My Year Of Everything

“A Devil To Play” chronicles author Jasper Rees’ year trying to learn the French Horn well enough to play a solo before the British Horn Society. Good stuff. 

Ben and his band The Mighty Regis are about to embark on the Warped Tour, and he just found out he’s getting endorsed by Fender Guitars. He’s been giddily special-ordering guitars, and I’ve been jealous. I want a new guitar! You know, to join my other guitar, sitting forlorn and unplayed in the bedroom.

How I’ve longed to skip over the frustrating learning part and go right to sexily playing!

Learning an instrument is like learning a language, and for me, guitar is Space Japanese. I just can’t make my stupid stubby sausage fingers go where they’re supposed to. Frustrating to the max. I’ve stopped and started a half-dozen times in the last decade. 

But you know what? I’m going to take some time out of my busy waiting-for-NBC-to-make-a-decision schedule and learn me some guitar. Enough excuses. 

All you need is three chords and the truth, right? How’s about one chord and Wikipedia?