6 months into jazz - overwhelmed and not sure where to focus. Advice?

**joe2758** · 06-10-2026, 01:12 PM

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Im actually huge on licks. But i think articulation is something you should learn organically by listening, singing, and learning lines, not by taking a rule and trying to apply it.

I mean, you were a beginner once-- don't you remember how easy it is to get caught up in minutiae?

absolutely! still sound like one, and i blame getting caught up in minutiae.

I guess I have just been so stuck for so long and when I switched to focusing on vocab, timing/articulation I improved faster than I ever have in 20 years of playing (although, I stop guitar for years at a time and sometimes focus on classical..so maybe 5 years cumulative of jazz).

I've been blabbing about it here for a couple weeks...probably talking to my beginner self I guess. Makes more sense to listen to you guys who are better, but at the same time it's hard to turn down that personal experience excitement

**pamosmusic** · 06-10-2026, 01:15 PM

It sounds like you guys are saying the same thing.

I think maybe the caution an old fart would give someone super excited about progress they're making learning vocab and stuff is to not try and condense it into rules too quickly. So maybe that's where Mr. B is going with it. Keep learning the vocab, but maybe be aware of our tendency to let rules take over for ears.

**Tal_175** · 06-10-2026, 01:15 PM

Playing with the recordings doesn't get mentioned enough, I think.

**joe2758** · 06-10-2026, 01:23 PM

Originally Posted by pamosmusic

It sounds like you guys are saying the same thing.

I think maybe the caution an old fart would give someone super excited about progress they're making learning vocab and stuff is to not try and condense it into rules too quickly. So maybe that's where Mr. B is going with it. Keep learning the vocab, but maybe be aware of our tendency to let rules take over for ears.

Good advice!

So by rules taking over you mean I might get in the habit of playing a phrase because I know it will fit, even if I could play something better?

Anyway I look at what I'm doing now as a bridge, I don't think it's the answer as an "approach"

Just saying if I was a beginner, that's how I wish I started

**rpjazzguitar** · 06-10-2026, 01:27 PM

I agree with getting a teacher, focusing on tunes, having fun.

All the stuff about nuts and bolts is, to me, arguable. There are as many ways to learn to play as there are players. Sure, there are commonalities, but for every great player there's another who did it a different way.

One way of thinking about it, which is probably not the mainstream, is that you only need to do two things to solo. One is to be able to imagine a good line and the other is to make it come out of the speaker.

So, if you can already scat sing a line you like, then all you need to do is practice thinking of lines and playing them instantly. If you can't scat sing a line you like, or you get bored with what you're coming up with, then it's time to lift stuff from records. I say "lift" because you don't need to write anything down, although it wouldn't hurt.

If you go full nuts and bolts, you have to be careful not to fall into a bottomless abyss. And, if you ever escape you'll still end up needing to learn tunes and imagine good sounding lines.

BTW, by "full nuts and bolts" I'm thinking of advice I saw in an online forum years ago. It recommended trying every possible triad pair against every possible bass note in every key. I don't recall how many places on the neck. To me, it's ridiculous. It's hard enough to get one new sound into your playing. Trying to incorporate 1.34 zillion sounds in one practice regimen, well, words fail. Of course, not all technical advice is bad, but a lot of it is optional.

One quick anecdote on nuts and bolts. At a jazz camp, I was able to record one of my favorite players playing through a ii V I in C. He sounded incredible and exactly like himself -- as if only he was privvy to this special harmony. But this time, I knew the chords and they were simple. So I transcribed the line. All my excitement turned out to be about Galt. That is, the same scale I already used. The point is that complete mastery of the nuts and bolts doesn't mean you're going to sound great. You still have to turn all that debris into music, somehow. And, the "somehow" usually involves, listening, lifting and playing tunes with others. And, to twist it further, that player is actually encyclopedic about theory. But, I think his superpowers are enormous ears and a truly vivid musical imagination.

The only other advice I'd offer is to avoid becoming distracted once you're on a sensible path. There is so much great music and so many great players that it's easy to get derailed.

**emanresu** · 06-10-2026, 01:37 PM

The overwhelming feeling just a while after beginning - so common
Maybe because so many things you never knew about even existing before suddenly become things you only merely know about and not be able perform with complete comfort.

But yeah, get 10ish very likeable tunes and each with a different "quirk", learn and try to play those well in various ways.
Then, the next 10 takes way less time probably. Because lot more of the massive assortment (what is happening theory-wise) is already familiar by then.

Hm, one thing that actually helped to see through the chaos was to bring them pieces into one key. A bit of hassle but it kinda simplified them all and got a better clue about what's happening in a tune harmonically.

**AllanAllen** · 06-10-2026, 01:45 PM

If you can't find someone to play jazz with, or think there is nobody else interested in jazz, go to blues jams or open mics wearing a Miles Davis t-shit until someone talks to you about it.

