Well, i'm hooked already!
after reading some of the replies and hearing how difficult it was all going to be, i was a little daunted by it and started having second thoughts about taking it up, but thought fuck it, nothing ventured nothing gained
i went onto ebay and ordered a fairly cheap acoustic and an instructional cd rom with ebook, i thought i'd get a cheap one to kick off with just incase it turned out that guitar playing wasnt for me, anyway, said guitar and cd rom arrive a couple of days later and i'm like a little kid on christmas day opening it up
so .. guitar all tuned up and cd rom insatalled i was raring to go, first lesson - Chords! open chords, major chords, A, Am, G, G7,Dm7,Em .... i thought shit, this might as well be Chinese to me as it seemed so complicated, i was immediately put on the back foot by it all, all sorts of negative thoughs started running through my head, 'i'm never gonna be able to learn all this' 'another waste of money' etc etc, but i took it step by step and i slowly started to memorise the individual chords, although i found it very frustrating and time consuming
i didnt seem to be getting anywhere, or anything out of the guitar apart from some very sore finger tips (cheers Zen see what you mean now mate) and a stiff back! i couldnt get my head (and fingers) around the chord changes, not quickly enough anyway and when i did do, i had always forgotten how to do it the same way half an hour later and ended up refering to the book again and again, hitting the wrong string, string buzzing etc, I know these problems are all probably par for the course in learning how to play the guitar, and can totally understand why it puts many people off, as i was starting to go down the same road! many hours, sore fingers and not much to show for my pains!
i was begining to think my latest investment was going to be this years bonfire fuel, then i had a huge stroke of luck
was at work one day chatting to a none guitar playing mate about my frustrations with my new pass time when another guy i work with, who i didnt really know too well came over, he says he overheard the coversation i was was having, anyway, turns out him and his son are pretty handy guitar players and he invites me round to his gaff to give me some hints and tips!
so... goes round to his place one night, him and his son have electric guitars and a couple of pretty big marshal amps, his lad was playing as i got there and i couldnt believe how good he was, it was like listening to Jimmy Hendrix, he was superb, and only 14 years old and been playing for just over a year!
anyway my new mate
starts to teach me a couple of simple riffs on his Squier Strat, my first thought was how easier it is to play a leccy than an acoustic, as the neck is narrower and the action is lower (gettin the jargon too) and within minutes i was playing simple riffs like 'smoke on the water' and 'cat scratch fever'! I know they are simple riffs but i could'nt believe that it was ME making this awesome sound that was coming from the amp, it sounded fantastic and i was instantly converted from acoustic to leccy!!
that was a defining moment for me, i was hooked well and truly, first thing i did the next day was get back on ebay and i ordered a leccy, i found and ordered a brand new Squier strat starter package (guitar and 10 watt amp) for £99
since then i have been practicing my newly learned riffs to the point where they now sound crisp and sharp as if it was Ted Nugent himself playing Cat Scratch
been round to my mates a couple of times and i'm now able to play Black Sabbath's 'Paranoid'
not perfectly obviously, it still a bit rough, but i'm determined to perfect it, he has also taught me how to read TABS, and i borrowed his Dire Straits tab book and i'm now well on my way to playin that superb Knopfler riff 'money for nothing'
thanks for all the advice in this thread guys, and anyone who reads this thread who is thinking of taking it up ..... DO IT!!!!! ....... I wish I had done it years ago! but start with an electric, i know there will be purists who will say you should start with an acoustic, then go electric, but electric is easier and more fun and rewarding (i found anyway)
also i cant over emphasise the need to know someone who plays to a pretty good standard, i think if i had'nt had that bit of luck, i may well have struggled and lost interest!
