[Loraine]

@langerking With regard to the daily challenges, you can begin on any day. If you miss a day or a few days, simply start on the day you can play. Just do the best you can for the minimum of 10 minutes, then mark the lesson complete. You can still work on it, but the goal is to simply give it your best shot. You will continue to improve in your skills and playing. The lessons eventually come back around, and what you’ll notice is that you pick up on things you couldn’t do previously, and the lesson seems to be easier to pick up on concepts. This cyclical learning is a great way to judge how you’re advancing.

Keep on plunking!

[Loraine]

Hi @Limor This is a timeless question,on,playing actual songs. I remember being baffled by it at the beginning. My suggestion is to Google songs with 2 and 3 chords. They’ll be the easiest. If you know the song well, you can often figure out a strum pattern, but I always suggest using a metronome, and start slow. One down strum for every chord on the 4th count/click on it. Increase the speed by 5-10 beats once you’re able to master 1 chord every 4 beats.

If you need to work on transitions between chords, use the metronome. Take 2 adjacent chords in a song. Again, play the chord on the first beat. On beats 2,3,4 transition to the next chord (position fingers correctly) and strum down on the next beat 1; then use 2,3,4 again to transition back to the other chord, and back and forth. Again start slow and increase speed by 5-10 beats once you’re able to transition 10x in a row without missing a beat and with clear chords.

There are many resources to learn songs on sites and YouTube. I don’t like to provide competitors openly, so I’ll message you a few sites.

[Loraine]

Hey @Philb You had some pretty intricate moves in there. Great job! You’re getting better and better.

[Loraine]

Hi @PickinmyPocket I’m pretty sure it does not count as another session. Sessions are based on whether you sign in daily. It will have already logged your session for the day.

[Loraine]

Dang this was good. I love Bread. Loved your vocals. I liked that you were able to raise your pitch. You really stretched them to reach the high notes, and you nailed it. I would love to have seen your hands. The intro was cool, and I’d love to see what you were doing. I like how you did percussive slaps. and would love to learn that skill.

[Loraine]

Great posting @Paul_B – I play so many songs, that it’s difficult to say what I’m worrying on. Here’s a few.

Tennessee Mountain Top, Kid Rock

Leader of the Band, Dan Fogelberg

Californication, Red Hot Chili Peppers

Sounds like something I do, Drake Milligan

Nights in White satin, Moody blues

American woman, Lenny Kravitz

Freedom song, Blackberry smoke

Just breathe, Pearl Jam

More to this, Mark Cabella

Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Eric Clapton version.

There are a lot more, but these were just off the top of my head

[Loraine]

You’ve got some great advice in the comments. I personally change them on the guitar I play most often every 2-3 months, because I can tell when they’re losing that tonal value and resonating like I want them to. On the other hand, I have several guitars I don’t play often, but the strings still age and deteriorate over time. I have to change those strings typically every 6-8 months. I agree with @jumpinjeff that you need to have the guitars in a room that is humidity-controlled. I like humidity around 50%, but I’ll accept 40%. Below that, the wood will dry out and shrink, and that affects the strings, as well as the coating on the strings deteriorating faster.

As for what strings to use, it is a personal preference. They all sound different, and I can put the same brand on multiple guitars, and they can all sound different. Play around with it. I bought so many brands of strings at the beginning. I narrowed it down to preference based on each guitar. I use D’Addario Phospher Bronze Light,

Here’s what I currently have in my collection of strings.

[Loraine]

@langerking I think it’s great that your thinking ahead. While there aren’t formal 90 days parties anymore (zoom), Tony does touch upon them in the daily lessons when it’s time for you to review a prior 90 day progress plan and how you did and to look forward and plan for the next 90 days. If you want a head start on it, that is great. You won’t have to struggle trying to think of what you want to accomplish then when Tony does bring it up.

Also, there are older lessons, but there are a lot of newer ones too. They’re interspersed together. You can typically tell the difference by Tony’s tattoos (lol).

[Loraine]

Thanks for posting! It is a funny song. I listened to it, and I would have interpreted and done the music so differently than was done. Funny how that is when you read the lyrics first and then listen to the music.

[Loraine]

What a great memory Langerking! Some great songs. I don’t remember Yellow Bird. I’ll have to check that one out. I have always loved To Sir, With Love.

[Loraine]

Always appreciate your kind words and support Brandon!

[Loraine]

I have tickets to see Ten Years After in October, but the show got postponed over Visa issues they were having. But, it will be rescheduled.

[Loraine]

I’m using the Ultimate-guitar.com version

[Loraine]

I’ve never had Eric Burdon mentioned in the same sentence as me before. haha. He had a very distinctive voice. Thank you for the compliment on my chord transitioning. 🙂

[Loraine]

@pdb962 Welcome to TAC. I’d like to make a few suggestions regarding the 30 days to playand how to approach the program and lessons as a whole. This might also help @Big-Jim and @drstump54 . The program and lessons are not meant to me perfected. Throw perfection out the window and strive for progress instead. If you’ve given a lesson at least the minimum attempt for 10 minutes, then mark it complete. You can still work on it, but don’t let trying to perfect something interfere with your progression. Keep moving forward in your lessons. You will improve by doing so. Many of the same skills you’re are stuck on will come up again in another lesson, and you’ll be able to practice them again, and you will be surprised that you are better at it than before.

I was the slowest learner I know of when I started with TAC, having absolutely no prior skills on the guitar. There were a lot of great people on the forums that helped me out and never let me best myself up too badly. They were positive, inspiring, patient, and great teachers and role models. Back then there were more people that were semi-formal mentors. TAC didn’t carry over that role when they moved to the new platform, but many forum members stepped up and took over an informal sort of mentorship. It’s all in the asking.

Guitar is a difficult instrument, but it’s not impossible. I almost quit at about year 3, but I’m glad I stuck with it. I hit a period of rapid growth. Things simply became easier and skills were achieved quickly. It’s been a really fun ride since. The moral of the story, Don’t quit before the miracle happens. Good luck all. Feel free to reach out via messaging if need be.