New to Chordie (Page 1 of 2)

welcome here rivercruzin,as far as counts you should do what justins coarse says. when you go look at the song Ring of fire on the right side click on chorpro and it will show you when too change the chords. Have fun! You have alot of older players here also I am 66. I have heard alot of positive about Justins coarse.

Howdy Rivercruzin and another hearty Welcome To Chordie!!

Generally we are a pretty friendly bunch, many of us with our "geezer" showing (not kids anymore)....but man I gotta warn ya about improper use of language so's we don't get off on the wrong foot.  What's got me concerned is that "O" word you introduced yourself with..... Should'a been 72 years young!

Some may be "worldly" or  "experienced", or "novice" or "noobie".....  we all hang out and get along because of our common interest in music and just plain getting passable at strummin' a few tunes, and everybody helps everybody along that road.  We have all been where you are right now and truly wish that something like Chordie was available back then.

Step right in, get to know the community and hang on, it's a fun ride!

Doug

Welcome to Chordie.

Most Johnny Cash is 4/4 timing, meaning 4 beats per measure, Ring of Fire included.

Don't get hung up on the chord charts. Be willing to play a chord earlier or later, or even a different chord if it makes the song sound better to you.

Learning how to listen closely to a song to pick up changes and rhythms is part of learning music. It's 'ear training.' You'll get it in time as you keep up with it.

Welcome to Chordie!  I can't echo enough, it's a great place to visit and the members are generally kind and helpful here!  Justinguitar is GREAT!  Stick with it!  Most songs you find on the web are just what individuals have put together, so it may be right or wrong, but hey... it's FREE!  I guess I'm saying, take what you find with a grain of salt.  It may not be exactly correct.  Tutorials like those found at justinguitar and lots of other places are extremely helpful.  Johnny Cash music is a great place to start, as Zurf said, it's mostly all 4/4 time and fairly "easy" cowboy chords.  Just remember, when your fingers start hurting... don't quit!  Sure, maybe play for shorter bouts at a time, but don't give up.  That's how you build up the callouses so that you can play for hours on end without pain down the road. 

Amy

Rivercruzin. welcome a'board. Now that you have begun posting and asking questions you can see how easy it is to get answers. In your posts you reference a DDDD struming pattern. don't lock yourself in this pattern. This pattern is all downstrums and, while used on some songs, does not add enough "color" to what your are playing (at least to me) There are many strum patterns that are used for songs in 4/4 & 3/4 songs (we won't get into other timing's at this time? in 4/4 time they could be DDDD, DUDUDUDU, DDUDUDU just to show a few. Remember strum patterns are based on downstrums (D) and upstrums (U) and a combination of both, A down / up pattern (DUDUDUDU) is used for a lotta Blues songs (such as a 12 bar blues) while a down, down, up (DUDUDUDU) pattern is very popular. Do a google search for "guitar strum patterns" and you will see what I mean.

Now having said all that, you don't even need a guitar to practice strumming. Just sit somewhere where you can tap your finger, or toe, to the beat of the song (listen for the bass notes). When you can do this to the rythem of the song and count the beats you will have the strum pattern or at least a excellant starting point. I keep a couple of picks in my truck and while driving and listening to a CD or radio I'll strum acrocc my chest. Ypou can learn a lot while driving but people may look at you funny. Anyway, welcome to the forum, Justin is a good source to learn from as well as many others on the 'net.  Look around where you live and see if you can find a real person to give you lessons. Nothing beats one on one lessons.

Nela

Good for you for wanting to take on the guitar at your age. It is never too late. As some have said, don't get too hung up with how many times you should strum, especially early on. Listen closely to the beat of the song and strum along while you hum or sing the melody. It takes awhile but it will come to you with practice.

No one is without music, man.  Some of us just have to look harder to find it!

When strumming out chords, think of the guitar as the drum beat with tone.  You sing the melody, so it doesn't matter if there's half, quarter, or whole notes in the melody, the guitar is the rhythm.  So you can do DDDD, one strum for each beat in the measure, or just one D strum per measure and hold for a count of four.  There are LOTS of patterns out there.  You could even do DUDUDUDU with an emphasis on the first down strum in each measure.

ignore this if you don't want to get overwhelmed, I'm going to attempt to explain a different pattern that has nothing to do with Ring of Fire but is in 4/4 time
My "go to" pattern is DDUUDU per measure of 4 beats. If you break it down so you're looking at eighth beats, 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and, you'd go D and D U 3 U D U so the only time you don't strum at all is the AND between 1 AND 2, the 3 beat.  If you forward to 4:50 in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQCNgEYsDcA you'll see what I mean.  It's so hard to SAY it in words without showing it.  I personally like Yourguitarsage (the guy in the vid) as well as Justinguitar.  The downside to the guy in the link is that he's CONSTANTLY trying to sell his course, but there's a TON available without purchasing if you don't feel the need for it disclaimer, I am neither endorsing buying his course, nor am I advising against it.  I have no clue.  I like the free videos Some people can't stand the guy because he talks too much, sometimes when you're new you need someone to talk too much so the parts you can't see are clearly understood.  To each his own.

There's a post here in Chordie that can be found in the Acoustic section as a "stickie" at the top in green all the time that gives some examples of patterns (also found by clicking this link)  http://www.chordie.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=11132

Again Thanks to everyone so much! Lots of help! mekidsmom: I think you answered the question I was after. As a beginner when I strum the notes in the measure 1/4 1-count, half 2-counts and whole 4-counts. If say I strum a G chord and hold for the count 1/4, 1/2 or whole,  the song sounds more like music to me. Seems as though sometimes songs all sound alike with the strumming patterns. I thought the various strumming patterns were ground in stone so to speak. And when you started one you had to use it all the way through. I like it that I can strum a G for instance and hold the count for 4 beats. Or 2 beats for a half note.
So much great help!

Shoot - pretty much every Travis Tritt song is DDDD.  DDDD can sound pretty darned good if you've got the right attitude.  Who doesn't know "Here's a Quarter, Call Some Who Cares" or "It's a Great Day To Be Alive?"   Both of them, DDDD and attitude.

Thanks all!
I was not thinking DDDD as permanent. Or any other strumming pattern. I was using it for a example. What I was after is if I could strum to standard notation. 1 strum 1/4 notes. 1/2 note strum hold for 2 counts. Whole note strum hold for 4 counts. Just like when you read music and the different notes are there. Instead of a set strumming pattern. From mekidsmom answer it looks as though I can. I'll get there yet! 

Glad I could help!  Sounds like you know a little about reading music, and that is awesome!  The downside is when just learning to strum, we over think it a little.  Down the road you will start looking into how chords are created, looking into the music theory thread, and suddenly realize (like myself) that you don't know near enough.  Lol!  So, off topic, where does your music reading come from?  Singing? Plunking tunes out on a keyboard? Played saxaphone once upon a time?    Personally, I played the clarinet once upon a time, Grandma taught me a little about chords on her electric Organ, I learned to plunk notes on a keyboard/piano, and was BIG into choir and took voice lessons when I was in school.  And of course, my daddy always played his guitar and tried to teach me melodies and harmonies.  Getting close to 40 in a few years, so all that knowledge was just like, ahhhh, feels like three years ago.  Lol!!!