Welcome to the last of my Monday posts before Christmas, where I share 3 random thoughts on all things guitar, music, and life.
Here we go…
#1 – Scrooged
As a teenager, one of my favourite Christmas movies was Bill Murray’s Scrooged.
This is a movie that is either loved or hated and definitely not everyone’s cup of tea.
What I enjoyed about this movie is how it put a modern-day spin on an old classic, A Christmas Carol.
…When it comes to guitar playing, I’m a fan of taking old classics and changing them up.
For instance, you can take any song and play it in your own creative way on the guitar.
Not only is this a good way of being creative, but doing so can be fun if you struggle to play a song the way it was originally played.
For instance, you can strip a song back to an acoustic version, slow it down, and change the key to suit you.
Acoustic artists do this a lot (my hero Chris Cornell was great at this).
Of course, this works best if you’re a singer, but the same sort of ideas can be used even if you prefer to play fingerstyle versions of a song.
Anyway, you can’t beat creativity.
Adapting songs you love to suit you is definitely a fun thing to keep in mind if you’ve never tried it.
That goes for Christmas songs, pop songs, or any song you can think of.
#2 – The gift of music
Christmas is, of course, the time of giving.
So, this Christmas why not give a loved one the gift of your music?
Playing and performing for loved ones can be fun.
Now, I’m not saying you should build a stage in your lounge, arrive in a limousine, and get a backing band like some big pop star…
…But playing a piece of music or two for family and friends can be so much fun.
You can choose your best piece, get your guitar out on Christmas day, and impress them with it.
…Or you could play a strumming singalong classic and get everyone to have a sing-song.
You could even take a song a loved one truly cherishes and record yourself playing the melody on a smartphone. Then send it to them via video as a little Christmas gift.
Is it cheesy?
Maybe, but it is Christmas after all!
Of course, only do this if you feel ready and confident, but if you are, and you have the desire to do it, go for it.
Anyway, those are just a few ideas of how you can give the gift of music this Christmas.
If you decide to go whole hog with this and go make a big music festival in your garden, let me know.
Maybe you can call it Santastock!
#3 – The George Bailey school of guitar
I love the movie, It’s a Wonderful Life.
I’m rarely a teary guy, but even I can’t help but get a lump in my throat watching this movie.
I mean, the journey George Bailey the hero goes on in the movie is wonderful.
From near despair and contemplating suicide to the realisation that the world would be a poorer place without him is quite a journey.
I’ve thought this sort of thing in the past about my guitar playing.
When I was a frustrated beginner, sometimes hating the guitar in the early days…
I’d often wonder if I’d have been better off without the guitar in my life.
Well, later I realised that even though I found it hard, my world would be much poorer without the guitar.
I’d never have had those fun moments jamming with friends, feeling the joy of music running through my veins when things “clicked”, joining a band, playing gigs, and hearing loved ones compliment my playing.
None of this would have happened without the guitar.
What would I have done instead?
Probably played computer games, watched boring TV, and gone to the pub.
All fun stuff to some degree, but none anywhere near as rewarding as the guitar.
So, if you ever doubt your own playing…
Remember the moral of the story from It’s a Wonderful Life…
And that just like George Bailey’s town would be a poorer place without him being there, our lives would be poorer without the guitar being part of it.
…And don’t forget, every time a guitarist tunes up, an angel gets its wings.
Okay, that’s my slightly soppy random thoughts this Christmas.
I hope you enjoyed them.
On a slightly unrelated note, if you feel like you need to make more progress, or you’re stuck with your playing, this can certainly help.
It’s very inexpensive, fun, and will get you on track with your playing.
Find out more about the 7-Day Transformation Course
Happy holidays!
Dan Thorpe
Guitar Domination
P.S. This post was originally taken from Dan Thorpe’s private email list. To get blog posts like this sent to you which are full of great tips to make fingerpicking, strumming, and learning guitar more enjoyable (especially if you are over 40) join Dan’s list. It’s 100% free, HERE.
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