Introduce yourself

[DavidP]

Ya got me. Big Monty Python fan. Good job I'm not a superhero 'cos my kryptonite would be for the bad guys to put on Holy Grail's Brave Sir Robin scenes or Life of Brian's Biggus Dickus scene and I'd be helpless with laughter.

I wouldn't mind playing some of Eric Idles's songs eventually.

LoL

[BrianK]

Hello 👋 I just joined and thought to take a moment to say hello and introduced myself


Nickname: None

Real (full) name: Brian

Age and birthday: 50

Habitat: Home with my lovely wife and 4 kids (well two are in college now)

Which guitar(s) do you own? Gibson Les Paul Traditional

Which guitar do you currently play on? Gibson Les Paul Traditional

Which amp(s) do you own? Marshall DSL 40c

How long have you been playing guitar? 2 1/2 years

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)? Blues, Blues Rock, Classic Rock

Which genre do you play on your guitar often? Blues and Classic rock

Who are your favorite bands? Led Zeppelin, B.B. King, Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, Joe Bonamassa, Gary Moore, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Eagles, soo many

What inspired you to start playing guitar? Well I’ll try to keep this short, when I was 13 I snuck into my sisters record collection. I came across the wild album cover and gave it a listen, though the Headphones came this amazing riff and Mr Page had me hooked! The ocean was the song that made want to play and wa s the very first song I learned on the guitar as a matter of fact. So why so long ? Well frankly we were poor it was just my dad raising us, I worked 3 jobs to get though college where I met my lovely wife of 27 years. Then the girls came and along with them came ballet, tap jazz then piano lessons, viola lessons, cello lessons, and one daughter was in the ringling jr orchestra the other jazz band as well as jazz piano and the youngest was cello and orchestra. Soooo they took priority!  and then my I had a wake up call father was diagnosed with lung cancer we talked endlessly the last  few months of his life about bucket lists and things we should have done and didn’t and the importance of not leaving things undone. He passed July 2015. Around December thinking about my own life it just hit me my whole life I wanted to play the guitar I always talked about, thought it would be so cool to play my favorite songs. So I talked to my wife who said “mmm well ok I guess” and a quick phone call to Sweetwater and around January of 2016 I started this wonderful journey! If you read all that your awesome👍😆

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band? Nope not as of yet maybe one day

Why do you play guitar? The pure love of the instrument! I just love the sound, the tone, the emotions you can create

What are your goals for the future? Well I would love to be good enough to play in a band. I don’t. Care about success or any of that I just want to play the music I love!

[JimQPublic]

Nickname: Jim
Real (full) name: James
Age and birthday: 53
Habitat: Los Angeles, California, USA


Which guitar(s) do you own?
Breedlove Discovery Dreadnaught
Fender Parlor CP-60S

Which guitar do you currently play on?
Both but mostly the Fender.


For how long have you been playing guitar?
3 months, since May 2018

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)?
A big variety: Folk, classic rock, some country, some bluegrass, jazz, blues, R&B...

Which genre do you play on your guitar often?
Horrible noise so far.  Aiming for Tommy Emmanuel inspired fingerstyle.

Who are your favorite bands?
My kids' marching band and son's jazz band  I really like the unplugged work by some of the rock legends- Knopfler, Clapton, etc. 

What inspired you to start playing guitar?
My daughter plays tuba and son plays trombone in school bands.  I also go to a music festival 2x per year with lots of musicians.  All this exposure to music an musicians I feel like an illiterate- I want to understand more of how music is made.

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band?
No.  I would be banned from any band!  I don't see myself playing in a band and I don't sing, which is a large part of the reason that my goal is to develop travis-style skills.  It seems conducive to solo play.

Why do you play guitar?
To experience on the inside what I've been an onlooker.

What are your goals for the future?
Play well enough that people come into the room when I'm playing instead of them running away with fingers in ears

[Chrissyboy]

Nickname: Chrissyboy
Real (full) name: Chris
Age and birthday: 47 (England)

Which guitar(s) do you own?
Epiphone G 400 Pro

Which guitar do you currently play on?
Same

Which amp(s) do you own?
Fender Mustang I

For how long have you been playing guitar?
Since January 2018

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)?
All different kinds of Rock mainly

Which genre do you play on your guitar often?
Rock

Who are your favorite bands?
GnR, Sabbath, Zep, Greta Van Fleet

What inspired you to start playing guitar?
Always loved the sound of the instrument and always wanted to play

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band?
Nope, not sure I ever will either, just want to be able to play for me

Why do you play guitar?
Love it and it also disconnects me from the world and all the negative xx--xx

What are your goals for the future?
To be the best player I can be, to be able to listen to a song and be able to play it.

[Hawgee]

Nickname: Hawgee
Real (full) name: Mariet
Age and birthday: 32
Habitat: the Netherlands

Which guitar(s) do you own? Fender Stratocater and Fender CC-60

Which guitar do you currently play on? Stratocaster

Which amp(s) do you own? Fender Champion 40

How long have you been playing guitar? Almost a year

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)? A lot

Which genre do you play on your guitar often? Rock

Who are your favorite bands? U2, Mumford & sons

What inspired you to start playing guitar?

