mix with the key C7 chord tones; C, E, G & A#. If for the purpose of learning you mix them together and you get G, A#, C, D, E & F. So the only "weak" note from the G minor over the C is the D; which is still very useful. G minor Blues over the D in the turnaround -just to add the flat 4 if you want to walk down to the C & then G mixyolodian over the G
Dan's right about the action. The sustain is pretty obvious, but what is most surprising is the tonal difference in the midrange. The chords sounded fuller and chunkier. Great demonstration!
Great show. I think every guitarist looking back to the beginning wishes that they knew things then that they later learned. That is not only so with guitar playing but also, if you’ll forgive me for waxing philosophic for a mo’, life itself. As for higher action, yeah, I was a “low action is better” guy for a long time and only learned the truth of the thing by accident, the way a lot of good things are learned. Higher action does lots of good things for the sound. The obvious thing, which you guys mentioned, is that the strings aren’t flopping about against the frets above where we are playing so much. However, there is another benefit to higher action. First, we must understand that the string becomes magnetized when it is in proximity to the magnet in the pickup. In order to get the maximum from that now magnetized string, nothing must interfere with its vibration above the pickup, including the pickup itself. Moving the string ever so much farther away from the pickup lessens the pickup’s magnetic pull on the magnetized string and, accordingly, permits the string to vibrate with less or little magnetic pull. Thus, the sting’s vibrational pattern becomes more readily and clearly sensed by the pickup’s magnetic field and the pickup can send a greater quantity (no, not louder, but richer) of both the fundamental and harmonics to the amp. Lowering the pickup is one way to help this along, but raising the strings does it as well. This is true for humbuckers but even more so for single coils which typically magnetically pull the string much harder. The greater the magnetic pull on the string, the more the sound is being masked and diminished. Jeff Beck, whose tone has always been of the best said that he sets his Strat pickups nearly flush to the pickguard and sets his action fairly high. Think he’s on to something? I figured out a way to “measure” the magnetic pull of any pickup to determine if it is too close to the string. I take a paper clip and lay it on top of the string where the pickup is. If I feel a strong resistance when I lift it off the string, then that is how much the pickup is pulling that string. No, it’s not scientific, but it is a useful aid to help me determine whether I need to lower the pickup or raise the string a bit. Cheers.
If you guys haven’t already, I’d love to see a video where you guys discuss your background a bit more. I really enjoy the show! You’re both great players and great personalities. Keep up the great work!
Had to laugh at Dan when he said, "well that must be rubbish, because Mum listens to it" comment, hilarious! Recently on a visit to my wife's family in Finland (first trip since covid restrictions have been lifted) to introduce her parents to their new grandson, I had a look through my wife's mum's old vinyl collection and there were some real gems in there. I had my son in my arms listening to some stuff and I could help but laugh at the thought of him rocking out to Grandma's Deep Purple "Live in Japan" LP 😀. Its hard to believe but that is the older generation now.......
One of the most valuable lessons i learned from my Uni teacher was, always play with confidence! no matter the dynamic or how many notes, always play with confidence! it will sound much better just from that!
About the timing thing: I see myself as a beginner. And lately I've been playing along to songs. But not with the guitars of the song, but with the lead vocals. Huge revelation!
Buy a metronome. Whether it’s an old fashioned mechanical one or an electronic one with a beep, they’re inexpensive and an absolute eye-opener if you play on your own. I wish I’d got one with my first guitar.
I play along with BB King Live at the Regal... everything John Mayer, SRV, KWS... not that I can play what they play but playing along side them in a way is super helpful
Honestly you guys, I just can't get over the dynamics that you two have with each other. I love just about everything you do on TPS. I just raised the action on my fav Tele and it's staying raised thank you Dan. The part about music you wouldn't normally listen to I discovered in the last 12 months or so (I'm 69 and have lived in Aus for the last 38 years) and played guitar since I was a kid in Shepherds Bush. As a kid I saw Hendrix live at Woburn Abbey and music just keeps being made and is probably the most important part of my life. I just listened to Dolly Parton and the acoustic guitar and wow, Now I'm a DP fan. Your channel is one of the easiest to watch, educational and inspiring. I love your passion for what you do. Thanks. Love from Graham in Aus.
