Share your guitar "light bulb" moments

[emu!]

I have never been a great guitar player, but there have been some moments that things just clicked and a light bulb went off over my head...figuratively speaking.

My story:

For as long as I can remember, I've wanted to play like Chet Atkins...finger style picking. I watched videos, played with others who could do it, and read many books...but it never wanted to happen for me...until last week.

For some reasons unknown, I was trying to pick Long Haired Country Boy (the signature lick), and my fingers just did it. I guess I finally realized that my thumb needed to take a back seat to the other 4 fingers...where as before, I always used my thumb to as the dominant picking force. It just kinda fell into place. I'm still not as good as Chet Atkins, but I feel like I'm over a huge hurdle.

Anybody have a similar story?

[taxer]

Originally Posted by emu!

Anybody have a similar story?

Very similar.

Always wanted to play The Beatles tunes "Julia" or "Dear Prudence," but to do it correctly one had to master a variation of Travis picking. I went at it for years. No luck. Then BAM! I just had it. I think what did it for me was not thinking. I was saying in my head "OK, thumb now, now index on third string, now thumb and index..." That actually holds one back.

I still can't master Chet's style. I have the same problem you had -- concentrating on the thumb. One day I'll stop the thinking and it will just flow naturally. I hope.

[Sixer]

I bought a Baja, and now I'm obsessed with Telecasters.

[Mad Kiwi]

About 6 months ago I could suddenly play Mystery Train to a level that it was recognisable (and now sing along as well..)

I dont know why but I dont NEED a slap back for it and I suspect that if I was playing it properly I would or perhaps should....

But just to get the timing mostly right took me a long time.....and i'm really stoked to play it.

Fingerpicking is on my list too, probably after "getting" slide......but im only 43, plenty of time yet!

[Prism879]

I remember doing something similar with YYZ by Rush. One day it was horrible, next day I could somewhat recognize it as YYZ. It felt amazing to be able to play that darn song. Now I just have to finish learning that solo...

[Freejack]

Newbie stuff for me.

When learning to play a song, making my fingers change chords quick enough seemed impossible. Then I realized it was one finger that didn't move and the chords were just keeping the base finger in place and putting different fingers down do play the chords.

The other was actually understanding what a barre chord was. The nut being replaced by my index finger.

Carl

[BigDaddyLH]

Realizing that the major 3rd between B & G strings just means putting a wrinkle in a grip as you move it up or down the string sets:

FMaj7: xx3555
-->
CMaj7: x3545x
-->
GMaj7: 3544xx

[JayFreddy]

When I realized that the 5 major chord shapes, i.e,

 G    E    D    C    A
-3-  -0-  -2-  -0-  -0-   
-3-  -0-  -3-  -1-  -2-  
-0-  -1-  -2-  -0-  -2-  
-0-  -2-  -0-  -2-  -2-  
-2-  -2-  ---  -3-  -0-  
-3-  -0-  ---  ---  ---

Could be moved up the neck to form a complete cycle within the same key, e.g.,

-3-  -3-   -7-  -7-   ----  
-3-  -3-   -8-  -8-   -12-  
-0-  -4-   -7-  -7-   -12- 
-0-  -5-   -5-  -9-   -12-  
-2-  -5-   ---  -10-  -10-  
-3-  -3-   ---  ----  ----

Most people call this pattern "CAGED"...

I find it's easier to see starting on G.

It's been a long time since I discovered this, but to this day, it was one of the biggest "lightbulb moments" in my guitar journey.



Another big one was learning that to play something fast, I had to play it smooth first. To play smooth, you have to play slow... So to play fast, you need to play slow!

This second one seems simple, but it's somewhat counter-intuitive, especially when you're a teenage boy...

[1955]

Well, tonight it was: don't leave your guitar onstage unprotected during a break at the mercy of 15 little girls while the DJ plays that "Thrift Store" song. And...do not encourage little girls to hit you with balloons. 10 turns to 50 real quick.

Xtra points: do not have mouth open singing while many little girls throw guitar-shaped confetti at your head.

Serious: When I realized that I did not ever have to learn to play with a pick.

[jhundt]

for people who want to learn Travis picking-

I never really got the hang of it, 'til I got Paul Pigat's Rockabilly lesson; somehow his explanation, tablature, and video just worked great for me - definitely a "light bulb moment".

[furtherpale]

"jimi hendrix" chords (john mayer, frusciante etc....) so simple in the end

[wahscoot]

When I realized that there is no elevator to success, you have to take the stairs.

That is: practice.

[Nick JD]

When I found myself playing guitar and thinking about something else.

Until then, you don't actually know the song.

[TeleTim911]

I've had way too many over the years, I've forgotten so much when I quit playing for a while back in the 90;s. One of the earliest big light bulb moments was learning to Travis pick (I think that's what it's called, Pick and middle and ring fingers?).

My brother was a great finger picker on acoustic, and I asked him to show me how one time, he picked up a guitar, played something and walked off. This was about 11 PM one night. He got up the next morning around 9 AM and I was still sitting in his dining room, and was playing that riff he showed me. He looked at me and said, "I was being a smart-a**, I never expected you to learn to do that overnight, it took me months. Guess now the joke is on me". Something clicked though when he did it, and I was watching him about one foot from him. Later in life, he and I would play an acoustic duo thing, doing Jim Croce, Lightfoot, stuff like that. We even did our version of Classical Gas.

I've had other moments like that too. Just "bang" and it hits me. It really keeps you wanting to learn more, at least it does me.

[Jamie Black]

When I realized everything on the guitar neck is a whole step except B to C and E to F and everything repeats after the 12th fret. Now finding a note anywhere on the neck is a piece of cake rather than starting with a 6 or 5 string bar chord root and stumbling through octaves.

I know it's elementary and was always right there in front of my face and one day it just came together into an Ah Ha! moment.

[bikeracr]

1) When I finally got & understood economy picking. Alternate picking would not get me through some really fast passages (Eric Johnson)
2) That I really enjoy just locking in & playing rhythm sometimes
3) That a metronome can really help
4) When I found "my sound" (335 through Zendrive into my ToneKing amp)

[rokdog49]

When I realized it's not the notes you play, but how you play them.
As Fezzter says "Wow, who knew."

[Doug 54]

18 years ago light bulb:

Let's say you have your string action, maybe hi-low at 17th fret 2/32-3/32's, and the saddle break angle is high

High break angle doesn't necessarily give you more sustain: It lets more highs thru.

Shimming the headstock end of the neck pocket and readjusting your action to the above will create more mids and low mids
and by golly, twang on the lower string really good!! Playability is looser.

Experiment!
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Late 90's:

I found pushing the A string off the side of the fb at the 10th fret or so and above, on a NOT
overly beveled guitar, you get an interval of a major 3rd.

The possibilities are unlimited, esp used with other strings, and also letting the string slide back onto the fret.

It's my Texas Swing secret!!


.



.

[thumbpick]

that....(country) gentleman...chet atkins is really more of a jazz style player!

[telex76]

Mine was also Travis picking. I tried for a couple years to get it down with no success.
I'd work on it a couple months and give up for a month or two, over and over never making it sound like anything. Finally after laying off for a month I found myself just doing it without thinking.

My other moment was finally grasping the CAGED system. I actually just learned it as the 5 moveable shapes and later realised it was the caged system.