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Mave Datthews
Is Anybody Here?
USA
32 Posts |
 Posted - 06/21/2005 : 12:11:47 AM
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so i just got back from the annual North American Rock Guitar Competition w/my dad, and usual, i saw some unbelievable talent, and, as usual, all i wanted to do when i got home was play my guitar.
so i did... but MAN, do i suck! i'm just so out of practice and i don't know when/where it all went wrong. i just haven't been playing NEARLY as much as i used to and it's really starting to bother me.
now, i'm not in a band (although i'd love to be), so obviously there's one reason not to practice as much. but right now (and lately) i've been listening to Tim a lot, mainly because he just makes me feel so refreshed inside (acoustic Tim, to be specific). right now i'm listening to my first show i went to last year here in Buffalo (which was part of the Guitar Festival as well), and all i can is just jam along with my body and smile, knowing that i'll probably NEVER be as good as Tim; but he inspires me to no end...
so i think, c'mon Eric. you just need a reason to practice again. i kept making excuses for myself, saying it was because of school and such (which it kinda was) that i wasn't playing as much. but now it's well into summer and i'm playing even less than i did in school, and it's really making me mad.
maybe i should start taking lessons again...? i know in my heart that i DO love the guitar and i would just be heartbroken if i ever ended up quitting for good (i'd also dissappoint my dad), so i'm not going to let that happen... but when i start to play something and i just stumble around, churning out crappy little sporadic notes... it's pretty depressing, y'know?
i guess what i'm getting at is, i'd like some advice from all the guitarists in here (since i know there's a plethora of them). WHAT SHOULD I DO? obviously, Tim gives me incredible ispiration, as does DMB. basically, Dave is the reason i picked up the guitar in the first place, and Tim is the reason i really want to get better.
my hands get slow, tired and sore quickly (i have a Gripmaster, but i dunno how well those things actually work); i don't know any scales anymore, and my accuracy is really off.
and to top it all off, i simply SUCK at changing strings! lol... i've only changed a few (haven't had the need to change them that often... as you can gather), and when i have, i almost always fuck one of them up somehow and then they don't tune right.
i have an Ovation acoustic, which is OK - it serves its purpose (i'd love a Martin or a Taylor, but i can dream, can't i?); and a Fender Strat, which of course is perfect, but a jackass plays it. i honestly feel so guilty that i haven't been playing them. they gather dust in my room and scowl at me, i tell you! well, i would too...
what did YOU do when you got depressed or out of practice? what's a good way to get back into it?
HELP MEEEEEEEE!!! |
Tim is my sanity. |
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Mave Datthews
Is Anybody Here?
USA
32 Posts |
Posted - 06/21/2005 : 10:29:42 AM
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| ...nobody? |
Tim is my sanity. |
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enthuTIMsiast
Alien Abductee
6990 Posts |
Posted - 06/21/2005 : 1:23:03 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Mave Datthews
...nobody?
Play songs that you like and that are fun? I don't know... I gave up long ago.. |
Tim Reynolds Downloads
I am not the albatross of love, I am the human ellipsis. I am dot dot dot. - Leo Kottke
I hate beating people over the head with anything. We can all make up our own minds. What we don’t have is enough music. More music please. - Leo Kottke |
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Zachmozach
Fluffy-Esque
USA
1534 Posts |
Posted - 06/21/2005 : 2:04:45 PM
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It's not a contest of good and bad. If you want to get back into playing you'll do it because it's something you enjoy. If you don't like to play for hours of the day to get better you won't do it. It's not something that really matters in life. You actually become a stronger musician by realizing you don't need to do this. You don't need to play. Then you need to realize yourself that you are already a master. You don't need to prove that to yourself, because it's true. All you should be looking for is discipline, and enjoyment. They're one and the same. You'll be able to play for hours and have it all mean something to you and be enjoyable as soon as you let go of your desire to be good, and let go of feeling the need to practice. If you really enjoy it you'll do it.
You might try checking out a book to By Kenny Werner called Effortless Mastery. Every musician should have read it once by now. |
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Mave Datthews
Is Anybody Here?
USA
32 Posts |
Posted - 06/21/2005 : 3:09:37 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Zachmozach
You might try checking out a book to By Kenny Werner called Effortless Mastery. Every musician should have read it once by now.
hmm, maybe i'll check that out. thanks.
yeah, i mean i'm not trying to be Leo friggin' Kotte or Tim here, i'm just feeling kinda guilty about not playing and i need some new ways to practice.
i guess i really should start taking lessons again. i DO enjoy playing, i just don't have much to play! thanks guys. |
Tim is my sanity. |
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Hopeful Rolling Waves
Alien Abductee
South Sandwich Islands
2154 Posts |
Posted - 06/22/2005 : 07:48:30 AM
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Pop in a CD you can play with and go to town, I know when I used to get bummed, I'd throw in Before These Crowded Streets and play with the whole album. That's a little excessive, but it got the juices flowing.
