learning guitar without lessons

[Shaft162]

I bought a friends guitar in about april of 2002, and just started messing around with it. I messed around and taught my self barre chords and different ways to play all the chords rather quickly. I never even tried to learn any DMB stuff until about october, and now I can learn a lot of the songs in about 5 or 10 minutes. It amazes a lot of my friends, but its even more surprising to me. I never really listened to a lot of DMB other than the stuff that gets played out on the radio and on TV until i started playing guitar but a lot of times I'm able to pick up the beat of songs after only hearing them for a short time. I don't believe i'm extremely gifted but I know that i pick stuff up quicker than a lot of people.
Well my point is , what are some harder songs of dave, and others that i should tackle to see where i stand as a guitarist. Also , what steps should i take in order to being learning the fundamentals because no one ever really taught me anything. Sorry if this is in the wrong part of the forum, but any help is greatly appreciated. thanks
peace
AJ

[firedancer86]

for timing...go for the STONE...but you have probably already madtered that one huh?

I wish you luck man

[Shaft162]

i can play stone alright, its just hard to get the timing because I can barely hear the notes when listening too it, even an acoustic version. It took me some time to learn that one, now I'm trying to learn to sing on beat., more replies are appreciated, peace
AJ

[gravedigger]

I bought a friends guitar in about april of 2002, and just started messing around with it. I messed around and taught my self barre chords and different ways to play all the chords rather quickly. I never even tried to learn any DMB stuff until about october, and now I can learn a lot of the songs in about 5 or 10 minutes. It amazes a lot of my friends, but its even more surprising to me. I never really listened to a lot of DMB other than the stuff that gets played out on the radio and on TV until i started playing guitar but a lot of times I'm able to pick up the beat of songs after only hearing them for a short time. I don't believe i'm extremely gifted but I know that i pick stuff up quicker than a lot of people.
Well my point is , what are some harder songs of dave, and others that i should tackle to see where i stand as a guitarist. Also , what steps should i take in order to being learning the fundamentals because no one ever really taught me anything. Sorry if this is in the wrong part of the forum, but any help is greatly appreciated. thanks
peace
AJ

I think you should learn songs because you like them, and not so much to see where you stand as a guitarist. Everyone learns at different rates and by different ways - some people put more time and energy in than others. For timing challenges, I second The Stone, and I'll add Two Step, Warehouse, Seek Up, One Sweet World, and about a dozen others. Dave songs take more practice than regular joe songs you hear on the radio. Even Ants Marching's timing is tricky and so is Say Goodbye. HAVE FUN with them.

[4mbi3nt]

yeah try to learn Crazy....good luck

[Pickles]

i never got lessons and im better than some people who have been playing longer than i have with lessons, but i still cant play stuff like the stone

[firedancer86]

yeah try to learn Crazy....good luck

Crazy isn't that bad...as long as you can whistle exactly with it...you just have to apply those chords (that means you have to know how to fluently with those funky chords too though)...

[waffle_house_jam]

i wouldnt worry about your lack of lessons...you can really develop yourself as a guitarist completely without them. i started while taking lessons, quit, and played on my own for a few years. recently i took a few months of lessons. i think the main good thing about them is that they forced me to learn something new on the guitar each week. i think if you want to develop, you can just push yourself and it will be just as good as taking lessons. if you want to learn about music, however, you might want to take them. i never learned to read music, and i can only name about 1/70th of the chords that i know...hah. i think if you want to learn music theory and become more of a musician rather than just a guitarist, you should take them.
as for songs you should learn, i think things like the stone should improve your timing. that's important-i believe timing and muting are the most important aspects of acoustic guitar. you might want to learn some solos as well, because those will make your timing perfect.
great to see someone discovering guitar like this-keep playing, and good luck