What motivated you to take up the guitar?

[Coop47]

12/18/81 - Rolling Stones show simulcast on WBCN. Changed everything.

 

[Synchro]

I can’t remember a time I didn’t want to play guitar. The first guitar part I remember taking note of was Grady Martin’s lead work on El Paso, and that would have been when I was about 5 years old. I remember my dad driving down a street where there were several rooming houses, used by residents at the local hospital, and I saw a handsome young doctor playing guitar out on the front porch with several admiring young nurses watching him. Even as a small child, I knew that was a desirable situation, and I think that is when the idea of my actually playing guitar came into my mind.

Having been born in ‘54, and having a sister nearly 9 years my senior, I was exposed to a lot of great moments in early rock n’ roll guitar, including hearing the early ‘60s Surf music when it first came out. That definitely encouraged my interest, as well. But then, our relatively poor family finally got a record player that was worth a darn, and my dad bought a Chet Atkins record. I was hooked. From that moment on, I wanted to be Chet Atkins, when I grew up. I lived and breathed Chet.

The first lesson I took was in early 1966 and I’ve been playing ever since. I had some good instructors and learned many of Chet’s techniques, along the way. All these years hence, with forays into Jazz (think Jim Hall, or Wes Montgomery), Country, Rock and Blues, there are a lot of great memories. I have to say, my Guild T-400 is one of the best guitars I’ve ever played. It blows my old Gibson Johnny Smith model out of the water.

 

[adorshki]

Yep, girls.

I have a lifelong memory of the girls in my second grade class doing spins on the bars during recess (oh yeah, pantie shots!) and raving about someone called "McCartney". Got hep to that action pretty quick. Then the Monkees and Hermans Hermits, with a dose of Revolver starting me on the path to perdition.

Later on, about 12 or so, I started realizing it was in my soul and I had my own ideas I wanted to get out.

 

[Antney]

This pretty much sums it up

"You start off playing guitars to get girls & end up talking with middle-aged men about your fingernails" or strings

letstalkguild.com

 

[Antney]

12/18/81 - Rolling Stones show simulcast on WBCN. Changed everything.

I remember that, it was sort of life changing wasn’t it?

 

[Rayk]

Hmm , I’m not sure . I can tell how it came about with incomplete memories.

When I was like 6 I was living with my Mother and wanted to play drums . I was always banging on stuff . Lol Mom said no. Inner mom said he!! No ! Lmao.

I’m not sure how long between that and Mom signing me up for a guitar class at Jewish community center. She got me some cheap guitar . When I walked into class it turns out all the kids already knew what a guitar was and pretty much how to play . They laughed at me and that was that .

At the same time I remember a band that played just down the rd in their garage. They were pretty good at least to me , not knowing anything . Lol I did recognize some songs though. I hanged out there when I could just listening if coarse .

in-between this time The Temple I went to with dad had a piano and since I didn’t want to pray or be preached to I’d sneak off and go into the room with the piano and just play some random notes . I soon found out I could put them together and kind of play a tune . Lol

Any chance I had when I see a piano I’d go and play on it though that wasn’t very often.

I remember having a organ that pops bought for me years later say 7-8th grade . It was set up in front of my rooms window . There was a girl down the rd I fell in love with or so I thought just when we’re getting to know each other she moved away ! Hello first song written on organ due to heart break . Lmao

I met my best Jim there shortly after turned out he was interested in music and had some family members involved his uncle played drums so he picked it up he became very good at it to .

Jim introduced me to progressive music like Blood sweet and tears , Genesis ,yes , Bowie etc shortly after I ask pops for a guitar he wasn’t interested but finally caved and bought me one a fender 6 string acoustic .

Oh back track to the pervious summer , I just remembered .. visiting mom in Long Island I met Chris Novak . He played acoustic guitar anyway he was amazing . He actually thought me my first chords . He said play these and he lent me his guitar . I did over and over and yes my fingers bled . Lol I had nothing else to do and Chris was away on vacation to Spain to get some fancy classical guitar . So I had excess to his for a bit .

9th grade I had to take band of half the year or drama so band it was and guitar was the only thing I had . I was still lousy at it . Couldn’t read music hated to try so band turned out a kill time class. During this time had another friend in our group . Peter Neigbit not sure how it’s spelled. Peter was very good on guitar and that’s where I saw my first Guild acoustic it was blue and very very nice best guitar I ever seen but it was his sisters so I only got one shot at holding it . Lol

So Peter tried to teach me a bit and we started our first very short lived band with Jim playing drums . I pretty much sucked and Peter would yell at me far to many times and I stopped hanging around him . He moved off to Buffalo came back a year or two later and holy **** he played for our group of friends one night and never played the same song twice and he went on all through night . Yup I hated him .

Anyway all during this I just poked around playing guitar best I could . Tried payed lessons which failed but the teacher who had a local band which was really good said he liked what I came up with so that was cool .

Then I learned about Rush and Alex’s guitar playing hit home with me like he was my brother from another mother. Wow everything he played sounded so right . Still to this day I have reason why it just does.

so I took up electric and played to Rush for years after . I guess you could say Alex taught me how to play . Lol

I never really tried to learn any other songs by bands if I wasn’t jamming to rush I was playing my own stuff on the acoustic .

when I moved to Florida around 81-82 I bought a 12 string Yamaha F312 and that’s when I discovered open tunings it was my only guitar for years . So that really set the stage for my style of playing . Combine that with my love of New Age music and here I am.

