I got an old used guitar today. I never had any natural musical talent but it was fun to strum it and try to find some sembelance of a tune amid the mostly random strumming. I enjoyed using it and want to learn a bit more about how to use it. I was hoping you guys could point me to some good guides and references to help me learn and maybe some advice. Also will probably need a guide on reading sheet music eventually.
I am completely unqualified for this because I’m pretty bad but here goes:
Get a tutor. Just makes most sense since they can give you more attention than just reading or watching
Get a book or video course, physical or online, whatever you have access to, then ALWAYS stay on track. Discipline yourself, get a Youtube course and not skip or switch to “guitar hacks and tips” that YT recommends you (they’re helpful but there’s plenty of time for thosr later). I’m self taught and never finished a single Youtube course before being distracted to something else so I missed my best time to build the fundamentals. I could still get back to it, but it’s just not the same when I already have motor memories.
Learn songs. A lot of them—songs you like, songs you’d like to play for others, songs you hate, etc. That’s just how it is. You learn and practice a lot, no other way. How you build not only your catalog but importantly, your muscle memory and musical vocabulary.
Don’t care much about gear unless you like the tinkering aspect of it. They don’t get you far, most of the work is in the person. As long as it doesn’t block your progress and doesn’t sound like tincan, you’re fine. Scrub that. With the right attitude and creativity, you can make good music with a tincan.