Also, if you're into Tim, try picking out one of his songs and trying that out, obviously they require some deft finger action, but that's all part of getting better. Always try to challange yourself everytime you pick up your instrument.
"Depressed Guitar Player" is an oxymoron; as Nick Drake showed us. |
http://db.etree.org/hopefulrollingwaves/ < My Trading List |
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Silky The Pimp
Alien Abductee
3321 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2005 : 08:21:28 AM
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| Everyone else already got it. Just put the joy into it by playing things you enjoy playing and then push yourself from there to more challenging stuff. |
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OnlySuperstition
Chatterbox
150 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2005 : 6:13:13 PM
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Hey buddy,
I dont know what your problem is but you definatley have one. I once heard a quote that made me stop bitching about my life and let me tell you my life has been tougher that yours. The quote goes "I felt bad becasue i had no shoes until i saw a man who had no feet". If you think you suck at the guitar than you probably do. Solution, play till you cant play any more. Everyone here who is good at the guitar put in plenty of work so suck it up. How you suck at chagning strings??? Not really brain surgery. I am not babying you because you aint got it that bad. TR is an inspiration to us all. HE IS A MOTHER FUCKIN MACHINE> So have a nice day and take off your poopy pants. Also listen to a song by Broken Social Scene called looks just like the sun, it might help your day.
Later on |
Slaughter, a word to live by.... |
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Batstone
Chatterbox
Canada
281 Posts |
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Fluffy
Administrator
USA
10739 Posts |
Posted - 06/23/2005 : 9:43:18 PM
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| Yes it was, but it's not that big a deal as I now have the power to move topics to the right forum along with the power to edit and/or delete them if need be. |
Peace & Keep the Faith
Fluffy         
"THE MUSIC BUSINESS IS A CRUEL AND SHALLOW MONEY TRENCH-- A LONG PLASTIC HALLWAY WHERE THIEVES AND PIMPS RUN FREE AND GOOD MEN DIE LIKE DOGS. THERE'S ALSO A NEGATIVE SIDE..." -Hunter S. Thompson |
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rubylith
Fluffy-Esque
1916 Posts |
Posted - 06/25/2005 : 7:31:13 PM
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| get really wasted, and dont listen to people that are too too good. Like Im glad that I didnt know about django until like 6 years into playing. I think it would have made me feel like ill never be good. |
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anthony1832
Try A Little Harder
USA
63 Posts |
Posted - 06/25/2005 : 8:26:39 PM
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| Well I dunno if this will help, but when i get depressed about not playing as good as tim, and others, i think of this. I am 19, ive been playing for 3 years. Tim is in his 40s and has been playing for 30+ years. If you think your gonna sound like tim or any of ur other favorite guitar players in just 1-10 years of playing, you better think again. I like comparing myself to other guitar players my age, and with most of them, I can out play them. That keeps me going. |
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Arthen
Alien Abductee
USA
4845 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2005 : 3:20:08 PM
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| Find somebody you love to play with, it doesn't have to be good or something you have to show other people. I've been playing with my best friend as our band for damn near four years, and it's some of the most fun I've ever had. Granted we've only been good for one year, but that's what keeps me playing and practicing, to try to figure out new things to add to our songs. |
Steve Hackett: "I'm my own opening act, you see."
Tim (before "Faceoff"): "Peace, love....and SEX!"
cbenc41@hotmail.com |
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enthuTIMsiast
Alien Abductee
6990 Posts |
Posted - 06/26/2005 : 3:50:55 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by Arthen
Find somebody you love to play with
This is so true of just about anything... find someone you can bounce off of, and both of you will enjoy whatever it is more. For me, it'd be biking... I wish I could find someone reliable to bike with. But yeah, that's an excellent idea Arthen!! |
Tim Reynolds Downloads
I am not the albatross of love, I am the human ellipsis. I am dot dot dot. - Leo Kottke
I hate beating people over the head with anything. We can all make up our own minds. What we don’t have is enough music. More music please. - Leo Kottke |
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Mave Datthews
Is Anybody Here?
USA
32 Posts |
Posted - 06/27/2005 : 5:11:52 PM
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quote:
Originally posted by OnlySuperstition
Hey buddy,
I dont know what your problem is but you definatley have one. I once heard a quote that made me stop bitching about my life and let me tell you my life has been tougher that yours. The quote goes "I felt bad becasue i had no shoes until i saw a man who had no feet". If you think you suck at the guitar than you probably do. Solution, play till you cant play any more. Everyone here who is good at the guitar put in plenty of work so suck it up. How you suck at chagning strings??? Not really brain surgery. I am not babying you because you aint got it that bad. TR is an inspiration to us all. HE IS A MOTHER FUCKIN MACHINE> So have a nice day and take off your poopy pants. Also listen to a song by Broken Social Scene called looks just like the sun, it might help your day.