As a guy who has noodled his whole life, I really appreciate these tips.The one addition I have recently found to get me out of the just box mode is this: DOT DOT DOT down a string DOT DOT. Major pentatonic easily accessed up and down the neck. To reiterate a G MAJOR G A B D E Easily gets me back on track if I want to move around and jump to a major box vs minor box. Love you guys, ROCK!! 🤘
Bach > Mozart > Beethoven was the classical equivalent of moving from 'stuff as many notes in as you can/really technical metal' to 90s loud/quiet guitar music where all the emotion came back. We are moving in the same giant circle as every era of musicians has. I love that you guys recognised the importance of an open mind in learning music as part of this list. Thanks for another great show.
I agree with Dan's 1st tip. I've had a Boss Dr-880 and the Bass Player and the Drummer "Always" show-up to Practice, never complain or get tired. Best musical investment, I have ever made. My ProTip: Don't compare yourself to Guthrie Govan ( it's depressing ). Great info guys.
#5 I totally agree...I grew up on metal...at 20 I got ABB Fillmore East....now it blues,rock,country,and jazz!!!!!! Opened my world up!, and I started to actually study and listen to everything. Cheers
I discovered that my heavy-handedness on my guitar was the result of practicing without an amp...hitting the strings hard to get some volume heard. If playing through a very responsive tube amp, it will do the heavy lifting!
@Toxic Potato I think you are disagreeing to something you read into my post and I think we are actually more in agreement than you realize. Attack is definitely important for all instruments, but without an amp, people tend to hit, pluck, whatever their strings harder than necessary because they are trying to hear themselves. As you were...
With regard to playing hard/soft; I actually had to learn the value of hitting the strings on my Tele. It was the most expensive guitar I’d ever bought and I wasn’t enjoying it at all. I thought I had to treat it “properly” in case I broke it. I mentioned this to a mate of mine who is actually a guitarist. He asked me to play it while he listened, to see if he could pick up on anything to do with set-up. Almost immediately, he said “Ah. I think I can see your problem. Give it here.” So I did, whereupon he ripped out some breathtaking country and country rock licks. It sounded majestic. As he gave it back, he said, “Sometimes - not always - you’ve just got to spank the f****r”. Big lesson.
Ah, now that is interesting. Mick here. Being afraid of your guitar! Yeah, totally know that feeling. It’s exactly why I love relics and really don’t like super posh guitars! Nice one.
I CONSTANTLY FOR 25+ years play along with CDs/MP3s. CONSTANTLY. I’m sharing that as an educational approach with other people on RU-vid to help them as it has helped me.
As a late starter, I’m 5 years into my guitar obsession and have got stuck in a rut, I think this has been the most productive hour of that journey - everything struck a chord and I’m going to be moving forwards again. Thank you!
Just wanted to say my T-shirt arrived today, and blimey whomever said about how well it was packed on VCQ wasn't kidding. A glorious opening experience.
@@ThatPedalShow Please give her an extra big hug next time you do. It's the best t-shirt packaging I've ever had, and I have been shopping online since it was possible.
+1 to this for the two sets of 'Dan set' strings that came in the post yesterday. Packaged with real care. The true sign of a business being run by people who love what they do is the little details like that.
One of my favorite stories from music school (I was a brass player majoring in Music Ed back 15-20 years ago, guitar was always second back then) was one night around finals my first semester. My stoner roommate and his stoner friend were procrastinating their finals projects, so we all started taking turns playing CD's for each other. I was really into jazz, classical, and metal, and they were into jazz/hip-hop/jam band stuff. That night I heard The Roots for the first time, and Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, and I'm sure others that I can't remember (as it was literally 20 years ago). But to your last point, it's fun hanging around musicians with other interests, and if you know each other, you'd be surprised what other stuff they'll bring to you once they know your tastes.
