How did you learn to play guitar (or bass)?

[Feynman]

i had a mini-debate at work which got me curious.

I'm completely a guided-by-educated-teacher proponent, but I realize that isn't how everyone thinks. We all have differing abilities, goals and interests anyway.

What did you do? What works best or doesn't for you? Did you listen to records and try to copy? Read any books? Play with better musicians and pick up tidbits? College? Do you like learning theory or have no use for it?

You get the idea.

This place is full of fantastic players - I'd love to hear your stories.

Edited to include our bassists.

[coolfeel]

I haven't really ever learned...

[Steve Haynie]

I took banjo lessons at a local music store. Then guitar lessons. My teacher was the store owner, and like many people in music stores he had been playing around locally including a few radio/TV gigs and teaching for years. Years later there were bass lessons from a college educated jazz guy that opened my mind to music theory. More years later there were a couple of months of guitar lessons that took the theory further. The rest has been from talking to people, reading magazine articles, and using books and videos.

Not practicing negates all of that.

[atquinn]

I think most would agree that I learned how to play guitar... poorly.

Seriously I took piano lessons for many years as a kid. I followed that up with a year of classical guitar and a year of electric and I was pretty done with lessons by then. I wouldn't consider myself to be particularly good, but I would say that the great majority of my learning has come from being in band situations and learning from recorded music.

-

Austin

[Hamerhack]

I took a few lessons with a cheapo classical guitar. Wasn't interested in playing "The Volga Boat Song".

A little later, I got an "E-Z" Beatles songbook. That got me started wanting to play.

In college, my roommate played drums, and convinced me to get a guitar for the following year. I went out and bought a Gibson Marauder and Ampeg V-4 and 4x12 bottom. Played hours and hours a day that summer of '75.

The next year we had my rig and his double bass Rogers drum set in our dorm room. We would practice in the laundry room of the girls' dorm next door. Never did get any good then, but we sure made a lot of noise (and enemies!)

Also spent tons of time playing along with albums through my Lafayette stereo!

Many moons later, once tab came along and I finally got a decent guitar (Hamer Artist Custom), I started to improve. Still unworthy of the Hamers, though!

I play in a monthly jam, and am trying to broaden my skills with some Frank Sinatra stuff besides all the classic rock.

[bcsride]

I haven't really ever learned...

Me too.

[cynic]

Did you listen to records and try to copy? Read any books? Play with better musicians and pick up tidbits? College? Do you like learning theory or have no use for it?

I did the bold things. I would love to add theory to my knowledge base and I keep meaning to find somewhere I can do that, yet I only sit here and type.

[mudshark]

self taught, which I think is not advisable since I've spent a lot of time unlearning bad habits along the way

[zorrow]

I started by spending one year studying classical guitar, which included history of music courses, solfeggio and guitar itself.

Then, when I got into metal and stuff, I just tried electric guitar by myself and sadly forgot almost everything I had learned during my time at the conservatory.

That's why I would say I'm rather self-taught.

However, I think my classical training gave me a good solid foundation to rely on -at least when I was making my firsts steps with the electric guitar.

Also, I've taken some few private lessons all along my life in order to improve on some aspects of my playing. Quite often the effect of the lessons has been dramatic, in a positive sense.

So, to me it's always a plus following a structured program and having a good teacher, even if that hasn't been my own case. Sure, everything depends on your personal effort and talent at the very end, but you're going to save some precious time if you have a good coach guiding you, IMHO.

[diablo175]

Mixture. I was "self taught" and still consider myself as such though I started taking lessons back when I was 16.

Make that 2 lessons. Hated them. So much so that I avoided lessons until I was in my 20's. Still didn't do much for me but at least didn't hate them. Then, fast forward to last 10 years: took a few with a guy who "got it" who understood you gotta put it in proper context- that is, take whatever theory or component that you want the student to learn, that's at the foundation of the song or style he/she is desiring to master and present it as part of song from said style/artist.