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band? No

Why do you play guitar? I wanted to challenge myself and learn to play my favorite instrument

What are your goals for the future? Continue to have fun and learn more

[dberry]

Nickname: dberry
Real (full) name: Dustin Berry
Age and birthday: 36
Habitat: Missouri, USA

Which guitar(s) do you own? Takamine  GD93CE

Which guitar do you currently play on? Takamine GD93CE

Which amp(s) do you own? Fishman Loudbox Mini

How long have you been playing guitar? 1 day

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)? Christian, Country, Rock

Which genre do you play on your guitar often? None yet

Who are your favorite bands? Casting Crowns

What inspired you to start playing guitar? I just returned home from the Middle East, and my wife started playing the ukulele while I was gone. I have always wanted to learn the guitar (I played brass instruments when I was young), and she motivated me to just jump in and start learning.

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band? Played in the school bad and a jazz band when I was young (trumpet).

Why do you play guitar? It has a great sound, and is very portable. Sitting around with friends as they played over the years was always a great time, and I always wanted to play as well. I was just too embarrassed to get over that beginner’s hump.

What are your goals for the future? Just learning to play would be great.

[Balamuthiah]

I should’ve done this a long time ago but it’s never to late to introduce oneself!
Nickname: Bala, Balzi
Real (full) name: Bala Muthiah Valavan
Age and birthday: 26
Habitat: originally from Chennai, India but currently in Alabama, USA

Which guitar(s) do you own? A Granada and a fender squier acoustic guitars, Ibanez gio electric

Which guitar do you currently play on? Alternate between them all depending on my mood and what I play.

Which amp(s) do you own? Marshall 15W combo

How long have you been playing guitar? On and off for nearly 9 years. Continuously for about 4.

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)? Rock and blues mainly but I listen to different stuff

Which genre do you play on your guitar often? Mostly blues and blues rock. But have also played pop and other variants of rock.

Who are your favorite bands? The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix experience, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, cream (plenty of other classic rock bands), Green Day, Metallica and recently been listening to Jack white’s solo stuff and the Alabama shakes.

What inspired you to start playing guitar? My best friend from middle school. He was the first guy I saw with a guitar. He played and sang like none other in school and was a popular guy. He introduced me to bands like Green Day and Metallica (and a bunch of other bands). But it was not until I was hit by beatlemania that I started playing seriously.

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band? When I first started learning guitar, the institute that I was learning at used to put us in random bands for quarterly tests where we performed to a crowd with the random bands. So I played in two bands that way but nope never on a regular basis. Would like to find myself a band though!

Why do you play guitar? It gives me the voice to express myself. To be able to play tunes that I like gives me a feeling of joy!

What are your goals for the future? To be able to make music and entertain people and have fun along the way!

[MrBumble]

Welcome to the forum dberry - and a belated one to Bala!

We've been enjoying Bala's recordings for the past few weeks and I'm looking forward to hearing some from Dustin soon.

[Balamuthiah]

Welcome to the forum dberry - and a belated one to Bala!

We've been enjoying Bala's recordings for the past few weeks and I'm looking forward to hearing some from Dustin soon.

Thank you Mr. Bumble!

[silman]

Nickname: Silman
Age: 22
Habitat: California


Which guitar(s) do you own?
Fender Squier Stratocaster Cherry Sunburst

Which guitar do you currently play on?
See Above

Which amp(s) do you own?
Roland Cube 30X

For how long have you been playing guitar?
This is an odd question. I got my guitar at the beginning of highschool (when i was 14) with dreams of playing rock and pop, but i wasn't good about practicing (Self teaching has always been very hard for me), so the guitar just sat there. I tried to play tab without any knowledge of any chords (just trying to wing it based on the tab) and failed miserably and it made me not want to play. Years went by and i finally tried to pick it up again in college, this time actually starting with Justin's Beginner Course, but school made it very difficult to make time to practice (also i wasn't prioritizing it, i could have made time but i was lazy). So here i am, fresh out of college, 22 years old and trying to start again with the same guitar i got almost 8 years ago. Hopefully it will stick this time, each time i thought of going back to learning i made a dumb excuse  (the dumbest of which was "im too old now, all my peers who play guitar have been playing for years"). I'm done making excuses, i want to learn and 22 is still young enough to learn and have fun with it, i think i was too obsessed with getting really good really fast without wanting to put in the effort.

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)?
I love pretty much all music, but i've been listening to classic rock from a very very young age. I want to learn all kinds of music to play on guitar though.

Which genre do you play on your guitar often?
None, still on Stage 1 of the beginner course, looking to learn some classic rock and hopefully some pop songs (i love Elvis and taylor swift).

Who are your favorite bands?
Elvis, Boston, Journey, ACDC, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Ed Sheeran

What inspired you to start playing guitar?
I have always wanted to be able to play an instrument and sing along, guitar and piano are the most common instruments to do this with, initially i was driven to guitar from Guitar Hero believe it or not, after feeling like a fake rock star on the game (which i got absurdly good at), i wanted to feel the real thing.

I love singing but i'm bad at it, i may need voice lessons.

