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I just bought an guitar and have no idea what I'm doing (1 Viewer)

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AcerFC said:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmnlTWVJysjWPFiZhQ5uudg/videos

https://www.youtube.com/user/JustinSandercoeSongs/videos

Look for the beginning lessons from these two guys. 

Marty also has stuff on guitajamz but Marty Music is more current

Agree with @wilked. If you can switch between those three chords, you will be solid

But your first three chords should be E Minor, A and E. Then move on to D and G. C should be last because it is the hardest

Did you buy an acoustic or electric?
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:goodposting:  justinguitar.com has good info too. You can go through his beginner "courses" in order. And it's free. I learned a lot (starting from complete zero knowledge) that way. 

 
The key is to not get discouraged and keep practicing. Your fingers will hurt and it will really be tough at first. Once you develop those calluses and you start to get the transitions down and then the strumming comes along it all comes together quickly. Just don't give up and have fun. Just know it will take some real time.

 
My problem is, other than probably just lack of talent, is this... I know most (or all) of the basic chords. I can manage on a few of the harder ones (F, etc.), but even just trying to stick to the basic ones, while I can play a few songs with simple melodies, I don't know what do to next. I am sure there are things I'm not doing right. I guess I don't know what to practice to get better and advance my skills. Any tips from the pros?

 
Nathan R. Jessep said:
My problem is, other than probably just lack of talent, is this... I know most (or all) of the basic chords. I can manage on a few of the harder ones (F, etc.), but even just trying to stick to the basic ones, while I can play a few songs with simple melodies, I don't know what do to next. I am sure there are things I'm not doing right. I guess I don't know what to practice to get better and advance my skills. Any tips from the pros?
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I would start working on barre chords.  Simple E and A based barre's can be fun and expand your ability to play more songs.  You will start to learn some of the physics behind the guitar and understand octaves and how to change the key of a song.  Then you can move to various strumming and picking patterns, etc.

The internet is truly a treasure trove of guitar information.  Simple chord patterns of songs you like and tabs for simple lead parts can teach you a lot in a short time.  If you want to get ambitious, seriously try to learn Stairway to Heaven.  It is cliched, but it can teach you a lot about different aspects of playing the guitar.

 
Nathan R. Jessep said:
My problem is, other than probably just lack of talent, is this... I know most (or all) of the basic chords. I can manage on a few of the harder ones (F, etc.), but even just trying to stick to the basic ones, while I can play a few songs with simple melodies, I don't know what do to next. I am sure there are things I'm not doing right. I guess I don't know what to practice to get better and advance my skills. Any tips from the pros?
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Acoustic or electric?

If acoustic, challenge yourself to write your own song. Stick with the I,IV,V progression that works

Learn different strumming patters and get good playing arpeggios

If electric, start learning the Pentatonic scale and work on soloing. It takes a while, but you will get there and start linking patterns

Work on singing a song while playing. This one took me an entire year to be able to do

 
AcerFC said:
Acoustic or electric?

If acoustic, challenge yourself to write your own song. Stick with the I,IV,V progression that works

Learn different strumming patters and get good playing arpeggios

If electric, start learning the Pentatonic scale and work on soloing. It takes a while, but you will get there and start linking patterns

Work on singing a song while playing. This one took me an entire year to be able to do
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I have both, but acoustic most of the time. 

Thanks. I'll have to look up several of those terms first. :lol:  

 
I have been using Justinguitar, its a pretty good course to get you started.  I must admit I have strayed away from it many times, only been playing about a year.  I still suck bad but I'm enjoying the hell out of it.  Just be patient, take it slow, and most importantly have fun.  You are probably not going to be Jimi Hendrix, just realize it takes time.

 
Nathan R. Jessep said:
My problem is, other than probably just lack of talent, is this... I know most (or all) of the basic chords. I can manage on a few of the harder ones (F, etc.), but even just trying to stick to the basic ones, while I can play a few songs with simple melodies, I don't know what do to next. I am sure there are things I'm not doing right. I guess I don't know what to practice to get better and advance my skills. Any tips from the pros?
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If it’s an acoustic work on strum patterns. 

 
AcerFC said:
Acoustic or electric?

If acoustic, challenge yourself to write your own song. Stick with the I,IV,V progression that works

Learn different strumming patters and get good playing arpeggios

If electric, start learning the Pentatonic scale and work on soloing. It takes a while, but you will get there and start linking patterns

Work on singing a song while playing. This one took me an entire year to be able to do
Click to expand...
This is an excellent post. 

