Practicing in the "early days" of Rock N' Roll

[TreeHugger]

Something I've always wondered, and maybe someone with more extensive knowledge on the subject can help....

There's no doubt that guitar practicing methods have changed to some extent over time. In early rock n' roll they used a lot more chords and chord solos in the songs, i.e. Scotty Moore, Merle Travis, Chet Atkins, Jerry Reed, not to mention the older generation of jazz players. It would seem to me that they didn't have the access to the books and methods of guitar practice that we use and have access to today.

My question is... how did they practice? Did they learn songs from recordings? What methods did they use to acquire their knowledge and skill of guitar playing? I find it fascinating the extensive knowledge they have of chords and theory in general.

I guess I'm asking because I've started to get into some older rock n' roll, and rockabilly. To listen to what these guys were doing 50 years ago just blows me away.

[AngryHatter]

Tribal knowledge.
We would sit in a circle and jam - and in the process we were stealing each others licks.
The nicer people would sit and show you stuff when you asked.
Other than that - sit next to the radio and play with everything that plays.

[River]

Originally Posted by AngryHatter

Tribal knowledge.
We would sit in a circle and jam - and in the process we were stealing each others licks.
The nicer people would sit and show you stuff when you asked.
Other than that - sit next to the radio and play with everything that plays.

That's it in a nutshell.

[AngryHatter]

When I got my strat in February 1972, we went to a friends place - into the barn where we had a supersix, a traynor and a drum kit.

There were eight of us.
Each guy sat and took a turn playing the new strat - I had the first one in my group.
We played 'Down By The River'
Over and over and over.

Good times.

[TreeHugger]

You never really heard people mention that they "practiced." They always talk about playing with other people, and jamming all of the time.

[AngryHatter]

Originally Posted by TreeHugger

You never really heard people mention that they "practiced." They always talk about playing with other people, and jamming all of the time.

Well, to be fair. I would sit with favorite records and play along - that was practice.
Whether I was plugged in or not.

[Phil47uk]

Basically there weren't many guitar teachers around then and those that were around were the old school, either pure jazz, classical or folk. Rock N' Roll was new and not part of their vocabulary.
The way we practised was to stick your favourite track from a vinyl album, single or EP on to your 1950's record player and sit there trying to work out what the bloody hell the guy was playing.
On one of these.


There were no such things as light gauge strings, hence only the half step bends you hear on many 50's guitar tracks.
There were no mags, Cd's, tapes, on- line lessons. You just had to sit there and use your ear, so conseqently not every Tom Dick and Harry was at it like today and because there was no instant remedy, you had to be dedicated and I mean dedicated.
To get a job in a band, you had to know your chords and a few of the instrumentals and licks of the day, each one having to be worked out by yourself on your old record player.. No on-line tab sites..

Consequently players back then tended to be a lot more original and have a better ear, simply because most gave up and only the ones who could work things out for themselves were left.

We did it the hard way back then and to get a decent job you would have to have done the apprenticeship which literally meant having hundreds if not thousands of gigs under your belt.
There were no gadgets, gizmos and all singing and dancing effects processors, other than an echo chamber like a Watkins copycat and a Tone bender distortion unit that sounded like a cheese grater on steroids.
All amps were tube and yes they broke down as much as the solid state ones of today.
There were no mega priced vintage guitars. Strat's were Strat's and a Les Paul was a Les Paul..No magic..No myths...No mojo..

The first song I ever tried to work out was Peter Gunn on Duane Eddy's 'Especially for You' album which I got for Christmas in around 1958- 1959 I think. It was only a year later I found out I had got one of the four notes to the intro wrong... Boy, did I wear that album out.. I still have it all torn and scratched in a box in the cupboard under the stairs.
.

I obsessed by that Gretsch. We had never seen anything like that in the UK and for the life of me I couldn't figure out what it was.

Those were magic days in music..Everything was so new and exiting..
I am very thankful to have lived through it and having been a part of it.

This is what kicked it all off for me...It probably sounds dated by todays standards, but Jesus back then this was mind blowing to a young teenager in post war London.

You Tube

You Tube

[GibsonByBirth]

In my early days there were 8 of us that had electric guitars and new at least something on them. There was one drummer and he lived in the rural parts. We gather at his house and let the best 1 or 2 play along with the drummer. Then we all would take turns until it was my turn 8th. I started learning later than everyone else. I got so little time to play that I got a bass and amp. I was a hero and played all night. There were four that were able to hear and play real quick and they could read music. This was before tabs. I would take what they would show me and practice. Then I took guitar lessons. This was in the 70's.

