(More Than) Three Chords and the Truth

Time for an update on my "progress" in learning the acoustic guitar. But first:

'All Along the Watchtower' Quote

All I got is a red guitar
Three chords
And the truth

All I got is a red guitar
The rest is up to you
-- from "All Along the Watchtower" by U2, from Rattle and Hum

Passionate Practicing

I got an acoustic guitar as an early Christmas present from my wife last December. I have been passionate about learning to play it since then, and I'm encouraged by my progress. I played an original song for my wife in front of some married members at church, and I currently play it during the children's ministry class I help to teach on Sundays.

That Dubious F-major Chord

Learning the F major chord is one of the hardest things for new guitarists, and I've been no exception. The hard part about it is that you're supposed to use the index finger to fret the first two strings: check out this picture. Getting this to work and making the strings ring has been a bit of a challeng.

Chord Progressions

This morning, however, while practicing, I finally figured out how to make it work. So I gave myself a bit of a pat on the back. BTW, I've learned that the chord progression: C-Am-F-G7 is the same progression used for "Heart and Soul" and other oldies. Now that I can play the F chord, I can do this progression.