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December 2006
Posts: 6268
Location: Florida Central Gulf Coast | Just wondering...
I finally can nail "Tears In Heaven" two outta three tries. Even ordered a cable so I can record via the Crate 5. So watch out Eric...
Seriously, after Matt's seminar at AI, I knew I had to change my approach to 'learning'. So I selected TIH to tackle. What was revealing, was that due to my small hands and the 1680 1 3/4" fretboard I had to adjust the vid lesson fingering to my 'ability'. At this point it's not the mechanics (after HUNDREDS & HUNDREDS of times!), but the concentration and lack of distractions.
That's what amazes me when I see Matt, Steve (DeBango), et. al. is that they're so day-um'ed comfortable, nonchalant and seemly effortless in their performances.
So let's hear your conquered challenges...
BTW, I've often posted that "Classical Gas" is the one song that I hope to nail before I get to play harps. Not sure if I'm ready for either one...  |
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March 2005
Posts: 12750
Location: Boise, Idaho | I can do TIH, but I can't get the syncopation of the thumb picking right. After watching some Mason Williams' videos, I noticed he plays the chorus all at the 5th fret, so the Powertab I learned from isn't quite right (although the notes were right). So I'm relearning it the original way. When I go back and play something like Scarborough Fair, that I learned note by note off the reel to reel, I'm much more proud of the effort I put into that years ago than I am of the stuff I learned from tabs. |
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August 2007
Posts: 494
Location: Location Location Location | Wow, good question. Back in the mid '80's I learned the lead to Reelin' In The Years, and brought it to the band. We had a good time with that song. My poor wife could almost play it from hearing it so much, and she doesn't even play! |
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June 2006
Posts: 7307
Location: South of most, North of few | Still working on the intro to "Crazy on you". Don't think I'll ever get it right. |
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October 2008
Posts: 489
| About a year ago I learned "Along Comes Mary" I'd always thought a human being could not really do that, it must be studio tricks, until I saw some Association live vids of the tune.
It's like the four minute mile - once you do it, it's easy.
(I'm speaking of the vocal, of course. The guitar part ain't nothin') |
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Joined:
December 2006
Posts: 6268
Location: Florida Central Gulf Coast | Originally posted by Losov:
About a year ago I learned "Along Comes Mary"
It's like the four minute mile - once you do it, it's easy. And the vid is where...?
Your vids are awesome! |
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September 2007
Posts: 108
| A while back I found the tab to The Entertainer by Scott Joplin. Took a long time but I finaly got fluent at it. Ive let it sit for a few months and about 1/3 of it is gone. So its back to practice. I do retain 2/3 of it that I can rip off and make an impression from time to time.
That and Mood for a Day by Yes are my Biggest achievements |
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Joined:
December 2006
Posts: 6268
Location: Florida Central Gulf Coast | Originally posted by murph:
The Entertainer by Scott Joplin Ya gotta be kiddin'! That's one of the most distinctive songs EVER.
I thought I did good doing "Alley Cat" by Floyd Cramer waaaay back when... even did a decent "Last Date"...on piano of course... |
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August 2006
Posts: 3145
Location: Marlton, NJ | "Mood For a Day" is mine. I've been learning it for 30 years and I'm still learning it today. The good news is that I can play it all the way through on occasion mistake free. |
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December 2006
Posts: 6268
Location: Florida Central Gulf Coast | Mark,
Here's where I went for TIH . Part II is right there...
Although I have to say that once ya get 'it', it almost sounds to 'simple'. I guess that comes from the repetition...
Mike,
That's too close to 'home'!  |
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Joined:
November 2008
Posts: 1119
Location: Michigan | Back 25 yeas or so ago I learned the travis picking method. I used it exclusivly for everything and basically gave up using a pick. I not only learned the method but in the process it made me more comfortable using all my fingers and the proper placement on the strings opening up a whole new way of playing for me. |
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Joined:
January 2006
Posts: 2120
Location: Chicago | I'd say "No Mystery": it's like five tunes in one. IMHO perhaps Chick Corea's finest composition and a real blast to arrange for just 2 Ovations (you can hear it on our band link below). Still can't nail a few parts. Still workin'... |
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September 2007
Posts: 108
| The Entertainer, Mood for a day etc,these songs are intimidating at first, but break em down and go over the tabs and they are doable. Like almost all songs, they just take working through. Depends on how much you want to learn them, and practice. Sometimes it takes months, a step at a time,
"If I had a rocket launcher", now theres one I'm proud of. then I saw a clip of Bruce Cockburn teaching it http://www.cbc.ca/radio2/spotlight/guitar_video.html and I'm not even close. |
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December 2006
Posts: 6268
Location: Florida Central Gulf Coast | Originally posted by murph:
these songs are intimidating at first, but break em down and go over the tabs and they are doable. Great point! TIH is basically three parts and the last two are easily doable. Once I got the hammer on and the pull off in the first part, the rest wasn't too bad.
The transitions and a couple of necessary barre chords are what I'm working on nailing down completely. As I said, HUNDREDS & HUNDREDS of repetitions... in my case...