I have to admit I was lucky growing up in the 70’s and 80’s in my house. Second youngest out of 8 kids and music being played on the radio from the time we woke up to when we went to bed. I am the only musician in the family but my family are really music orientated people. The multitude of music genres that I was exposed to means I have always appreciated every type of music, even if I didn’t particularly like the genre, there was always something in there that you could appreciate as a musician. I do draw the line in some cases as I think some songs/styles just aren’t music but that’s personal and I will keep to myself. But completely agree with this point because, if you can’t hear talent or appreciate the talent because it’s not your thing you aren’t a real musician.
The discussion about timing, and metronomes, reminded me about playing to a tremolo pedal to get my timing solid. And that reminded me, where the hell is that thing? I have more kit missing about the farm than some professional musicians take out on tour.
Thank u guys. Best college college class ever for me was history of American music. We sat and listened to “Alabama” by john Coltrane. I cried and was amazed!! It changed my life. I didn’t listen to rock for years after that. Except if you consider zappa rock ;). Only bad it did at the time was to show me how how behind I was for all the years I played. New love for music but I didn’t pick up guitar for years after that. The expression of tenor sax and cello was amazing and never thought I would come close. Anyway luckily I rediscovered my love of hard rock and started again. Thank you again guys for the great shows. Come to Texas!! ;). Oh you probably know your jazz. But Yusef lateef live at peps is always mind blowing to me. I always ask my guitar virtuoso friends to do a high gain version of “sister Maine”. Anyways. Later
So many awesome points made in this vid. I'd also add for new students starting out: 1) There are no wrong notes. Context is everything. 2) Persevere with the boring daily stuff - eg. daily pick syncing to a metronome/clicktrack, daily note bending, daily targeting notes on the fretboard etc- its worth it. 3) Listen to other genres of music even if its not in your normal interest. Find something about it that you can appreciate. (This includes game music, commercials etc) 4) Practice without crunch/fuzz/effects. get those notes clean and in time - HEAR how a note subtly changes with fret position, dynamics, and picking hand position. 5) Make it your long term goal to learn music notation and train your ear. TAB is a crutch that limits a guitarists potential.
Long before learning notes etc is to learn how to hold the guitar. One thing I used to tell students was to play with a strap, and not support the weight of the guitar with your left (or right) hand - this completely frees up your dexterity and puts less stress on your wrist (you're holding at least a couple of kilos there..). Also play with the guitar on a shorter strap to help with the above - you can start to lower it as you progress...
I have learned a lot from TPS over the years. One great tip that I've used was from Dan's vlog when he was talking about playing/soloing just on one string. Maybe you could do an episode on how to acquire gear without 'er indoors noticing?
My list No 1. More money really means better playability and better tone . No2. I learnt late about Tubes Tubes and Tubes 3. Learn about Pedals and Fx. 4. The fretboard is half the thing. 5. Copy the best, phrase by phrase, note by note....to learn. Always stand on the shoulders of giants. ( About me : Guitarist of over 35 years, multi instrumentalist, composer, and has own home studio. Wide musical taste from medieval music to shoe gaze )
it's awesome how many people have spoken about Little tommy Bukovac from Cleveland since he has been doing his show. Home Skoolin rules...He is such a great player and true renaissance man...The Buk...
I just wish there was internet when I was starting out! I remember reading the "The guitar handbook" by Ralph Denyer like it was the bible... Learned so much from that book
I actually can't believe the difference the action made! I always play with the lowest action I can - You may have made me rethink this! Especially as it was such a tiny bit higher. INCREDIBLE
The thing I did a lot, that helped me starting out, was after I got good enough, I started imitating the human voice in conversation. I actually once had a girl tell me to stop saying what she was saying on my guitar. When people talk there's not only the note/notes they speak in, but also infections, not just soft, loud, or screaming. For example, nobody screams every time they speak. This worked out later on when translating vocal melody to guitar. If you are going for telling a story on guitar, it really helps to have a good narrator. Just my thoughts on #4 in this video.
