I'm considering picking up the guitar. I'm 20 and never played an instrument in my life. I'm wondering how hard it is to learn. I'm not afraid to work on something that's hard to do, but I don't want to get frustrated because it takes too long to learn the basics. I would probably want a solid body electric because I'm into rock and metal. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. Any suggestions on how to get started would be great too. Thanks

My advice is to find a teacher, at least for a few lessons to get you pointed in the right direction.

Not hard at all. Pick up a good "fake" book and you'll be rockin by the end of the week. Well, at least on a couple of 3 and 4 cord songs. Hotel Cali is only 4 or 5 cords (can't recall exactly off the top of my head). Intro's will take you awhile though, depending on your devotion and natural ability.

I hack at electric bass a bit.  Just to annoy my wife....

My friends leaped past me because they focused on music theory, reading, and constant practice of scales and modes.  I basically just mess around on guitar and figure out songs I like, hence I have really stopped growing as a musician.  I'm 29 and am about as good as I was when I was 22.  I never really pushed myself or grew. I can play really slow blues-based solos (like slow Pink Floyd stuff) but that's about my limit.

Anyway, if I were starting out, I would get a Seagull acoustic guitar.  They're decent, and are about $300.  No big investment lost if you quit.

Then I'd find the most demanding guitar teacher possible.  A real bastard who would mercilessly criticize you and make you do repetitive drills, sight reading, and boring music theory.  One that you felt you had to prove something to, so that he wouldn't think that he was wasting his time teaching you. If you stick with it and study/practice dilligently for 6-12 months, you would be lights years ahead of people who just noodle around for fun.

I had a friend who played bass guitar, while I played guitar.  I was way better than he was.  Then he found a flamenco/classical teacher like the one I described above.  My friend in the 6-9 months after picking up the guitar was better than I'll probably ever be.  It's not that he's especially talented, but he had a good teacher and worked really hard.

Find a good teacher.  Practice. Practice. Practice.  If you have ten working digits and a functioning brain you can play anything at all with plenty of practice, and the drive to want to get better.

I'd recommend a solidbody, fixed-bridge (for ease of tuning) guitar to begin with.  I'm pretty partial to the Ibanez brand and have picked this one out just fo joo:

[url]http://www.ibanez.com/guitars/guitar.asp?model=RG421[/url]

I'm not completely familiar with the price range on these, but my best guess is it's in the $300 dollar range.  There are certainly cheaper out there,  but if you stick with it (and you will, right?) you'll be glad you didn't get a complete POS.  

Lastly I'll reiterate PRACTICE.  Not only does it always improve your playing, the confidence instilled by seeing your improvements makes you want to practice more.  Good cycle.  

Email me if you have any other questions or if I can help your pickin' in any way.

I'm 22 and I've been playing guitar for over 8 years now. I have some formal education on the piano from when I was younger, but I'm completely self-taught on guitar. A bit of music education is nice, but not a requirement by any means. Playing along with recorded music is a fun way to learn and it helps you when you get a chance to play with other musicians.

A solid body electric is a good choice for rock music, and it will be easier to play than an acoustic. Start with the open chords and the pentatonic scale, and you'll be in good shape! [8D]

Ditto.  Must be a mid-life crisis thing. [:D]

a couple hints/suggestions:

-don't struggle with a guitar whose action is set too high (i.e. it is really hard to press the strings and you get wicked calluses from playing--not as big a factor with an electric).  This is common on many inexpensive starter guitars.  Ask another guitar player or a music store to help you on this.

- buy a song book from a group you know ,or search for their music here    http://www.harmony-central.com/Guitar/tab.html.   Stay away from anything too bizarre or fast.  Country music(sorry) or rock ballads are great to start on, (as are Eagles and Neil Young but since you are 20, this probably doesn't help)

- while beginning, only try songs that you know in your head (i.e. you can hum/drum along with.
First phase is being able to make the chord changes.  Second phase is being able to make the changes with proper timing.