"Nice shirt, Miles is great"
"Thanks, do you play?"

**onezeho** · 06-10-2026, 01:54 PM

Originally Posted by AllanAllen

If you can't find someone to play jazz with, or think there is nobody else interested in jazz, go to blues jams or open mics wearing a Miles Davis t-shit until someone talks to you about it.

"Nice shirt, Miles is great"
"Thanks, do you play?"

haha, good advice!

**jazzloverfat** · 06-10-2026, 10:39 PM

Originally Posted by onezeho

Yes, I listen to a lot of jazz, but right now it's a pretty chaotic process - I try to listen attentively through full albums but it doesn't always work out. I don't have a favourite artist yet that I could keep coming back to again and again. Trumpet players are what I love most. Here's what resonates with me so far:

Kind of Blue by Miles Davis - I love putting it on late at night
Kenny Dorham, Gerry Mulligan, Cannonball Adderley, Johnny Hodges
Atomic Basie - a big love, I adore it

I listen to others in bits and pieces and enjoy them too, but haven't given them the proper attention yet: Bill Evans, Louis Armstrong, Dizzy, Charlie Parker, Chet Baker, Brubeck, Hancock
I haven't listened to much guitar - it somehow put me off, not sure why. The one thing I love from Joe Pass is Offbeat from Virtuoso #3

When I said "rhythmically falling apart" I meant that when I try to transcribe rhythm, I lose the plot - I can't hear the subdivisions and sometimes can't even lock in with the basic pulse. I recently tried to transcribe the piano melody from Louis Armstrong's A Kiss to Build a Dream On, but when I started putting it into Guitar Pro I got completely lost with the rhythm

Any listening recommendations are welcome!

I can relate to so much of what you said!
Re: listening habits, I LOVE trumpet players and it's pretty much what got me into jazz in the first place (I came to it through rap and hip hop tracks that sampled jazz and I wanted to hear more of that). While I like playing guitar, I feel the same way about listening to jazz so I am VERY picky about what kind of purely jazz guitar music I listen to; oddly I do not have this issue w blues or rock ¯\_("/)_/¯

As for recommendations, here's a couple random things jazz guitar that I could listen to on repeat:
first, from Jim Hall: Jim Hall & Pat Metheny (it's a collab album and one of the best I've heard) and Concierto (for the lineup and for the Concierto de Aranjuez track which is one of my absolute fav pieces for classical guitar)
next, Julian Lage - Live in Los Angeles (songs from his Arclight album, also available as a hi-def YT vod so you can see the magik not just hear it)

**onezeho** · 06-11-2026, 04:19 AM

Originally Posted by jazzloverfat

I can relate to so much of what you said!
Re: listening habits, I LOVE trumpet players and it's pretty much what got me into jazz in the first place (I came to it through rap and hip hop tracks that sampled jazz and I wanted to hear more of that). While I like playing guitar, I feel the same way about listening to jazz so I am VERY picky about what kind of purely jazz guitar music I listen to; oddly I do not have this issue w blues or rock ¯\_("/)_/¯

As for recommendations, here's a couple random things jazz guitar that I could listen to on repeat:
first, from Jim Hall: Jim Hall & Pat Metheny (it's a collab album and one of the best I've heard) and Concierto (for the lineup and for the Concierto de Aranjuez track which is one of my absolute fav pieces for classical guitar)
next, Julian Lage - Live in Los Angeles (songs from his Arclight album, also available as a hi-def YT vod so you can see the magik not just hear it)

Thank you for the recommendations, I will definitely give them a listen

**bumblebee** · 06-11-2026, 05:30 AM

Originally Posted by onezeho

Thanks for the replies guys! A teacher is tricky right now, but I'll try to sort that out.

Then get a good Method book. I've seen lots of recommendations for Beginning Jazz Guitar by Jody Fisher.

I'm not a jazz guitarist. Never will be. I just can't take jazz for more than 5-6 minutes. At first I'm spellbound by the sheer beauty of it, and then I'm like: Stop it. It's driving me nuts. Can't stand another minute of it. Sensory overload maybe.

I started guitar almost a year ago. I checked out Youtube and playing all-chord songs before even knowing the notes seemed weird to me. Besides, I can't stand most chords unless they're broken. Now that I'm doing Leavitt's Method, I hold the chord shape, check each note, melt with the loveliness of a broken chord, strum, WINCE, break the chord again & decide for the umpteenth time I'm not quitting the guitar despite its vile chords (far worse than piano chords).

I learned the notes and the fretboard cold by doing most of Tom Bruner's Sight Reading for the Contemporary Guitarist (the first 3 out of his 4 fretboard regions, I'm not touching the 4th region before I'm getting a cutaway). Of course I wasn't using the book the way Bruner meant it to be used. It took long months of daily practice because I'm playing without looking, but it was worth it. Then I was at a loss, a bit like you, though you know so much more than I do, so I looked for a method book. Nothing beats a good method book. It takes you by the hand and guides you where you want to go.

