Newbie Guitarist

[Death God]

So, yesterday I got a 6-Stringed, Starcaster, electric guitar. And I realized, I don't know a thing about it. Don't know any cords, don't know any fingerings, nothing. So I was wondering, can any of you guys tell me anything about it, or give me a site, or anything to help me please?
Also, for discussion value, what was the first guitar you got and how old were you at the time you got it?

 

[thedeathscythe]

Get lessons. You can learn on your own or online but seriously, take them for 1 or 2 years just to help get your footing. I took lessons for 6 years. During that time, I found it helpful to learn songs that challenged me but didn't stump me. It's like anything, push your limits but don't break yourself. If you learn a fairly difficult song for yourself, you'll learn the techniques that song may use. So my number 1 advice is actually seek lessons out, even for a year or two.

For discussion, I got my first guitar when I was 9. I can't even remember what it was, it was an acoustic oscar schmidt if I had to guess. I took lessons at age 10 until 16. I started learning acoustic until age 13. At age 12 I started learning electric, and I was getting into metalcore and such.

At one point when I was 16, I wanted to learn a song with my guitar teacher. He couldn't find a tab so he said "no problem, we'll learn it by ear". When I showed it to him, though, he couldn't pick out what they were playing and figure it out. I could picture in my head what to play so I took a shot at it and after about 30 minutes I had learnt about half the song. That's when he said I no longer need lessons and could fend for myself, and I've been figuring out techniques and such on my own ever since. I learn new stuff all the time as the obstacle comes at me, say learning pinch harmonics a couple years ago, or mastering sweep picking.

With that anecdote, I'll just say again, TAKE LESSONS. It's a lot easier to get that footing where you can then just teach yourself.

 

[Thedayrecker]

I taught myself, but friends of mine, that took lessons, learned quicker than I did, and are generally better. So the moral of the story? Take lessons

 

[Sexual Harassment Panda]

There are plenty of sites that will teach you basic chords, though you might want to seek some professional help for a while.

Tablature is easy to read, so you can pretty much jump right in and start learning some music that interests you.

My first guitar was an encore stratocaster(still have it somewhere). My mother bought it from an aging hippy for £50(including an old amp and some books). What a steal!

 

[Outright Villainy]

I never took lessons, but I really should have, and still should.
Reinforced moral: Take lessons.

 

[ajofflight]

Yes, lessons are the way to go, to teach you the basics, but once you learn how to read tabs and chord charts and whatnot, a good site to go to is "Ultimate-Guitar". Very good site, with lots of chords/tabs and interactive chord charts.

 

[Giest4life]

Don't practice it in front of other people---show them your skills, but don't practice.

My brother started learning guitar a few years back, and he would always practice in front of me (we shared a room), and it was really infuriating, and I couldn't concentrate on his good parts because his ugly practice sessions distracted me too much.

Also, take lessons. Ask a friend, sign up for a club at school, seek Craigslist advertisements. Do something to get instructions.

 

[Eren Murtaugh]

freeandeasyguitar.com

 

[Wolfy1328]

I use my brother's a whole lot. I learned the string names, then just surfed tabs from sites. If you ask me, you should ignore chords for a while. I don't really think they are important if you are only focusing on certain bands or songs.

I my case..........
I just want to learn certain stuff cause for one, i am more of a drummer who just plays guitar whens she's taking a break from her awesome kit.

 

[skitzo van]

Guitar teacher. Find one. Hell, I'll tell you what you wanna know about it.
My first guitar was an old acoustic my cousin let me have when I was 4, I played it for two seconds and then a string snapped. I didn't start playing again until I was twelve, and I didn't geek out about it till I was thirteen.

 

[DustyDrB]

Learn how to read tabs. Go here [http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/] and look up songs you like, starting simple. Get lessons if you want or need to. Not everyone needs to because not everyone has the same level of natural inclination. Always push yourself, trying new styles and techniques. I get bored when I play the same things over and over and then I force myself to do something different (I'm learning flamenco now, which may be my new favorite style).

Really, though, the best thing to do is to play however you want. Some people are telling you to ignore chords, which is pretty idiotic. What if you don't like solos? Not everyone does. You don't want to end up becoming the guy who just tries to one-up everyone with how fast you can solo. I mean, sure it's technically impressive but it usually sounds like utter crap (looking at you, Yngwie Malmsteen). But hey, if that's what you're into, go right ahead. Ultimately, what you're playing has to please yourself first. Otherwise, you lose interest.

Also, I'm pretty sure you're required to learn "Iris" by the Goo Goo Dolls and play it for a girl. It's a cheesy, cliched rite of passage. Almost as cheesy is how damn effective it can be. It's crazy how many guys can say they've played that song for a girl.