 

[Grassdog]

For me, growing up in the 60's, it was mainly the Beatles, followed closely by so many other great bands. We'd hear these great songs on the radio and see the bands on Ed Sullivan, American Bandstand, or Hullabaloo. The visual from TV may have been as important as the music itself. When you saw John Lennon, Roger McGuinn, Keith Richards or John Sebastian playing, it was an inspiration to take up the instrument and try and make that sound.

 

[Nuuska]

. . .I remember having a organ that pops bought for me years later say 7-8th grade . It was set up in front of my rooms window . There was a girl down the rd I feel in love with or so I thought just when we’re getting to know each other she moved away ! Hello first song written on organ due to heart break . Lmao . . .

Living Next Door To Alice - written by RAYK

 

[Coop47]

I remember that, it was sort of life changing wasn’t it?

Absolutey. I was 13 and the Stones were sort of a vague concept to me - Miss You, Satisfaction, Emotional Rescue. Then I heard the intro to Start Me Up and the drum/guitar interaction really grabbed me - kind of slippery and locked in at the same time. Hearing a whole show of that interplay - at the ridiculous tempos they were playing - absolutely captivated me. I taped it and listened to that cassette constantly - even figured out how to play drums so I could understand how it worked better.

 

[Coop47]

Living Next Door To Alice - written by RAYK

Thread veer, the Irish owner of a bar started yelling for us to play "Alice". We had no idea what he was talking about - that song was a hit pretty much everywhere but the US. Coincidentally, we had "Stumblin In" in the set, which we'd introduce as the hit from Leather Tuscadaro (Susie Quatro) and "some other guy whose name I always forget", having no idea that guy sung Alice.

But neither one of those songs motivated me to play guitar, so let's get back to the topic at hand.

 

[Synchro]

For me, growing up in the 60's, it was mainly the Beatles, followed closely by so many other great bands. We'd hear these great songs on the radio and see the bands on Ed Sullivan, American Bandstand, or Hullabaloo. The visual from TV may have been as important as the music itself. When you saw John Lennon, Roger McGuinn, Keith Richards or John Sebastian playing, it was an inspiration to take up the instrument and try and make that sound.

Growing up in the sixties was the perfect time to learn guitar. It was everywher. I’d watch various bands on TV and get to see all sorts of players. When Hee Haw came along, there would be segments with Roy Clark, and that was serious stuff. I’d watch the entire show, waiting for Roy to do his thing.

 

[walrus]

12/18/81 - Rolling Stones show simulcast on WBCN. Changed everything.

WBCN was the best!

walrus

 

[jp]

Growing up as a child of the 70s, I feel as if I was immersed in the peak of the guitar hero era. Radio was filled with music of the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s. For me it was Jimi Hendrix, Led Zeppelin, the Beatles, the Stones, the Pink Floyd, and the Kinks, and sooo many others.

This was then supercharged during my teens with the emergence of Eddie Van Halen, metal, Metallica, punk rock, and new wave. The explosion, splintering, and fusion of subgenres of rock, jazz, folk, country, hip hop, and rap, et al., was then simultaneous with alternative and grunge happening during my early 20s -- so many different styles of music and guitar playing seemed to blossom one after the other, and it was so inspiring.

And of course, with each kind of music, there were so many different kinds of girl fans. Ah yes, there's the truth of it. One thing I did figure out after playing in loads of different bands, though, was that at the end of each gig, the guitar players hung out and talked gear, while the bass players and drummers got all the girls.

 

[twocorgis]

These guys, for guitar and bass.

 

[Rayk]

Living Next Door To Alice - written by RAYK

Ugh typos I see lol

 

[Rayk]

Thread veer, the Irish owner of a bar started yelling for us to play "Alice". We had no idea what he was talking about - that song was a hit pretty much everywhere but the US. Coincidentally, we had "Stumblin In" in the set, which we'd introduce as the hit from Leather Tuscadaro (Susie Quatro) and "some other guy whose name I always forget", having no idea that guy sung Alice.

But neither one of those songs motivated me to play guitar, so let's get back to the topic at hand.

 

[wileypickett]

Hearing *Axis: Bold as Love* a few weeks after it was released.

I began bugging my parents for a guitar almost immediately. My dad took me to a music shop somewhere in northern New Jersey where I picked out my first guitar, a Harmony H167 -- $48.00 with the tax.

 

[Antney]

These guys, for guitar and bass.

Sorry for my ignorance, who are those guys?

 

[dreadnut]

The rest of my story:

So at about age 9, my piano teacher took my Mom aside and told her "You're just wasting your money on the lessons. He won't learn to read the music; he just memorizes everything." And she was absolutely right - the dots on the paper might as well have been Martian to me. But when we had a recital, I would play my pieces perfectly. I think this frustrated old Mrs. Brown.

Then when I was 14 my Mom, bless her heart, bought an old classical guitar from a fellow waitress and brought it home to me. The rest is history - 52 years of guitar playing without musical notation now. I'm just glad my Mom didn't give up on me.

I appreciate those who can read music, but it just isn't my way of doing it. It's hard to explain, but I need to hear it and feel it to play it.

 

[Guildedagain]

I'm not a reader either. Lifeson was just incredible, just as influential on me as Page because it was now and not some historical records.

Just watched a video of Subdivisions the other quite by accident. Incredible, and you can't really explain Lifeson's playing.