sit with a metronome or click track for hours....record yourself, if you can't HEAR that you are rushing then you have bigger problems than just rushing.
i think playing with a looper, after soloing over your base once, listen to it once as is, then when it goes around again add more, slowly trickle in stuff and reflect how it sounds. if you run out of space in just a few passes through slow it down.
Metronome at very slow tempos. Record yourself playing to a metronome. Also play without a metronome and record yourself. Make your own rhythm jam tracks without a metronome so you practice developing your internal clock. Use a looper and try and comp 4-5 choruses of a slow blues. When you start the loop again, see if your tempo moved.
Don't (at first anyway) substitute a drum machine for the metronome. And get a LOUD metronome. Set it at 60 bpm and play the easiest major scale fingering you know... up and down, repeatedly, and try to BECOME the click. Get spiritual, dude. And try to PRODUCE THE NOTES _so precisely on top of the clicks that you cannot HEAR the clicks_ . This ain't easy, and some guys want to speed up the click, to (they think) make the exercise easier. Don't give in to this. One note per click. This isn't easy -- but, if it were easy, you wouldn't be working yer ass off -- which is all worth the work, because this WILL get you there. Every other day or so, record yourself and listen back. Are you "erasing" the clicks with the notes of the scale? If not, slow it down one notch. Proceed. To deal with any boredom, move the scale fingering up and down the neck. Also, change fingerings. Play a simple fiddle tune. And remember to listen to the click -- not so much to the notes, at first. The click is the thing. This could take months, but a couple hours (or more!) a day will make you a kickass time keeper. Good luck, and work hard!
Mick Goodrick, who wrote and taught a lot of the original curriculum at Berklee College of Music, said "Notes are what we use to get form one silence to the next."
Enrolled in a music class in college and on the first day the instructor walked out and said “silence is beautiful”. He said to think about that today and I’ll see you all tomorrow.
The jazz guitarist who taught the great folk guitarist Dave Van Ronk (can’t remember their name) said “why play two notes when one will do, and why play anything when silence will do”
I just love this human. What a kind soul, amazing teacher, and observant dude. Don't forget the great distraction also brought us all together. Would not of known who you were other wise! We have to reject the trash and keep the rest. Stay strong and happy everyone.
The thought occurred to me tonight that these videos aren’t for us at all. They are for his sons. So that one day when he’s gone, his boys will be able to sit down, share a beer with their dad, and talk about music. I need to find something like this to do for my kids.
@@pdveintimillanah. I'm crying enough for all of us right now. I won't be Debbie Downer so i won't explain why. Ill just say I wish my daughter was still here so I could do something like this. 😔 Doesn't help that I just found "I've always pictured you with pants (part 15)" a few mins ago. One of the saddest songs I think I've ever heard.
A long time ago I realized that we (or maybe just I) thought that I was past being a "Beginner", but it has taken forever to get out of the "Intermediate" class. And the more I learn it seems like there's so much more to learn -- which tells me that I'm actually closer to being a Beginner. The guitar provides a lifetime of learning.
These 4 tips are some of the most important tips I’ve heard about guitar playing from anyone. It’s not glamorous, but it’s the stuff that separates the boys from the men. Watching you play over the years made me realize all of these things.
That was a great interview with Rick! That’s actually how i found you and Guthrie. This is gold. Shit like this feels like it shaves months and years off of parts of the learning curve. It would be cool to hear your thoughts on if/how the electric guitar needs to be played differently than an acoustic. Thanks!
Tom I'm 61, and I've been a sign painter. Portraits, murals, and countless letters. Letters of all kinds. And sizes. I was a gunsmith. I built world championship winning 45 autos. I know things. All through this time I played guitar. The disciplines you described. Hallmarks. Milestones. Whatever you call them they're all the same. Plateaus, levels, and the long awaited breakthroughs. Here's One for the accomplished. Recess. A vacation. A pause in the practice regimen. I watched world champion Jerry Miculek intensely when I worked with him at Clark Custom Guns. This gunshop produced and hired many champions. Hundreds of years of combined knowledge. Much like your exposure to other great players at Nashville. The rest, is important. The vacation from playing. Jerry hired a professional olympic shooting trainer as he wasn't military and he was self taught. What that trainer taught him for $4,000 was to take a break! He trained too much! Too steady. They told him to wait as long as it took for him to not be able to stand not shooting before starting back at practice. I have lived this principle in my whole life. It makes you SO MUCH better because the desire is like waiting for sex until you can't put it off anymore. THEN see how it goes! Jerry started winning more and enjoying shooting more. Sometimes we need to put the guitar down a few days. It works and it's necessary to advance at OUR own rate. Decompressing and restarting takes more than sleep.
Tal Farlow was a signpainter.... and Miculek is a SRV type guy, there are plenty of great competitive shooters but Miculek is a freak of nature. What he can do can't be taught, he refined it (like SRV) but what he has - can not be taught to just anyone.
@@Nitromessiah correct. Just like the guns I built for the champions. NOBODY has equaled what I did with 1911's. Few are as obsessed. What we're talking about is practicing beyond inspiration or reason. This kind of person is naturally talented AND driven, like Billy Strings. I should also mention that Jerry used to Thank me for not competing. MANY times after work when we shot together he asked, you SURE you ain't shot competitively before? I always said no, to which he'd always say, Thank You for that! He said I was the only one that could make his leg shake nervously in practice. I should also add that I was one of the first to predict computers finding dead spots on barrels to determine the proper length of a barrel for a certain bullet, rate of twist and weight and velocity. Lots of my ideas came to pass. I watched a documentary on Tal Farlow in the early 80's. Amazing guy and a Big inspiration when I was first starting to paint signs.
