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Post by grampalerxst on Nov 11, 2018 5:47:38 GMT -6
Hopefully consistency is a good thing because if nothing else I've been consistent!
Still putting a lot of attention on the AT Electric Gypsy Lick and the SRV P&J first turnaround lick. I am probably up to nearly 5,000 reps on the AT lick and this coming week will graduate to 55% of full tempo. Progress is slow, but it's there. The Pride and Joy turnaround is going much better. I'm up to 70% tempo and it's easy to hear the sequence of notes as a portion of that song. Not so much with the AT lick yet. At 50-55% tempo it is still it's own thing.
I've had two interesting observations. One is that I noticed while looping through those two bits of music my mind will occasionally start to wander a little and when it does I seem to play them a little better than when I'm closer to 100% focused. I figured out that when my mind wanders a little I breathe while playing but when I'm focused I mostly hold my breath until the loop returns to the beginning. Adding "remember to breathe" to the list of all the things to juggle is a challenge but it seems to help.
The second is that I've noticed, whether standing or sitting, I tend to use my right forearm to pin the guitar against my body which limits the range of motion I have available for sounding notes. When trying to "cover" SRV or Andy Timmons that is a substantial handicap. So I'm trying to learn to trust the guitar not to fly away from me so I can free up my picking hand. It's odd because I have to get used to the neck moving a little, and using my fretting hand to share the stabilizing duty, but it is liberating when considering pick attack.
Beyond those two projects, I'm still working on mixing/matching different blues rhythm ideas within a chorus, and one in particular is working out kinda nice. I'm also still regressing when it comes to polishing my BYCU study repertoire. I'm not too worried about that since I feel like I'm plowing a lot of new ground with the looper/playalong exercises and seeing some transition in terms of my technical approach. I'm not surprised it is taking some time to settle in with other things. But if it continues too many more weeks It'll start to be a concern. I only got 2-3 shots at the Am challenge, and will try to work that in more often this coming week.
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Post by jack1982 on Nov 11, 2018 6:05:44 GMT -6
I had an okay week, I'm guessing maybe 5+ hours. Just worked on Sunshine of Your Love. Learned the rhythm part, though I've yet to make a satisfactory recording of it. Last week we learned a simplified version of the solo, and I'm perhaps getting close to recording it. Later this week we'll learn a bit more advanced version of it. He's not going to teach the note-for-note version due to copyright reasons, but it'll be an "interpretation" I guess Got the classical guitar out and spent a few minutes playing through some Christmas songs and also worked a tiny bit on Robert Renman's "Jingle Bells Blues". Very cool little solo in that - I better get my butt in gear if I want to get it done by Christmas.
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Post by joachim on Nov 11, 2018 6:08:45 GMT -6
I also started getting some consistent practice again, after a long busy period.
Right now I am working on Big Bends in MBYCU, repetition of the second half of BYCU, as well different blues classics when I feel I time and energy for it.
I suffered a big humiliation this week; I taught my 13 year son the rhythm part of Back in Black, and my wife noted innocently that it's amazing how he is already better that me considering how much more I practice. She did put on her clueless and innocent face, but I am sure that this was a devious and calculated remark. Hopefully we will be on speaking terms again before the holiday season.
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Post by grampalerxst on Nov 11, 2018 6:31:51 GMT -6
I suffered a big humiliation this week; I taught my 13 year son the rhythm part of Back in Black, and my wife noted innocently that it's amazing how he is already better that me considering how much more I practice. She did put on her clueless and innocent face, but I am sure that this was a devious and calculated remark. Hopefully we will be on speaking terms again before the holiday season. Sorry, had to chuckle a little about that. I'd chalk it up to understandable pride in her son. Take it as a complement of your teaching skills. Back when I was married my guitar progress probably didn't even merit a fleeting thought in my wife's mind so she wouldn't waste the energy to try and zing me about it. Once I was working on a classical etude and she walked by and said, "Hey, you sound like you are actually playing something." For a while I felt like it was a dig but in hindsight I came to believe it was only a rare acknowledgement that I even played and it was probably something that reminded her vaguely of something (the way those classical etudes tend to do).
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Post by bluesbruce on Nov 11, 2018 6:57:27 GMT -6
Best week of practice I've had in quite a while - now I've got to strive for grampa's consistency! Been playing more rock than blues, also trying to get back to some technical practice. As mentioned in another thread, saw Gary Clark, Jr Thursday night. Absolutely killer show, highly recommended if he's ever playing in your area.
