What has inspired you to play the guitar?

Forums Guitars, Gear, Software & Education What has inspired you to play the guitar?

  • Post
    Rick Graham
    Rick Graham
    Member

    I initially started on violin at a young age but didnt continue it. I started drums during my teens but chose to play guitar because it felt totally natural to me when I first picked one up. I’ve been playing ever since.
    What about you guys?

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 40 total)
  • Replies
    Mike Edwin
    Mike Edwin
    Member

    I was drawn to the guitar from day one, as far as i remember. What inspired this?? hard to say really, I don’t actually think it was anything to do with the guitar per se. The gravity started with a natural joy for music and later the idea of learning an instrument emerged.

    Early memories remind me of my dad taking me to see his mates band rehearse. They were nothing special, just a cheap cover band who had nothing on thier minds but playing loud and fast. I still cant say what made me chose guitar but I can tell you what allmost made me not do it.

    Around the same time, I was about 10 years old, some of the same guys from the cover band were at my place visiting. One had his acoustic with him and somehow it found it’s way into my hands. As I was trying to get a sound out of this strange instrument I managed to drop the plectrum down the soundhole (something we are all victim too). Anyway, I had no idea how to get it out so I took the guitar back to the guy who’s it was and told him what had happened.

    Suddenly he looked very angry and began telling me that I had ruined the guitar. That the only way to get the pick out was to cut the guitar in half. Needless to say, Impressionable and Naieve as I was at that age, I took it seriously and got quite affraid. He said it would cost $500 to repair the guitar and get the pick out.

    It was about 3 or 4 years before I even picked up another guitar. Still under the impression that you had to mutilate a guitar to get the pick out.

    Lucky for me the next axe I played was an electric (no holes to drop the pick down šŸ˜€ ) and had a ball of a time making scratchy horrbible sounds with it. After that, I knew what I had to do!

    Alex
    Member

    hits2big4on.jpg

    That is all.

    I suppose like alot of young up and coming players, it was Metallica that did it.

    It was weird because I heard them on the radio, and thought “my god, that is AWESOME!” so I wanted to play just like Kirk Hammett but ha no idea where to start until I got my first starter guitar package for Christmas that year.

    So yeah, that’s about it. And the rest… is history!

    Bill
    Member

    All my friends played either Guitar or Drums or bass or all 3 lol but for me just the sound of the guitar drew me to it, I love learning new things and and the more I play the more I want to learn and visa versa šŸ™‚

    FRETPICK
    Member

    It was all down to seeing a classical guitar player at school when I was about 8/9. After that..it was to the axe.
    šŸ™‚

    To me it was jsut: “Hmm..ok! Let’s try guitar!” and there i am šŸ˜€ Started with classical guitar, played it for 5 years than moved to electric and never looked back since šŸ™‚

    BrendanK
    Member

    To me, owning a guitar was one of those things that very few people had and could afford…it was kinda like a dream before I started playing. I went over to my buddy’s house and he had an Ibanez GIO from some beginner kit and I thought it was the coolest thing ever that he actually owned an electric guitar. He then played the intro to “Otherside” by Red Hot Chili Peppers and I was then blown away that he could play something that I recognized. 2 weeks later I bought my first guitar and couldn’t stop playing.

    InternetH3ro
    Member

    I don’t know what got me into playing guitar. I’d always been drawn to music, though. In fact, my first band I was in I was recruited as the drummer. Before that, I didn’t even belong in the band, really. My best friend was the bass player and I would just come and hang out. They had some real issues with keeping solid drummers, and on those frequent occasion when the drummer would never show up, I’d fill in. After the third drummer quit, they looked at me to fill the spot, which was freaking awesome. I couldn’t believe it.

    I transitioned to guitar at some point, but I don’t know why. I think because I wanted to play Metallica songs. Then I heard my first David Gilmour solo and I was forever changed. Really opened my eyes to what could be done with the guitar.

    Then I heard John Petrucci. He was the one who really inspired me to learn theory, technique, and to become the best player I can be.