I just subbed to your channel. I've been fortunate enough to figure out what you mentioned about waiting between practice. I could work on a new song and stumble.. put the guitar down and come back two days later with a nagging urge to just play. And the new song I was stumbling on became improved. Our brains seem to like work things out behind the scenes. Thanks man.
Ted Nugent talked about this many years ago. How important it was to go do something else you love (hunting for him) and leave the guitar alone. Then you come back to it with a real passion for it.
I've been doing your "two strokes on alternating strings" exercise with a metronome, and boy, it's exposing my weak right hand. Thanks for that and a million other tips. XOXO, Random Hack Guitarist
I am certainly not as qualified as Tom on advice for soloing in the studio...but I received this advice in pre production from a producer waaaay back in 1986..."one should be able to whistle your solo"...certainly not going to work for every genre...but it has served me well.
Another thing is that people should be practicing recording at home. It's cheap and easy nowadays, little excuse not to do so if you have any ambitions at all. Red light anxiety is something that takes a lot of people some time and experience to get over, so it helps to get a start on it by recording at home. It's not the same as recording at a studio in front of others, but it's part of the way there. Plus it'll let you hear yourself properly, and give you a sort of unbiased view of what you need to work on.
I think some may have told David Gilmour that same advice. I can't think of another guitarist with more whistle-able solos. And look how acclaimed his playing is.
Thank you for this video. I've been playing for 30+ yr...mostly noodling. I've only gotten serious the last 5-8 yrs. I rush constantly...working on that. But what I came here to say is my cynical self expected a beatdown of intermediate level players...but no, he pointed things to work on...not things to make fun of. That's what I needed.
As a gigging solo guitarist I have learned more about the spacing and less is more guitar playing through your channel. my focus over the past few years has been your very own mantra of servicing the song. this episode is another one that I need to hear and practice. ❤ heartfelt thank you uncle Larry for freeing up my mind and helping me hear music differently.
I totally agree! I’ve been playing for 50 years and still struggle with these things. Being cognizant of them is a huge help in improving. Thanks for sharing your wisdom!
So happy you brought up the “great distraction”. More young people (old too) need to spend time being expressive, focusing, growing. Whether through music, art, sports, etc.
I can see why this video has so many views. So much wisdom to digest. So many concepts to think about calmly. These are the kind of advices that leave you thinking for days.
This video should be a must watch for anybody who is fairly new to the guitar before they pick up any bad habits. But it helps all of us who are intermediate as well. Absolute gold, thank you so much for sharing!
these lessons are invaluable, i love the guitar learning but godamn buk you have such a beautiful insight to the world and for a young guy like me i can’t thank you enough
@501chorusecho Wow Tom. This one is a doozy!! Being that most of your audience (including myself) fall into this category, this is PURE GOLD for us! Don’t be afraid to hammer us with all the teachings of what a beginner/intermediate player needs to know about technique!! There is so much wisdom in what you said. That only comes with a lot of thought and experience from many years. Thank you uncle Larry for your wisdom - like a great uncle does 🙏
This was an amazing insight to playing as I notice everything in my playing that you spoke of. Dude you are a great teacher with fewer word but words that mean something. Thank you and please do not stop. God Bless you!
I think you touched on some really important things that connect your whole lesson here… Talking about attention span. Focus. To fully immerse into the music. It’s hard to describe but it’s the only way to reach that next level. Picture yourself as king in a comfortable land where you’re so calm and confident that you can play with the music instead of trying to keep up.
Hallmark #3: In the book of Psalms (the songbook of Israel), the word “Selah” is used frequently. No one is quite sure what it means or how to translate it into other languages, but I’m convinced it means, “Dude… pause and think about what you just read. Don’t be afraid to create some space and silence before you go rushing into the next idea.”
Really an excellent point. Tim Pierce touched on that exact point on his channel. He basically broke it down into using the least amount of effort as possible. For speed and intonation it's great advice. When you hear two of the greatest guitar players out there giving you the same tip you should definitely take it to heart
Just found you. I'll be 54 in Nov. Started playing at age 50. Very serious, am able to devote many hours per week learn (great understanding wife)! Have made some great progress but realize the goal never ends. Needed to see this video. Thank you!!!
Thanks, Tom. I am always fighting my inclination to "groove the vibrato". This is where all vibrato is executed in an identical manner, thereby sounding the same regardless of when and where it is employed. Such an easy trap to fall into...and so hard to get out of once it becomes second nature.
Morning Larry, from over on the other side of the rock. Man, can't wait for the interview but today's lesson was really valuable - so important for folks to feel your playing as much as hearing it..and vibrato with intent. Or not at all. Perfect.
I hope a lot of good player heard these criticisms. Wish Larry had share all of them he new in this one video, that would have been so valuable to have them in one place.
Sage advice. I always played to accompany myself as a singer. Only recently have I dared to try being more of a 'color' player. I don't imagine I will ever be a lead guitarist of any repute, and the quest to play true quality rhythm will continue until I die. But, I think there is space and time for me to develop a way of playing that expands and compliments what matters to me about music. Melody and message. Pocket and groove. Listening listening listening, always listening. 50 years of guitar, and some days feel like those first. Sitting alone and reaching deep to get 'that sound'. When it happens, there is nothing like it.
Thanks for the lesson Uncle Larry! As a tennis coach, I couldn’t agree more with your link. Tension, rushing and lack of intention are all very common mistakes at the beginner/ intermediate levels, and even for some professionals.
