Hi everyone i’m John “Muttley”. Aparently its the laugh.
This is my progress log.
So when I was 10 my parents gave me my first 3/4 length acoustic guitar and I started private lessons.
At 12 I was given a sunburst colour guitar which I had fixed up at my local music shop, but more about that in a minute.
I was an ok learner but I was constantly getting told by my father, who was and still is a country fan that what I was doing wasn’t guitar playing. I was doing the chord changes and strumming pattern lessons at the time.
My father got fed up with me just strumming and decided I needed a new tutor.
He allways told me that players similar to Hank Marvin who mainly do solos are proper guitar players, and players who just strum a song arent worth listening to.
I hated my new tutor, he had no interest in teaching me and i wanted to stay with my old tutor as we got on. At that time I was in my early teens and just started finding music i liked and not what my father wanted me to listen to. I was torn between the new UK indie / britpop and Rave scene. My new tutor could only come on a Friday evening so I lost interest as I wanted to be out with my mates.
It felt at that time that I was living my father’s dream and not mine.
I sold both the acoustic guitars I had by then and and also gave the electric to a mate who then sold it for £650. I later found out it was a sunburst Gibson Les Paul. At that time I didn’t even know the guitar was worth anything.
I started learning again in 1999, because I wanted to, not because I was being forced to. And I was accepted on a guitar music course at Acton music college, but I had just become a father to my first child and was talked out of doing the course by my then fiance.
In 2003 I started learning again, using the Play Guitar magazines that had the play along CDs on the front cover.
Over the years I have started and then got bored and stopped again because I felt like I wasn’t progressing.
I learn a song then start learning another song then forget the previous song, I couldn’t sing and play at the same time, couldn’t do barre chords etc etc. I was always getting stuck in a rut.
I’ve picked up the guitar a few times over the years and always wanted to go further with my learning but never know where to turn.
So fast forward to now. I am now a 48 year old learner.
I have a cheap acoustic guitar which im soon to replace. A cheap squier strat that I am currently fixing up. And ive just ordered a Tele shape Harley Benton which should be with me in 3 weeks.
I’ve been learning some bits and bobs on youtube.
And I have now come across this JustinGuitar.com lessons for beginners. I have started the lessons, most of which I already know so far, but it doesn’t hurt watching the lessons just incase something comes up that I didn’t know already.
Sin
So the plan is to…
The thing I don’t want to do again is give up, this time I want to learn as much as I can, and be the best I can be.
I have never learnt the whole fretboard, I have only ever learnt small easy leads, basic strumming patterns and open chords. I am already confident at changing fast between all the chords that i already know.
My goal…
So as i said above I used to be heavily into indie brit pop, and i was a raver into drum n bass and Jungle.
I like bands that use the dance element of music, like Pendulum, Prodigy, Knife Party, Primal Scream, Stone Roses etc
I would love to be in or start a band that can use oldschool jungle, drum n bass beats with a live band twist. There is a few artists that already do this including High Contrast who uses a live band in all his shows.
Im not going to give in this time, this time im serious. To the peoint that i am also going to buy a bass guiter to learn alongside the guitar lessons.
I also want to learn how to sing, i keep getting told i have a good voice and that i should use it, so im going to get some help to find it.
I’m going to be very annoyed with myself if i havent played Glastonbury buy the time i am 60 lol