With the advent of the internet and the plethora of video tutorials on YouTube, I don't find I need a teacher as much.

I still pick up snippets of theory and technique and will try to mix them into my playing in such a way as to make them sound natural.

[Studio Custom]

I took lessons for five years. I also use to buy all the guitar magazines and books I could find and devour them.

[Nathan of Brainfertilizer Fame]

I had always been a musician, starting from learning to play songs on our family's little "magnus chord organ" and a songbook, progressing to singing along with anything/everything, playing the recorder in 3rd grade, teaching myself to play "The Entertainer" on the piano in 4th grade, taking a year of piano lessons in the 5th grade, and then joining choir and band (trumpet) from the 5th grade on.

As a senior in High School, I house-sat at someone's place for a coupla weeks. They had a 12-string guitar and a basic book, so I taught myself the basic chords.

Then they needed a bassist for the local Juco production of "Annie", so I borrowed a bass and learned the whole damn score, only to have them decide they wanted me on trumpet more, and used the keyboard for the bass part.

I bought a bass my freshman year of college, and within the first half hour of owning it, I sat down and learned "Don't Stop Believing".

I grabbed "Guitar for the Practicing Musician" with bass lines for cool songs, but mostly learned by jamming with some local musicians and learning songs by ear.

Within a few years I was good enough for the 2nd jazz band, and bought some books to teach me walking bass so I could comp lines based on the symbols instead of just the ones with notes written out.

I dated a girl who had a classical guitar and one time when she was at work I sat down and learned the first 3 songs in her classical book. So I bought a classical guitar.

I took 2 classical lessons and couldn't afford to continue.

I noticed that even on a classical guitar, everything I played sounded like rock. Then I roomed with a guy who had a strat copy he didn't play much, and got a job working nights at a hotel at the same time, so I started trying to learn to play lead electric guitar.

My first electric was a Harmony Flying V copy, the 2nd was a Sebring superstrat, and the rest is even more boring history.

Oh, wait, did you mean you only wanted the fantastic players to answer? Sorry...

[zorrow]

Lessons can also act like catalyzers when one wants to expand one's horizons.

For example, at this very moment I'm toying with the idea of studying rhythm guitar at the school of gypsy jazz here in Montreal.

It will force me out of my comfort zone, but not too much -still using a pick and still playing pumping rhythms, you know; but at the same time I'll be learning a new-to-me harmonic vocabulary, as well as some specific-to-the-genre idioms.

Doing this from the hands of some highly-skilled local musicians will be both a challenge and a blast. And, as my teachers will also evaluate me periodically, studying there should also prove to be a humbling and stimulating experience.

But most importantly, I don't think I'd have the discipline and drive to do something similar just by myself, keeping the pace steady for six months. You know, DVDs and online lessons are certainly great, but they won't replace human-to-human interactions and immediate feedback, mostly when self-motivation and spare time are issues.

[Armitage]

I was in 9th grade and I saw a girl in the 12th bend over... I just HAD to learn to play a guitar after that.

I learned the most by playing with people better then me who were patient enough to help me, and learned even more when trying to pass on what I'd learned onto others who weren't as good as me.

[burningyen]

I played violin pretty seriously for 17 years. At the 10-year mark, I took to stealing my boarding school dorm mate's guitar for a few minutes at a time and taught myself a few tunes like Money For Nothing before he decided to restring it lefty and started locking his door. At the 14-year mark I finally got a guitar of my own and took a year of lessons with a Berklee grad. My violin training was key in developing my ear and general hand-eye coordination, but those lessons made a huge difference in my understanding of the instrument. I definitely encourage anyone to spring for lessons if they have the funds.

Oh, and the time I spent as 2nd guitarist to my friend Jack Devine was a great education in and of itself.

[blackfbiv]

'Record-copy' method.

Wore out a LOT of tapes!

[polara]

Interesting stories.

