If you’re just learning guitar, getting started with playing solos might seem daunting. It’s a big change to go from strumming chords to your favorite songs, to playing lead lines. The best thing is to start out easy, but not too easy. The more you challenge yourself, the better a guitarist you’ll become. Just remember to take everything in bite size chunks as you’re learning. To help you get started with solos, I’m recommending a couple that I’d learn if I was just getting started - one from three different genres. The feeling of learning and playing lead is amazing. Let’s get into it.
I’ve observed hundreds of guitarists over the years from all different skill levels, and the ones who are making a lot of progress often share a lot of the same traits - they have a plan when they sit down to practice, they know the people to go to when they’re facing a hurdle in their playing, and they’re endlessly curious about guitar and music in general.
But outside of all of that, there’s one habit I’ve seen that all of my favorite guitarists have - they practice active listening.
Back when I was doing the Amped Up! podcast, I talked about 50 of my favorite guitar players for the 50th episode of the show, and why they were so influential. I wanted to bring back that list today, and share 50 songs you should check out - 1 for each guitarist. Be on the lookout for an “honorable mentions” post, as I couldn’t bring myself to stop at just 50!
For this month’s subscribers only edition of Six String Sunday Club, I sat down and talked about one of Chasing Sound’s most visited posts. I first wrote “16 ways to get better at guitar” back in April of 2018. Since then it’s had tens of thousands of visits over the last 4 years.
In this audio retrospective, I look back at all 16 ways I mentioned to see if all the tips still ring true. I also add a bunch of new commentary to each and every tip. I had so much fun doing this, and I think you’ll get a lot out of it! Let me know what you think in the comments section.
I’m a big fan of Ash Lamb’s newsletter about using visual ideas to get your message across. In my neverending quest to find good writing and see it through the lens of guitar, I was inspired to share an excerpt from one of Ash’s recent newsletters:
"Looking to buy the newest most expensive tools is a passive form of procrastination. In order to get started and make a difference, you don’t need to have the fanciest tools.
It doesn’t matter who you are and what you do, in the vast majority of cases, you only need the basics to go far and make a difference.”
I think we can apply Ash’s advice to guitar gear. I’ve seen countless people, entire forums even, wax poetic over every single minute detail of a guitar, amp, or pedal. I love gear just as much as the next guitarist, but not in place of actually practicing and playing each day.
Next time you find yourself scrolling through your favorite gear site, ask yourself the last time you learned something new. And if you’re ever uncertain if your gear is enough for what you're trying to get done...trust me, it is.
If you’d like to sign up to Ash’s newsletter, you can check that out here.
I picked up a Vidami Blue a few weeks ago, and it instantly changed how I practice guitar each day. The hands-free bluetooth pedal has 3 modes that have helped me out in a major way: its page turning mode works brilliantly for flipping pages in a number of iPhone and iPad apps, not to mention the ability to scroll through tabs online.
You can use it as a YouTube control device, where you can play, pause, go forward or backwards in time on the video, make loops, and even slow down the video, while retaining the original pitch!
And if you record your guitar, it works with a number of DAWs as a DAW controller, helping to play/pause, record, turn on your metronome and more.
I think this pedal is a no brainer to have on any guitarist's board. Check out my full video walk through of the pedal below.
In today's special episode of Chasing Sound Live, we have Simon Allaway stopping by. We're talking all about how to work on your guitar, building your own gear, and lots more.Check out the replay below.
In today's Chasing Sound Live, I'm talking about how I learn songs. We're also talking about setting aside time each week to learn your favorite guitar player's habits. All that, plus thoughts on Hetfield, tips from John Frusciante, an update on the Magnet and more!
On this week's episode of Chasing Sound Live, I answer questions from the community - ranging from the importance of triads/major scale as your home base, to the tube shortage, and is there really anyone who truly improvises? Check out the replay below, and let me know your thoughts in the YT comments!