- If children/pets allow, never put the guitar in its case...you'll get better faster.  (out of sight -out of mind)

- buy a battery operated tuner, and use it after you learn to tune by hand

- play with other guitarists as often as possible

- you should be able to get a decent starter guitar for $250-300.  By the time you know what you are doing, you will have fallen in love with some specific model and it will be worth the investment to upgrade.  Keep the first guitar as a backup/campfire/party guitar.  You will also be able to play with any visitor musicians, which helps with previous paragraph

- Once you have basics down, and are convinced you have potential to have fun playing, lessons will certainly help

****SIX-GUNS, SIX-STRINGS, SIX-PACKS****

Good luck!

If you have decided to pick up a guitar, but dont know what kind to get, this may help a little...

A set-neck guitar (like a Gibson Les Paul) will have a neck that is glued into the body. They sustain much better than a bolt-neck and the harmonics are often much better because of it. This will give you a very "fat" luscious tone.

A bolt-neck guitar (such as a Stratocaster) will usually be a LOT cheaper than a set-neck. The harmonics can be very good in SOME of these guitars, but definitely not all of them. Sustain is so-so and can be good in SOME of them.

Pickups...Single pole (non-humbucking) like those found in Stratocasters can be very noisy. However, when 3 of them are controlled by a 5-way switch, the guitar is capable of of a wide variety of sound.
Humbuckers, which are often on Les Paul-styled guitars have 2 coil sets in each pick-up that allows them to be very quiet and in some cases very powerful (hot) pickups. The norm is 2 per guitar, controlled by a 3-way switch which is set-up as Bridge/Bridge-Neck/Neck.

If you think you will own the guitar for a long time, buy a QUALITY instrument so you can grow into it. You will appreciate it more, take care of it better and learn to play it better. If you decide that you want to sell it, it will hold most of it's value.

If you're not sure of what you want, buy a $200 cheapy Stratocaster at Guitar Center and a cheap amplifier. Lower-end musical instruments do not hold their value very well.

If you have any specific questions, you can e-mail me or post it, I will usually see it if it says "guitar" LOL.

I've been playing for over 20 years and have built 14 high-end solidbody electrics in the past 10 years (all set-necks).

BASS. Play the bass... its easier, (Only 4 strings) quick to learn and you still get laid like guitar players [;)]

Besides, guitar players are a dime a dozen.

Ive been playing since 1980 and I love it... I know I know just because I love you may not.

Whatever you decide... GOOD LUCK

Actually CarbineMonoxide, I was just listening to Neil Young tonight. And I like the Eagles, Zeppelin, Stones,Doors, all the good old stuff. I get teased about it sometimes but I like it. I really think I will stick with it if I get started because I've been really into music for as long as I can remember. I might go to the music store tomorrow just to look around. My mom's been hastling me about what I want for Xmas....

Tell her you NEED a Gibson Les Paul...If you jokingly tell her that you need a 1959 Les Paul, she wont get the joke. You can get 20 (or more) new LPs for the cost of a '59!

[img]www.garysguitars.net/product_pics/197b.jpg[/img]

"Excuse me, do you have any 1958 or 1959 Les Pauls?  My son is taking up the guitar and he wants one for Christmas."

Actually, to be accurate, Lep Zepplin (Page) may have used a Les Paul while on stage, but the majority of what was done on the first four records or so was recorded with Strats, Teles, and Vox AC30 amps.

I love L.P.'s too, but they often weight a TON. Not a problem if you're up to the task, but for on stage use they can become exhausting.


My advice is to buy something of quality, but as cheaply as possible. The previous Ibanez recommendations are in line. If you decide to stick with it, then buy something nicer and use the Ibanez as a spare.

How good you get will depend on your inherent talent, and how much YOU invest in terms of practice. Lessons are a good idea, but I would hold off a few months and try to learn some basics on your own and from playing with friends. If you decide you want to stick with it, go for lessons and better gear at that time.

