20

Just been reminded that it has been 20 years this Christmas since I got my first guitar... Jeez, 20 years. 1988. I think it was sometime during the summer that I got the idea that I was was going to play guitar, when I saw 'Sweet Child O' Mine' on MTV (that's when we moved to New York, where dad worked at the UN Embassy). I was already listening to a lot of music by then but I guess this is when it clicked for me. And I guess I must have driven my folks nuts with it. My first axe was a horrible Asian made black electric with a little built-in amp and speaker. I think it was from Sears or something. I remember being so happy to have it. My dad used to play when he was a kid and he taught me my first three chords, open E, A and D. I remember D was so damn hard. ;) He also got me some fake books, which was awesome, 'cause it was great fun learning songs (and as a side effect, the chords). In fact, I don't think I would have kept with it if I hadn't begun that way. Fake books are the sh*t, kids. For a good couple of years, it's all I did, comping myself, strumming along. I only got into lead guitar when I began taking lessons as a high school student. But I always kept with the fake books and to this day, I can spend a whole day flipping through them and playing my favorite songs or learning new ones. The great thing about them is that you only get the chords, the vocal melody and the words. The rest, you make up yourself. We do lots of covers with Radio Daze and I like to approach things the same way. It's way more fun.