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band?
Nope and nope, don't really want to until im much older and have the free time to dedicate to organizing practice with others.

Why do you play guitar?
I want to be able to play music for myself and others, i think its fun and brings people together.

What are your goals for the future?
I want to learn to play some classic rock and pop songs, i want to be able to make up for the time i wasted by learning as much as possible (the right way), not taking any short cuts and hopefully in a few months be able to play some songs for my girlfriend.


One concern i have is that i have pretty small hands for a guy and am worried i will never be able to do bar chords, i know everyone says my fret hand will stretch but by how much?

Secondly, i see all these cool covers of songs i want to play online but they always do picking of single strings instead of chords for this cool and complex sound. I just don't know if i have the dexterity and mental capacity to be able to pick individual strings so quickly, they are so close together on the guitar and i fear i will never be able to switch to the specific one i need quick enough.

Well i am back....

I stopped after completing stage 1 due to grad school. Im back at it now. One month in and on stage three!

[misterlutherman1]

Nickname:
Dave

Real (full) name:
David Antonov

Age and birthday:
24, 17/04/1994

Habitat:
Manchester, UK

Which guitar(s) do you own?
Les Paul Standard

Which guitar do you currently play on?
Les Paul Standard

Which amp(s) do you own?
Roland Blues Cube

How long have you been playing guitar?
12 years

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)?
Jazz, R&B, Classical, Neo-Soul

Which genre do you play on your guitar often?
Jazz

Who are your favorite bands?
Django Rhienhardt, Wes Montgomery

What inspired you to start playing guitar?
The beautiful sounds and the way I feel towards playing, where you can just be whatever, no words, just music, and communicate deeply with other humans

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band?
Yes

Why do you play guitar?
To express myself

What are your goals for the future?
To catch them all! Pokemon!

[Ludo]

Hi everyone !
Glad to have join this forum.

Let me answer the traditional questions :

Nickname:
Ludo

Real (full) name:
Ludo

Age and birthday:
37 - 25 Octobre 1979

Habitat:
Fleet, Hampshire, UK - But French

Which guitar(s) do you own?
- Stratocaster Player
- Tanglewood TW45
- Aria MM-20

Which guitar do you currently play on?
All of them

Which amp(s) do you own?
Blackstar ID Core 20

How long have you been playing guitar?
well... a bit since very long time ago

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)?
Blues, Rock, Jazz, Gypsy

Which genre do you play on your guitar often?
Blues

Who are your favorite bands?
Dire Straits, Pink Floyds, Metallica, Gun's n Roses, Clapton, Stevie R V, LEd Zep, Deep Purple, Eagles... dunno

What inspired you to start playing guitar?
Just love music. Have been playing the violin and the piano as well

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band?
Yes

Why do you play guitar?
To enjoy

What are your goals for the future?
To enjoy more

[Tim_R]

Nickname:Tim_R
Real (full) name: Tim Raines
Age and birthday:68
Habitat:

Which guitar(s) do you own?  Martin Acoustic and G & L Electric

Which guitar do you currently play on?  Both of the above.

Which amp(s) do you own?  Boss Sound Station and Blackstar

How long have you been playing guitar?  Total time, about a year.  Still on Beginner Course

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)?  Classic Rock, 90's Country, Traditional Country, Pop

Which genre do you play on your guitar often?  Whatever is in Justin's Beginner and Traditional Song Books

Who are your favorite bands?  No favorites.  I like lots of bands and artists.

What inspired you to start playing guitar?  College roommate in dormatory.

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band?  Jr. High and High School Band.

Why do you play guitar?  Enjoyment and to learn new things about guitar.

What are your goals for the future?  Play well enough to play in front of friends and family.  I'm also in an all acoustic guitar group of about 10 people.  Most are beginners like me.

[close2u]

Hello and welcome to all new members

Take some time to look around and navigate as it is a large forum but well organised

[learis]

Nickname: ummm, my dad calls me Jor sometimes
Real (full) name: Jordan Hoffman
Age and birthday: 31 years young( 1/7/87 )
Habitat: South Florida (SoFlo)

Which guitar(s) do you own?
A classical guitar that doesn't have the model name on it (says it's made in Espana)
Epiphone sg special

Which guitar do you currently play on?
both previously listed

Which amp(s) do you own?
danelectro honeytone mini amp

For how long have you been playing guitar?
1 week

Which is/are your favorite music genre(s)?
80's, 90's, rock

Which genre do you play on your guitar often?
church hymns

Who are your favorite bands?
None stand out to me, every band has their gems

What inspired you to start playing guitar?
Church asked me to

Do you play in a band or have you been playing in a band?
No

Why do you play guitar?
to learn to help my church and to praise God

What are your goals for the future?
my main goal is to get good enough to comfortably play the acoustic guitar in church so that others playing guitar can learn other instruments they're interested in.

----------

Hello, this site has been great for learning in addition to the lessons I'm getting at church. I am thankful to Justin for all the hard work he's done perfecting this site over the years. I feel like I came here justin time (courtesy laugh plz). I've only been playing for a week so for now I just hope I keep up my dedication and build some calouses, boy is this painful lol.