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90+ Days and Curious About the Progress
Okay, I am doing the work in TAC. I Finished “30 Days” and a few “5 Days Routines” and have been doing two months of Daily Challenges.
And I understand that we are all learning the “pieces” of the guitar language.
However, I am eagerly anticipating the moment when I can start learning and playing actual songs, something that I can truly immerse myself in.
Currently, if someone said to me, “So, play a short song,” I wouldn’t have one to play. I could say, “Well, here’s the G chord, E Minor, C Major, and D! I can bend a string, I can use the pick.” And a few other skills.
But that’s it.
And while I *love* the lessons and I’m learning the “pieces” of the guitar, at what point do I get to learn how to PLAY it? Like songs.
My fear is that this time next year, yes, I can do all of these “pieces” a lot better, faster, and more precisely, but when do I start making music from them?
Truly, I can’t be the first person to ask this question, right?
Thanks, everyone.
I would greatly appreciate your insights on what I might be “missing” in the theory of TAC.
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19 Replies
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I am with you totally! I picked up the same ‘vibe’ myself; we are at pretty much the same point in the ‘course’. I’ve resigned myself to the fact that (it appears) that this course won’t deliver conventional guitar training by way of playing actual songs in toto.
I’ve hedged my bets by using a well-known online teacher who offers free lessons – he makes a living from merchandising and his own mobile app platform (which isn’t cheap). However his free material is a perfect supplement to TAC, tons of songs and superb lessons.
I had not anticipated going this route, but needs must is my own position.
Feel free to DM me if you want info.
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Hi there. I was wondering if you could give me the online teacher name you mentioned in this reply. Thanks!
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While y’all figure it out… don’t forget to show up and get in your 10 minutes. I can’t stress how valuable that one practice has been for my progress.
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Here is my 2 cents. If you already know some chords and can follow along with the lessons then why not just play a song? There’s plenty of easy to follow chord sheets online (ultimateguitar being one site lots of us use). Find a song that you like that has the chords you know and like and you’re off to the races! This isn’t magic folks although it is magical in what it does. Maybe do a search online for 3 chord songs first so you know what you might be looking for but yes, it’s that simple. Keep up with at least 10 minutes a day but you can add songs in too. My problem is remembering them if I don’t have the sheets with me. Most importantly…have fun!
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Great answers. While I do play, it’s not enough; I will play for at least 10 minutes every day, but I get lost with older lessons.
I could find a song somewhere and play it, but I’m surprised that the list of songs to play (or suggestions) is the missing piece, at least for me.
That said, I do love TAC. It’s solid training. Realize, I’m a 100 percent beginner and have only played/learned since mid-January this year (2024).
==> If anyone is a longtime TAC member who started at Zero, how did you start playing songs?
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Chordie was my go to lookup.
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I used Ultimate Guitar or YouTube lessons from Lauren Bateman or Justin
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Every Thursday gives the basic outline of a song. Once you nail down those chords you can play along with the song. Hotel California is pretty easy chords. If you really like or know the song you can go to youtube and pick up the rest. I used the Monday technique from the Fast Car week to make my own song. The finger strumming exercise from two weeks ago added a nice bit to it. My point is take what is taught and play (not just practice)
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My two-cents goes along with others already here.
Pick a song you like- (any song you can think of- doesn’t matter).
On your computer, type in (your song’ s title), and also the word “chords”.
Various “TAB” song sites will come up. (My fave is probably “e-chords”).
Click on whichever site you want.
Your song— in TAB version, will come up. All the chords in your song are now right there in front of you! Many/most also have an audio track button which allows you to hear the song and play along with as you read and play your chords.
While you may not be playing the songs as much as playing along with the songs– it is a great start! And it makes you know the chords, improve on chord transitions, and be “in time” and “in tempo”. And it’s FUN!
And you have endless songs to choose from.
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Thank you everyone! I truly appreciate the help.
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I equate TAC to earning a black belt. You’ll learn skills/techniques first and eventually put everything together to create katas and in our case, play songs. Guitar is the same approach and in reality it will take years to master. I’m 90+ days into TAC (same as you) and Tony taught enough skills/techniques for you to jump in and learn some beginner songs.
Start with simple licks. I have a great time playing Mike Campbell’s lick from “Running Down A Dream” or Dylan’s “Blowing in the Wind” or Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car”. Pick something you like that is doable and go for it. A very simple chord transition I would recommend is “Hey Jude” (YT videos out there to get you started). Once you realize how the chords are sequence together, songs will unlock quickly so you have a greater song library to access. The Nashville Number System helps so definitely try to learn this system (from Tony Fretboard Wizard or from other resources). Good luck to you and keep plugging away! (p.s. I still consider myself a White Belt, but definitely trying to move up the ranks).
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Frustrating for me is when Tony says, “This is what you will be playing today” and then plays something that sounds so awesome. Thirty minutes later I am lucky if I can play the first two measures of the day’s challenge. I know small steps count, but it’s hard when we are all using the same material no matter what of our abilities….
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I’ve been wondering the same things. Question. Each weekly email has a reference to THIS MONTHS BENCHMARK. Usually there are a few songs listed. What does this represent? Are the songs found on the site somewhere? I could use some guidance. Thanks
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Hi Yafee,
Those songs rotate throughout the year, so you’ll see the lessons repeat in the coming months. This month’s benchmark (May) is “Ain’t No Sunshine”. In June, it will be “Wagon Wheel”, in July, “Hotel California” and in August, “Old Man”. Learn what you can the first time through and as they repeat you’ll get better at them.
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Where can you find the whole song to play?
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One of the benchmark songs will be one of the weekly challenges this month. As @TerriG said, this month’s is Ain’t No Sunshine.
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Thanks!
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You are building valuable skills here to play many songs. Once you can comfortably play G/C/D there are literally hundreds of songs you can work on. I typically go to Song Notes https://songnotes.net/ or Ultimate Guitar https://www.ultimate-guitar.com to learn a specific song. Song Notes is my favorite but the library is more limited. David Potts also records very good instructional videos for each song. If you are a Veteran, Cavarts https://www.cavarts.org/spaces/7234844/feed is a tremendous resource as well.
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Hi Bryan youre definitely on the right track but you may need to expand your learning a bit. And i get it…we all want to be able to play our favourite songs. Ive been playing for 10 to 12 years and have had individual lessons, used You tube lessons, and now been with TAC for two years but really only steady the past year or so. I like TAC for lots of reasons and have progressed a lot since joining, esp at picking up new skills and techniques. I am sold on the program. Tony has just recently been introducing specific songs and that has been awesome. Sometimes i can pick them up fairly easily but for others that i want to learn I also supplement with a Youtube lesson. They key for me is lots of repetition and regular sustained practice. And when Tony introduces a song one week that I really want to learn i spend lots of time with it, which may mean the following week may not get as much devotion. And by the way, those four chords that you listed…G, D, Em, C…in their various progressions…can take you a long way…there are literally hundreds if not thousands of songs that use only those four wonderful chords. Keep on trucking brother…stick with TAC to learn skills, scales, chords, how to solo, basic theory and also new songs, but also use other resources as you need to. And of course the more you play the better you’ll get so keep that guitar handy:)
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