Sage advice Uncle Larry. I was taught to approach rhythm playing like a drummer and lead playing like a vocalistic. It really does save a lot of heartache.
I used to stumble my words untill I learnt how to slow down. I applied the same thinking to my playing and I stopped rushing and stumbling on guitar. I also realised I was uncontrollably putting vibrato on everything. If your not confident learning to relax and slow down is a godsend. Great video. Gold
Best guitar observation of the year. I’m an intermediate (and that’s being charitable) white guitar player striving to lay back for the last 35 years. Still a work in progress.
Thanks, Uncle Larry! I check off on all points. I've been caught up in the "Content Creator" mode - rushing, tensing up, out of tune, sloppy... Just yesterday I concluded to take my f'n time and perfect my playing and video creation. Thanks, Tom! This is gold!
Great class today Uncle Larry! This is great material for any and all artistry! Agreed also on sorts and echo the sentiment on life in general. These nuggets are gold! You’re laying out the blueprint for those willing to do the work. I appreciate that immensely!! 🙏 Can’t wait for the upcoming lessons 😬👏 You’re the best! -From a fellow Clevelaner 😎🤟
I had a guitar lesson yesterday and we literally covered the grip and how hard I was squeezing and it was burning me out and making my playing rigid. The info to me was really groundbreaking and since then nothing has been the same. It's like I'm trying to learn all over again. Super excited for the future and of course this week's practice and next lesson. Thanks for the video.
I hear you on the technology front man, it's hard to do but it's healthy to try and power your phone off for awhile and just touch some grass. Just my 2c. Thanks for the vids Uncle Larry
This was an excellent lesson! I think I’ll be watching it a few times in the future. I still grip my guitar way way too hard, but I’m getting better in the other areas you mentioned for sure.
Playing without tension is one of the most important things. I go over this early and often with my guitar and drum students. It took me way too long to figure out and realize but when I did, it's like so many aspects of development fell into place for me. I was able to get better at a long things I struggled with, and my timing and over confidence improved during improvisation at my gigs.
Right on!!! So true. Listening to recordings of my playing, I notice I don't let the notes finish, not even knowing I'm rushing through them. Relaxing is a struggle when I equate emotion with the intensity of how I'm grabbing that neck. Great advice!!!!
So appreciate the wise advice. After years, I'm still in an "intermediate" phase- as totally evidenced by your description. PLEASE expand on your ideas for beginner/intermediate players! You're an inspiring dude.
This episode really hit me, as a parent (and a musician). Parenting young kids is intensely exhausting sometimes, euphoric other times. But always hard work, if you're trying to make it meaningful for them. Thanks for being real.
To keep your body relaxed: practice with a tongue depressor, popsicle stick, whatever in your teeth, hanging down loosely, avoid putting bite marks into it - when you notice yourself standing that thing up, means you're clenching your jaw, means your arms are already tight, all the way through your shoulders and up to your jaw. Keep that stick loose, your hands will stay loose and you might even start to find your autopilot/ghost mode when your consciousness divides and suddenly you're doing two things at once, independently - try not to notice it or you'll fall off (it's kind of quantum effect, once you look at it now it don't work no more lol). Maybe the real zen of music is considering the spaces between things and letting the notes fall and shape, bend, and bloom where they may; as long as you've contemplated the space between things, the space where things are should be equally defined - the difference is how conscious the act is. Sometimes you can hear the space *behind* notes...it's there all the time, but at times it has significant presence; the quiet time growing underneath the decay of the audible, because what is sound lessening if not quiet expanding? I guess it really was all in the dark matter, after all.
What a treasure. Also, what a generous human for creating all of these vids. I know you're doing it for your boys, but we all get to learn from them. Thanks Tom.
This shit is gold. People really don't realize how lucky we are to have a legend like uncle Larry let us sit under his learning tree. I for one am insanely grateful
Just came back here to say thank you! Tried to apply some of this at my gig last night. Best I’ve ever felt, every time I tensed up or over played you were in my head saying RELAX!! One of the best gigs I have played - thank you Larry 🙏
Thanks for sharing the wisdom! _"I don't wanna be that guy"_ I totally get it. Being excellent at something and seeing how someone could do what they're doing even better or easier if they changed a little detail, you want to share your knowledge but at the same time, you don't want to be that guy... A doctor who was being interviewed was talking about sitting at a table with friends and that he hates it when one of them starts talking about something they saw online, something that is supposed to be so good for your health and then someone else asks him if it's true. As a doctor, he knows that it's BS but he hates to be that guy.
John Wooden: “Be quick, but don't hurry.” I believe it was Frank Gambale who said to emulate horn players. They have to stop and catch a breath, we don’t. It’s zen like to be aware of your breathing and only play on the exhale. Easier said than done!
Tom, I've been a subscriber since March 2020 and your videos are always a highlight of my day. I consider myself barely intermediate as a guitar player and have never tried to replicate exactly what you are showing us but videos like this are invaluable for me. Your discussions on how to approach learning and playing guitar have inspired me to re-learn how to play and break OLD habits (I'm 64) and have been the greatest "lessons" I've ever had. I always wanted to learn to finger pick but gave up until one of your early videos talking about the unavoidable need to put in the hours and it gave me the push to do it. I have always choked the neck and rushed and now I am going to make a concerted effort to break the bad habits I've developed and develop new and better ones. You are a master and I wish I was advanced enough to take full advantage of all that you are sharing, but please know that you are making us intermediate players better too. You are truly a valued resource in a vast world of noise and bad advice. We can't thank you enough.