Later on
um... wow, i wasn't expecting anything like that...
first of all, i know i don't have it "that bad" - i never said i did - and i don't need anyone to baby me. all i wanted was a little advice on how to practice better, etc. after i told my story.
second, i know Tim is a "MOTHER FUCKIN MACHINE," and he's a big inspiration to me as well as everyone else here.
and by the way, no, changing strings is NOT brain surgery, but i hardly do it because i don't play regularly enough that i have to change them regularly enough, so i just think it's a pain in the ass.
thanks to everyone else for their advice. i'm playing more often now and i've restored a bit of faith in my ability. |
Tim is my sanity. |
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enthuTIMsiast
Alien Abductee
6990 Posts |
Posted - 06/27/2005 : 5:54:14 PM
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Haha, MaveDatthews, don't sweat what that guy said... after all it's only superstition. 
Seriously, you shouldn't have even wasted space on a reply to that. |
Tim Reynolds Downloads
I am not the albatross of love, I am the human ellipsis. I am dot dot dot. - Leo Kottke
I hate beating people over the head with anything. We can all make up our own minds. What we don’t have is enough music. More music please. - Leo Kottke |
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dan p.
Alien Abductee
Uganda
3776 Posts |
Posted - 06/27/2005 : 7:52:04 PM
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broken social scene sucks, so, you know, if that's what you're brining to this discussion, better to just jump off a bridge instead. they're not talented, they're not innovative, they're not anything. all of their songs are just borning pieces of shit.
really, the only way to get better is to practice a lot.
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death to false metal. |
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Mave Datthews
Is Anybody Here?
USA
32 Posts |
Posted - 06/28/2005 : 11:55:22 AM
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yeah i know i didn't even really need to reply to that, since no one else did, but i figured i'd fling it back to him, y'know...
and anyway, as i said, i'm practicing again and feelin' better about my playing again. one thing i've always done when i was bored/depressed, i'd just pop in a DMB show and jam along and i would feel great.
also, i'll just play stuff i know for a little bit, and learn new songs (i'm always looking up tabs online), and that's always a good warmup. |
Tim is my sanity. |
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Hopeful Rolling Waves
Alien Abductee
South Sandwich Islands
2154 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2005 : 08:09:48 AM
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Dan, I really wonder about your silly ass sometimes. That clearly sounded like a "I don't like them because." Anyway, I think their You Forgot It In People Album is very good, and really crosses genre barriers.
So, again, I break wind in your general direction. |
http://db.etree.org/hopefulrollingwaves/ < My Trading List |
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rubylith
Fluffy-Esque
1916 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2005 : 08:37:49 AM
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| thats for the beer offer last night, good thing i didnt have another! |
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rubylith
Fluffy-Esque
1916 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2005 : 08:39:23 AM
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quote:
Originally posted by dan p.
broken social scene sucks, so, you know, if that's what you're brining to this discussion, better to just jump off a bridge instead. they're not talented, they're not innovative, they're not anything. all of their songs are just borning pieces of shit.
really, the only way to get better is to practice a lot.
HAH! |
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dan p.
Alien Abductee
Uganda
3776 Posts |
Posted - 06/29/2005 : 10:43:11 AM
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| eh. nothing really stood out to me. genre crossing and blending is all well and good, but it just seems to fail with these guys. even if i was innovative, it still isn't appealing to me. |
death to false metal. |
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Hopeful Rolling Waves
Alien Abductee
South Sandwich Islands
2154 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2005 : 08:04:22 AM
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No shit. Oh well. If I was you, I'd give that album another listen, but whatever.
I am once again bludgeoned by Dan P.'s stoicism. |
http://db.etree.org/hopefulrollingwaves/ < My Trading List |
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dan p.
Alien Abductee
Uganda
3776 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2005 : 12:51:09 PM
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| yeah, i guess i could give them another shot. couldn't hurt. |
death to false metal. |
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HotKoreanGirl
Chatterbox
130 Posts |
Posted - 06/30/2005 : 2:07:33 PM
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| If I were you, I'd listen to radiohead awhile, and cheer up as your skill and ingenuity far surpasses anything they are capable of. I do it time to time when I am depressed. |
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Hopeful Rolling Waves
Alien Abductee
South Sandwich Islands
2154 Posts |
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rubylith
Fluffy-Esque
1916 Posts |
Posted - 07/01/2005 : 11:21:19 AM
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Jer I met your friend Nick last night at the burg.
You guys should come to my party on Sunday...its gonna be fucking killer. |
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Jimiforrest
Try A Little Harder
Oman
52 Posts |
Posted - 07/18/2005 : 04:53:08 AM
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make a gameplan for you're long-term progress on a guitar
For me it came down to categorization
There's three aspects to my progress with the guitar
Discipline - Physically being able to do anything I want. Throw all exercises and metronome work in this place, where I spent junior High.
Creativity - Influencing, resculpting and creating new "art" in the truest sense of the word
Experience - Sometimes in order to write about life you need to experience it. "Breaks" on guitar are spent making this output as grand as possible. |
Theres a country called Oman? |
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depressed guitar player... i need some advice.
