Never give up because of age.

by Nathan
(Kentucky)

My first guitar came to me at the age of 42, it was a very worn and used Fender DG-3. I wanted to learn and found it hard to fret simple chords and kept at it off and on for about 6 months, traded it off to a muzzleloader.

I continued without a guitar as my love for music has always been there. My mom played piano by ear but I was never able to catch an interest in that. So by the time I reached 50 , I went and bought myself another used Fender off ebay, again I ran into problems with it being too small of a neck-stupid me same thing thing twice. I traded that to a new Washburn that ended up being a fair starter guitar that my guitar teacher suggested I try.

So I began some serious lessons and tried to learn as much as I could about chords and not making a lot of progress as I soon realized my instructor had a drug habit. So off I go on my own and I start reading more, watching dvds of play a long books, on line instruction lessons and knowing I was still in the desire to learn to play electric guitar too. I purchased my first electric a GODIN Detour, still today one the best buys that I have made, I soon traded my Washburn for my first Takamine G340SCE. It was a step up and now I needed amps, so I bought a used Fender amp, and got me a Zoom pedal, I started having fun with all the different tones, sounds, models, effects.

This somehow got my 33 year old son interested in learning and he soon was trading books with me and I kept finding more tab ( I don't read music notation) for both of us. He lives 3 hours away so we only played together a little bit and he soon went back to his hobby of graphic art, but still plays a little.

I have continued on with my love and growth of guitar gear, I play out at a local museum with some local pickers a couple times a month. I have learned about sound boards, PA systems, mics and played alot of different brands of guitars and genre of music. I have made new friends, attended a couple of songwriting seminars and still trying to learn to play rhythm to any song that I can learn.

The question is do I choose acoustic or electric?? I have 2 of each, my Godin and a Vintage Modified Telecaster electric. I upgraded my Takamine to a much better model in 2009 and got myself a Carvin acoustic C350 in 2010. I have to say that I enjoy my acoustic guitars more because I can be very versatile with them and get to do more playing as I can take it anywhere I want to play and be accepted in with others. I'm not a great player by any means but I can have fun, play songs at home to relax and learning to write songs. I can play either guitar and must say that learning on an acoustic has made the electric playing easier for me.

I am always looking for some song that I know is a favorite to learn, I still that finger pickin is not easy for me, so I use a pick 95% of the time. I am now 55 years old. My wife and I go to concerts when I can catch our classic rock or country favorites playing. I still want to be a person who can play well with others and would love to be good enough to play in a group.

My suggestion to anyone who is starting out to learn guitar is save yourself from disappointment by following a few suggestions.

1. Pay the price $300-600 for a good well built acoustic-electric guitar to start yourself off with correct sound.

2. DON'T PUT IT OFF, you won't get any younger, life gets shorter.

3. If it's only a hobby and to please yourself , DO IT! If you want to be a star DO IT! ENJOY A PLEASURE WITH MUSIC!

4. Find a good local store and try them out. Find a guitar that fits your hands and body, a cutaway feels different than a folk guitar, a dreadnought is different and sounds different. Get a good instructor if you can afford lessons but learn from every source you can even if it's on-line.

5. Last but not least, do it for yourself, your own enjoyment and peace of mind, relax enjoy and listen to your favorite artist and songs over and over and GOOD LUCK!