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If you like guitar and you're an absolute beginner, get Play the Guitar Overnight Basics.
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Okay?
Hi, I'm Steve Ross.
And if you've always wanted to play the guitar but thought it would be too frustrating or
difficult, I know you're really going to like this tape.
In the 20 years I've been playing professionally, I've taught hundreds of people to play, using
tips and shortcuts that makes learning easy and simple without any knowledge of music
whatsoever.
Like most people, I first learned to play out of books, but it was very frustrating
and very boring.
That's why I devised this method whereby you can learn to play the guitar virtually overnight.
Playing the guitar is great fun, but before we get started, let me show you a few different
This is a nylon string guitar.
This is often used for classical and flamenco playing.
It has a nice warm sound to it and a nice small body.
Now I want to show you a 12 string guitar.
It's often used for folk music.
Some people use it for a big rhythm sound that it gives you and other people use it
for the distinctive sound that you get when you pluck the strings singly.
Now
I want to show you the electric guitar, my personal favorite.
It's got pickups to amplify the sound of the strings and you also need an amplifier to
get any really good sound out of it.
In a lot of blues and rock, people use it and it sounds like this.
No matter what style of music you want to play, you need to start with the basics.
First you need a guitar, two hands, preferably yours, a pick, a little patience and imagination.
The first thing you need to know is how to hold the guitar.
Rest it on your right thigh, grab a hold of the neck with your left hand and let your
right hand drape like this.
Remember be comfortable.
Now the guitar is made up of several parts.
The body, the bridge, the neck, the fingerboard, the nut, the tuning pegs and the frets.
Now the frets are metal ridges that lay across the fingerboard.
To play a note you need to press the tips of your fingers just behind the frets in order
to get a nice clear sound.
You don't want to lay your fingers on the frets because you'll get a muffled sound like
this.
Pressing between the frets with your fingertips gives you the clear sound you want, like this.
There are also markings on the fingerboard.
These are called inlays.
The inlays help you find where you are on the guitar.
The dots are position markers.
They're in the same position as the inlays but they're on the top of the neck.
Again both the inlays and the dots help you find where you are on the guitar.
As I'm sure you've noticed the guitar has six strings.
The strings are usually sold in sets like this.
The thickness of the string is called its gauge.
I want you to use a light gauge string because you'll get started faster because it's easier
to press down on the fingerboard.
Now the strings are numbered from one to six starting with the thinnest string, high E.
The second string is B. Third string is G. Fourth string is D. Fifth string is A. And
the sixth string is low E. The thinner the string the higher the pitch.
Before you play the guitar you have to tune up.
It's probably a good idea to tune up every time you play.
Nothing sounds worse than an out of tune guitar.
Now there are several different ways to tune the guitar.
You can use the corresponding notes of a piano or keyboard to tune up as shown in this diagram.
From this point forward with the invasion, brings the better fireworks from the window.
This is a pitch pipe.
When blown, this instrument produces the same notes as the strings.
You then use your ear to tune up to the pitch of the notes.
But the best method that I found is the electronic guitar tuner.
You just pluck the string and turn the tuning peg of the string until the needle is in the center.
These are really handy and they make tuning your guitar really easy.
They're not that expensive and I suggest that you get one.
The last method we can use is called relative tuning, which means you ask your brother-in-law to do it.
Just kidding.
It means that we will tune the guitar to itself.
Now I'm going to play the sixth string and I want you to play your sixth string.
If your guitar string sounds higher or lower than mine, turn the tuning peg slightly to adjust the sound until the two tones sound alike.
Now put your index finger on the fifth fret of the sixth string, counting up the neck like this.
One, two, three, four, five.
Pick the low E string and the fifth or A string together.
They should sound alike.
If they don't, use the tuning peg to adjust the tone of the A string.
Once they do, continue.
Now pluck the A and D strings.
They should sound alike.
If you pick your D and G strings, they too should sound alike.
To tune the next string, you need to move down a fret like this.
The G and B strings should sound alike.
Now finally move back to the fifth fret and tune the B and high E strings to sound alike.
That's all there is to it.
Don't worry if it takes a little time to tune your guitar first because matching the tones helps develop your ear training.