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Post by cunningr on Nov 11, 2018 7:39:28 GMT -6
Well honestly lost track of my practice time somewhere around 8 hours maybe more been really working at several things. 1. Shuffle rythmns my instructor gave me 2. Some left hand hammer on tips that go with the shuffle 3. Received skynard play along book so started learning Needle and the Spoon 4. Learned main riff of on the hunt as well
Received shipping notice that my billm mods are on the way, and trying to convince wife I really need another guitar. She maybe giving a little, really gasn for G&L ASAT classic fullerton built.
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Post by Phil on Nov 11, 2018 9:21:10 GMT -6
I got in about 7 hrs., but none of it was really serious focused practice. Most was while watching Netflix while my wife does her nightly routine. I've got to get serious again. I went almost 20 years not watching hardly any TV. Now with Netflix I watch stupid TV series. (Well some are pretty good and there are no commercials).
Anyway, I did a lot of playing tunes I've memorized but can't play well. I'm trying to polish them up. I spent quite a bit of time on "The Christmas Song." It's a fairly complex solo guitar arrangement for my low skill level, but I think I'll have it smoothed out soon.
I listened to my version of "White Christmas" that I recorded last year and I was cringing all the way through it. I can't believe I thought it sounded good at the time. The tone is horrible and the playing is choppy and tense.
Grampa: when you talk about doing 5,000 reps it sounds like a Crossfit WOD. Get ready, AT lick for time, 3,2,1 GO! I'm imagining you lying on the ground afterwards gasping for air.
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Post by jack1982 on Nov 16, 2018 17:09:34 GMT -6
Kind'a quiet around here lately, so here's the easy version of the Sunshine of Your Love solo. Just watched the webinar with the more advanced version, so now I've got some new stuff to work on Constructive criticism / sarcastic comments cheerfully accepted
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Post by Phil on Nov 16, 2018 20:53:44 GMT -6
Sounding pretty good there, Jack. Looking forward to more advanced version. I was 15 or 16 years olds when this was getting played on the radio. It was always a shortened version with most of the solo cut out. That was also the version on the 45 I bought. I wasn't until a year or so later that I heard the full version with the complete solo. (I met somebody who had the album).
Some of you young whipper-snappers probably don't know what the hell I'm talking about. 45's may have even been before your time, Jack. I don't remember when they went out of style.
Anyway, nice job on a great song.
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Post by grampalerxst on Nov 17, 2018 3:35:13 GMT -6
Kind'a quiet around here lately, so here's the easy version of the Sunshine of Your Love solo. Just watched the webinar with the more advanced version, so now I've got some new stuff to work on Constructive criticism / sarcastic comments cheerfully accepted Nice job Jack. Your tone really fits the song. The notes aren't what I'm used to hearing but you play them well.
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Post by grampalerxst on Nov 17, 2018 3:52:41 GMT -6
Some of you young whipper-snappers probably don't know what the hell I'm talking about. 45's may have even been before your time, Jack. I don't remember when they went out of style. I think Jack and I are of similar vintages and 45s were around at least into high school for me. I didn't collect a lot of them myself, always preferred LPs. I think they were likely waning in popularity that whole time, and I don't know if it was the appearance of the first Walkman's or the advent of CDs which did them in for good. There was a wonderful time in the mid-late 70s when there were "AOR" radio stations on FM radio (it was rare to hear commercials on FM back then, I think a lot of people didn't even have FM radios) helped me realize that there was a lot of great music that never made it to 45s/AM air play. Unfortunately, it wasn't long after I really got into the FM stations that they went "commercial" almost overnight it seems. I think Rush wrote "Spirit of Radio" in 79 or so, a song lamenting that transition, which makes me think the AOR format predated my awareness. Sorry, wondering off-topic again. I get more like my dad every day.
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Post by grampalerxst on Nov 17, 2018 4:22:06 GMT -6
Grampa: when you talk about doing 5,000 reps it sounds like a Crossfit WOD. Get ready, AT lick for time, 3,2,1 GO! I'm imagining you lying on the ground afterwards gasping for air. Haha, Phil, that is probably on some level where the terminology comes from. I did Crossfit for a few years and I always refused to flop on the ground at the end. Worst-case I'd find somewhere to sit down. In sports as a kid it was taboo to flop on the ground like that and we were always coached to stay (or get back up) on our feet unless we were severely injured. That was back in the "Everybody isn't a Winner, only the Winner is a Winner" days and being "toughened up" was a big part of being on the receiving end of coaching if you were a boy.
