Is it too late to learn in your forties?

I've spent big money on guitars, but my dad bought my sister a cheap fender for her first guitar and its one of the best sounding guitars I've played. Don't spend much money until your addicted to playing.

jt2hunt said:

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Is it too late to learn in your forties?

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I say try it. The guitar I ended up with is $70 on Amazon Prime. Another $12.50 for a tuner and $8.50 for 16 picks. That's less than $100. My opinion is that you're not gonna sound like Clapton at first, so don't worry if your guitar doesn't have that potential. Learn the mechanics and upgrade to a higher quality guitar as you are able.

My daughter (9) took her first lesson last night. I got her a 3/4 Cordoba C1 for $150 at a local guitar store. I figured this was better than the First Act guitar that wife got from a friend for free. As a matter of budget comparison my parents bought a used cornet for me when I was in 6th grade band in 1979. It was $150. I thought this was a fair deal almost 40 years later.



I am now 49 and I want to learn guitar with my daughter. Unfortunately, the instructor won't let me watch her lessons

Is there any drawback to using an Android app for a guitar tuner?

I've used apps for tuners for a while now. I like PitchLab. Not as convenient as my headstock tuner, but works better.

A few comments/recommendations:
* Avoid "hundred dollar specials" that you see in music stores.
* There are a number of good starter acoustic guitars in $200-$300 range, get one of those. If you are clueless, take someone with you who knows what to look for. Two brands that come to mind are Yamaha & Fender, but there are other good ones.
* Don't get a classical guitar with nylon strings, get a steel string acoustic. Other essentials include a tuner (there are some tuner apps you can download that work fairly well), and some picks. Recommend a medium stiffness, and the "cat tongue" surface for better grip. These are usually made of nylon.
* The Mel Bay books are great. Follow the Mel Bay instructions on how to grip a pick, works very well. A few lessons to get you started are also advisable. And one of the best things you can do is find others who play, and hang out with them when they are playing, jam sessions, etc.
* Learn the basics first - positioning your fingers correctly for the chords, changing between chords. Check yourself on the chords by playing each string individually - if one is dull, you are touching it with another finger - re position until each string plays clear. This will take time and practice - you are teaching your fingers to contort themselves into positions they are not used to, and it takes a while.
* Accept who you are with regard to playing, and keep playing as long as it's enjoyable for you. Not everyone is Eric Clapton/Stevie Ray Vaughn. Don't get frustrated if you can't achieve virtuoso level. On the other hand, there's nothing wrong with trying to stretch yourself, taking it to the next level (finger picking, bar chords, etc.)

I played guitar off & on since I was 14 years old. I recently picked it up again and my son got interested. He started learning on Youtube. I bought him a Taylor acoustic to take to A&M for his freshman year and we have a Stratocaster at home. My son is already MUCH better than I will ever be- Youtube is amazing for learning songs.

On another note- the Yamaha F335 is a great value. Guitar Center has them for $120. They look, feel and sound great for the money.

Yamaha F335

I'm 43 and have played since I was 14. I finally bought my first Ukulele and I can't put it down. Maybe it's the "newness" but I'm having a blast.

I've owned Les Paul's, Hamers, Ovations, Takamine, Fender, Ibanez and others. My go-to acoustic is a relatively cheap Epiphone that I've had for over 20 years. It's probably one of the "cheapest" guitars I've owned but I guess that over the years we've just learned each other.

If you're just starting, buy a decent acoustic, learn G, C, and D7, and play the hell out of the Eagles, Strait and Garth Brooks.

If you need a tutor, I hear this is your man. Provided you can work around his schedule... he is after all the hardest working man in the oil field...

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I can at least make all of the chords, even if I can't perfectly transition between them yet.

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That's the most challenging.

You can master this, but you MUST practice. 30 minutes; 10 minutes; 2 hours; whatever. Just do it at least 5-6 days a week. That's why I don't play guitar anymore and sold mine. I spend the needed practice time on piano, drums, and music production.

Someone once gave me a Jimmy Page guitar music book with most of the Led Zepellin songs in it. It was ridiculous... and way too complicated for most people.

Mel Bay and the banjo...... I got a banjo when I was a senior in High School I think. I had a Mel Bay book. I was very dissappointed in my progress. I have Mel Bay books for other instruments, but this one did not cut it at all. I was looking for Earl Scruggs' style and the Mel Bay book was more like if you were picking a guitar. I got a Earl Scruggs book, which used a script to show finger positions and picking including hammer down, slides, forward roll and reverse roll, and after a while I knew how Earl Scruggs did it. (I didn't say I was anywhere near that good.)