Yepper, I'm a tad slow... 
As ol' Edison said, "One percent inspiration and 99% perspiration".  |
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Joined:
November 2006
Posts: 3969
| Both leads (not playing them simultaneously, of course) to "Ramblin' Man"
Before that it was "Signe" - the first real fingerstyle piece I learned.
Right now my instructor has me working on some Pat Martino - at about 1/100th his speed for the moment :eek: |
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Joined:
April 2006
Posts: 972
Location: PDX | There are a number of tunes that i felt good about learning. But my most recent learning effort, still in progress, is something that i have tried and given up on a number of times in the years past.
I have only played finger style and i learned without the use of a thumb pick. I always liked the right hand tone of a thumb pick, but every time i tried to use one, it was a disaster. Missed notes, hitting the wrong string, hitting the string WAY too hard, etc. So i eventually just put it down and went back to my bare thumb.
In March of this year some time, i decided i was going to figure out how to use the thumb pick and resolved not to play with out it -- period. If it sucked, so be it. And it did. But now with a month gone past and about 40 to 50 hours of playing with the pick it is beginning to come together and i couldn't be happier. I still get errant notes and strings here and there but the control over the tone is vastly improved. The songs in the repertoire have a whole new dimension to them.
_____
gh1 |
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July 2005
Posts: 3408
Location: GA USA | When the southern style boys taught me the "dash five B7":
5
4
4
4
X
X
I never liked playing a B7 before. This one made it easy when we were playing the old 12-bar at Beggin's house. I was playing a B major for my V chord, and Crimson Lake shouted at me from across the patio. Something like "It's a B7, dummy!" |
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January 2006
Posts: 5881
Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | Most of the stuff we play is directly from paper that some of us have never seen nor heard before, so the idea of imitating the sound of others is foreign to us. I think the biggest hurdle I mastered was three years ago when I finally developed enough confidence to ad lib a clean alternate melody lead line on an instrumental that I did not know by memory. It has opened up a lot of opportunities since and has become pretty much what is expected of me in the band. I used this technique last weekend when I accompanied our bass player to a talk bass forum jam. The open mic started at 6:00 p.m. and he asked me to play rhythm and leads behind a couple of his numbers. I ended up staying on stage for two hours with a dozen different bass players (as many as four at a time) and a drummer. It was all funk, stuff we rarely play, but a relatively easy style to pick up on the fly. The leads came easy and it was a blast, but I could now go many months without hearing another slapping bass. |
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October 2007
Posts: 2711
Location: Vernon CT | Well, I've been thinking about my "answer" I've never attempted any song that compares in difficulty to some mentioned. Do I say learning fingerstyle by playing Blackbird, Landslide, Dust in the Wind??? So I'm going to go in a different direction here.
My proudest learning effort was probably in the first month of learning, playing chord after chord.Then playing my first Progession producing my first Melody and giving me the drive to keep going and learn, play and make music!! |
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May 2003
Posts: 4389
Location: Capital District, NY, USA Minor Outlying Islands | Getting down that bo diddley rhythym. Once I hit that it was like a veil lifted from eyes. Or ear plugs fell out of my ears or something like that ... |
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May 2004
Posts: 383
Location: Indiana | Probably "Mood for a Day" and "Tears in Heaven". Learned them both on my own with no help from tabs. Found "Classical Gas" and the "Crazy on You" intro to really be easier than I thought. CG was a lot easier after I made a video tape of Mason Williams playing it on the Smothers Bros. |
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Joined:
January 2009
Posts: 4535
Location: Flahdaw | I think back on all the songs I learned pre-internet....when I would play 5 seconds of a song on cassette, rewind it, play it again, rewind it, play it again, try to figure it out on the guitar, rewind it, play it again, try it on guitar, rewind it, etc,etc, etc. Finally getting it, playing it for someone, and they say, "cool". That's real satisfaction...that's pride. |
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March 2009
Posts: 9
Location: WISCONSIN | I started out as a bass player and my big accomplishment was RUSHs LIMELIGHT, GEDDY LEEs bass part. I was so proud.
On electric guitar my my first real accomplishment was JIMI HENDRIX/STEVIE RAY VAUGHAN VOODOO CHILE.
On acoustic it is PINK FLOYDs WISH YOU WERE HERE. I am still working on it though. :eek: |
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October 2008
Posts: 489
| Originally posted by darkbarguitar:
I would play 5 seconds of a song on cassette, rewind it, play it again, In my case it was pickup up the needle and try to find the exact spot on the record where the phase begins, over and over. Finally I would give up and play what I THOUGHT was being played. Sometimes I even got it right. Almost. |
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September 2006
Posts: 10777
Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | Originally posted by STRATUSA:
On acoustic it is PINK FLOYDs WISH YOU WERE HERE. I am still working on it though. :eek: I've been working on WYWH since around 2005... About every time I pick-up a guitar.
Right now I am also trying to perfect Needle and the Damage Done. |
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Your Proudest Learning Effort? (Guitar, of course)