    As far as recent inspirations, I’ve really been inspired by Mikael Akerfeldt and Opeth. Mikael is such a virtuoso on guitar, the man can play anything and make it sound beautiful and evil at the same time. I’ve been learning a lot of Opeth tunes because it’s a style of playing I’ve never seen before, and it’s been really inspiring when playing the guitar.

    Sean Conklin
    Sean Conklin
    Member

    @InternetH3ro 748 wrote:

    Then I heard John Petrucci. He was the one who really inspired me to learn theory, technique, and to become the best player I can be.

    Same here. Over time I’ve been inspired by many guitar pros, but Petrucci is definitely the first one I was exposed to that really got me excited about the guitar. I went straight from playing Creed riffs to learning Dream Theater songs, and my guitar life was never the same! šŸ™‚

    Trev
    Member

    +1 on John Petrucci. A major influence for me. I remember seeing them on their first world tour back in the early 90’s in Bradford – stood right at the front under JP – awesome experience.

    I started playing drums when I was 13, switched to bass at 18, played that up to a few years ago and now play just guitar. Mainly because of JP but also Jason Becker, Yngwie, Paul Gilbert, Vai, Mike Keneally, Alex Skolnick, Martin Taylor – oh the list could go on and on.

    Mainly though I play because I just love the instrument. I know I’m probably not going to be the next Paul Gilbert but I can still really enjoy playing and trying to improve as best I can.

    Back in the days I used to play football (as in european football). And I mean a lot of football. Practicing with my teams 5 days a week and then 1 serious game in the weekend and one not so serious. However I got an knee injury that put me out of the game for 2 years. Tried playing a few games again but I kept having problems. Decided to call it all off (well…I might start again soon after almost 6 years out of the game (since first time I was injured)). Anyways, it all began short after I was injured. Football was a very large part of my life and I had to find something else to do over those next couple of years. For whatever reason it became guitar.

    Lit1219
    Member

    I was inspired to play guitar in a few different ways. My dad used to play guitar so that would probably be the main reason, but also I must add that many bands have inspired me also.

    Many things inspire me to play now, everything from Books, Movies, Videogames, Music of course, discovering new bands, going to concerts, But in the beginning it was Iron Maiden. I was really drawn to the guitar styles of Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, and Janick gers. Dave, with his super smooth legato speed runs, and slow bluesy solos, to Adrians rock driven solos with some of the coolest licks, and Janicks manic massive reaches, where any one us would tap, he plays it with his fretting hand, and his spontaneous harmonics really grabbed me.

    Lit1219
    Member

    @Nocturnal Majesty 1746 wrote:

    Many things inspire me to play now, everything from Books, Movies, Videogames, Music of course, discovering new bands, going to concerts, But in the beginning it was Iron Maiden. I was really drawn to the guitar styles of Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, and Janick gers. Dave, with his super smooth legato speed runs, and slow bluesy solos, to Adrians rock driven solos with some of the coolest licks, and Janicks manic massive reaches, where any one us would tap, he plays it with his fretting hand, and his spontaneous harmonics really grabbed me.

    That is a good point. A lot of that has inspired me too.

    OutLaw2112
    Member

    when metallica kill em all came out, i picked up the guitar the first time… I thought that if i could play along with that cd i would be the baddest guitarist… i learned the whole thing and learned a whole lot more, then life took over and i took a 12 year break… now my girlfriend’s son got a guitar for christmas and i told him i used to play… I picked up his guitar and started to play again…since then ive spent 1000 on my own guitar and have gotten my own amp… been playing everyday since my birthday on january 15th… having to relearn alot of stuff, but some of it is like riding a bike, never forget it… Seems like i never forgot my love for metallica’s kill em all though… baddest cd to play ever… fate’s melissa is a close second

    I never learned to play with the metronome, just played with alot of drummers and along with cds

Viewing 15 replies - 1 through 15 (of 40 total)
  • You must be logged in to reply to this topic.