Hallmarks: Stop squeezing the neck so hard. Don’t tense, be fluid and smooth. Don’t rush. That means you. We all do it. A good story has lots of space. So does a good melody. Let them take it in. Voluntary vibrato. Have intention with every bend or note. Choose carefully.
Great tips. As an old guy (50) how I really learned all that stuff was starting on a Tascam 4 track. That taught me everything. How to write, arrange and play for the song. Really helps your playing a lot.
Uncle Larry, thank you for your wisdom from across the pond. Truer words have seldom been spoken. Please keep up delivering these bits of sunshine and guidance, Tom
🔥🔥🔥🔥 lesson from Unc 💯💯 1. Stop squeezing & RELAX 2. Stop rushing- take your time 3. Allow for silence & space - you don’t need to constantly talk/play 4. Vibrato - when & when not to Thank you Tom 🙏 Rick Beato will see you now. He just got done interviewing Elon and Trump 😂😂
All of your advice here hit STRAIGHT home for me man, exactly what I needed to hear. It's actually difficult for me to stop myself from automatically throwing vibrato all around my solos, I hadn't even realized. But I think the intentionality that you mentioned is really helping me sound better. Playing with that focused mind is key. Thanks so much!
I totally get what Tom’s saying (and Guthrie) but ever since I started following these guy I don’t even want to play anymore because everytime I play anything I’m thinking, “Damn, Guthrie/Tom would have hated that lick” 😂😢
That was uncanny, All those points and tips were as if Tom just reviewed my playing style. Video ends and Guthrie walks out of the bathroom and yells “I wouldn’t go in there for a good half an hour “ 🤣
Dear Tom, Nice dive today. My son’s a player too and it pleases me to no end. It’s very relatable the time travel as your thoughts wander while you watch your kid play. I like sharing highlights of your show with him. It always makes good conversation. The greatest thing is seeing the adjustments after. Thanks for that. Your humble skooler and Pisces Joe.
@@501chorusecho Do you tune like Vince Gill tunes? I remember you once talking about how nobody tunes a guitar like Vince. Also do you credit your "in tune-ness" to your guitar setup or just your simple touch on the instrument?
After watching Tom for a few years seems the way you play is just as important as getting it in tune. Many people have a perfectly tuned guitar but they play Out Of Tune 😂
Incredible words of wisdom Uncle Larry! Never heard another great, highly respected player such as yourself share these things so eloquently. Much respect!
Awesome. What are your thoughts on guys who did a lot of “talking” or making a lot of statements without breaks and could pull it off, like Johnny winter for instance
Does anyone have any exercises or ideas about working on , not rushing?
sit with a metronome or click track for hours....record yourself, if you can't HEAR that you are rushing then you have bigger problems than just rushing.
i think playing with a looper, after soloing over your base once, listen to it once as is, then when it goes around again add more, slowly trickle in stuff and reflect how it sounds. if you run out of space in just a few passes through slow it down.
Metronome at very slow tempos. Record yourself playing to a metronome. Also play without a metronome and record yourself. Make your own rhythm jam tracks without a metronome so you practice developing your internal clock. Use a looper and try and comp 4-5 choruses of a slow blues. When you start the loop again, see if your tempo moved.
Don't (at first anyway) substitute a drum machine for the metronome. And get a LOUD metronome. Set it at 60 bpm and play the easiest major scale fingering you know... up and down, repeatedly, and try to BECOME the click. Get spiritual, dude. And try to PRODUCE THE NOTES _so precisely on top of the clicks that you cannot HEAR the clicks_ . This ain't easy, and some guys want to speed up the click, to (they think) make the exercise easier. Don't give in to this. One note per click. This isn't easy -- but, if it were easy, you wouldn't be working yer ass off -- which is all worth the work, because this WILL get you there.
Every other day or so, record yourself and listen back. Are you "erasing" the clicks with the notes of the scale? If not, slow it down one notch. Proceed.
To deal with any boredom, move the scale fingering up and down the neck. Also, change fingerings. Play a simple fiddle tune. And remember to listen to the click -- not so much to the notes, at first. The click is the thing.
This could take months, but a couple hours (or more!) a day will make you a kickass time keeper. Good luck, and work hard!
@@belascialoja4812 amazing, thanks this is solid and easy to understand
When I was learning piano my teacher said 'silence is the most powerful note, but also the hardest to play' - wise words!
Mick Goodrick, who wrote and taught a lot of the original curriculum at Berklee College of Music, said "Notes are what we use to get form one silence to the next."
Enrolled in a music class in college and on the first day the instructor walked out and said “silence is beautiful”. He said to think about that today and I’ll see you all tomorrow.
The jazz guitarist who taught the great folk guitarist Dave Van Ronk (can’t remember their name) said “why play two notes when one will do, and why play anything when silence will do”
thought something like that a few years back... not just playing notes but the silence too
Brilliant.
I just love this human. What a kind soul, amazing teacher, and observant dude. Don't forget the great distraction also brought us all together. Would not of known who you were other wise! We have to reject the trash and keep the rest. Stay strong and happy everyone.
“Overposting” does NOT apply to our favorite Uncle!
Keep up the good work there Uncle Larry!
Being an admitted intermediate player this talk is absolute GOLD. Thanks Tom!
The thought occurred to me tonight that these videos aren’t for us at all. They are for his sons. So that one day when he’s gone, his boys will be able to sit down, share a beer with their dad, and talk about music.