 
If electric, I strongly suggest Rocksmith for the Xbox or PC.  It makes the early learning part fun before you get to the point where you're actively looking to teach yourself by following Youtube videos.  

 
Captain Cranks said:
If electric, I strongly suggest Rocksmith for the Xbox or PC.  It makes the early learning part fun before you get to the point where you're actively looking to teach yourself by following Youtube videos.  
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That's what I bought first. Rocksmith and the Epiphone Jr electric that came with it. Starting completely from scratch, I found it to be too difficult. The first one or two (where it was just single notes) were fine, but after that it was quickly beyond what I was able to do and I got very frustrated with it. 

ETA: Disclaimer: Maybe I'm just really awful. :lol:  

 
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Captain Cranks said:
If electric, I strongly suggest Rocksmith for the Xbox or PC.  It makes the early learning part fun before you get to the point where you're actively looking to teach yourself by following Youtube videos.  
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I just cant get my guitar in sync with this. I try every so often. I am at the point where I can play the songs like Blitzkrieg bop but it fails me quick. 

 
wilked said:
Master three chords: C/G/D.  Practice switching between them quickly.  You can play a lot of songs with those three...
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If I had to start over again from scratch, this is what I'd recommend:

1) Wilked gave the best starter advice. Learn those C/G/D chords. Also, get a book or check online for chord and scale charts.

2) Next, learn all of the other major and minor chords (A through G) in open position.

3) Learn your barre chords all over the neck. Learning the two basic major and two basic minor bar chord positions will enable you to play almost any popular song.

4) Learn the pentatonic minor and major scales. These are essential for rock and country music.

5) Learn the major, minor, and modal scales. Will help add variety and color to your soloing and improvising.

After mastering these you should be able to play lots of songs and it will give you confidence to move on to other stuff (i.e., chord progressions, scales, music theory, etc.).

Have fun.

 
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Get a metronome app - starting at around 40/45 bpm work through the chords changes and/or scales(pentatonic and blues- which is pentatonic with blue notes). You want to want to start slow strum on first click and start working your fingers to new position by 4th click ready to strum again on the 1st click. Now during this 3 click time frame relax your fingers, relax your head, relax your body until you can shift easily without mistakes. You need your fingers to start finding relaxed consistent movement - but concentrate on your finger movements to new position.   Then change the metronome to 50 and do it without mistakes - if you screw up go back and slow down. As you repeat this at slow tempo doing it right it will be easier as you move up the tempo to 60 and 70 and so on up to 120. But you are still on 1st click (whole note)- eventually drop back down to 40 and do it on every other click - Clicks 1 and 3( half notes) - back up through the metronome to 120.  Then back down to 60 on the 1 click each time - clicks 1-2-3-4(quarter notes) - move back up. You can eventually get up to eighth notes (1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and)- it will be a while from now. Just start working through this for a while every day as you learn a new chord or scale.

 
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1. The internet is great for learning but there is something to be said for some in person tips if you can get them. They can show you in a few minutes some things you might not realize with regards to hand positions to make things easier for you.

2. Make sure you are playing the notes (whether single notes or chords) as cleanly as possibly with no muting or muffled sounds. If you are having trouble with this SLOW DOWN until it is clean, then gradually build up speed. On chords, leave some notes out and just play two or three notes and strum those strings until you play them clearly before adding more notes/strings. 

3. Have fun! It needs to be more like fun than work to keep you playing. Pick songs you really like to learn. There are tons of easy songs and you can find lessons for most tunes on youtube by searching for "coolsong lesson"

 
wilked said:
Master three chords: C/G/D.  Practice switching between them quickly.  You can play a lot of songs with those three...
Click to expand...
Agree with this.  After those 3, I would learn all of the open chords (non barre chords): A major/minor, E major/minor, F major.  After that, I'd learn the E and A shaped barre chords.  Here's the bottom line with playing guitar.  Anyone can train their fingers to make chord shapes and run through scales because it only takes persistence and work ethic.  What cannot be taught, imo, is rhythm.  If you can learn a few chords - and starting with C/D/G is a good start - and then play some songs in rhythm then you can definitely be as good a guitar player as the work you're willing to put in.  However, if you're struggling with your rhythm (strumming hand) after a couple of months then you may want to save yourself the frustration and find another hobby.  I only say this out of experience in teaching others how to play.  The players who don't have rhythm struggle with the instrument.  They can play the chords but if you can't play in rhythm then there is really no point.  And in my experience, rhythm is the one thing that you can't really teach, it seems to be natural.  Either you have it or you don't.

