Hi Toby, I’ve just read through your LL update, and had to smile, as - oh wow, what a coincidence - I’ve just decided this morning to change my learning path a bit to focus on fingerstyle for a longer period .
Actually, I should move on to module 12 now (power chords, palm muting, aso), which would have been a good reason to dust off my 2 electrics. But at the moment, I don’t feel like doing that.
Having been to a Peter Ratzenbeck concert recently, has influenced me and my guitar focus for the next time considerably.
So, it seems, we’re having something in common, when it comes to practice time .
@Rod58 posted an AVOYP of Simple Man (I just wanted to post the link, but saw, that you’ve already checked it out ). I think, this would suit perfectly to your musical preferences and your voice .
Always admire your thoughtfulness and organisation, Toby. Having direction and a plan is a first step, without that all the energy in the world makes no difference. On that score, I know how you feel.
I’m sure you’ll have fun and make progress on the finger-style and I am sure in time you’ll sing and pick and wonder what all the fuss and bother was about.
I like to keep it simple and my picking equivalent of ‘old faithful’ is T M T I T M T I played with alternating bass notes. Seems to sound OK for many songs. Two in my repertoire are Blowing in the Wind and Going to be Friends.
@sairfingers sing some JD ? I’ll need a years diet of granola and hiking before there’s a chance of that idea even been kindled.
@NicoleKKB No harm in staying where you are if you are building and consolidating a style you enjoy and from what I have seen, are excelling at. Being more rock orientated I did indeed take the power chords and palm muting route as it was laid out in the old course. So like me returning to fingerstyle now, your rocking days will come. But listen out to the whsipers coming from your plug in stable, they will still be gently calling “play me play me”.
As for Simple Man, its one I have dabbled with in the past, when I could not get the pick picking up to speed. Experimented a little after Rod’s post.
I found there was not much substance song wise to Justin’s Folk Fingerstyle courses on my first visit but experience has shown me sometimes you just have to go looking for the right song. Dust In The Wind is a good builder and I now have the Intro and Verse down. The problem is chord changes I once took for granted are now a mess due to the focus on the pattern. Early days, look forward to you sharing your own experiences.
I appreciate the sentiment dear friend ! Having plan and mapping it out is one thing. Sticking to it is something else but I am determined to be a little bit more disciplined for the rest of this year. Then it will be a further reassessment for what the 2024 targets will be.
Right now it’s a matter of getting some patterns down, learn songs from end to end and worry about the singing in due course. But I suspect there will be another eureka moment, like the one that trigger the “Diaries”.
I came across that pattern you suggested for a trimmed down version of Dont Think Twice but I guess some Dylan will definitely be on the cards.
At the moment and from an early singing perspective, I found a “traditional” Folk Fingerstyle course on Truefire and unlike Dylan and going back to the 60s, some of the material harks from the 1600s and hails from @sairfingers country ! Songs that are truly off my radar but it takes what it takes. If I record them my rep will be blown to tatters !
Anyway, Bob and the Stripes will feature somewhere along the line !
Quick update on the non-Blues (Folk) Fingerstyle progress, so obviously not Blues Diary material and certainly work in progress, so an LL drop makes sense.
So the Folk fingerstyle development continues alongside acoustic blues. I think this is now week 6 and I am back to getting chord changes right whilst playing the patterns ! Yehaaa !! So along with Dust In The Wind and old 16/17th century folks song, this was the other pattern I chose for development. Mainly as it is constant 8th notes for the best part but has a relaxing flow to it once you get going. Neither of the other two are ready for vocals but I’ll try and record them at some stage. So this is just a taster.
Plan now is to work on increased tempo the apply to songs, when I find something that fits.
As @LievenDV expressed recently, its all about layering and this around point B on that chart at the moment. Example of the pattern below for those who are interested and the progression as per the Music Theory Live Show thread.
As my OBS videos have been a disaster recently, I decided to go for audio only. My mixing skills are a little rusty but the BT was tabbed out in GuitarPro and the midi dropped into Reaper. Short bike vid from my last ride out a few weeks back.
Hey “Toby”!
Nicely played and cool video!
I knew that you are a biker, what’s your current ride? My wife & I love our bikes (we’ve cut back to only 3)!!! Was that ride in the Normandy countryside? Looked like a beautiful day for a cruise!
Thanks Tod much appreciated. Picked up a Dyna Low Rider back in 2019 and its the 2017 model so last of the Dyna range. I’m am only a couple of miles from the Brittany borders, so that short run was still on the Normandy side but most of the ride (just under 70 miles) was over the border. But some super roads round here for sure. Opportunity to ride now will be few and far between over the coming months. As to cutting back, I sold 4 before leaving the UK, then got a Yam FZ8 in 2012 once we’d settled in over here. Great bike but like sitting on a plank ! Anyway at my age laid back Harley style riding is perfect but I’ll still rip it up now and then.
HaHa! I hear you loud & clear… give me a sofa with wheels!
About 10 years ago ( I was 52), my wife asked me if I thought that I would have a mid-life crisis. I said “Hell Yeah, you wanna have one with me?” So we bought a couple of matching Harley 883 SuperLow Sportsters! We’ve added since then and give the Sportsters to our kids. Right now I have a 2015 Indian Chief Vintage & a 2017 Harley Breakout. My 5’ tall wife rides a 2018 Harley Softail Deluxe that is arguably the most beautiful bike I’ve ever seen!!! We had to have it lowered & she has to wear boots with a big heel just so she could touch the ground!!!
Ride safe , play dangerously !!!
A very modern post apocalyptic atmospheric piece, Toby some sweet fingerpickin, not sure that I’d increase the tempo, sounds good as it it to me. If you want to add vocals to it just sing slower
Funny you should say that, I’ve just created some AI art for the other two pieces !
Thanks for the comments and I would agree for this composition the tempo works well. It’s more about using the progression as a vehicle to increases my picking speed - thinking ahead to songs that are a little more complicated but much faster ! So as it contains a flavour of all the open 6th 5th & 4th rooted chords it makes a good practice routine. The old folk song has a Bm barre which is a bit sluggish on arrival but as I say work in progress.
I’d focus on building strength and dexterity which in turn will develop speed. If you’re interested I can DM you some intermediate picking exercises focusing on this to add to your practice routine.
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). I think, this would suit perfectly to your musical preferences and your voice 
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up to speed. Experimented a little after Rod’s post.
, play dangerously 
!!!