That first segment on timing and swing was so interesting, especially your shared enthusiasm on the topic and differences in your approach and how that relates to your personality. One of the reasons I resonate with guitar so much is I feel you can express so much of that personality with the base tools that the instrument provides you with
Very good episode. You guys made the split screen and the subject matter work. There are so many nuggets of wisdom in this episode, here are a few that I caught that might help others: #1 - Time is everything - Rhythm and Timing are something you learn and develop, not a talent you are given. Dan's description of his struggle with time is common with most beginning players and a big source of frustration. #2 - More Boxes - Music is patterns, when you are stuck with the patterns you know, learn new ones and integrate them with what you know. It doesn't matter how much music theory you know if you know the patterns and how to use them. #3 - Low Action - I think in general a principle of "Just enough" vs "More is better" is the lesson here. The lowest action or the highest gain, or the hottest pickus are seldom the answer, but action "just low enough: and "just enough" gain and pickups "just hot enough" are, but also the hardest to find. Hence why we all watch TPS! :) #4 - Don't have to Hit... - Electric guitar is an amazingly dynamic instrument. Much louder than acoustic guitars, yet we end up beating on them. So True! #5 - Open minded - Yes can't say this one enough.. I'm 51 and still discover new stuff all the time. Latest thing I'm listening to Soukous, Congolese dance music.. the melodies and harmonies are all just Major chords and scales, the interlocking rhythms are mesmerizing. And if you want to learn the "dusty end" of the fretboard, you'll learn playing this. its all played all up the neck. My wife has been teaching Violin and Viola for 28 years, and had to quickly adapt to teaching online. We discuss the topic of "what i wished i knew..." and the one thing she keeps coming back to is "Why do we practice?" the most common answer is "To get better." but the real answer is "To make is easier." On the surface, it looks to be a very similar answer, but by focusing on making whatever you are practicing easier, you not only get at it better, but also allows you the freedom to enjoy it more, and express more emotion though music. Sorry for the novel, just lots of good stuff to talk about! Thanks for making TPS the amazing show it is!
Thanks for this one, what a great episode. So much to practice. Regarding the "more boxes" portion, you reminded me of something most folk on here will likely know as a well worn tool, but I had no idea about-and I found it fascinating: Occasionally, treat each string as a box, to unlock more creativity and experimentation! For example, in G minor, the low E string box would be a "box" with frets 3,6,8,10,13,15, 18,20; A string would be frets 3,5,8,10,13,15, 17,20; etc. Thinking of the boxes as from nut to bridge, say in two or three string groups, as opposed to as boxes from E to e, is simple, but effective in its ability to break old improv ruts. Crazy what a difference it made!
It absolutely did work and it was just what I needed today. So far this lock down I have bought a pink strat and a gigrig G2, and written and recorded over 10 'albeit very silly and sketchy' songs, just to practice writing and finishing things, and hearing you guys wrestling with some of the same problems has been really great. Also, a thought for the issue of trying to enjoy playing whilst recording which has been game changing for me has been putting the record, stop etc functions on a midi footswitch really helped. Being able to start and stop, or over dub etc. without my hands leaving the guitar really helped me staying in the moment, just a thought. Much love and rock as always
I've bought a compressor, an Analogman fuzz, a Strymon Volante, and a Hiwatt amp. Solidarity on the silly and sketchy songs - I just do a minute of some new thing, get it down, try to learn it. One day I'll string some of them together.
the more I watch the more I think this could be one of your best videos. Thank you so much for your honesty and genuine emotion as it relates to "the journey" that so many of us are traveling.
Good lord, I'm commenting twice. Higher action = mind blown!! Huge difference, totally audible on headphones. I'm getting the adjustment wrenches out now.
Another great episode! I really appreciate it when you guys go beyond the pedal theme and talk about real-life application. While the gear is something we all love, if at the end of the day we can't make any real music then there is no point to it all. As I watched today's episode, one particular track kept coming to my mind as the culmination of everything you were talking about, which is Bill Frisell's cover of Madonna's Live To Tell from his 1993 album "Have A Little Faith" (Dan, you might cry listening to it if you've never heard it before - I kind of do). Great example of taking a pop song and treating it like a serious piece of music. You can also hear him play with the time as he lays back and then at other times gets ahead of the beat. Of course in his hands the notes of the fretboard all come together as he goes from box-to-box and pattern-to-pattern. I'm sure there are myriads of other great examples but that was the one track that came to me as you went through each point. Thanks again! Cheers from sunny Phoenix, AZ.
