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Chapter 3
Grab Hold, Tune Up, Play On!
In This Chapter
Holding the guitar while sitting and standing
Figuring out how to tune your guitar
Understanding guitar notation
Playing your first chord (make some noise, baby!)
Unlike classical guitar playing, blues guitar has no pre-existing beliefs on
the right way to play and hold your instrument. This lack of a formal
approach frees you from the normal way of learning, which is to listen to
someone else tell you how to do something the right way — and call you out
when you’re doing it wrong.
In the blues, you can’t really be doing something wrong, unless it either hurts
or sounds bad. That’s because the blues is a folk art — an art created by ordinary
people — and doesn’t carry around the baggage of established rules
that some other art forms do. But you can observe some simple guidelines
that help you play comfortably, efficiently, and, by all means, without pain.
For the blues guitarist, any pain associated with playing should come from
the heart, not your fingers or lower back!
Holding Your Axe (That Is, Your Guitar)
Holding your guitar should feel as natural as picking up a baby. Don’t think
too much about it; just treat it with love, and you’ll do fine. Once you have
your baby — er, your guitar — in your arms, use the info in the following sections
so you’re comfortable while you figure out how to fret notes and strum
strings.
TEAM LinG