Lessons...Where to start?
Howdy from Texas. New to the forum and I'm looking for recommendations on my first couple of lessons. I'm a self taught player of many years. I know some basic theory and have recently been trying to learn the dreaded modes. Most of my playing has been at the church I attend, where we play the popular worship music but I would like to bring back some of the great old songs of the past (and some of my own). Recent my two singing daughters have graduate high school and I want to help support them in a good old country band. I first heard Jim with the Little Willies and was blown away. His sound and playing really resonated with me. When I found out about the lessons, I was in. I wasn't looking for someone to tell me where to put my fingers but to help me understand what I'm playing so I can develop an ear for what I'm hearing and develop it into my own style. Looking forward to learning some of Jim's awesome tunes! Thanks for taking the time to read my longwinded story and make comments.
Comments
Welcome to the forum!
I found Country Lead in G to be filled with lots of really useful ideas.
"Playing the Blues" is a good place to start...
or
"Travis 101" ... you might not find your immediate style, but it will give you nice foundation in fingerpicking, accompaniment and hybrid picking in a fun context...
All the best- Jim
Hey Jim. Thanks for your suggestions. It's great you are so available to your fans. You must be a teacher at heart.
Wayne, could you give us a little more background on some of the stuff that you are currently playing? Based on the info that you have mentioned so far I would have to second Jim's recommendation on both Travis 101 (especially if you are interested in learning to fingerpick and have limited prior experience with the technique). The lesson is broken down into simple, one note, one string at a time, "beginner" speed and teaches you 3 different patterns that are infinitely useful. And, once you get the basics mechanics ingrained, you can really start to play with some impressive speed. Really great lesson.
I would also highly recommend both Playing the Blues and Playing the Blues (Nailing the changes). The first playing the Blues lesson goes over the familiar pentatonic and the blues scale in a way that makes both scales really sink into your brain...and your fingers. While most of us learn these basics at an early stage, Jim does an AMAZING job of stripping out a lot of the fat that comes with just memorizing the scale shape. Through a very carefully planned out lesson, he walks you through more distilled and, in my opinion, infinitely more useful applications of the scales all within the context of playing extremely musical and melodic lines up and down the neck. I still go back to the first playing the blues lesson from time to time as a reminder of how much you can say on the guitar if you pay attention to basics and keep in mind the little pointers and memory devices that Jim throws your way throughout the lesson. Also included with the lesson is an original tune (Tribute to Elmore) that applies all of the concepts in the lesson over a really fun and melodic blues tune that will not only open up the fretboard and ingrain the lesson, but will also add dozens of licks to your arsenal.
Next up, I would say "Playing the Blues (Nailing the changes)" is an essential lesson for all guitar players. Again, in a very simplified and straightforward way, Jim walks you through playing blues lines while keeping in mind the notes that you can/should play over a changing progression. I found that this lesson was a gigantic stepping stone that really helped me start understanding the melodic playing that I had heard in rockabilly and country tunes that I could never quite get. Through a unique triad approach, you will start to get a new "visualization" of the fretboard that will dramatically open up your playing. And (like the first playing the blues lesson) there is a section devoted to bending notes in a way that is extremely melodic and that adds to the overall creative and expressive nature of the guitar.
There are definitely other lessons that I would highly recommend based on what you may be looking for. Freddie Green and Voice leading if you are looking to get into some "jazzy" playing, some chord melodies if you are looking to expand your chord palate, and bunch of Jim tunes if you are looking to really jump to a new level. Give a shout back and let me know if you have any more specific questions and I will be more than happy to throw in my 2 cents.
Happy playing!
CJ
Thanks again for taking the time to write. You've really been a help.
Wayne
Just checking in to see how the Travis lesson is going for you. Also, after reading your last post would like to highly recommend the Playing the Blues and Playing the Blues Nailing the Changes lessons. These are two of my favorites because there are so darn "user friendly" and memorable. I'm 43 and also don't have as much time for practice and lessons as I would like. That being said, both of the Playing the Blues lessons distilled the important info that I had been searching for for a very very very long time into (in my opinion) the essential essence of what most guitarists are searching for to create there own unique expressive voice. Jim throws you a handful of very useful and versatile licks along with a cool approach to how to visualize the notes on the neck using triads. The licks are not just licks that you memorize and then play without thought. They are very musical sounding and once internalized allow you to start molding and shaping them with infinite variations. I found that the two Playing the Blues lessons (Followed by B flat Blues - I'll tell you about that one if you are interested as well), opened up the fretboard to me in a way that I had been searching for several decades. AND, the bending excercises included with both lessons are absolutely priceless. They not only help your expressive playing but they also greatly help train your ear.
Happy playing!
CJ
I've been in the Texas Hill Country relaxing and soaking up some good music. I was with the wife, so no guitars allowed but I'm coming straight from work to the computer, downloading the lesson and won't be seen for hours. I'll let you know how it goes.
Thanks,
WayneS
The Travis lesson is going very well and was a good primer into Jim's lessons. I really like the chord based diagrams Jim uses. It makes it easier to carry the ideas over to my existing chord knowledge. I'll be pulling the trigger on the next lesson soon! Thanks for all the suggestions and support.