[AngryHatter]

We old farts, rock!

[TreeHugger]

Originally Posted by Phil47uk

Basically there weren't many guitar teachers around then and those that were around were the old school, either pure jazz, classical or folk. Rock N' Roll was new and not part of their vocabulary.
The way we practised was to stick your favourite track from a vinyl album, single or EP on to your 1950's record player and sit there trying to work out what the bloody hell the guy was playing.
On one of these.


There were no such things as light gauge strings, hence only the half step bends you hear on many 50's guitar tracks.
There were no mags, Cd's, tapes, on- line lessons. You just had to sit there and use your ear, so conseqently not every Tom Dick and Harry was at it like today and because there was no instant remedy, you had to be dedicated and I mean dedicated.
To get a job in a band, you had to know your chords and a few of the instrumentals and licks of the day, each one having to be worked out by yourself on your old record player.. No on-line tab sites..

Consequently players back then tended to be a lot more original and have a better ear, simply because most gave up and only the ones who could work things out for themselves were left.

We did it the hard way back then and to get a decent job you would have to have done the apprenticeship which literally meant having hundreds if not thousands of gigs under your belt.
There were no gadgets, gizmos and all singing and dancing effects processors, other than an echo chamber like a Watkins copycat and a Tone bender distortion unit that sounded like a cheese grater on steroids.
All amps were tube and yes they broke down as much as the solid state ones of today.
There were no mega priced vintage guitars. Strat's were Strat's and a Les Paul was a Les Paul..No magic..No myths...No mojo..

The first song I ever tried to work out was Peter Gunn on Duane Eddy's 'Especially for You' album which I got for Christmas in around 1958- 1959 I think. It was only a year later I found out I had got one of the four notes to the intro wrong... Boy, did I wear that album out.. I still have it all torn and scratched in a box in the cupboard under the stairs.
.

I obsessed by that Gretsch. We had never seen anything like that in the UK and for the life of me I couldn't figure out what it was.

Those were magic days in music..Everything was so new and exiting..
I am very thankful to have lived through it and having been a part of it.

This is what kicked it all off for me...It probably sounds dated by todays standards, but Jesus back then this was mind blowing to a young teenager in post war London.

YouTube - Duane Eddy Peter Gunn

I have heard that before, and I must say... pretty bad ass. When I was a kid my parents listened to 50's and 60's on vinyl on a big console stereo. I always liked it and appreciated it as great music.

Anyone learning and playing music like that with little to no resources except for the guitar in your hands and your ear... now that's bad ass

[GibsonByBirth]

For us there was sheet music but no tabs that we knew of.
Here is what Duane looks like now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMz8XRGxZdY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMz8XRGxZdY

[huw]

Originally Posted by Phil47uk

Hands up everybody who would play a single at LP speed - ie slow it down from 45 rpm to 33 rpm - just to hear something better.



Sure it came out in the wrong key, but if we could hear the sequence better we'd work it out again in the right key.

[River]

Originally Posted by huw

Hands up everybody who would play a single at LP speed - ie slow it down from 45 rpm to 33 rpm - just to hear something better.



Sure it came out in the wrong key, but if we could hear the sequence better we'd work it out again in the right key.

Problem was that most of the stuff we were trying to learn was only on LPs. We'd drag them with our fingers to slow down the difficult passages.

[AngryHatter]

heh
I used to play LPs at 45 and practice like that.
When you played it at 33 1/3 it was MUCH easier after practicing at faster speeds.

[Phil47uk]

Originally Posted by TreeHugger

I have heard that before, and I must say... pretty bad ass. When I was a kid my parents listened to 50's and 60's on vinyl on a big console stereo. I always liked it and appreciated it as great music.

Anyone learning and playing music like that with little to no resources except for the guitar in your hands and your ear... now that's bad ass

That's how all those old rock guys started off.. Clapton, Beck etc etc.
There just wasn't anything else..

[Phil47uk]

Originally Posted by huw

Hands up everybody who would play a single at LP speed - ie slow it down from 45 rpm to 33 rpm - just to hear something better.



