Guitar theory isn’t the most enjoyable part of playing the guitar, but if you want to enhance your skills and take your playing to the next level, you need to learn the basics. 

Guitar modes can seem especially tricky, and in truth, they are quite a tough concept to understand. But like with all guitar techniques and theory parts, with some practice you’ll master this aspect as well! 

Here’s a quick introduction to the basic concepts you need to understand in order to learn guitar modes. 

Image courtesy of Henry Sōderlund, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr.

What Are Guitar Modes?
Essentially guitar modes are the same as the major scale, but with a unique tonal centre. 

This means that the modes have the same notes as major scale. Instead of playing the notes over the root, like with major scale, you play it over a chord. 

For example, playing a G note in major scale over an A minor chord means you are playing the A Dorian mode. 

The Terms to Understand 

You’ll encounter a few key terms as you delve in to guitar modes. The key ones will be: 

Diatonic Chord Sequence 

The explanation for the chords found in a specific key. 

Tonal Centre 

Tonal centre is the foundation of the harmony. It typically states the chord over which the mode is played. 

Modes in Series 

A series of modes shows the available modes from one major scale. For example, the C Major Scale with the modes series looks like this: 

What Should You Know in Order to Master Guitar Modes? 

As mentioned, guitar modes aren’t the easiest part of music theory to understand. In order to grasp the concept, you need to have some of the basics under control. 

The most important one is naturally the major scale. If you can’t yet understand the major scale, then it might be a good idea to postpone learning guitar modes before you are comfortable with the major scale. 

It is possible to start learning guitar modes, if you just know the first position of the major scale. But ideally, you want to know all five positions before venturing forwards to guitar modes. 

You should have some understanding of chords as well. Since you’ll play modes over chords, not knowing what chords are about will make your life a lot more difficult! 

Why Learn Guitar Modes? 

The above might sound very complicated and make you feel like skipping this whole guitar mode nonsense. But you shouldn’t do that – you’ll be happier in the end if you just keep going! 

You’ll understand a lot more about scales and chords, as well as their relationship, if you learn modes. It will make playing certain music genres a lot easier. For example, if you want to play jazz or modern blues, you must know guitar modes. 

If you feel slightly confused by all this, you can view a few guitar video lessons and talk to other guitarists about guitar modes. It’ll take some time and a lot of practice, but the above little snippets will help you to get started!

When you are learning to play the guitar, you don’t want to spend all of your time just playing three different songs. But finding enough songs when you don’t know more than a few chords can be tough.

To help you out and to add a bit more variety to your playlist, here are 10 great tracks you can play even as a novice.

1. Elvis Presley – Hound Dog

Elvis Presley has a number of simple tunes you can learn to play, but ‘Hound Dog’ is among the best.
You’ll only need to learn the chords A, D and E to play this song. You can also start slow and pick up the tempo as you get more used to the chords.

2. Dire Straits – Walk of Life

The classic Dire Straits hit is quite a fun song to play on the guitar. It’s also simple and you don’t need to play it as quick right from the start.

There are quite a few ways to arrange the song for a guitar and you can find the best version for your skills from the online tab websites. Try a few different arrangements first, as some might be easier than others.

3. Johnny Cash – I Walk the Line

‘I Walk the Line’ is an easy song for guitar novices and it’s extremely fun to play as well! It uses basic chords like E and A, but you can also practice notes like E7 and B7 with this classic.

4. The Kingsmen – Louie Louie

The Kingsmen’s classic song only uses these chords: A, D and G5. Just master them and play them in the following order: A, D, G5 and D. Rinse and repeat!

It couldn’t get much simpler than this.

5. The Beatles – Twist and Shout

When it comes to guitar songs, the Beatles have probably produced the most for us to play. The songs are relatively easy to learn and the melodies simple enough to remember, even if you haven’t listened to them a lot in the past.

Twist and Shout is a nice little song to play on the guitar. You can make all sorts of renditions of it – either play it quicker or slower.

6. The Troggs – Wild Thing

‘Wild Thing’ solo just uses two chords: G and A. The verses aren’t much more difficult either, as you just need to play A, D and E.

It’s one of the easiest songs to learn also because the tempo is a common one to follow. If you know the rhythm, this song is easy to master.

7. Gary Jules – Mad World

The Gary Jules classic is a simple song to conquer on the guitar, mainly because of its slow tempo. You’ll also need to learn just the most basic chords of Em, D, A and G.

Below is a nice live rendition of the song.

8. The Fray – How to Save a Life

There are some newer songs that can be easy to play on the guitar and the Fray song ‘How to Save a Life’ is one such hit. Although the song originally uses the piano as the key instrument, it sounds beautiful as an acoustic guitar version as well.

You can find some great arrangements online to add this song to your practice sessions.

9. Britney Spears – …Baby One More Time

Quite surprisingly, turning this Britney Spears classic into a simple acoustic version simplifies the tune a lot. It becomes very easy song to play on the guitar.

The tune is simple enough to remember and you can even practice singing while you play! You can take inspiration from this Ed Sheeran rendition.

