DEVELOP YOUR GUITAR PLAYING SPEED

If you’re like most guitarists I know, you probably have a deep-down desire to develop your guitar playing speed. Having fast fingers that seem to move effortlessly across the fretboard is very impressive and something many of us dream about but often struggle to achieve. Is there a secret formula? Do we have to seek some fabled, mystical experience at the “Crossroads” like Robert Johnson?

Granted, some people are born with an innate musical ability which baffles the rest of us, but this is not the case for most musicians. Someone may have a good ear and a natural sense of rhythm, but sooner or later they discover that these are merely tools which must be put to use in order to accomplish anything significant. This usually means lots of hard work, concentrated time and diligent effort.

Eric Clapton provides a good example on how to go about developing your guitar playing speed. His autobiography, “Clapton”, offers some interesting insights. Turns out his first guitar was a real clunker, having both high action and steel strings. This made the instrument very difficult to play; especially for a beginner! But Eric kept practicing day after day, hour after hour; totally absorbed in his music. He couldn’t afford lessons, so he would listen to the recordings of his favorite blues guitar heroes and try to mimic what they did. When he felt he had finally gotten their licks right, he would record himself and listen again just to make sure.

Learn Clapton’s riffs here

Eventually Eric was able to afford a better guitar. He began to venture out into the public music scene where he met other musicians. This opened up new opportunities for him to play and led to the formation of his first band. Many subsequent bands followed until he finally reached the pinnacle of stardom as lead guitarist for the super group “Cream” in the 1960s. This band is most remembered for their rock classic, Sunshine of Your Love.   Watch them play it in the video clip below.

Eric Clapton’s rise to fame did not happen overnight. It took years of dedication and practice to develop his guitar playing speed and become the guitar hero he is today. Too many people are in a hurry to be famous or admired, but patience is necessary to really become a good guitarist; which reminds me of a funny story I heard the other day.

My beautiful niece likes to run. She can easily jog ten miles or more and she has participated in a few long distance marathons too. Last week, as she was running across a parking lot in order to reach the car before her husband, she hit a speed-bump. Away she flew, across the pavement, skinning her hands and knees. She couldn’t use her hands for awhile because they were too sore. Fortunately, she wasn’t seriously hurt. Instead, she found it very funny and we all cracked-up laughing when she told us about the incident.

Now you may wonder what this story has to do with developing your guitar speed. Well, I saw a little metaphor in it which I think can teach us some things about learning how to play the guitar. Here are some of my thoughts…

As you are aquiring new skills, it’s important to keep focused on the direction you’re going and not to move too fast, otherwise, you might just hit a speed-bump! However, speed-bumps are there for a reason–to slow you down. So, if you hit one,  take a deep breath and start paying closer attention to the smaller details of your playing. How clear is your tone? How smooth are your chord changes? How clean are your licks? Begin to hone your craft and make it your top priority to sound good. You’ll probably be amazed to find that slowing down will actually help develop your guitar playing speed in the long run.

Until next time…

Keep practicing!
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