I need to find something like this to do for my kids.
ssssshhhhhhh......
Im not crying, you’re crying!
@@pdveintimilla😂
What an idea… 🤯
@@pdveintimillanah. I'm crying enough for all of us right now. I won't be Debbie Downer so i won't explain why. Ill just say I wish my daughter was still here so I could do something like this. 😔
Doesn't help that I just found "I've always pictured you with pants (part 15)" a few mins ago. One of the saddest songs I think I've ever heard.
That Beato interview of you and Guthrie was outstanding. The Christ one was so so.
Never sacrifice a groove in pursuit of a note. - V. Wooten.
Very good comment!
Victor is an ambassador to the joyful world of music.
The the most thoughtful comment I have ever heard and I am 68 years old
A long time ago I realized that we (or maybe just I) thought that I was past being a "Beginner", but it has taken forever to get out of the "Intermediate" class. And the more I learn it seems like there's so much more to learn -- which tells me that I'm actually closer to being a Beginner. The guitar provides a lifetime of learning.
These 4 tips are some of the most important tips I’ve heard about guitar playing from anyone. It’s not glamorous, but it’s the stuff that separates the boys from the men. Watching you play over the years made me realize all of these things.
Tom, you spoke of your 'great trilogy of pain'. I lost my best friend and guitar partner of 51 years. I just want to let you know, I feel for ya, bro.
I like thinking about the possibility of Guthrie still sleeping while Tom is shooting this at the foot of the bed.
And getting up and ripping into a mind-blowing C run!!!
If you listen carefully you can hear Guthrie snoring in the background.
“If you’re trying too hard you’re doing it wrong” applies to putting together Christmas presents on Christmas Eve too!
That was a great interview with Rick! That’s actually how i found you and Guthrie.
This is gold. Shit like this feels like it shaves months and years off of parts of the learning curve.
It would be cool to hear your thoughts on if/how the electric guitar needs to be played differently than an acoustic.
Thanks!
Tom I'm 61, and I've been a sign painter. Portraits, murals, and countless letters. Letters of all kinds. And sizes. I was a gunsmith. I built world championship winning 45 autos. I know things. All through this time I played guitar. The disciplines you described. Hallmarks. Milestones. Whatever you call them they're all the same. Plateaus, levels, and the long awaited breakthroughs. Here's One for the accomplished. Recess. A vacation. A pause in the practice regimen. I watched world champion Jerry Miculek intensely when I worked with him at Clark Custom Guns. This gunshop produced and hired many champions. Hundreds of years of combined knowledge. Much like your exposure to other great players at Nashville. The rest, is important. The vacation from playing. Jerry hired a professional olympic shooting trainer as he wasn't military and he was self taught. What that trainer taught him for $4,000 was to take a break! He trained too much! Too steady. They told him to wait as long as it took for him to not be able to stand not shooting before starting back at practice. I have lived this principle in my whole life. It makes you SO MUCH better because the desire is like waiting for sex until you can't put it off anymore. THEN see how it goes! Jerry started winning more and enjoying shooting more. Sometimes we need to put the guitar down a few days. It works and it's necessary to advance at OUR own rate. Decompressing and restarting takes more than sleep.
Tal Farlow was a signpainter.... and Miculek is a SRV type guy, there are plenty of great competitive shooters but Miculek is a freak of nature. What he can do can't be taught, he refined it (like SRV) but what he has - can not be taught to just anyone.
@@Nitromessiah correct. Just like the guns I built for the champions. NOBODY has equaled what I did with 1911's. Few are as obsessed. What we're talking about is practicing beyond inspiration or reason. This kind of person is naturally talented AND driven, like Billy Strings. I should also mention that Jerry used to Thank me for not competing. MANY times after work when we shot together he asked, you SURE you ain't shot competitively before? I always said no, to which he'd always say, Thank You for that! He said I was the only one that could make his leg shake nervously in practice. I should also add that I was one of the first to predict computers finding dead spots on barrels to determine the proper length of a barrel for a certain bullet, rate of twist and weight and velocity. Lots of my ideas came to pass. I watched a documentary on Tal Farlow in the early 80's. Amazing guy and a Big inspiration when I was first starting to paint signs.
I just subbed to your channel. I've been fortunate enough to figure out what you mentioned about waiting between practice. I could work on a new song and stumble.. put the guitar down and come back two days later with a nagging urge to just play. And the new song I was stumbling on became improved. Our brains seem to like work things out behind the scenes. Thanks man.
Interestingly, Tal Farlow was also a sign painter. Pretty cool. Good luck on your journey. You've obviously figured out a lot along the way.
Ted Nugent talked about this many years ago. How important it was to go do something else you love (hunting for him) and leave the guitar alone. Then you come back to it with a real passion for it.
This is the type of vidio that got me hooked on your channel way back in the garage
Thanks Tom
Thanks for the free professional advice Tom, always appreciated.
Keith Richards: "Silence is the canvas where we paint music".
Robert Fripp: "Silence is the cup that holds music".
I've been doing your "two strokes on alternating strings" exercise with a metronome, and boy, it's exposing my weak right hand. Thanks for that and a million other tips. XOXO, Random Hack Guitarist
i treat my phone like a land line. it could lay around with a dead battery for days. best thing for it.
12 years ago an influential producer told me to let the music breath and that has made such a difference.