Sure it came out in the wrong key, but if we could hear the sequence better we'd work it out again in the right key.

Yeah I did that many many times, but like you said it came out in different key and wasn't as easy as it might sound.

[Phil47uk]

Originally Posted by GibsonByBirth

For us there was sheet music but no tabs that we knew of.
Here is what Duane looks like now.

YouTube - Duane Eddy - Ghost Riders In The Sky

Yeah he's an old fart like us now..

I hated it when he started using that Guild..I was in love with that Gretsch 6120.
Actually many people under estimate Duane. Here's a side of him many people haven't heard.

YouTube - Duane Eddy - 'Cannonball Rag' (1975)

YouTube - Duane Eddy - 'Cannonball Rag' (1975)

[Toris93]

Im 16 and this is how i learn! everything of the record ( and youtube vids =) ) i realized early on that if i wanted to be a musician i had to have good ears! THANK GOD I DID! im now at the point that i can hear something and go "thats cool!" and learn it. i know people my age who cant tell a G from a C without looking here and i am learning John Coltrane and charlie parker sax licks for my guitar =) most of the music i listen to is so unknown that you couldnt find tabs even if you tried! if i ever become famous and would get to give ONE tip to players around the world it would be "learn of the records, do it the old fashioned way"

another thing that amazes me is how "teachers pet" young guitarists are, i know this one guy, he have been playing for 7 years, every week he goes to the teacher, wanting to play metallica. and just gets told to practise the c major scale up and down...WTF...im amazed at how many bad teachers there are. and how they demotivate kids! thank god im a "**** the establishment" kinda guy and bailed on my teacher on our second session when he told me my taste in music was shit. ( btw 10mins out of our 15min session he would grab my guitar and play som wankshit trying to prove how awesome he was )

PS : im truly jealous of you oldfarts=) the world seemed like a better place back then. being young sucks, i know you are thinking " when you get old you will realise how wrong you are ) but im not talking bout the "old people can drink, drive and have lotsa money and NO responsebillity kinda attitude my kids have im talking bout the fact that ive always feelt like a 40 year old dude, and my life up til now have been just waiting for my body to reach my souls age...so i can start my life.

of topic i know, i need to vent this stuff xD.

sorry for shit english

[Toris93]

Btw, Duane eddy rocks! Peter gunn is one of the few songs i can play that "normal" people recognize xD

and the guild guitar aint that bad xD

YouTube - 1963 Guild Duane Eddy 00391

YouTube - 1963 Guild Duane Eddy 00391

[GibsonByBirth]

Originally Posted by Toris93

i am learning John Coltrane and charlie parker sax licks for my guitar =) most of the music i listen to is so unknown that you couldnt find tabs even if you tried!

PS : im truly jealous of you oldfarts=) the world seemed like a better place back then. being young sucks,

sorry for shit english

Your English is functional.

If you think being young sucks, wait until the first time you sleep with an old woman.

Smart thing listening to coltrane and Parker. If you listen closely to the Almond Brothers, you will notice that the got there guitar leads from southern fiddlers.

[Toris93]

Originally Posted by GibsonByBirth

Your English is functional.

If you think being young sucks, wait until the first time you sleep with an old woman.

Smart thing listening to coltrane and Parker. If you listen closely to the Almond Brothers, you will notice that the got there guitar leads from southern fiddlers.

lol=) yeah, im a huge allman brothers fan, actually, listening to guys like Duane and Derek is what really opened me up to learn from other instruments than guitar. you know, the whole "think of your guitar as a voice" philosophy

[Phil47uk]

Originally Posted by Toris93

Btw, Duane eddy rocks! Peter gunn is one of the few songs i can play that "normal" people recognize xD

and the guild guitar aint that bad xD

YouTube - 1963 Guild Duane Eddy 00391

It's not they are bad, it's that as a kid that big orange Gretsch implanted itself in my head and it was hard to come to terms with change..

