I never had a band, exactly. When I first started playing guitar, I played with anyone I could find to play with. This was mostly just jamming- though calling it “jamming” is probably generous. After a while, my cousin and I joined forces with a drummer and tried to start a band. We called it… Read More Diary of A Bad Guitar Player: Playing in the Band
I doubt there is anything worse for a guitar player than sitting down to practice and not knowing what to practice. This might be the biggest limiting factor for people like me, who have gone well beyond beginner, but still lack any sense of mastery. It is definitely the worst part of teaching yourself and… Read More Diary of a Bad Guitar Player: Yousician
After floundering around with what to practice for a few weeks, I was more consistent this week, in large part because I decided to consciously try to have more fun practicing. I generally enjoy practice, even when it is difficult or even if the things I am practicing are a bit tedious. However, when your… Read More Diary of a Bad Guitar Player: Playing the Changes
There is guitar playing and there is life. Sometimes life gets in the way of guitar playing. That has been the case the past two weeks. My practice has slipped and my focus is shot. What I’m saying is… the dog ate my homework. She didn’t actually eat my homework, or in this case I… Read More Diary of a Bad Guitar Player: Of Dogs and Homework
This week’s diary entry was delayed for two reasons. First, I was camping this past weekend and that kept me away from technology for a few days. Those days just happen to coincide with the days when I usually write this entry. The second reason for the delay was that the experience of practicing in… Read More Diary of A Bad Guitar Player: Natural Guitar
One thing that I have been thinking about this week while practicing is what happens on those days when you just don’t have it. I don’t mean days when you lack motivation. That is one thing, of course, but I have found that that is something you just have to fight through. I am talking… Read More Diary of a Bad Guitar Player: Days When You Don’t Have It
After one week of focused on trying to taking better care of my hands, my fingers are feeling much better and I am starting to look for ways to begin building more strength in them. If you are struggling with soreness in your playing, I highly recommend making the following additions to your practice routine.… Read More Diary of a Bad Guitar Player: New warm-ups and new challenges
This should have been a good week of practice. I am close to locking down one of the fingerstyle songs I have been learning and I made significant progress on the other song that has been my primary focus for the last three weeks. But as thrilled as I am with that progress, there is… Read More Diary of A Bad Guitar Player: Weakness is my biggest weakness
This week I added the ultimate toy for any bad guitar player- a loop station pedal. I have considered getting one for years but held off because I always felt like I should work on my playing and not add gear that would just add to the goofing off at the expense of actual playing.… Read More Diary of a Bad Guitar Player: Gone Loopy
I have been thinking about rhythm a great deal this week after writing about “locking-in” last week. Rhythm is so essential to music- play it poorly and you will sound terrible, play it well and even simple things shine. But while rhythm is an essential concept, it is not a simple one. Playing with great… Read More Diary of a Bad Guitar Player: Feeling vs Counting