10. Pearl Jam – Black

If you want to add a bit more rock to your guitar sessions, try the Pearl Jam song ‘Black’. It is a bit more complicated to some of the songs above, but you don’t need to know too many chords in order to play it.

You just need to practice E, Asus2, A, Em, D and C and you are almost there.

Try adding the above songs to your guitar lessons to change the playlist a bit and make practice sessions a bit more fun.

Sometimes the best way to learn about music is by going back to the start. Although recent decades have seen some amazing guitar riffs you want to learn, a number of songs from the golden era of music can also enhance your playing.

Here are some of the must learn vintage guitar tracks you need to add to your repertoire.

Cat Stevens – The First Cut is the Deepest

This Cat Stevens classic from the 1960s is a perfect song for guitarists who are just starting out. It uses only the most basic chords, but teaches you plenty about chord progression and strumming.

Eddie Cochran – Summertime Blues

This classic song from the 1950s is a great pick for the guitar. It epitomises everything rock’n’roll is all about and you can feel all the elements of modern music with this song.

It’s great classic guitar song with fast riffs and a beautiful beat. No wonder The Who went on to cover the song later.

The Beatles – I Feel Fine

We’ve always been big fans of The Beatles for the simple fact that their songs are great for learning to play the guitar. I Feel Fine is another great Beatles song and it will teach you a great deal about barre chords.

It’s a bit more difficult to the above two exactly because of the use of open chords and barre chords. But if you’ve got the basics under control, this song is a must learn.

Bob Marley – I Shot the Sheriff

This Marley classic is another perfect song to play to get to grips with barre chords. It’s not too difficult in terms of the rhythm, so even if you haven’t heard of it before, you’ll quickly learn it.

If you are interested in quirky music knowledge, then you’ll be interested to know the new Rihanna song ‘Man Down’ is supposedly a female version of the Marley’s song!

The Kinks – Lola

This controversial song is a good vintage guitar track to take your playing to the next level. It is considerably more difficult to the above songs, as the riffs are a bit complicated and the complex strumming will keep you on your toes.

Nevertheless, it is an amazing song to learn. After all, the song was once banned by the BBC, so it’ll be worth learning to play!

Beach Boys – Wouldn’t It Be Nice

Beach Boys has plenty of guitar worthy songs and Wouldn’t It Be Nice is among the best. Just like Lola, this song isn’t the easiest, so make sure you know all the basics before you add this song to your practise routine.

The rhythm and strumming pattern will definitely teach you a lot about guitar music. Slow down the beat a bit, if you find it too difficult.

Overall, it is a good idea to mix up your learning routine with different songs, so don’t just stick to the ones you know!

Guitar playing is a lot to do with finding the right technique. If you master the technique, you can conquer any style of guitar playing you want. 

When it comes to guitar technique, you will need to put in many hoursto hone your skills. It is crucial to do this, since if you learn the wrong technique, you will struggle in developing your skills further. 

That said it’s also essential to keep a balance in practicing your guitar technique. If you overdo it, you’ll end up frustrating yourself. 

Why Technique Is Crucial 

If you want to learn to play fast, then technique will be crucial for you. As you become a better guitar player, you will start to face songs and riff patterns that don’t seem very easy. 

But with some technique training, you’ll soon overcome these problems. So, it is definitely worth adding some sensible technique training to your practice. 

Downside of Too Much Practice 

But there is a downside for overdoing the technique practice. If you are spending a lot of time solving a specific problem, yet you feel there is no progress, it might be worth taking a break. 

In the end, although repetition is the key to solving most skill-related problems, it isn’t always the best way. Sometimes you need to step aside and focus on something completely different. 

Don’t let your guitar practice frustrate you! Image courtesy of Jake Davis, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr.

Frustration doesn’t make you a better player. In fact, you’ll most likely end up making more mistakes if you are frustrated, which will lead to worse technique. 

Solving the Equation 

What then is the perfect amount of time spent on guitar technique? 

It all depends a lot on your personal style of play. It is definitely important to add some technique practice to your playing. You also shouldn’t give up as soon as a specific practice or technique seems too difficult. 

The right amount of time isn’t about difficulty as much as it is about progress. If you’ve been practicing a guitar technique for weeks, without any kind of noticeable progress, you are simply overdoing it. 

When you encounter a tough spot, take some time off from the practice. Do things that you are already good at and just play songs that you already know well. 

Get back to the technique after a few days. Think what it is that feels too difficult? Is it simply the speed or the position of the fingers? Check guitar forums or talk to a guitar tutor and ask for tips and advice. 

Enjoyment is the key to learning fast. Image courtesy of Matt Clark, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr. 

Try also overcoming the problem by slightly tweaking the way you do it. Can you achieve the same results without using the exact correct technique? 

By analysing your playing, you can pick up the problem points and start focusing on them in your future practices. 

The right guitar technique can add a lot of depth to your playing, but it isn’t the only important part to learn. Playing the guitar should be primarily about having fun, so you should never keep at it if it doesn’t seem enjoyable. 

Mix your guitar practice, take breaks and analyse your playing – these are the keys to fast learnin