FWIW, I've been playing for 27 years. During that time I have been sometimes very motivated, and sometimes completely disinterested. I've been in quite a few bands, and the personality problems often found with musicians has been the biggest problem for me. But in that time, I've always played at least a couple times a week. Sometimes, just sitting down with an acoustic guitar and playing is very theraputic if there is a lot of stress going on in life.


BTW - Bass players are almost always washed up, frustrated guitar players!![;D]

A LP is OK I suppose...  [:D]

[img]http://www.jemsite.com/axes/jem7/7vwh.jpg[/img]

I agree... Sort of.

I am a bassist, and love it. However, playing bass by yourself sucks. When I am at home playing for fun, I play my guitar. In a band setting, the bass is where it's at. I love playing off of a good drummer!

I will second the advice of finding a good teacher. Preferably someone with a Jazz background, who understands the importance of good physical technique.

I was fairly unmotivated when I was learning, but the teacher I had was a bass god. He taught me correct finger technique, and solid rhythmic theory. That background served me well when I decided to get more serious about the instrument and music theory.

Good luck, and have fun!

Rock and Roll Y'all!
Chris

p.s. Here is my favorite solid body & amp combo!
Tone of the GODS!

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/IG_LoadImage.asp?iImageUnq=948[/img]

[img]http://photos.ar15.com/ImageGallery/IG_LoadImage.asp?iImageUnq=949[/img]

[edited to add pics]

I played alot as a teenager, but started fishing and was never home to play much.  I play alot now, in what spare time I can get.  It is not hard to learn.  Some people are naturals some are not (like me).  You have to dedicate yourself to learn though, because you wont see immediate results. [RED]PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE.[/RED]  

Try [URL]www.Guitar.com[/URL]

Or [URL]www.harmony-central.com[/URL]

Lots of great advice at both websites.

I like my Strat but I don't play enough to get good at it.

Like most people have mentioned, find a good instructor.  Starting right is worth it.  Learning your scales and modes will help you in understanding music.  When you understand it, it's MUCH easier to 'figure out' songs, and improvise.  

I would suggest an inexpensive acoustic to start.  The 'stiffer' strings will help you build finger strength, and help you develop callus' on your fingertips.  It would be easy starting on an electric (I got a nice les paul copy I'll sell ya for $400, with a hard case.. ), but the acoustic will be more of a benefit in the long run.  

Good luck!

if you want to keep it cheap buy a fender squire or something simular. get youself a magazine from wally world. there is TAB in there. they tell you how to read it. simple and fast you will probably be learning the rythem of the song by the end of the week. i taught myself to play this way and can now pick up songs rythems by ear after about 5 years of playing heheh. i would start out with tab thou.

I started on bass =) I took bass lessons for 2 years from Nick St. Nicolas of Steppenwolf. I learned more from voicing the guitar to what I wanted to play, and having a good ear is the best thing you can have.

Nick was a gun guy! LOL

There's two ways to play the guitar, (1) strumming chords,and (2) playing the guitar.  The latter takes a bit more work.  Get a teacher.

I have been playing guitar for 22 years this Christmas. I started on a a corona acoustic when I was 8 LoL. I was watching the antique roadshow a few months ago and a 19 yr old guy brought in a old corona and it was broken on the bottom of the front and had a odd lookin scribe on it in black marker. The caners panned in and I about crapped myself. The teen knew not what he had. It was a brand of guitars that Jimi Hendrix loved(Corona)and was verified right there on the spot as an original and Jimi Hendrix owned guitar. It still had 5 of the original strings. Hendrix did an unplugged acoustic version of "hear my train a coming'"
and that was the original guitar in the video.
   The AR people estimated it to be worth $70-$90,000!  So it's not the value of the Guitar but who's playing it.
                     
              I stick with a few top brands.
Bc rich, fender and Gibson,in that order.
 
