Has anyone ever hit a brick wall in learning new things to play? I got the basic open chords down pat but anytime I try to branch out to learn rock riffs or a different style I fall flat.

I know its all about practice, but I get so frustrated that I have to put my guitar up for a little while before I come back to it. I SUCK!

at least your not dellusional, and think you're the best - which makes me think you're probably a pretty decent player

I had a teacher once who told me

"when you get frustrated (and you will)

just flip the guitar over and try to play it with the other hand. That will remind you how far you have actually come. and how hard it actually is. and then just keep working"

I generally go back to basics... do your scales, chords, etc. to build up your muscle memory, technique.

that way when you do branch out, which you will, you'll be stronger and more capable.

P

That is actually brilliant! ...

hey, couple things that might help. play to your songs on cd or what ever, get the chords down then start tryin to figure out the leads. dont know what your into but fandango by zz top, mexican blackbird has some simple leads that just flow. and that harmonica solo, get ya a G toned harmonica and work on that. sometimes just setting it down for a day or too. you will be amazed at how much better you can play after the rest. the old trying to hard thing. couple albums (lol that dates me) that i forst learned from were british steel, judas preist & nazereth, hair of the dog. good luck and keep after it.

Once you learn to read music, you can arrange all sorts of things for guitar. Since there are MILLIONS of pages of free music out there (freesheetmusic.com is a good one to start with), you'll never run out of things to play. I like learning violin music a lot (currently just over halfway finished with Vivaldi's 4 seasons). Also, if you use resistance exercises (weightlifting) your guitar technique will advance much quicker. I stopped hitting brick walls after I learned advanced music theory and got serious about systematically exercising the muscles.

Wishes i could read music all i see is those pretty dots all over the place. thanks for tableture lol hey, stevie ray said he couldnt read a lick either so mabey there's hope for after all RIP SRV

Yes, but if your goal is to grow as a musician, SRV is not the one to imitate. He stuck with basically the same style throughout his career (I've listened to a lot of his stuff, as I was once into blues).

If you want to learn to read, just get a bunch of books and sight read them. Eventually, you'll make the connections between the written and sounding note. Standard notation gives you more freedom too, because you can use at least two fingerings for every note other than the low E.

right on, ive always used the chord reference above the top line on regular music, but now i'll study a bit on the tab since it usualy has both the regular music above the tab lines. my motto is i like anykind of music if it dont suck. but when i got into the blues i notices how much it comes into the rock and roll music like the pentatonic scale's but when metal.heavy rock started going into the 7 string guitars and speed riffs thats when i went back to the roots and found some fun playable music. im no guitar genious but i love a good sounding ax

I can recommend two books. Guitar chord guru, and guitar scale guru. Both are by Karl Aranjo. These books work together. I suppose it depends on what type of guitar player you want to be. If you only want to play rhythm, then the chord book is a good place to start..but then, eventually..as most guitar players do, you will want to incorporate a few lead licks..or maybe move on up to playing lead.

These books work in conjunction, and if you honestly study them, and spend a few hours/day..i can promise you will improve, your confidence level will be boosted. Confidence is a key factor, and a cornerstone of really good playing.

I have played for thirty five years, and i still reference these books from time to time. The later chapters will take you into different modes. lydian, mixolydian, etc.

These are very well written, instructional books, and something every serious guitar player should have in their arsenal.

I'm not sure the cost of these books anymore, but check with your local book store.

One thing i will add, tabs are cool, but not always correct. There are a lot of helpful videos on you tube.

Another thing to remember, don't let it become work, play what you like, learn when you can, and above all, have fun with it.

Just to add something else to the mix, try learning the melody lines within tracks. I often discover that once i know how to play that, I can work out what key best suits my voice and how to adapt it for guitar playing (often avoiding capo usage unless its really necessary).

And i'm a keyboardist... lol

Some good advice, but I would add that it tends to make a player more versatile if he learns the formulae for the modes and scales rather than simply learning the positions.