 
I would also suggest learning guitar on acoustic because it is physically harder to play than electric.  It is MUCH easier transitioning from acoustic to electric than the other way around.  I also think it's very important for guitarists to know the acoustic.  It's a different animal altogether and a harder beast to tame.  So if you learn there and want to move on to electric, it will be much easier for you.

 
I'm not trying to call anyone out but I do not agree with playing to a metronome.  Human rhythm is much more dynamic than machine rhythm.  I've played to a metronome a handful of times in my 26 years of playing and it never feels right.  I can do it but it's not a natural rhythm and I highly suggest NOT learning to play with a metronome.  I'm sure the feelings on this are all over the place but for me personally, I don't recommend that approach.  Again, I'll fall back on rhythm being natural, you either have it or you don't.  If you're struggling that much to play in rhythm, music, or at least guitar, may not be the right hobby for you.

 
I bought my first rig about 5 years ago, a Squire Strat with a small amp. 

Now I have a nice Epiphone LP and a Fender Champion 100 amp which sounds pretty good.  I traded the Squire for a Ibanez acoustic with mother of pearl that is very pretty and fun to play by the pool.

I have progressed to the point where my wife lets me rock the house with the door to my room open. YouTube free lessons and tab has made learning fun although I can read music and tab old jazz songs when I can't find them anywhere online. You don't have to be perfect and can find ways to cheat on chords (I have inward bent pinkies so I don't use them very much but you'd have to be a real pro to tell the difference).

I found that by staying with a steady practice schedule of an hour for at least 4 days a week to work for me to continue to improve. The main thing is to have fun with it!

 
Rhythmdoctor said:
I'm not trying to call anyone out but I do not agree with playing to a metronome.  Human rhythm is much more dynamic than machine rhythm.  I've played to a metronome a handful of times in my 26 years of playing and it never feels right.  I can do it but it's not a natural rhythm and I highly suggest NOT learning to play with a metronome.  I'm sure the feelings on this are all over the place but for me personally, I don't recommend that approach.  Again, I'll fall back on rhythm being natural, you either have it or you don't.  If you're struggling that much to play in rhythm, music, or at least guitar, may not be the right hobby for you.
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I take it that was me - I guess I should have been clear that it is not the answer to rhythm and learning a song - my point was in training the fingers on where to go especially on chord changes and be able to bring that up to speed by using the metronome to get your fingers working through the transitions as you start to play at the beginning - people tense up during those changes and by starting slow and thinking through the movement, learning to relax your hand, fingers, mind while going slow helps some - the metronome just applies a time reference to complete it.  Once you know how your fingers should move then by all means work on a strum patterns, rhythm and such. Get a drum track - blues shuffle track or whatever and play along. In fact you should try to do both - it's my opinion that a fast work through of a song in rhythm/time while butchering your chord changes is not helpful as well. It's a problem with some of the rocksmith stuff - you want to play a tune and all of a sudden you are at 100/120 or so tempo and missing parts cause your fingers can't make the change at speed and it all comes crashing down. And a metronome would help you stay in a 4/4 time pretty easily at the start while you practice different strum patterns - but like you said there are options and opinions.

 
AcerFC said:
I just cant get my guitar in sync with this. I try every so often. I am at the point where I can play the songs like Blitzkrieg bop but it fails me quick. 
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IIRC the only way I could get it to sync was using the component (red/blue/green) cables. 

That may have been on the 360. I think it works fine on the one 

 
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When switching between a G and a C, do a Cadd9 instead .  Much easier transition and I think it sounds better IMO.  I’m sure it’s cheating somehow, but I don’t care. I play a Cadd9 most of the time.  I’ve only been playing since January.  Once you get over the hump and can play a few songs, it’s fun.  I still can’t do barre chords easily.  I can do them, but it takes me some time to get into position and doesn’t flow well.  I play on an acoustic guitar 

 
Also the Guitar Tabs app is great.  I use it a lot.  I also used to subscribe to UberChord, which has some good tutorials 

 
If you have the money, getting weekly lessons is a good investment. It's always nice to have some immediate feedback and correction from someone who know's what they're doing. They also tailor/structure a plan of learning for you that works best for you.

Contrary to advice above, a metronome should make it into your practice routine at some point. Maybe not right away while you're getting form and motion down, but eventually it should. You can learn time if you practice it, and you do that by using a metronome. And you'll need to have decent time if you're ever going to play with other people.

 
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