u/Sarcastraphe

I came up in the 80s alongside the tablature revolution. It was a godsend to me as a young kid who loved music and just wanted to learn his favorite songs.

Along with tabs, I availed myself of the Star Licks videos and other resources. Rik Emmett's Star Lick video was integral to the guitar player I am today.

In the 80s, tabs were very hard to come by. For most stuff, you needed to use your ear to figure it out. But today, you seldom run across tunes that you can't find chords for online or order folios for.

For 90% of players who just want to learn songs they like and play in their room, that's great. But for people who want to get beyond the intermediary plateau, it can be a problem.

Tab is color-by-numbers. It can get you close to something similar to the original, but it doesn't teach you anything. In fact, it can stop you from engaging your ear or learning anything at all. It's a shortcut, which for many is fine.

I have so many students who have played for years and can rip some incredible little solo licks, but they don't understand how they work. How to play them in other keys. Or how to incorporate a similar idea in something without copying it.

If your goal is to be a good player/improviser, tab can be helpful. But you need to put in some work.

Did you just learn a cool pentatonic lick? Cool. Learn it in different positions and different registers. Figure out how it's being used against the chord progression. Is it over the 4 chord? Does it use outside notes or chromaticism? What is it about the rhythm that works?

I see tab given as a panacea for a lot of problems in the sub, and used wisely, it's a great tool. But the better you get at examining what's happening in the tab, the less reliant on it you will become.

My number one suggestion for every student from the jump is this. Make tab the last stop. Not the first. Figure out what you can on your own, and then fill the holes in with tabs. And when you use a tab, go beyond it. Ask "Why does it work and what other contexts could I use a similar idea?"

85% percent of players can learn the solo to Hotel California or Panama of they commit to learning it. Intermediate players stop there.

There are a lot of things I really love about Seth, but here is the thing that's really inspired me.

I love that Seth is so invested in his friends. He constantly and publicly tells them that he loves them. He does it on the show and in podcasts, and even when I've seen video of him running into them on a red carpet.

It comes of as incredibly sincere and heartfelt.

It's particularly meaningful to me that he does it with his male friends. It's just so friggen wholesome.

I have always done this, but he has inspired me to do it more. Life's too short not to constantly remind your friends you love them.

EDIT: The spacing was jacked.

This probably applies to others, but as a Gen Xer, tuners were hard to come by in the 80s. So a lot of us used to tune to songs in A or E. For instance, I used to tune my guitar to Beast of Burden.

I'm just curious if anyone remembers having to do this and what songs they used to use.

I'm not sure what I'm looking for here besides some feeling that I'm not alone. I've had IBS-d (and ulcerative colitis) for as long as I remember. I'm fairly used to the stomach issues and cramps, constant trips to the bathroom, and sudden crisis situations.

What I'll never get used to is constantly feeling bloated and exhausted. I don't think my loved ones realize just how run down I'm always feeling. It gives me constant brain fog, and impacts my mood and general outlook.

It's such a part of who I am that I don't even know that it's abnormal. A couple of times a year, I'll wake up and feel AMAZING. Unbelievable energy, clarity, and general well-being. And I'll wonder at the fact that many people feel this way all the time!

It's like Flowers for Algernon, except I don't get smarter. For a brief period, I just don't feel shitty. And it's wonderful, except I know what's coming, and I almost wish I didn't know what it's like to feel fit for a day.

Has anyone else experienced this?