  And seagull guitars are whooping the acoustic worlds ass. They are affordable and are tonally correct. As a matter of fact, they are the only tonally correct guitar made today.
        They are hand made in Canada. Any other guitar you buy (handmade) will run 600-$1000 and sound like crap compared to the Seagull.  I have a seagull 12 string electric acoustic and it is the most beautiful sounding instrument I own.    I use OLGA every day. Its the online guitar archive. Any song you can think of is there.      Jerryboy

huh? [rolleyes] define "tonally correct"

seagull's a great guitars, but you're bull shitting here a little.

I was gonna ask what he means, too.  'Tonally correct'?  Do you mean intonated correctly?  Sheesh, any guitar can be adjusted.  On an acoustic, get a custom bridge cut.  Electrics are much easier.  I once completely tuned and intonated a Floyd Rose trem system.  

Tone is such a subjective thing. Each guitarist is convinced that his or her setup sounds the best.

Martin vs. Gibson is kind of like AR vs. AK.

Cheers,
Chris

I've been a bass player for over 35 yrs.

Here's my .02...

Pick up a chord chart and start working on it until you find a good teacher.

As far as guitars, save some money and buy something used or less expensive until you're sure you'll stick with it.

Jumping around on stage is great fun and great stress relief. Not to mention you can make a few bucks.

He doesn't know what he means.  I have a master's degree in music and have played classical guitar since the 60s.  His statement makes no sense.

I don't claim to know a great deal about electrics, but a really fine handmade classic guitar by a top luthier will run you about $15,000.

Go for it dude, I started playing at age 27. (I'm 42 now) I'm not the greatest guitar player, but I sure have fun at it.  

As others have suggested, get a tuner, a get a friend that can show you the basics.

I play alot sitting in front of the computer, cause I can download tunes, and search for the TABS on line.  I also have power tab software, which is really great for learning songs, after you get the basic.

This is tab for the opening guitar lick for Amy by pure prarie league.  It shows the strings, and the fret position you should press to sound the right notes.

E--------------------------------------------------------
B--------------------------------------------------------
G--------------------9-11-9------------------------------
D------7-7--9-7-9/11--------11-9-7-----7-7--9-7-9/11-9-9-
A--7-9-----------------------------7-9-------------------
E--------------------------------------------------------

E------------------------------------------------------------------
B-------------------------10--10--10-------------------------------
G--------------------9-11---11--11--11-9-11-9--9--9-11-9-11--------
D------7-7--9-7-9/11----------------------------------------11-9-7-
A--7-9-------------------------------------------------------------
E------------------------------------------------------------------


You can find these tabs at [url]http://guitar.net/tab[/url]

Edited to add:  The html kinda screww up the spacing on the tab, but you'll get the idea.

Where in TN are you Tom? I think I got to get up with your parties.

I already have a motorcycle(dirt bike). There's been a lot of good advice from you guys. I'm really thinking about it. I know lots of musicians; a few guitar players and a drummer. They should be a good source of info too. In fact one of them gives lessons.

I don't agree that bass is "easier."  I guess simple bass playing like roots and fifths are easy, but bass takes a lot more talent than most people give credit for.  It takes considerable skill to set a groove, get in the pocket with the drummer, and to drive a song.   Let's face it, the band HAS TO DO what the bass player wants...he sets the course.  It's also a bit difficult to stay motivated to practice as a bassist because many times it just doesn't sound like a "song" when you are playing alone--versus the guitar where songs are the point.

In fact, to demonstrate the skill it takes to play a bass...ask a guitarist to sit in on bass.  MANY TIMES guitar players can play the notes (sometimes not even that), but they can't groove, improvise, and stay tight with the drummer.  However, I know many people who consider themselves bassists first and foremost...and they can play the guitar EXTREMELY well, because all of music fundamentals are understood from their bass knowledge.  (I will say that I have also heard some guitarists that are also killer bassists, but they are probably good a number of other instruments as well...they are true musicians!)


You are correct, guitar players are a dime a dozen.  Bass players are always in high demand.

I was taling to a guy at work. He gave me some advice and is bringing in a guitar for me to borrow(an Alverez i think he said). Can't wait to try it out. I think this is a better idea than buying one at first. I can get a feel for what it's like and decide if it's something i really want to get into.