Misinformation on the Internet About Learning to Play the Guitar

I spent the last 30 minutes at some of the article directories reading the articles. What I noticed most was the uninformed opinions of some of the people posing as experts, passing advice.

I saw one suggestion that advised people to start with a classical guitar. I've also seen other people advise that a beginner should start with an acoustic rather than an electric guitar.

Both of of these suggestions are misleading in that there is only one best guitar to begin on. And that guitar is the one, that when you close your eyes and visualize yourself playing, what type of guitar are you holding? A classical? A steel string acoustic or an electric? Take that vision and buy the best guitar you can afford. This doesn't mean that you need to spend a thousand dollars. You can get good entry level guitars for approximately $150.00 - $300.00.

The best guitar to learn on is the one that best suits the music you want to play and that will inspire you to practice.

However...

What is crucial to you learning to play is that the strings are easy to press on the guitar, that the guitar has decent tuners so that the guitar will get in tune easily and hold it's tuning and that the guitar is in tune at different positions on the neck. The department store brands don't usually qualify unless they are carrying main brands that the music stores carry.

Quick advise - don't buy a guitar from someone who doesn't know how to tune it or play it. The second thing to consider when learning to play is that you are willing to practice. You'll need to practice everyday for at least 30 minutes. This is advised by any teacher that is worth their salt. If you practice more you'll get better even quicker. Your fingertips will build callouses within a month.

You might wonder how long it will take to learn. Naturally that will depend on how much you practice and if you have good direction. You'd be surprised how much you could learn in 6 weeks. In fact, I teach my own students how to play songs on their first lesson. I start them with a song that has 3 or 4 easy chords and a basic and easy to do strumming rhythm. The second song I teach is a guitar riff such as TNT by AC/DC.

Because...

If you like what you are learning and if is within your current capabilities you'll practice more. And practice is the key.

I've seen forums and questions asking what is a good beginner song to learn. I saw one response that suggested they learn a certain song and it had C, F and G for the 3 chords. F is certainly not the chord to begin with. Let me suggest that you learn Em, A7 or A, C, D and G first. You can play 1000's of songs with these chords.

A couple of examples would be 'Boulevard of Broken Dreams' by Green Day. Play two downward strums on using these chords. Em - G - D - A. There is a little more to it than this, but this will get you started.

Another example would be Last Kiss which was redone again by Pearl Jam. The chords for this song are G - Em - C - D. You would strum V V V^V^ (down, down, down, up, down, up). If you're not sure how to do this and other rhythms check out my 5 Easy Guitar Lessons book or Easiest Way Guitar which begins with the easiest guitar basics that teaches you the 28 essential chords and 14 different ways to strum the guitar.

YouTube is a great resource. I use it with most of my students. They tell me what songs they want to learn and then I call it up on YouTube, listen to the song and then show them how to play it (if it is within their current capabilities).

Guitar tabs are also a great resource if they are right. Remember that the information on the Internet is only as good as the person who put it there. Some of the tabs are just plain wrong. As you gain more experience you'll be able to know what is correct.

The ideal way to start learning to play the guitar is with the type of guitar that you want (acoustic or electric) and some good instructions on how to learn to play.

The above mentioned books will teach you guitar strumming and chords.

There are other resources that teach guitar as well. Some focus on playing lead, electric guitar or acoustic guitar.

Let me say one thing in conclusion. If you want an electric guitar but there is an an acoustic guitar available. Start with what is available. Don't wait and say I'll get started when I have my guitar.

Start now and have fun!