Now that we've learned how to play notes, chords, and scales, we are ready to move on to the most enjoyable and rewarding part of playing guitar: Playing Songs.
Now, everybody has their favorite songs, their favorite licks, their favorite bands, and their favorite pieces of music that they know by heart and would just love to be able to play. And this is fine, perfect even! But before you go off and try to learn Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" or Mozart's 5th concerto, step back for a second and remember that even those musicians had to start somewhere. For this lesson we will focus on learning a few simple songs that you can play (using the chords we've learned so far) that will help give you a feel for song structures, timing, and give you your first chance to sing along with your guitar playing. Here are a few songs to get you started:
Now that you know the basic concepts of how to play guitar, your next step is to get better at each of them. The only way to do this is by practicing consistently and often. While at first this may be a tiresome and sometimes aggravating process, the better you get at playing the guitar, the more fun you will have doing it — and the less like "practice" it will become. Here are a few tips for practicing:
Set out a few minutes each day (15 - 20 minutes) to practice in an environment that allows you to fully concentrate on the guitar.
Stretch out your fingers, hands and arms before playing.
If you're using an electric guitar, turn off the distortion. This will allow you to hear your mistakes more clearly.
Know specifically what you are going to practice before you begin. This will make your practice sessions more efficient.
Go over things you've practiced in your last session before moving on to new things.
Learning a new skill is always tough at first, so try not to get aggravated if it doesn't sound perfect right away, if your fingers start to hurt, if your guitar goes out of tune, or if your neighbors start to complain about the noise. Every great guitar player was once at the same place you are now. What separates those that actually become good guitar players from those that try and give up is the ability to fight through the tough patches and keep trying to get better. The most important thing to keep in mind when learning how to play guitar is that playing should be enjoyable! So keep learning, keep practicing, and keep having fun!