Looking forward to that Beato video with y'all. Welcome to GA. Still hot as hell here too
I am enjoying your channel so much. I pick up pearls of wisdom every time I hear you share your insight. Thank you!
thank you bro. i appreciate it
I am certainly not as qualified as Tom on advice for soloing in the studio...but I received this advice in pre production from a producer waaaay back in 1986..."one should be able to whistle your solo"...certainly not going to work for every genre...but it has served me well.
Another thing is that people should be practicing recording at home. It's cheap and easy nowadays, little excuse not to do so if you have any ambitions at all. Red light anxiety is something that takes a lot of people some time and experience to get over, so it helps to get a start on it by recording at home. It's not the same as recording at a studio in front of others, but it's part of the way there. Plus it'll let you hear yourself properly, and give you a sort of unbiased view of what you need to work on.
I think some may have told David Gilmour that same advice. I can't think of another guitarist with more whistle-able solos. And look how acclaimed his playing is.
Larry, This new direction of Homeskoolin', shows the world how generous you are with your talent and experience. God Bless You son.
Thank you for this video. I've been playing for 30+ yr...mostly noodling. I've only gotten serious the last 5-8 yrs. I rush constantly...working on that. But what I came here to say is my cynical self expected a beatdown of intermediate level players...but no, he pointed things to work on...not things to make fun of. That's what I needed.
As a gigging solo guitarist I have learned more about the spacing and less is more guitar playing through your channel. my focus over the past few years has been your very own mantra of servicing the song. this episode is another one that I need to hear and practice. ❤ heartfelt thank you uncle Larry for freeing up my mind and helping me hear music differently.
I love listening to my boy play. He’s so much more advanced than I was. That makes me hopeful for the future of guitar
I totally agree! I’ve been playing for 50 years and still struggle with these things. Being cognizant of them is a huge help in improving. Thanks for sharing your wisdom!
So happy you brought up the “great distraction”. More young people (old too) need to spend time being expressive, focusing, growing. Whether through music, art, sports, etc.
I can see why this video has so many views. So much wisdom to digest. So many concepts to think about calmly. These are the kind of advices that leave you thinking for days.
You articulated great stuff to think about and work on and you have done that for us for 4+ years. Thanks for the wisdom kind sir.
This video should be a must watch for anybody who is fairly new to the guitar before they pick up any bad habits. But it helps all of us who are intermediate as well. Absolute gold, thank you so much for sharing!
these lessons are invaluable, i love the guitar learning but godamn buk you have such a beautiful insight to the world and for a young guy like me i can’t thank you enough
Thank you bro
That was some of the most insightful comments I’ve heard about guitar and has helped me so much ❤
@501chorusecho Wow Tom. This one is a doozy!! Being that most of your audience (including myself) fall into this category, this is PURE GOLD for us! Don’t be afraid to hammer us with all the teachings of what a beginner/intermediate player needs to know about technique!! There is so much wisdom in what you said. That only comes with a lot of thought and experience from many years. Thank you uncle Larry for your wisdom - like a great uncle does 🙏
This was an amazing insight to playing as I notice everything in my playing that you spoke of. Dude you are a great teacher with fewer word but words that mean something. Thank you and please do not stop. God Bless you!
Tom, you’re no second fiddle to any of Beato’s guests. Can’t wait to hear the interview, thanks for everything you do!
Well okay, maybe to Jesus. 😅
@@grantwilcox3738I was coming to say YEAH!!!!!!!
I think you touched on some really important things that connect your whole lesson here…
Talking about attention span. Focus. To fully immerse into the music. It’s hard to describe but it’s the only way to reach that next level. Picture yourself as king in a comfortable land where you’re so calm and confident that you can play with the music instead of trying to keep up.
Hallmark #3: In the book of Psalms (the songbook of Israel), the word “Selah” is used frequently. No one is quite sure what it means or how to translate it into other languages, but I’m convinced it means, “Dude… pause and think about what you just read. Don’t be afraid to create some space and silence before you go rushing into the next idea.”
Really an excellent point.
Tim Pierce touched on that exact point on his channel.
He basically broke it down into using the least amount of effort as possible. For speed and intonation it's great advice.
When you hear two of the greatest guitar players out there giving you the same tip you should definitely take it to heart
“Be water, my friend.” - Bruce Lee
I feel like this applies to playing your instrument as well. Sage advice as always Larry.
Just found you. I'll be 54 in Nov. Started playing at age 50. Very serious, am able to devote many hours per week learn (great understanding wife)! Have made some great progress but realize the goal never ends. Needed to see this video. Thank you!!!
Thanks, Tom. I am always fighting my inclination to "groove the vibrato". This is where all vibrato is executed in an identical manner, thereby sounding the same regardless of when and where it is employed. Such an easy trap to fall into...and so hard to get out of once it becomes second nature.
I love this guy! He is always so baked but stays completely on topic and relevent. Such a great player too.
Morning Larry, from over on the other side of the rock. Man, can't wait for the interview but today's lesson was really valuable - so important for folks to feel your playing as much as hearing it..and vibrato with intent. Or not at all. Perfect.
Ahh you got me, four from four. Awesome video Tom, those things aren’t often said but are absolute gold for us at this level. You’re a good man.
Great video brother. Working everyday to relax & not rush. Excellent advice!
I hope a lot of good player heard these criticisms. Wish Larry had share all of them he new in this one video, that would have been so valuable to have them in one place.
Sage advice. I always played to accompany myself as a singer. Only recently have I dared to try being more of a 'color' player. I don't imagine I will ever be a lead guitarist of any repute, and the quest to play true quality rhythm will continue until I die. But, I think there is space and time for me to develop a way of playing that expands and compliments what matters to me about music. Melody and message. Pocket and groove. Listening listening listening, always listening.