But I enjoyed the image you suggested! For the Crossfit cames the RX "weight" would probably be playing it on bass strings with a burpee between each rep!
There is a philosophical difference in approach between what I am doing and Crossfit. I'm much more focused on accurate motion where Crossfit is focused on moving weight per unit time (i.e., performing work using the definition from physics). To sit there and play the same phrase looped over and over for 10 minutes does involve some modest hand fatigue (at least the AT lick does, the SRV lick really doesn't), but it is much more of a mental exercise for me. I also feel like so far most of the mechanical refinement I am gaining from this is in my RH, and that I suspect in the end the bulk of the long-term takeaway I'll get (insofar as there will be any long-term benefit to this) will be mental. It's tough to describe--like I'm learning how to visualize both of these licks in my head but not in the sense I can "see" them in my mind's eye the way advanced players describe being able to do.
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Post by jack1982 on Nov 17, 2018 6:20:59 GMT -6
Thanks guys! Yeah we still had 45's when I was in high school and for a few years after. They were definitely on the way out by then, to be replaced by CD's. I read that the record companies made a ton of money when everybody basically re-purchased their entire record collections on CD. I've always theorized that's why they quit bothering with acquiring new talent, and then when everyone was finished replacing their record collections and the revenue dried up, they're like "oh s***!!!" and turned the whole thing over to the accountants and lawyers. I'm finding weightlifting is very much like guitar - tons of opportunities to spend money I've got a cable machine arriving Monday, got some dumbells (those things are absurdly expensive considering they're a couple chunks of cast iron on a handle ), and of course I've signed up for a couple of online programs lol. I'd hate to think what the dollars spent to pounds lost ratio is Oh well that's another thing that's very similar to guitar: work your butt off day after day but don't expect to see any real results for months.
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Post by bluesbruce on Nov 17, 2018 9:11:03 GMT -6
Jack, enjoyed to hear the solo. Nicely played! Yeah, I can remember the whole CD storm. I think I bought a CD player in 1987 (or maybe early 1988?), within about 2 years, you couldn't even find an LP record in a store anymore. I'm also nostalgic about the old "album oriented rock", commercial-free FM radio. Jack, don't get too bulked up - it'll impede your guitar playing!
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Post by Phil on Nov 17, 2018 11:51:50 GMT -6
Grampa: when you talk about doing 5,000 reps it sounds like a Crossfit WOD. Get ready, AT lick for time, 3,2,1 GO! I'm imagining you lying on the ground afterwards gasping for air. Haha, Phil, that is probably on some level where the terminology comes from. I did Crossfit for a few years and I always refused to flop on the ground at the end. Worst-case I'd find somewhere to sit down. In sports as a kid it was taboo to flop on the ground like that and we were always coached to stay (or get back up) on our feet unless we were severely injured. That was back in the "Everybody isn't a Winner, only the Winner is a Winner" days and being "toughened up" was a big part of being on the receiving end of coaching if you were a boy.
But I enjoyed the image you suggested! For the Crossfit cames the RX "weight" would probably be playing it on bass strings with a burpee between each rep!
There is a philosophical difference in approach between what I am doing and Crossfit. I'm much more focused on accurate motion where Crossfit is focused on moving weight per unit time (i.e., performing work using the definition from physics). To sit there and play the same phrase looped over and over for 10 minutes does involve some modest hand fatigue (at least the AT lick does, the SRV lick really doesn't), but it is much more of a mental exercise for me. I also feel like so far most of the mechanical refinement I am gaining from this is in my RH, and that I suspect in the end the bulk of the long-term takeaway I'll get (insofar as there will be any long-term benefit to this) will be mental. It's tough to describe--like I'm learning how to visualize both of these licks in my head but not in the sense I can "see" them in my mind's eye the way advanced players describe being able to do. You had mentioned in the past that you were into Crossfit at one time. That's why I made the reference. I drank the CF Kool-aid for a period of time back in 2007-2008. I was going to share my thoughts on CF but changed my mind - too far off topic.