[Laservampire]

Originally Posted by Toris93

Im 16 and this is how i learn! everything of the record ( and youtube vids =) ) i realized early on that if i wanted to be a musician i had to have good ears! THANK GOD I DID! im now at the point that i can hear something and go "thats cool!" and learn it. i know people my age who cant tell a G from a C without looking here and i am learning John Coltrane and charlie parker sax licks for my guitar =) most of the music i listen to is so unknown that you couldnt find tabs even if you tried! if i ever become famous and would get to give ONE tip to players around the world it would be "learn of the records, do it the old fashioned way"

another thing that amazes me is how "teachers pet" young guitarists are, i know this one guy, he have been playing for 7 years, every week he goes to the teacher, wanting to play metallica. and just gets told to practise the c major scale up and down...WTF...im amazed at how many bad teachers there are. and how they demotivate kids! thank god im a "**** the establishment" kinda guy and bailed on my teacher on our second session when he told me my taste in music was shit. ( btw 10mins out of our 15min session he would grab my guitar and play som wankshit trying to prove how awesome he was )

PS : im truly jealous of you oldfarts=) the world seemed like a better place back then. being young sucks, i know you are thinking " when you get old you will realise how wrong you are ) but im not talking bout the "old people can drink, drive and have lotsa money and NO responsebillity kinda attitude my kids have im talking bout the fact that ive always feelt like a 40 year old dude, and my life up til now have been just waiting for my body to reach my souls age...so i can start my life.

of topic i know, i need to vent this stuff xD.

sorry for shit english

I totally understand where you're coming from man.

When I started playing guitar about 10 years ago (at 15), I just taught myself with a borrowed nylon string acoustic, listening to Duane Eddy and The Shadows, any guitar instrumentals I could get my hands on.

I can't believe the buzz that came with finding the right note for the first time, that's what made me love playing guitar.

Anyone I met who played guitar, I would get them to show me stuff. Dad's jazz mates taught me chord inversions, my barber showed me Chuck Berry licks, my friend taught me power chords.

IMHO the WORST thing any guitarist can do is limit themselves to playing by themselves or only with their guitar teacher. That's also a great way to get your head stuck firmly up your own ass and believe that everything that comes out of your amp is solid gold.

[StrangerNY]

I was lucky enough to have a pair of brothers who lived in my neighborhood that were a couple of years ahead of me on guitar. They showed me stuff by The Ventures, Duane Eddy, and Link Wray. That set me up to take steps on my own, and just like Phil I spent a lot of time with my guitar and my record player.

I learned every Beatles and Stones single as it came out, both A and B sides. I actually turned into a pretty good rhythm player because of The Fabs.

But the real test came when I learned about Jimi Hendrix.

I remember sitting in my bedroom with my Strat, my Vox Pathfinder, my record player and Hendrix' 'Are You Experienced.' Man, trying to cop anything off of that record made me feel hopeless. But I learned most of it.

Then 'Axis' came out. Damn it, he raised the bar again. But I learned a good bit of that one, too.

Then 'Electric Ladyland.' Holy crap, a double album. I did the best I could with it.

After those three records, I was pretty much equipped to go out and play lead with any of the local bands, and I did.

But the truth is, there are still certain things on those three albums that I can't begin to figure out.

- D

[Ed Zeppeli]

Man, all these stories are making me miss being seventeen w/ nothing but time on our hands, hanging out and banging out chords, singing at the tops of our lungs for hours on end.

[5F6-A]

great thread.... get together with other players who play better than you and soak up all you can; play, play, play, play and then play some more. That's how it was done back then.

BTW that Phil X is a good player, decent singer, the guitars are cool but... please, give me a break!

[DagerOne]

Originally Posted by Phil47uk

The first song I ever tried to work out was Peter Gunn on Duane Eddy's 'Especially for You' album which I got for Christmas in around 1958- 1959 I think.

Guys my age will hear that and say, "Holy cats, man...that's Spy Hunter!"

(They used "Peter Gunn" as the theme music in the old "Spy Hunter" arcade game and its 8-Bit Nintendo port).

My dad will turn 59 in a few weeks. He used to tell us stories like the ones posted here...wearing out sections of records from playing the same portions over and over again trying to figure the songs out. He was in a band that won some fame locally and were talked about as "maybe going somewhere," but disbanded because he knocked up my mother.

[GibsonByBirth]

Did you guys know a guy like my best friend in high school, Marshall? He was from a strict familly. Had to study piano and violin for years. Our freshman year his parents got him an Epi es335. He could take the sheetmusic and recording to ANY song and have it down in minutes. The day he got it, he learned 20 or so beatle songs and this was his first time playing guitar. All the rock he would play was the beatles. Then he started learning the stones. Our Junior year I lent him some led zep. 20 minutes later when I was home he called and was playing been along time since I rook and roll.