50 years of guitar, and some days feel like those first. Sitting alone and reaching deep to get 'that sound'. When it happens, there is nothing like it.
Passing on hard won knowledge is a very noble pursuit. We need that in every discipline. Thanks for the reminder.
This is bloody brilliant mate. Pure gold. Have a ball down there
thank you mate...i really appreciate that
"When you're playing your pentatonic sports bar blues licks" oh man, I spit up my coffee. Hey man, I did that for a decade in my 20s.
Thanks for the lesson Uncle Larry! As a tennis coach, I couldn’t agree more with your link. Tension, rushing and lack of intention are all very common mistakes at the beginner/ intermediate levels, and even for some professionals.
Sage advice Uncle Larry. I was taught to approach rhythm playing like a drummer and lead playing like a vocalistic. It really does save a lot of heartache.
Relax and play it...works for life and guitar. Cheers Tom!
I used to stumble my words untill I learnt how to slow down. I applied the same thinking to my playing and I stopped rushing and stumbling on guitar. I also realised I was uncontrollably putting vibrato on everything. If your not confident learning to relax and slow down is a godsend. Great video. Gold
Jesus! Very messianic personality that guy. Angelic voice.
Best guitar observation of the year. I’m an intermediate (and that’s being charitable) white guitar player striving to lay back for the last 35 years. Still a work in progress.
Great video, Uncle Larry. Thanks. And really great that you’re mentoring the young studio guys. Nice to know you’re passing the knowledge along.
Thanks, Uncle Larry! I check off on all points.
I've been caught up in the "Content Creator" mode - rushing, tensing up, out of tune, sloppy...
Just yesterday I concluded to take my f'n time and perfect my playing and video creation.
Thanks, Tom! This is gold!
Great class today Uncle Larry! This is great material for any and all artistry! Agreed also on sorts and echo the sentiment on life in general. These nuggets are gold! You’re laying out the blueprint for those willing to do the work. I appreciate that immensely!! 🙏 Can’t wait for the upcoming lessons 😬👏 You’re the best!
-From a fellow Clevelaner 😎🤟
I had a guitar lesson yesterday and we literally covered the grip and how hard I was squeezing and it was burning me out and making my playing rigid.
The info to me was really groundbreaking and since then nothing has been the same. It's like I'm trying to learn all over again.
Super excited for the future and of course this week's practice and next lesson.
Thanks for the video.
I hear you on the technology front man, it's hard to do but it's healthy to try and power your phone off for awhile and just touch some grass. Just my 2c. Thanks for the vids Uncle Larry
The Beato interview was just epic too, just loved it!
This was an excellent lesson! I think I’ll be watching it a few times in the future. I still grip my guitar way way too hard, but I’m getting better in the other areas you mentioned for sure.
Playing without tension is one of the most important things. I go over this early and often with my guitar and drum students. It took me way too long to figure out and realize but when I did, it's like so many aspects of development fell into place for me. I was able to get better at a long things I struggled with, and my timing and over confidence improved during improvisation at my gigs.
your a master slow taste it took me years not to over play and relax
Words to live by these days. Thanks Tom
Before watching I already know this video is about me.
Right on!!! So true. Listening to recordings of my playing, I notice I don't let the notes finish, not even knowing I'm rushing through them. Relaxing is a struggle when I equate emotion with the intensity of how I'm grabbing that neck.
Great advice!!!!
Hey you just explained me in guitar with 4 things lol. But hey I just like to play at home for my mental stability and just love it.
So appreciate the wise advice. After years, I'm still in an "intermediate" phase- as totally evidenced by your description. PLEASE expand on your ideas for beginner/intermediate players! You're an inspiring dude.
One of the best things is watching homeskoolin while I practice
This episode really hit me, as a parent (and a musician). Parenting young kids is intensely exhausting sometimes, euphoric other times. But always hard work, if you're trying to make it meaningful for them. Thanks for being real.
To keep your body relaxed: practice with a tongue depressor, popsicle stick, whatever in your teeth, hanging down loosely, avoid putting bite marks into it - when you notice yourself standing that thing up, means you're clenching your jaw, means your arms are already tight, all the way through your shoulders and up to your jaw.
Keep that stick loose, your hands will stay loose and you might even start to find your autopilot/ghost mode when your consciousness divides and suddenly you're doing two things at once, independently - try not to notice it or you'll fall off (it's kind of quantum effect, once you look at it now it don't work no more lol).
Maybe the real zen of music is considering the spaces between things and letting the notes fall and shape, bend, and bloom where they may; as long as you've contemplated the space between things, the space where things are should be equally defined - the difference is how conscious the act is. Sometimes you can hear the space *behind* notes...it's there all the time, but at times it has significant presence; the quiet time growing underneath the decay of the audible, because what is sound lessening if not quiet expanding?
I guess it really was all in the dark matter, after all.
welp, now I'm off to find negative chords since I broke my own mind with that one...anti-chords? The structure of the void.
This man was born to play AND born to teach!
Uncle Larry the Wheat Farmer.
Farming that fretboard for music.
Freaky Freddy & the Fret Farmers is a great band name for Fred
What a treasure. Also, what a generous human for creating all of these vids. I know you're doing it for your boys, but we all get to learn from them. Thanks Tom.