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Post by Phil on Nov 17, 2018 11:56:44 GMT -6
Kind'a quiet around here lately, so here's the easy version of the Sunshine of Your Love solo. Just watched the webinar with the more advanced version, so now I've got some new stuff to work on Nice job Jack. Your tone really fits the song. The notes aren't what I'm used to hearing but you play them well.I think this is a stripped down version serving as a stepping stone. I also think it demonstrates how you can capture the essence of a solo without playing it note for note. Maybe Jack could shed some more light on this.
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Post by cunningr on Nov 17, 2018 15:28:44 GMT -6
Nice playing Jack, glad someone broke the quiet!
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Post by jack1982 on Nov 17, 2018 19:39:35 GMT -6
Thanks Rich! Phil, yeah Griff can't teach the solo note-for-note due to a host of copyright issues. He's teaching something that perhaps captures "the essence" of it and hopefully gives one the ability to play Clapton's version without too much problem. Which is probably what I'll try to learn after this "challenge" is done. I was working on the bass line a bit today too So do tell us about your CrossFit experiences - it may be off-topic but it's a heck of a lot better than silence LOL. I'ver never tried that particular form of workout.
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Post by Phil on Nov 17, 2018 21:39:01 GMT -6
Thanks Rich! Phil, yeah Griff can't teach the solo note-for-note due to a host of copyright issues. He's teaching something that perhaps captures "the essence" of it and hopefully gives one the ability to play Clapton's version without too much problem. Which is probably what I'll try to learn after this "challenge" is done. I was working on the bass line a bit today too So do tell us about your CrossFit experiences - it may be off-topic but it's a heck of a lot better than silence LOL. I'ver never tried that particular form of workout. This copyright stuff can get pretty complex and confusing. I've looked into it quite a bit and am more confused than before. I don't think a guitar solo in a song is copyrightable (if that's a word), but it might be in certain circumstances. It's not real clear to me. What I do know is that if I were to tab out my own arrangement of a copyrighted Jazz standard I would have to get the copyright holder's permission even if I gave it away for free. That is specifically from the holder of the publishing rights. The easy way to do this now-a-days is to go through Sheet Music Plus. They have an agreement with Hal Leonard Publishing for about 1,000 songs. They take care of paying all the royalties that are due to whoever. I would get 10% of the sales price on each sale of a tab. I would own the copyright for my specific arrangement. But now you get things like performance rights and mechanical rights (the physical recording). The whole thing gets extremely confusing especially with the advent of YouTube and digital music. There is no physical recording like a record or CD. You need your own legal team to sort through this mess. I think Griff wants to avoid any potential problems by handling it the way he does. I would guess it's probably because he's now making big bucks and would be a prime target for litigation. Of course, he could obtain the rights, but it's probably too expensive and a pain to do it. I know that Truefire avoids original melodies on all their Jazz courses. They'll use the chord progressions for copyrighted standards, but never the melodies because you can't copyright a chord progression. And Truefire is a much bigger organization than Griff's company. Truefire makes mega-bucks. I have no idea how all these people giving lessons on how to play copyrighted songs on YouTube deal with copyrights or if they even do. Do you know that bars that have live music are required to pay a fee to cover performance rights? That's probably why there are so few places with live music today. It's a sad situation. Maybe when I'm feeling talkative again I'll tell you my feelings about Crossfit.
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Post by grampalerxst on Nov 18, 2018 3:59:22 GMT -6
Thanks Rich! Phil, yeah Griff can't teach the solo note-for-note due to a host of copyright issues. He's teaching something that perhaps captures "the essence" of it and hopefully gives one the ability to play Clapton's version without too much problem. Which is probably what I'll try to learn after this "challenge" is done. I was working on the bass line a bit today too So do tell us about your CrossFit experiences - it may be off-topic but it's a heck of a lot better than silence LOL. I'ver never tried that particular form of workout. You mentioned that maybe last week, that a) he couldn't do it note-for-note and b) that the first version he was teaching was a highly simplified one. But I thought you captured the tone/dynamics of the song pretty well in your version of the alternate solo even though the notes were different.
I enjoyed Crossfit a lot up until the point one of my shoulders started giving out. But it costs a boutique tube amp/year, and once retiring early became a priority I decided not to spend the money to turn myself into an invalid prematurely.
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