John Scofield is the absolute master of pushing and pulling, does it to the point where you think he's going to fall off the cliff, and then BANG he's back on. He also does that playing across the bar lines thing.
Playing with other musicians is tantamount, particulary ones who can run circles around you. I started playing shows at a really young age so that was never an issue for me, interestingly my journey now is towards songs. So I suppose my advice to my younger self would be: listen to the singer, learn as much as you can about melody and lyricism, transcribe vocal melodies and the other instruments. In other words, learn what it is that makes a song. For me I dove in complex and instrumental music early on and avoided the depth of melody for a long time. You need a marriage of both for sure
I recommend a NUX Drum & Loop pedal if you're looking to save. I've used the JTC drum and Loop Pro and found that a really good pedal. They also make a mini version of it I think 👍
@@StringsOfCrossroads I have the Digitech Trio PLus but have been thinking about the RC10, you have it and like it? Does the cymbal crash at the end of each loop bother you?
Love this. The biggest one for me is not playing so hard. I see musicians all the time and wonder why they seem to be punishing their instruments when they’d probably get a better tone by easing up a bit and letting the instrument express itself. This and your episode on using the guitar’s controls should be required viewing for beginner guitarists.
As someone who has only recently started learning, the most inspirational thing in this whole video was Mick getting that note wrong when talking about boxes. Genuinely. Means there’s hope for the rest of us! 😂
Absolutely Stephen, and that’s exactly why I left it in the edit! Honestly you’d laugh your ass off to watch me playing scales and ‘proper’ learning. It points at something more fundamental we need to get over as guitar players. Well, all musicians. The code (theory) is there to explain why music works. Music does not exist to demonstrate the theory! That way lies empty souls. Good luck, and welcome to the club!
The Strat sounded so great when you were banging on it. I think I might have to hit the guitar a bit more. I've always preferred high action and thick strings already. Cheers.
Appreciate the caution. Whilst those in power have changed some of the restrictions not much has actually changed apart from so much loss for so many families.
Mick and Dan I've been back to the video several times since 3 this afternoon, with guitar in hand. The little nuggets of advice here have been driving me to keep plucking away. Dan with the pentatonic/minor scale fingering and Mick with the box advice. I've gotten the diminished arpeggio(?) down to a tee and the g blues exercise is great. I know it's been said before but I think people would really get a lot out of some lessons/tips/chords/voicings from yous. I love all your shows, some, more than others but this weeks has really struck me with confidence. This morning I was doing the typical backing track play over on the couch and now I've gotten a few more tricks in the bag to work over. Thanks, so much, Gary 👍
Returning today at 22:45 I realized I could listen to you play that supposed exercise to learn more boxes and eventually link,.... that I could listen for hours. I've said before, Thank You Both, for building into my musician's life and helping me to advance. Wonderful health, happiness and successes to you and yours in your futures!
The part of the video that addressed the action height really intrigued me. Now I am no expert or one to be consulted regarding electric guitar mechanics. However I can’t help but wonder about the difference in distance between the strings and the pickups with regard to pickup height. Dan, did you raise the pups by .5 mm as well or did they stay out?
Gentlemen, absolutely one of your best videos! I only wish you would have done this a couple of years back when I was starting to learn guitar again after a 25 year hiatus. Thank you, and thank you for being there for us all.
The one I wish you had included was "Learn by ear". Personally I still can't really do this & it's been 20 years. To many tabs in those early years, having a tuner before I knew how to tune, those are great tools but bad crutches.
Ditto, that together with timing are my biggest flaws and have held me back significantly. It's so frustrating that I can't step away from my bad habits because it's so much easier to cheat. Yet I know the benifits would be huge. It's like when I forced myself to spend a few weeks typing terribly and slowly because I decided to learn touch typing after a decade of two finger hammering. It's such a game changer. I just need to put myself through that pain and probably for a bit longer than a few weeks.
