Videos

If Paul McCartney Can’t Read Music, Why Should I?

I hear this often from students and guitar fans.

And I am into a 2nd Venti at Starbucks.

I am Venti-ing.

I get very disturbed when a young student tries to “shirk” away from the work because one of his or her heroes can’t read music.

Often, accomplished musicians who can’t read music will “put down” musicians who can read – and bolster their own position of illiteracy with the voodoo of…

I know something’ because I don’t know nuthin…and if I learn too much, I might lose the sumthin’ I gots….

I have played with many great musicians who thought their illiteracy made them special.

It’s their musicality that made them special – not their inability to read!!!

Let’s review the options…. [Read more…] about If Paul McCartney Can’t Read Music, Why Should I?

What’s More Important – Musical Essence or Technical Perfection?

By Adam Rafferty 45 Comments

Here’s a peek into my mind as to how I craft something musically for solo guitar.

I recently arranged the Beatles “Michelle” for solo fingerstyle guitar and while I feel it could be way better ‘technically’….it looks like people are digging it, from the comments. (thanks Youtubers!)

It is very far from perfect – but it feels good! There’s a different “perfection” in the good feeling I am talking about.

The Musician’s Cure to Social Media Madness

By Adam Rafferty 5 Comments

THE SCENARIO

This last week, I spent a lot of time online, doing my research, keeping up with social media, new (to me) sites like Pinterest.com and Chill.com.

(does this sound familiar?)

Sites like Facebook, twitter and Youtube are helping me reach fans and book gigs…so I wanted to see “what I’ve been missing” and how I could ramp things up, career wise.

Oh boy…all I did was make myself nuts!

Like many musicians, or managers or “labels” I’m scratching my (bald) head wondering what’s next, and will the sites I’m signing onto even last?

Some sites will be here to – stay (for a while) while others will bite the dust like Myspace.

My head started to hurt.

Questions like this plagued me this week (don’t worry – this post will end happy…)

Some of my personal issues:

How can anyone hope to compete with a Youtube channel with millions of subscribers?
To get more hits & views, must I simply play every crappy cover song I can think of, in incredible voluminous amounts?
Will Youtube yank my videos / channel, since I still am doing covers?

then…my personal hell….since I get asked for tabs of my covers constantly…

How the hell can so many guitar instructors out there sell tabs with ZERO licenses in place, and I choose to go the high road and get licenses, am I an idiot?
Will social media change, because right now I don’t want to know about someone’s cat barfing…so I “shut off” and others do too.
Where is it all going? And am I wasting time trying to figure it out?

The irony is…(drum roll please)

By asking these questions I was simply “creating my world” and seeing the world as “I am” not the way it is.

BUSTED.

What appeared to be “out there” was “in here.”

This is kind of heavyweight information when you think about it.

I create my world and you create your world, minute by minute, whether we complain and worry, or whether we rejoice and give thanks!

THE CURE

I picked up the guitar.

I decided to start learning a new tune….”IMAGINE” by John Lennon. It was time to be a musician and not a social media manager for a few hours.

After hours of ironing out an arrangement, I uploaded it to Youtube:

[youtube=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dELdAQ25kT0″]

This video was done with NO end result in mind….only “love” in mind, honest to God. I wanted my fans to have something nice and soothe them.

I fell completely into the song, the lyrics, the tone of the instrument, Lennon’s voice, intention, and so on.

THE AFTERMATH

As I walked out into the street in NYC after uploading the video and I felt “all my troubles seem so far away” 🙂

The pain, headache, uncertainty and frustration I was feeling were GONE.

What?

I found myself in a “bliss” state.

Immersion into music, with no thought of “what I’d get out of it” is what got me there.

I saw after this that I have the personal power to choose one state or the other.

THAT’S BIG! Do you get this?

What I previously thought “the world was doing” was MY creation.

My NEW (forgotten) mantra “I am responsible for 100% of my life.”

THE IRONY

Once I dropped the video onto Youtube, Facebook and Twitter – it was something useful that people wanted to share.

That’s the way to use social media! (I.E. that’s the horse before the cart…)

THE MEDIUM IS NOT THE MESSAGE

Social media is a pipeline.

Garbage in, garbage out.

Good meaningful stuff in, good meaningful stuff out.

The lesson….offer something good….really good and everyone wins.

Which Free Bonuses Would You Want with the Upcoming “How To Play Stevie Wonder Fingerstyle Guitar Volume II” DVD?

By Adam Rafferty 1 Comment

Hey Guitar Picker!

What free bonuses YOU would like to get with the new upcoming “How to Play Stevie Wonder for Fingerstyle Guitar – Volume II” DVD?

I need ideas as to what YOU want. Not what I think you want 🙂

Here are just a few cool ideas – and you can leave an idea too!

This is a SHORT survey, with a few checkbox options – will take you less than 2 minutes!

Thanks a MILLION!

Here is the link:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/ZDZ5YXY

All the best

Adam

The “Tweezer Technique” for Fingerstyle Guitar

By Adam Rafferty 3 Comments

Hi Gang!

Wow, it’s been a helluva travel time here…I am now back in NYC after 9 weeks on the road in Germany, Austria Belgium and Holland – and Niagra Falls.

Many loyal fans took video at gigs. When I saw this, I thought I’d finally share this “secret” technique with you.

I call it the Tweezer Technique.

Normally I don’t show this kind of stuff casually, as it took years and years to develop. But, I’ve decided it’s time to make this public – and spread the knowledge and joy to all players, and not keep this a secret any longer.

Enjoy! The Tweezer Technique can be seen at about 3:04 – but it can only be appreciated if you watch from the beginning and see “musical context” that it is in.

Feel free to use it in your own guitar playing.

[youtube=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbDENaqJY-0″]

Thanks again! keep on picking….

Adam

P.S. The Stevie Wonder Vol II Arrangements for Fingerstyle Guitar DVD will launch in about a month…so stay tuned! 🙂