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My favorite book that elevated my six string level is the Eagles Greatest Hits book that shows the chords, including the finger positions. This made it easy especially on a couple of the Eagles songs that are a bit complicated.

This book impressed me mostly because I knew all those Eagles songs from listening to the radio and was pleasantly surprised that I could sound very much like their original songs.

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This is exactly what I did 20+ years ago as a senior in high school (actually, my book was Eagles Complete, so not exactly exactly), and now I can play (rythym, at least) just about anything you want to throw at me. It took many, many, MANY hours going through that book and learning every chord in it, but it worked like a charm. As the years progressed I taught myself some basic music theory, all of the major and minor modes in each key, and have even co-written a song with a Nashville recording artist you've never heard of (that you can actually buy on a CD!). Most importantly, any time I'm stressed out or bored or just need a creative outlet, I can pick up one of my guitars and futz around for a few minutes or a few hours, always feeling better at the end than I did at the beginning.

Yes you can learn in your 40s. Yes you can teach yourself (especially with the advent of YouTube). Yes you can become a good enough player to impress your friends around a campfire in short order. And if you don't have any other creative outlets in your life, it's probably going to be one of the most rewarding things you can do for yourself if you stick with it. I'm a huge advocate for learning to play guitar, as you can tell, and always will be.

Nylon strings are great for occasional use. I would consider myself pretty good but only play 3-4 weeks out of the year. I can pickup my guitar and play for two hours without a problem and no calluses.

Steel string I can only play for 15 min.

Started playing as a senior in high school. Picked up books and stuff, but it never really clicked. In college i started trying to play songs i wanted to play, instead of the songs in the books. Thats when I stated enjoying it. I cant shread by any means and i dont know much about music theory and all that stuff, but I can play pretty much anything except for bar chords (i try, but it just doesnt sound great). I know enough to play with my kids, lead a little worship play a couple songs and not annoy the heck out of my wife (most of the time).

One resource i like is The Ultimate Guitar app. It has almost anything you want to play tabbed out, and most of it is pretty good. I like that its right on my phone, and i dont think you need wifi/data to run it. I could be wrong on that, but i know i used it a couple of times where i had limited cell service and it worked.

Has anyone used to Mel Bay app versus using the books? I have some Google rewards money burning a hole in my pocket.

You borrowed the Yamaha. I lent out an Art & Lutherie, which is what I was going to suggest before somebody beat me to it.

And you should have kept going! You could've been past all the growing pains by now, my friend!

Tubie Pushee is an awesome instructor. I've been playing for 25 yrs like most of you (self-taught). I worked with my son for 2 years before having Tubie give him lessons, and my boy is already capable of playing more than I ever did. He teaches beginner up to advanced, but along with songs, he does drills and theory. If your looking for an instructor in BCS area, I highly reccommend him.

https://collegestation.craigslist.org/lss/6163218005.html

Can anybody recommend a book with some instruction on older cowboy songs? YouTube is great for a lot of stuff, but it's a little short on content like Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Sons of the Pioneers...

Basically I'm looking for the other kind of music...you know, not Country, but Western.

There's plenty of tabs out there but I'm struggling with strumming patterns that sound right.

Anyone have any experience with the acoustic / electric like the Ovation? Would you recommend one for a novice? Are there any other acoustic /electric guitars that are better or a better value?

I can play a few little things that a friend thought me a year's ago, but would like to learn more.

I'm gonna spare y'all the pain of hearing me sing, but I made it through Horse With No Name for the first time last night without a critical error. It's two simple chords and a 4/4 strumming pattern, so the song isn't the most difficult to play. But DAMN it's difficult to strum, change chords, and sing all at the same time.

What a feeling of accomplishment! And my wife and kids make great little groupies...they laughed and sang along and had a good 'ol time.

Again...if you've ever thought about doing this...do it. I wish I hadn't waited so long.

Juicyfan said:

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Anyone have any experience with the acoustic / electric like the Ovation? Would you recommend one for a novice? Are there any other acoustic /electric guitars that are better or a better value?

I can play a few little things that a friend thought me a year's ago, but would like to learn more.

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Ovation has great sound. The round backed ones can be a little awkward, but that's a preference thing. If you are a novice I would save the money on getting an acoustic/electric and just go acoustic. No real need to plug an acoustic in?