One of my biggest and most surprising musical skill leaps happened when I joined a punk band out of boredom and lack of options. Punk was a genre I had hardly paid any attention to, and I had even dismissed it as simple and non-technical (whatever that means). I'm not in that band any more, and I have reverted to not really listening to punk much, but the lessons learnt have stayed.
If it’s straight minor you probably want to stay away from those major thirds! My approach would the be same as always.... venture the usual licks and bend in and out of what sounds offf. Hahaha! BUT. Have a play along to the The Sunshine Of Your Love solo by Clappo - original version. It’s not minor, OMG does he go in and out of major and minor flavours. Makes my head spin when I play it!
Had my 12yr old son watch this. It has really re-invigorated his interest and motivation. He's even threatened to start practicing more. And Mick, you have a new fan. Your SRV strat abuse seems to have sparked something. Great show gents. Cheers
To add to What Mick said about learning more boxes. When I was young I did this, learned all the boxes and connected them and then realized one day that if the pentatontic is just the major/relative minor scale with two notes removed that I only had two notes to add and all of a sudden I knew the Major/minor up and down and side to side across the whole neck. then when I learned that I could see where the chord shapes that I knew were in those groups of notes. I have a hard time memorizing things so this way of learning that I stumbled into enabled me to first get a foothold onto what was in and out of bounds, then add more detail, then learn all the bits within those boundaries. Instead of trying to memorize things with the idea that someday I would get to the context. this approach enabled me to start at the contextual overview and then have a framework to attach new things I learned on which allowed me to be creative early on in my guitar journey.
We’re all beginners. I spent most of the last 20 years thinking I wasn’t. Mick here. And it killed my playing. Now I’m open to the fact, and I’ve started improving more than maybe I ever have. We’re all beginners!
For years i hit the guitar like I was in a fight with it, kept a death grip on the neck, and jammed my fingers into the fret board. It took a long time to get to the point that I can play by barely touching the strings, relaxing on the neck and picking fairly gently, I discovered that big heavy picks and a lighter touch works so much better at least for me. I have had pretty awful arthritis since i was a teenager and leaning to get away from that is the only reason I can still play at all.
Great video! About the pushing yourself outside your boundaries - I was given one of those stupid challenges on social media this month to post 30 songs that mean various things, blah, blah. So being bored I accepted - then another mate challenged me to play them as well, but only on acoustic. So I did. After 30 days of learning everything from Chris Cornell to Dolly Parton to Frere Jaques, I can't believe how much it has improved my playing - and I have been playing for over 30 years!! Really great advice here - looking forward to the next installment!
When I first started on guitar I had no idea that there were things like pedals to alter your sound. I just thought people like Slash had guitars and amplifiers sounded like that naturally. I never saw a distortion pedal until I got in my first band and the other guitar player had one. I also didn't know there were books and magazines for guitar music until I was in a drug store one day and I saw the September 1989 issue of Guitar School (I think I still have it somewhere). Mind blown! Until then I was rewinding tapes to pick out guitar parts. These two revelations happened around the same time. What an idiot!
“It’s not what you play, it’s how you play it”, that’s what people connect to. That was a big one for me. I think that was the contrabassist Edgar Meyer that said he realised this after seeing his 3 year old daughter plucking his bass’s string and bounding about in an excited dizzy! Another would be to not force a brand or guitar type just because it’s what a particular guitar hero might use. I was Gibson mad as a teen, but any time my ears genuinely pricked up for a recording- it was always a Telecaster 😂🤷♂️
Guys, I love this video. Mick's suggestions of working up over 12 Bar sequences was what I needed now. But here's a story. I stopped the video kust before the start of the last segment on 'listen to everything.' The following day I had just dropped across the road to a neighbour to give them some bread I had made. One of them is a guitar player and has heard my unmusical efforts (must turn the amp down). He invited me to join him (post COVID) at the local community music group - 'there are a few guitars, mainly ukuleles and a concertina.' I walked back home thinking 'groan, ukuleles and a concertina, doesn't quite fit my blues and jazz interests.' Then i turned your video back on to hear this advice to listen (try to play) everything. What a coincidence, what a kick up the bum! I might just go an join the ulkulels and concertina. Update soon!! Richard (ageing guitar beginner)
When I really started to get into guitar was when I realized that I could learn all my favorite songs and play along with them through a stereo. Everyday for almost 3 hours I would practice along with the stereo. Definitely improved my time and feel
You Don’t have to hit the guitar hard. That is so true. Two of the heaviest sounding players ever: Toni Iommi and Kim Thayil, both have a very light touch to their playing.