Me: hacked at it a little at age 9. Took a few after school lessons at age 11, then studied alto sax for two years. After that it was just learning from other guys in bands I was in, asking questions.

My brother was a huge help. He also studied alto sax, but "legit" in music school at Florida State, which had a pretty tough woodwind program. He helped me a lot with theory and phrasing and listening to a wide range of music.

I still mostly learn from peers, though that "Accelerate your Guitar Playing" DVD was useful. Trouble with playing originals is no one in the bands typically reads or even knows jack shit about theory so I can't sight read at all now.

[Thundersteel]

I've never had a lesson, so I guess I'm self-taught. Lots of Mel Bay books, then "Guitar for the Practicing Musician," then later, tab and interwebs. But through all that, I listened to records and tried to play the songs.

[diablo175]

"Guitar for the Practicing Musician," then later, tab and interwebs. But through all that, I listened to records and tried to play the songs.

/\ This. For me, the ground breaker was Richard Daniels' Jimi Hendrix Note for Note. Learned a lot of stuff from that and then started playing along to AC/DC records. It was all downhill after that.

[marcnorth]

I had a couple of Uncles that were country musicians back in the 50's & 60's, they showed me the basic chords and said "practice". Had to switch to bass when I was 14 because my older brother was older than me, someone had to play bass and he was (is) a better guitar player. I use the listen and learn method.

[zorrow]

(...)my older brother was older than me(...)

Yeah, my younger brother is younger than me too. -sorry man, couldn't help it.

[marcnorth]

(...)my older brother was older than me(...)

Yeah, my younger brother is younger than me too. -sorry man, couldn't help it.

lol

[Bass Guy Dave]

Played sax in band in school, but desperately wanted to be a drummer (sucked at that...)

Had some japanese 12 string electric given to me when I was about 12 or so, but didn't know how to play it, and didn't really care. (later sold it to the neighbor, i think)

about age 13, I was wanting to play drums in the 'band' with my friends, and because I sucked (and had no drums,) I got told I was now the bass player (since I DID have a ukulele, that also had 4 strings.)

1st riff I ever played: "Killers" by Iron Maiden, taught quickly to me by the other guys, to see if I had any hope of being able to play..

Thinking back, I'm persuaded what helped me the most, was having low/no expectations of being a bass player (insert joke here.) During all the time I spent getting the foundations of playing and basic coordination (ear, listening to Preist records, mostly,) all I could think about was how much I'd rather be playing drums--instead of worrying about whether I was becoming a competent bass player.

[gorch]

Well, I had 6 months of classical guitar lessons when I was about 13 or so. I hated it since I ever wanted to go electric. The ability of notes reading and some basic aspects remained a stable. A 2nd pick-up of the old guitar at around 35 failed again. Eventually, the first electric at 39 kept me by the ball. Since I did not want to take the long learning curve most books go through, I thought of going a more structural way. Thanks to a Britsh chap I met in a project, I found everything in Fretboard Logic from Bill Edwards. Kal David's double DVD course lifted me up another level. The DVDs alone joined me in for almost 2 years. I feel, I'm pretty much round up for what I'm doing, but still have plenty to learn and practise.

[HamerHokie]

I started when I was 11 learning folk songs from a guy at my church. Strictly learning chords and songs.

When I was 13 I switched to a classical teacher, who taught me a bit about improvisation and more complex chords. We learned chord progressions. I was playing stuff like Classical Gas.

Each of those stints lasted less than a year, and they were the only formal instruction I ever had. From then on it was listening to records and copying solos. From that I learned technique and tone. I would also pick up pointers from Guitar Player magazine interviews. One that stuck with me was how Al DiMeola practiced speed and dexterity. I used his advice liberally. Also in junior high and high school I played in stage band, which exposed me to jazz progressions.

I never bought an instructional tape or DVD, I never bought a book on tab, I never learned to read music - although I have an intuitive grasp on theory. I follow chord charts well.