I'm not a good guitar player, don't practice at all, but love playing guitar, jamming, writing songs. Anyone else?

[Bluego1]

I love farting around on a guitar.

 

[OmegaWoods]

I strongly suspect most of you are just being modest. If you can get on a stage and play music with others, you're a pretty damn good guitarist.

 

[RobRiggs]

I love music, I’m a decent player and can learn just about anything someone else has created, but almost no musical creativity myself. A buddy recently pointed out that a lot of Stones songs are simple. I don’t disagree, but I never could have written any of them. I admire being able to build a song from scratch much more than technical expertise.

 

[Dave Skowron]

Can't write or sing but not too bad a player. I don't like playing most covers though. After 50+ years of playing I've decided I'm a "blues guy". So that's what I play - blues style stuff. I practice a lot, know a bunch of theory that I never use and try to learn something new at least once or twice a week. I was in a working band in the late 70's but I'll never play out again most likely. I just work on my licks and tonality for my own enjoyment.

 

[sax4blues]

I’m not a good player.
I practice all the time.

 

[ClashCityTele]

That describes me exactly.
I'm never going to be any better than I am now.
I really enjoy writing/recording songs.
I'm in a band & our other guitarist is 10x better than me, I don't care.

 

[Cam]

On that note, my formerly augmented income has diminished, like my skills.

 

[Mjark]

Unfortunately improving requires work. The harder you work, the better you’ll be.

I should be way better than I am but I find it hard to apply myself. But I have seen some results from the less than stellar amount of work I have managed to put in.

I spent many years thrashing guitars and as many have already admitted didn’t know hardly any songs.

I’m past that, and it’s much more pleasurable than playing crap I made up without any clue what I was doing.

My best advice is don’t squander your time. I wish I had more but I don’t expect to have too many more years on the fretboard.

 

[GGardner]

The only thing worse than my guitar playing is my singing.

 

[Skyhook]

I love music, I’m a decent player and can learn just about anything someone else has created, but almost no musical creativity myself. A buddy recently pointed out that a lot of Stones songs are simple. I don’t disagree, but I never could have written any of them. I admire being able to build a song from scratch much more than technical expertise.

I don't think that's lack of creativity... I'm not sure what it's a lack of though.
A couple of my musical associates couldn't write songs if their lives depended on it but they have prolific outputs
of material nonetheless. They make ambient weirdness and microtonal compositions and the like.
I'd say they have creativity if they have the desire to create. They might be sorely lacking in the creative fuel department though.
Their creative engines running on nothing but good wishes. I feel they're disguising their lack of songwriting with a
lot of weirdness so that nobody can tell them they're doing it wrong. Couldn't ask them to confirm, of course, but this
is how it comes across.

 

[OmegaWoods]

On that note, my formerly augmented income has diminished, like my skills.

I see what you did there...

 

[hemingway]

Playing should be fun. If it isn't, I don't do it.

 

[gimmeatele]

Yep, me too, rarely learn songs and scale practice is minimal. Give me some backing tracks and I am a happy soul

 

[gimmeatele]

I've been playing over 50 years. I know a lot of songs, mostly stuff I've know for a long time. just a joe strummer who loves to sing and play.

Just havin' fun

You can't go far wrong there.

 

[Flaneur]

I found, many years ago, that I enjoyed performing, in the pub or at parties. My singing voice was required, along with some effort, to practice entire songs. I had never been motivated, to that point, just to improve, for the sake of doing so.
I am a reasonably proficient slide player, which has created a number of interesting opportunities, to perform and record. I've been happily playing in one band, for ten years and I've always enjoyed playing my friend's excellent, original tunes. I never play solos by rote but try to still serve the songs, in my own slightly non-conformist way.
I indulge myself a little more, in the '40s/'50s style Blues band I put together, five years back. Solos are still short and the narrative remains the focus, rather than instrumentation.
I've finally started slipping a few of my own tunes, into set lists. If someone dances to and applauds one of those, after a Freddie King or Howling Wolf song- I take that as a compliment.
I still get a childlike satisfaction, from being paid to play, or supporting a charitable enterprise, through music. I've always valued making music, and entertaining people, before self-improvement.
I'm living proof, that you can contribute to good shows, well received recordings and support your community, without possessing transcendent technical skills. There are creative recording artists, all over the world, with fantastic abilities but who are not motivated to perform, for a live audience. It takes all sorts.....but our guitar obsession is inclusive, in it's nature- and that shared struggle, brings us all together.

 

[Brad Pittiful]

im with ya man!

 

[Jazzcaster21]

Joshua Redman swears that he hardly ever practiced growing up; he was in college studying something fairly serious- economics maybe- when music somehow took over. Worked out well for him;

He was actually going to be a lawyer and was studying at Harvard. He had it in his genes however because his dad was the great Dewey Redman, who played with Ornette Coleman, Keith Jarrett and others.

 

[andy__d]

Yup, that’s me too.

 

[chulaivet1966]

Yeah man writing your own songs is where its at- cause even if you kinda stink you're more of an artist plus its way more fun than learning someone else's songs. Most of mine are kind of equal parts be a bit embarrassed by and proud of. Its just tough to find folks who want to play with you

Howdy....

That's been my preference also for the last 40+ years.
Although, I also have a personal set list of about 30 songs that I enjoy playing along with just to keep up my rhythm chops.
I'm very particular about the songs I like to spend time on and actually be able to play respectably.
Once I've recorded an original song I don't play or practice it again as I'm not a solo singer/performer anyway.

To the OP's point....I'm just a song writer/rhythm player and would only describe myself as average.
My music peers and those that I've played with say I'm a bit above average. (I have a bit of theory knowledge too).
Flattering to hear but 'average' works for me
I just do it because it's what I (we) do.....it's creative therapy.

Back to it....

 

[Digital Larry]

As for me, enthusiasm > talent. I put a lot of energy into something that I am not that good at. Would it take all the fun out of it if I magically got a lot better? No, actually. I think that would be great. It might make me mad if I got really good and still couldn't make any money doing it. So where I am, my absolute lack of external signs of success makes sense and isn't upsetting.