www.LickByNeck.com

[jayriginal]

Im listening to Marvin Gayes 'Me and Mrs Jones'. Why dont they make music like that anymore?
I feel like soloing over it right now.

Thats an aside, I have noticed that a lot of beginning guitarists often have problems figuring out where to place their fingers when they encounter 'strange' chord shapes.
('Lets get it on' is now playing)

These chords arent really that strange. Anyway, I used to have those problems. I dont anymore. Im not going to say anything particularly helpful because I dont think there is a quick fix for this problem. By the time you have played for some time, you will know where you should place your fingers anytime you encounter a strange chord.
By sometime I dont mean a few months, I mean a year and upwards depending on the frequency of your practice.
Music is something you develop a feel for, so it will come with time. For now, just place your fingers where they seem most natural (im talking of 'strange' chords not the standard ones). After some time you wont even think about it.
By the way, most of the 'strange' chords are just slight alterations of the ones you know so well, so maybe next time you see a funny looking chord, you could look more closely at it and see if you can spot a resemblance to any of the chord shapes you already know. That would point (no pun intended. Ray Charles is singing 'Hit the Road Jack')you in the right direction.

Im not sure what good this post has done except to tell you to keep working those fingers.

Something to think about; Django.
He lost all but two fingers of his left hand so I guess he had considerably less worries about where to put his fingers on the fretboard. Django was incredibly fast on the guitar (using just two fingers, Ill keep mine thank you).

Next time you fret about which finger goes where, think about ol Django.
Mercy, Mercy Me! [/i]
_________________
Keep Fretting!

[LauraAnne]

The reason they dont make music like that anymore, Jay, is cause were getting old. It is now our duty to think everything from the past is infinatly superior than the present.

Freaks me out when I consider that my son (now 10) has never seen an LP record or an 8 track cassette.

One nice thing (or maybe just makes things more complicated) about finger style guitar, is you can kind of get away with some (dare I say) sloppy left hand fingering, because your usualy focused on just certain notes within the chord. Long as those get hit with the right hand, all is well.

I bet Django used his thumb a lot for bass notes. Lot of teachers today cringe if they see that thumb come over the top. I confess when I see a guitarist do that I cluck my tongue and smirk. "Dont you know playing the guitar is about pain!!? How dare you make that chord comfortable!!"

Makes me wonder what catholic boarding school of guitar playing I went to.

[jayriginal]

I remember when I was starting out, I couldnt find anyone who could play guitar to teach me. The only option I had was the net. When I tell people Im self taught, they are amazed, but I usually dont add that I had some musical background with the keyboard before picking up the guitar. ( It takes away some of my mystique).

Reading all those materials online, I was determined to follow the rules as closely as possible, I didnt want my guitar to go the same way of my piano playing (I learnt by ear with no assistance which led to inumerable bad habits which in turn hindered my progress, till I finally got fed up and dropped the keyboard).

One of the rules that was continually drummed into my head was 'the thumb should always be behind the fretboard' to give support.
I even learnt that the classical way of holding the guitar was the best way.

I tried to obey these time tested rules, but alas, I dont know at what point I deviated from the straight andd narrow way. Now I play however feels comfy for me, and when I want to impress someone who knows litltle about music, I play with the guitar at my back (just chords, Ive never done that with chord melody).

Naturally if someone comes to me and wants met o teach them, I pass along those nuggets of guitar wisdom which I dont abide by anymore, but Im quick to point out to them that at a point, when they are getting good, they probably will play the guitar in their own style. In fact , methinks its a sign of progress to deviate from the norms (only after you have conformed for a while).

About music of then and now, I think the major difference is the emphasis.
Today the emphasis is much more on money than art and I think when money becomes a factor, a lot of creativity flies out of the window in order to cater to the masses whose aesthetic values are quite low. Most popular art (in whatever form) is quite worthless. The most likely reason why it is popular is that it is easy for people to comprehend.
I still get goose bumps listening to Whitney, Christina and Celine Dione's vocals (sometimes Anastacia).
I still wonder at the subtle nuances in John Legend's singing. I remember watching dreamgirls and being wowed by Jennifer Hudson (I dont hear those vocals on her tracks). \
Beyonce and Mariah can sing really well, but in my opinion they hardly make music worth listening to because come to think of it, how many people like me are there to buy their records, if they sing the way I love?
Pretty few, but the masses will scoop up any generic bubblegum bullsh*t song they put out.

Sorry, I just get really sick of people judging an artist by their commercial success or by their awards (which are based mostly on commercial success and popularity).
_________________
Keep Fretting!