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Spudman
June 19th, 2006, 08:47 PM
As you watch this you will have approximately 20 minutes to decide:
A. If guitar playing is really what you want to do?
B. Why do I play?
C. Do I quit now?
D. Am I going to improve?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bB6zdygHnKw&search=guitar%20sucks

ZoSo65
June 19th, 2006, 09:58 PM
You forgot:

E. WOW! That's really awesome and it makes me want to try even harder!!


As far as I feel, guitars don't suck,, it's usually the person playing,, OR,, it's something being played and the person listing/watching doesn't like that "type",,,OR ,,, the person listening/watching is just flat out jealous.
And to be honest, I think that's the only three things it really boils down to.

Great vid BTW spud :DR

srv-fan68
June 20th, 2006, 06:29 AM
Awesome video, thanks for sharing it. I looked at that and thought to myself that although I'm fairly certain I'll never get to that level, I have a lot of fun doing what I do and trying to be a better player.

I don't feel threatened by players like that, just amazed.

Spudman
June 20th, 2006, 07:51 AM
Good to hear guys. Inspiration was the intention for posting it.
It's pretty cool the extremes that this lil 6 string thang can be taken to.

SuperSwede
June 20th, 2006, 08:13 AM
I liked the 11 string guitar! I wonder how it is tuned...

Katastrophe
June 20th, 2006, 08:27 AM
Simply amazing... You really have to hand it to all of those guys for putting in the hours required to get to that level of speed and precision. The most impressive one was the guy from RI... He had speed and a clean tone for most of his fretwork.

Good find, Spuds! Even though I strive for quality of note selection over quantity these days, it's good to see vids like this, to keep pushing me to be a better player!:R :DR

tremoloman
June 20th, 2006, 09:04 AM
Here's a brief story for you players who feel you will never be able to learn how to play:

When first attempting to learn how to play the guitar, videos like these can make you feel like "that's impossible" or "why do I even try? I’ll NEVER be able to play like that.” Sadly I suffered from that belief for over 10 years of working at the guitar. Up until 2004, I had felt I had hit a wall and figured “the best I’ll ever be is a sloppy power chord player” and contemplated quitting the guitar all together.

To make a long story short, someone asked me if I’d play rhythm guitar in a show they were doing in 2 weeks that would consist of 6 songs. I told them I wasn’t a good player but insisted the songs they were doing were going to be relatively easy to play. After lots of nagging, they convinced me to give it a go. On top of that, I later discovered that this gig was going to be a “battle of the bands” show! And get this... "You are also our lead singer too." I almost had a heart attack! How the hell am I going to play AND sing at the same time? We had only had 2 weeks to put this all together while all the other bands in the competition had 8. I was freakin’ horrified! I had never played in front of a real crowd, let alone sing in front of one. Now they want me to do BOTH?!? I came to the realization I was in way over my head. To pull this off, I would have to learn how to sing effectively, play efficiently, AND memorize lyrics to 6 songs I didn’t even know. I mulled over the possibility of quitting, but instead I became determined to take on the challenge and confront my fears head on.

For 2 weeks I practiced and practiced, working on my technique and vocals. When we got to the gig, the place was PACKED. I was so scared and worried, yet the second I plugged in my Tele and stomped on my distortion box, something happened I can’t explain. I just want into some sort of trance and I started singing and playing – and it sounded GOOD! The crowd started cheering when we opened with a hard rock version of ‘Jumping Jack Flash’ and I threw in a ridiculous 80s solo that the crowd went nuts over. I became calm and fell into a groove. I played the rest of the songs with my eyes closed and let things happen naturally.

At the end of the night, we won the contest! Never in my life had I felt so proud of myself. This erased all my self-doubt and proved that I *CAN* do this if I put my heart and soul into this. I learned if you work with a positive attitude and believe in yourself, anything is possible. From that moment on, I’ve stopped doubting myself and just think positively. In the past 1½ years, I've elevated my playing 100x higher than I ever thought possible. People seem to be shocked most of the time when I tell them I only began soloing about 1½ years ago. Now don't get the impression that I'm some amazing player, because I'm not. I couldn't hold a candle either Robert or that guy in the video right now. But guess what? I don’t have to. Like Nuno and Jimi always state: “Just do your own thing”. I find playing guitar is a lot like golf: its all about self confidence and determination. The sooner you stop worrying about what people think of your playing the better. It's not a competetion... just go out there and do your damn best! If someone doesn't like what your doing, well that's THEIR problem! I just keep plugging away and work nonstop on improving my playing ability.

Jimi Hendrix put it best: "Sometimes you want to give up the guitar, you'll hate the guitar. But if you stick with it, you're gonna be rewarded."

t_ross33
June 20th, 2006, 10:06 AM
Well said t-man! I've been playing for 25 years and didn't advance past "cowboy chords" until the last couple of years. I'm completely self taught and have always wanted to take lessons to really learn how to play this thing. I even have trouble finding time for video or online lessons, though I intend to explore it further in the near future.

8 months ago when our drummer was putting our band together, he called and said he was looking for some guys to jam with - no intention of gigging at all. He had already lined up a keyboard player and a bass player. Bass was my primary instrument back in "the day", but I figured I could fake it as a rhythm player well enough. That's how I got my lead gig :D Still don't have a clue what I'm doing, really. But I'm in with three very talented musicians and am proud to say I can hold my own. From the first time we got together to jam we knew we were good enough to go public and now we are starting to book up on a regular basis.

I have a long way to go to approach the abilities of most here, but I would never consider giving up guitar. It has been a very big part of my life for a very long time and can't imagine a day without it.

ROCK ON BROTHERS AND SISTERS!

Nelskie
June 20th, 2006, 05:49 PM
Good to hear guys. Inspiration was the intention for posting it
Well, I'm glad I got to your second post Spud, cuz' in my world, the words "guitar" and "suck" are never used in the same sentence!

Indeed, that video serves as inspiration. But the *asterisk beside that is this: be yourself. You don't need to shred like the dude with the 11/12 stringed monster, or do the neo-classical Yngwie thing. Some of the best players ever made their mark with the most minimal of techincal skills. This proves (2) very important things about the guitar: 1.) A guitar is useless all by itself; and 2.) soul / emotion do count for something.

About two years ago, I watched Willie Nelson play a seven note solo (finger-picked) on his beat-up old Martin, and it was so beautifully played, it just about brought tears to my eyes. Truly powerful stuff! I went home and played my acoustic for about three hours after that show, and loved every second of the mess I call my own style. ;)

t_ross33
June 20th, 2006, 06:01 PM
About two years ago, I watched Willie Nelson play a seven note solo (finger-picked) on his beat-up old Martin, and it was so beautifully played, it just about brought tears to my eyes. Truly powerful stuff!

Willie's one of my favorites too. He is a class unto his own. I think his guitar playing is truly inspired and he is seriously under-rated as a player. He pours more into a single note or phrase than most shredders do into an entire solo. Same with BB or Edge. Not necessarily "less is more", but more like the esscence being in the spaces in between. And I'm not ashamed to admit that on occasion it has brought tears to my eyes.

Just a big ol' softie I guess :rolleyes:

tremoloman
June 20th, 2006, 07:12 PM
I'm also 100% self-taught... I tried lessons for a month but quit becuase all I learned was how to tune a guitar at $25/hr. (I had a POS so bad that it went out of tune after strumming a chord).

Speaking of Willie Nelson, have you guys ever heard the "Storytellers" he did with Johnny Cash in 1998? It's an awesome show. Those two were magical together.