After a while, you'll become really good at it, it'll become easy for you.
Now that your guitar is in tune, it's time to talk about basic right hand techniques.
The right hand controls the timing and volume of the notes played with the left hand.
Now the pick is held between the thumb and forefinger with the point facing the strings.
Your hand should be relaxed, open or closed, whichever feels more comfortable.
Remember to keep your wrist nice and loose.
Now you can play the strings of the guitar using either downstrokes, which means away from you, towards the floor like this.
Or upstrokes, which means toward you like this.
The down arrows on the screen indicate a downstroke and an up arrow indicates an upstroke.
It's not necessary to play all six strings on the upstroke.
The first three or four is fine.
Now I want you to play a simple pattern using three downstrokes, then one upstroke like this.
Now repeat the pattern three times.
Ready?
Practice this, then we'll explore some other patterns a little later.
Now that we've covered the basics, there's one more thing we need to know before we begin to play.
Instead of giving the number of the strings or frets we're playing, it's much easier to use a diagram or picture of the fingerboard.
This is called tablature or a chord diagram.
The horizontal lines represent the frets.
The vertical lines represent the strings.
The diamonds represent the inlays or position markers.
And the numbered dots tell you what fingers to use.
Tablature is usually shown vertically to save space.
It was designed for guitarists who could not read standard musical notation.
You'll find this tablature on most sheet music and in song books.
Throughout the tape, we will use tablature to show left hand fingering.
Once you become familiar with it, you can play almost anything.
Now it's time to play some music.
This is a chord.
A chord is three or more notes played together.
To play many popular songs, you only need a few simple chords.
Before we learn these chords, let's number the fingers of the left hand so you know which fingers to use.
One, two, three, four.
The first chord we're going to learn is the E chord.
Place your thumb behind the neck like this.
Place the first finger on the first fret of the third string like this.
Then place your second finger on the second fret of the fifth string.
Then your third finger on the second fret of the fourth string.
Make sure your fingers are parallel to the fret.
Then press down and strum one string at a time.
If it sounds like this, then curl your fingers so each finger only touches one string.
If your nails are too long, you won't be able to press the strings all the way down.
So remember, keep your nails short on your left hand.
You'll probably also notice that the strings dig into your fingers and may be a little uncomfortable at first.
But don't worry about it.
The more you practice, the easier it'll get and the faster you'll develop finger strength.
Millions of people have done it and so can you.
Now let's learn another rhythm pattern.
With your left hand holding the E chord, play one downstroke, then one upstroke, and repeat the pattern like this.
Start slow and increase the speed a little faster each time until you can play it at this tempo.
Remember, it's not necessary to strum all six strings on either stroke.
Now that you can play an E chord, I'm going to show you two other chords using the same fingering,
starting with the E chord, keeping the same finger position.
Count up the neck.
One, two, three, four, five to the seventh fret.
Now strum.
Then move your fingers up two more frets to the ninth fret and strum.
I call this an E sequence.
You can play the chords in any sequence you want, alternating the up and down strokes to create your own music like this.
The next chord we're going to learn is the A chord.
Match your fingers to the chord diagram on the screen.
Make sure your fingers are curled and you press down hard enough to get a nice clear tone.
Starting with the low E, play one string at a time, and it should sound like this.
Notice the position of my thumb.
I'm using this part of my thumb to support my fingers.
This allows you to play the chord much more easily.
Now let's move on to the D chord.
Again, match your finger positions to the tablature.
Notice the small x above the low E string on the diagram.
This indicates that the string is not to be played.
Anytime you see a small o above the string, this means the string is to be played open.
Now strum the D chord slowly.
Now I'd like to show you two other chords using the same fingering.
Starting with the D chord, keeping the same finger position, count up one, two, three,
four, five to the seventh fret, then strum.
Now move your fingers two more frets to the ninth fret and strum.
I call this the D sequence.
When playing this, don't play the low E string.
You can play the chords in any sequence you want, alternating the up and down strokes.
Take a few minutes now to practice this sequence.
See you after the rest.
Thousands of popular songs are based on three chords.