I have been teaching fretted instruments full time for well over a decade. You guys bring up great points! While you are a great resource for learning about gear, I absolutely love when you bring up playing and practice advice. On a personal note, I appreciate how much I have learned about subjects that I have researched for years. I worked in a guitar shop for a dozen years and have learned more from this series then my time working with the public. Thank you guys for doing so much good in the guitar community!
Thank you! We’re always a bit scared doing ‘teaching’ but hey, if you’re just passing on what you know and people understand it as such, it can’t be // that // bad right!? Thanks for watching and commenting!
Yeah!!! Number 5 is awesome! I'll admit I always have been maybe a bit pretentious about what I listen to over the years. STORYTIME So last year I was asked to play a musical. I scoffed, but a friend was the drummer so I said okay, and LOVED IT. That style was so out of my comfort zone, and I got so much better in one show! I met a bunch of really cool people in doing it, and have signed up for a bunch of shows. It's a blast. Right before the quarantimes I played Little Shop of Horrors. I got to play in a theater where I was on the 4th floor of some painters scaffolding. Unbelievable fun. And now I have a few more tools in the kit.
The best thing I ever did was start recording my jams in Logic. It's similar to when you hear a recording of your voice for the first time, you sound completely different (usually not in a flattering way). I had the same exerience recording my solos. They sounded great to me while playing, but once I listened back, I was astounded by just how bad my timing was. I think you get so consumed with your playing in the moment that your brain is not as critical of the result. When you devote 100% of your attention to listening, you hear things you didn't even know were there during the performance. Recording my practise has been a real eye-opener, exposing holes in my playing that I didn't even know were there. I cannot suggest it enough.
I thank the guitar gods for RU-vid videos where the guitar is removed. I don’t know where they got access to the individual mastertracks, but it’s basically like playing in a band. Helped my time some
Sometimes I get a joke days after they were told me. Likewise it sometimes takes someone to point out something that’s been staring me in the face for years. Cheers for this..
A quick tip to all the Lefty's out there. Make sure all your guitar pots are reverse log (c) or at least linear (b). Most all of my guitars didn't have the right pots in them when I got them. You can forget using ods, fuzzes and tone/vol properly until you sort it. Took me over a decade to realise this.
Yep, it's a big problem - personally, I use standard pots but just have them turning 'backwards' so I can have a full choice of pots with proper tapers. When guitar manufacturers wire standard pots in reverse to make them 'lefty' the taper is reversed, so they're basically on/off switches!
Mick, I couldn’t agree more. I beat the hell out of the guitar. I white knuckle the pick and neck. I hit it into the sound I want. But that doesn’t help with dynamics. It’s like shouting all the time, when you talk. It has been such a hard thing for me to work on. My biggest problem is to play hard I have to stand up and move around, but to do it softer I need to sit down, I can really play sitting because I play hard and have to stand to do it. Lol. That may sound all over the place but it’s hard for me to put into words. I can play softer/ lighter touch but not standing, that is the main thing I’ve been working at. Great video and greetings from Tulsa as always, thanks for all you do.
I also recommend playing the major pentatonic of the key you're on over the tonic and playing the minor pentatonic over the IV and V. So, when playing G7, C7 and D7 you'd play G major pentatonic, the G minor and G minor. If you're struggling going from G minor to G Major, use the Robben Ford pentatonic scale over the I to IV: R m3 p4 p5 m6.
Simple pentatonic idea over a blues. Over the one chord, play a minor pentatonic but just tweak the 5th note of the scale (bend it up a half step or even close to that). Over the 4 chord, play straight minor pentatonic. Also try playing around with the major pentatonic scale more and the major blues pentatonic. I believe the masters are the ones who can mix minor and major blues scales together fluently!
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