Hi,
I’m Adam McCabe and Rock The Six String is to here to help you with your guitar journey. As well as being an RGT Grade 8 guitar player and performing live, I’ve also taught many guitar players over the past 12 years of teaching how to become better guitarists.
The guitar is an instrument that is so diverse that it has had its influence on most modern music genres.
My focus is on helping people become great rock guitar players and to play the music that they listen to in their cars when they are taking a road trip; in their headphones on the way to the gym or the songs that you love to blast out of your speakers when you are at home hanging out with your friends.
Throughout my time teaching, I’ve noticed the same themes coming up again and again when speaking to students. They want to get better, but they don’t know ‘how’. YouTube is a treasure trove of guitar lessons. The biggest issue with it is there is no order to follow. There are lots of great videos on there, but when they are in isolation, they aren’t particularly useful. You might have even got to this website through YouTube, but the most direct route to your goals isn’t to follow YouTube videos blinding hoping that they give you the answers that you want.
Countless times I’ve had the same conversation: ‘I need to learn barre chords, but also about scales and modes, and I want to be able to write original songs one day, but also I need to be able to fingerpick and know all my extended chords; and I want to play all my favourite songs, but I don’t think I should learn theory really because someone on a forum told me it will ruin my creativity…’
WOAH! Take a breath.
It’s awesome that you are excited, but I have one question for you at the moment and I want you to be really, really specific:
If you could click your fingers and fast forward, what would your guitar playing sound like?
I don’t mean what you have been TOLD you should be able to do. Don’t even think about what techniques or anything you would need to know to get there. How would your guitar playing sound?
Think about the types of songs that get your head nodding unintentionally as you walk along the street. You become immersed in the music, so much so you decide to walk a longer route to get home just so you can listen to it a bit longer. What makes you sit in your car once you’ve parked up to listen to the end of the song rather than just turning it off and jumping out? What artists do you just have to send the share link to your friends because they need to hear it?
THIS is the type of guitarist you want to be and this is the type of guitarist I want you to be and the type of guitarist I want you to learn HOW to be.
You don’t need to know everything about the guitar to be a great guitar player. I would bet that no guitar player feels completely confident with all aspects of their guitar playing. That’s okay, they don’t need to be the best at everything. Nor do you. You need to be good at what makes you the type of guitar player you want to be.
Isn’t it a relief to know you don’t have to learn everything? You can start moving towards your goals by becoming great at a few things rather than basic at a lot of things.
When I learnt to play the guitar, I learnt the fastest and grew as a musician when I was focusing on becoming the guitarist I want to be. Did it involve hard work? Of course. If it was easy everyone would play guitar and a lot of the appeal would be lost.
If you are hoping to become a ‘master’ at the guitar in a month then the guitar isn’t for you and as much as I’d have liked to, I can’t help you. Learning guitar is a journey, you need to enjoy the trip. There will be challenges, but there will also be huge payoffs if you stick with it.
So if you are frustrated with your guitar playing, but you want to be improve and you have a passion for music, sign up below and let me know how I can help you.