By linking the three chords we've already learned, E, A, and D, together, we can create
what's known as a chord progression. Now to do this we need to practice
switching between the chords. Without strumming with the right hand, finger the
chords and try to memorize the shapes of the chord. Slowly at first start with the
A chord, then change to the D chord, then the E chord, then back to the D chord.
Repeat it until you can change from chord to chord relatively easily. Now
let's add the right hand. Using only downstrokes, play two downstrokes on
each chord. Experiment with these three chords and maybe even alternate between
down and upstroke to create your own songs.
Now let's learn some more chords. The next chord we're going to learn is the
G chord. For years the G chord has been taught in this position, but I've found
that by changing the fingering slightly it's easier to play this chord and
additional chords by just adding a finger or two. So match your fingers to
the tablature position on the screen and strum the G chord. Make sure it sounds
clear like this. In this new finger position let's add the index finger on
the first fret of the second string. By adding this one finger you are now
playing a G suspended chord or G sus. This chord has a raised or unfinished
sound to it. Now move the index finger to the first fret on the first string.
Lift the little finger off altogether and play the chord. This chord is the G
seventh chord. Seventh chords are often used as transition chords, but before I
show you what I mean let's learn the C chord. Now the C chord is a little bit of
a stretch. Again be careful not to mute any of the open strings. It really helps
if you place the thumb behind the center of the neck. Put these chords
together and play a country folk progression. For this we'll play the G
chord, the G sus chord, the G seventh chord, the C chord, and the D chord. The
right hand will play down strokes. Count them like this. One, two, three, one, two,
three, one, and so on. Watch the screen for the chord changes. Let's do this
progression once together. One, two, three, one, two, three, one, two, three, one, two, three.
One, two, three, four.
Let's take a time out now so you can practice this progression a few times.
Now that you can play a few chords,
I'd like to show you a little device that you can use to play the same chords in different positions up the neck.
This is called a capo.
The capo is placed on the neck of the guitar when you want to raise the pitch of the strings.
It acts like the nut, except it's movable.
Let me show you.
If I play the chords E, A, and D,
by placing the capo on the third fret, I can play the same chords but listen to the difference in the sound.
The capo is a really handy thing to have, especially when you're trying to figure out songs.
The next thing I'd like to show you is a basic rock progression,
but before I do, I want to show you a right hand technique that's often used in rock and roll.
Now to do this, you want to place the side of your hand on the strings just in front of the bridge,
and when you strum, it creates a muffled sound.
This technique is called damping.
Using only downstrokes, it sounds pretty much like this.
It's not necessary to hit all six strings.
To play this rock progression, we'll abbreviate some of the same chords you already know
and play them a little bit differently.
Instead of playing the A chord with three fingers, I want you to play it with your first finger like this.
Now whenever you play it this way, make sure not to play the high E string.
Just pick the third, fourth, and fifth strings with the right hand,
using the damping method you just learned.
Now using downstrokes only, it should sound like this.
Now the D chord.
Press the first finger on the second fret of the third string.
Now add the second finger to the third fret of the second string.
Now pick the second, third, and fourth strings like this.
Lastly, the E chord. Place the first finger on the second fret over both the fourth and fifth strings,
picking only the fourth, fifth, and sixth strings.
That's great. Now when we put it all together, it should sound like this.
Now to really give this a rock feel, let's add our third finger to each chord in the progression.
Play the A chord, one, two. Keeping the index finger pressed down,
now press the third finger on the fourth fret of the fourth string, three, four.
Then repeat like this. One, two, straight chord, three, four.
Add on. It should sound like this.
Now when you play the D chord, press the third finger on the fourth fret of the third string,
using the same rhythm, like this. One, two, three, four.
One, two, three, four. And for the E chord, the third finger goes on the fourth fret of the fifth string,
like this. One, two, three, four. One, two, three, four.
Now here's the entire progression.
You should start slow and build your speed up gradually, because this progression is the basic building block
of a lot of popular blues and rock tunes. It takes a little practice, but once you get it down,
you'll be surprised how many different songs you can play.
Well, that's about all the time we have. We've learned the basic building blocks of playing the guitar.
You now know how to tune your guitar, read tablature, play basic chords and chord progressions.
Now it's up to you to experiment, have some fun, and create your own sound.
Thank you.
.