FINGER FRUSTRATION

My Friends:
The struggle continues. You know, when you watch a person play a guitar, someone who knows how to play and can execute every chord and lead, you don't often realize how much work went into getting to that point. That is, until you, yourself, attempt to learn to play correctly.

I'll tell ya, if your ego ever gets too big, all you need to do is pick up a guitar and try to start learning how to play. You can't believe how frustrating it is getting your fingers to be in the right spots and move the way they need to. It is so easy to feel disabled when you're trying to hold down strings so they play cleanly and your chords don't sound flat and crappy.

I've rarely found an activity that is at once frustrating and rewarding. At the outset it's mainly frustrating. I think that's why I never stuck with it when I was a kid. I guess I figured that if I couldn't be great w/in the first month, that I would never be any good at it. As I grew older, I realized that, unless you have an inate talent, that it's NOT going to be easy and it IS going to take alot of work and practice. Now that I'm in my 40's and I'm trying to become competent, I'm finding that I have more patience to work through the difficulties, but still get as frustrated playing because my mind knows where my fingers are supposed to be, but the body (especially the fingers) wants to be a pain in the ass. No pun intended.

Learning the correct way to play chords and transitioning smoothly between these chords is the tricky part. Hey listen, I've ALWAYS had respect for guitar players, but it's even more so now. Now I realize why it's important to set aside an hour every day to practice (more if you want to get really good and get good fast). Roy the G.B. King and I are big guitar fans. He's crazy for guys like Carlos Santana, any hot blues guitarist (Jimmy Thackery, Stevie Ray, etc...) and other guys who can just play well. And as you know I'm into the Metal thing (guys like Angus Young, Alex Lifeson, Dave Murray and Adrian Smith of Maiden, and Tony Iommi of Sabbath). We both have a Man-Worship thing going for a couple of friends of ours (Jeff the Palooka and the DotCom Destroyer) because besides being golfers who consistently shoot in the 70's, they both happen to wail on the guitar. Listening to them play, I can only wonder at the amount of practice time they must have put in when they were younger.

YEAH, OKAY, SO?.....
So my struggle continues as I continue to kick my own ass for not sticking with it when I was a kid. I'm finally learning how to play scales of different kinds, and play chords and transition between them smoothly. I have good days and bad days, like anything else. I think it's very true that you have to learn on an acoustic, so as to learn how to hold down strings properly. You then progress to an electric, which, when amplified is easier to play (my opinion). I still want to go fast and be a great player before I'm ready. And in truth, I know it's going to take a while. But by next year at this time, I believe I'm going to be able to play quite well (for me). I won't be afraid to embarass myself when playing in front of others. I probably won't be able to play many Standard songs (Down in the Valley, Camp Town Races, etc...) because that's not my bag. But I hope to have written several decent rock songs that I can get recorded with the help a few musician friends. Not looking to be some recording star, but I am looking to satisfy my own ego and maybe impress a person or two.

Now that I've stopped smoking, I think my singing voice is returning a little. I can sing pretty well, so that's always been an option. But I'd rather just play the axe. I've often been of the opinion that singers get the chicks, but guitarists get the respect. I'm not looking to nail groupies at this point in my life. I think I just want a little man-worship. I hope you are all laughing right now. That was said tongue-in-cheek.

Hey, if you're a kid or if you have a kid that is taking music lessons, please, PLEASE stick with it. Don't let frustration influence you to quit. If you quit, you will end up like me, 40-something years old, trying to do something you should have done years ago, and playing catch-up in a big way. If you're an adult and just starting, or re-discovering something like playing an instrument, just freakin' DO IT. I always thought it was too late to start and kept putting it off. Now I know what I want out of my playing. So, now I'm going to stick with it. I have to, or else there's no reason for LEN IS RIGHT.

THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES.
Be Well, people, and thanks for indulging the Metal Head.
I am,
Len Tollerton