This shit is gold. People really don't realize how lucky we are to have a legend like uncle Larry let us sit under his learning tree. I for one am insanely grateful
Just came back here to say thank you! Tried to apply some of this at my gig last night. Best I’ve ever felt, every time I tensed up or over played you were in my head saying RELAX!! One of the best gigs I have played - thank you Larry 🙏
Uncle Larry Waxing Nostalgic from Atlanta -- pretty cool. 🙂
Very insightful Tom because I am guilty of all 4. It’s like you’ve been watching me play. You are the absolute best!
The great distraction….i thought you meant discovering girls
They were actually what motivated a lot of us to play guitar.
Thanks for sharing the wisdom!
_"I don't wanna be that guy"_
I totally get it.
Being excellent at something and seeing how someone could do what they're doing even better or easier if they changed a little detail, you want to share your knowledge but at the same time, you don't want to be that guy...
A doctor who was being interviewed was talking about sitting at a table with friends and that he hates it when one of them starts talking about something they saw online, something that is supposed to be so good for your health and then someone else asks him if it's true. As a doctor, he knows that it's BS but he hates to be that guy.
John Wooden: “Be quick, but don't hurry.”
I believe it was Frank Gambale who said to emulate horn players. They have to stop and catch a breath, we don’t. It’s zen like to be aware of your breathing and only play on the exhale. Easier said than done!
Best way to accomplish this is to sing what you’re playing.
Tom, I've been a subscriber since March 2020 and your videos are always a highlight of my day. I consider myself barely intermediate as a guitar player and have never tried to replicate exactly what you are showing us but videos like this are invaluable for me. Your discussions on how to approach learning and playing guitar have inspired me to re-learn how to play and break OLD habits (I'm 64) and have been the greatest "lessons" I've ever had. I always wanted to learn to finger pick but gave up until one of your early videos talking about the unavoidable need to put in the hours and it gave me the push to do it. I have always choked the neck and rushed and now I am going to make a concerted effort to break the bad habits I've developed and develop new and better ones. You are a master and I wish I was advanced enough to take full advantage of all that you are sharing, but please know that you are making us intermediate players better too. You are truly a valued resource in a vast world of noise and bad advice. We can't thank you enough.
thank you bro...i appreciate these sweet words
Hallmarks:
Stop squeezing the neck so hard. Don’t tense, be fluid and smooth.
Don’t rush. That means you. We all do it.
A good story has lots of space. So does a good melody. Let them take it in.
Voluntary vibrato. Have intention with every bend or note. Choose carefully.
Great tips. As an old guy (50) how I really learned all that stuff was starting on a Tascam 4 track. That taught me everything. How to write, arrange and play for the song. Really helps your playing a lot.
I ate two hits of orange microdot and went to see "The Jerk" at the Midnight Movies in Charlotte. Laughed my face off.
Two hits? I’d still be trippin!
@@tomcoryell I might still be...
Always take two in case one's a dud. Lol
It's hysterical, even sober.
Uncle Larry, thank you for your wisdom from across the pond. Truer words have seldom been spoken. Please keep up delivering these bits of sunshine and guidance, Tom
At first, I thought the great distraction was a reference to girls.
Still suffering...
Women are the Grand distraction
🔥🔥🔥🔥 lesson from Unc 💯💯
1. Stop squeezing & RELAX
2. Stop rushing- take your time
3. Allow for silence & space - you don’t need to constantly talk/play
4. Vibrato - when & when not to
Thank you Tom 🙏
Rick Beato will see you now. He just got done interviewing Elon and Trump 😂😂
Me too, but of course my teenage self wasn't in much danger of attracting the ladies.
My first thought, too.
All of your advice here hit STRAIGHT home for me man, exactly what I needed to hear. It's actually difficult for me to stop myself from automatically throwing vibrato all around my solos, I hadn't even realized. But I think the intentionality that you mentioned is really helping me sound better. Playing with that focused mind is key. Thanks so much!
“Pentatonic sports bar blues licks” GLOL 🤣🤣🤣
I totally get what Tom’s saying (and Guthrie) but ever since I started following these guy I don’t even want to play anymore because everytime I play anything I’m thinking, “Damn, Guthrie/Tom would have hated that lick” 😂😢
@@Johnjingleheimerschmidtt screw that. play what you enjoy. always a place for that kind of stuff
Also, for me, these four points you make, are the best guitar playing advice I have ever heared. Absolute pearls of wisdom. Maximum thanks.
That was uncanny,
All those points and tips were as if Tom just reviewed my playing style.
Video ends and Guthrie walks out of the bathroom and yells “I wouldn’t go in there for a good half an hour “ 🤣
Dear Tom,
Nice dive today. My son’s a player too and it pleases me to no end. It’s very relatable the time travel as your thoughts wander while you watch your kid play. I like sharing highlights of your show with him. It always makes good conversation. The greatest thing is seeing the adjustments after. Thanks for that. Your humble skooler and Pisces Joe.
You are the most in tune player on TH-cam.
He's got it. Beautiful intonation is like a candy bar, for your ear . . . . . .
@@rigelloar7474 and very rare
thank you homie
@@501chorusecho Do you tune like Vince Gill tunes? I remember you once talking about how nobody tunes a guitar like Vince. Also do you credit your "in tune-ness" to your guitar setup or just your simple touch on the instrument?
After watching Tom for a few years seems the way you play is just as important as getting it in tune. Many people have a perfectly tuned guitar but they play Out Of Tune 😂
Incredible words of wisdom Uncle Larry! Never heard another great, highly respected player such as yourself share these things so eloquently. Much respect!
Awesome. What are your thoughts on guys who did a lot of “talking” or making a lot of statements without breaks and could pull it off, like Johnny winter for instance