Edited to add: Troy Stetina's Fretboard Mastery might be useful for you as well.

**GuyBoden** · 06-11-2026, 06:35 AM

Originally Posted by marcwhy

So, what does your teacher recommend right now?

Originally Posted by wolflen

Yes as marcshy asks..I would recommend a very good teacher.

Originally Posted by pamosmusic

Getting a teacher is probably the best advice, and a good teacher will probably just be guiding you through this.

Originally Posted by brent.h

Yes, get a teacher. It will save you a lot of time.

Originally Posted by starjasmine

Yes, get a teacher!

Originally Posted by brent.h

When you finally find your teacher, tell him/her that you want to learn how to swing.

Originally Posted by Hep To The Jive

Really seek them out, they are world class and good teachers.

Originally Posted by rpjazzguitar

I agree with getting a teacher

Having read all the replies, the over whelming advice seems to be: "Get a Teacher"

**CliffR** · 06-11-2026, 08:22 AM

I think the OP said getting a teacher wasn't practical for them at the moment. If it's a question of locality, then remote lessons by Zoom worked for me. Otherwise, maybe an online course by one of the better youtube jazz educators. I got a lot out of Jens Larsen's Jazz Guitar Roadmap, which is aimed towards folks just getting into jazz.

**AllanAllen** · 06-11-2026, 09:36 AM

Originally Posted by bumblebee

I'm not a jazz guitarist. Never will be. I just can't take jazz for more than 5-6 minutes. At first I'm spellbound by the sheer beauty of it, and then I'm like: Stop it. It's driving me nuts. Can't stand another minute of it. Sensory overload maybe.

Why are you here then? It's intriguing that someone who can't stand jazz is taking time to visit and comment on a jazz guitar forum.

I'm not trying to be rude, but just want to know what's the story. For example, we have a regular poster who is a working blues musician that came to cop licks.

**joe2758** · 06-11-2026, 10:02 AM

Originally Posted by bumblebee

Then get a good Method book. I've seen lots of recommendations for Beginning Jazz Guitar by Jody Fisher.

I'm not a jazz guitarist. Never will be. I just can't take jazz for more than 5-6 minutes. At first I'm spellbound by the sheer beauty of it, and then I'm like: Stop it. It's driving me nuts. Can't stand another minute of it. Sensory overload maybe.

I started guitar almost a year ago. I checked out Youtube and playing all-chord songs before even knowing the notes seemed weird to me. Besides, I can't stand most chords unless they're broken. Now that I'm doing Leavitt's Method, I hold the chord shape, check each note, melt with the loveliness of a broken chord, strum, WINCE, break the chord again & decide for the umpteenth time I'm not quitting the guitar despite its vile chords (far worse than piano chords).

I learned the notes and the fretboard cold by doing most of Tom Bruner's Sight Reading for the Contemporary Guitarist (the first 3 out of his 4 fretboard regions, I'm not touching the 4th region before I'm getting a cutaway). Of course I wasn't using the book the way Bruner meant it to be used. It took long months of daily practice because I'm playing without looking, but it was worth it. Then I was at a loss, a bit like you, though you know so much more than I do, so I looked for a method book. Nothing beats a good method book. It takes you by the hand and guides you where you want to go.

Edited to add: Troy Stetina's Fretboard Mastery might be useful for you as well.

Best first post in history

**GuyBoden** · 06-11-2026, 11:24 AM

No excuses, the OP needs to 'Get a Teacher' or they'll be going around in circles for many, many years with very little improvement.

Sorry, but Method Books are great for gathering dust on the shelf, with the occasional visit. IMO.

Edit: My BookShelf

But, it's only my hobby, so what do I know.

**bumblebee** · 06-11-2026, 11:42 AM

But a method book IS a teacher. It's the very best of the teacher who wrote it. Letting a method book gather dust on a shelf is like hiring a teacher but showing up for a lesson once in a blue moon. The uselessness of a method book isn't inherent in the book itself. It derives from what you do with the book. I started going around in circles before I found Leavitt, and now I feel I'm on the right path & actually progressing.

**Reg** · 06-11-2026, 11:47 AM

Lots of good advice....

Your never going to get very good at playing in a jazz style... or playing jazz tunes...

Unless you get your technical skills together. Your technical skills on the guitar, the fretboard etc...

Takes 6 months to a couple years, depending your routine and time organization etc...

Without technical skills... the best you can do is memorize and play what you have memorized.

Jazz is complicated... soloing is at best 25% of your playing.

Most of the time your comping, so also get your comping technical skills together.

I've posted lots of material ... but I'll try and post some new material if your interested...

**bumblebee** · 06-11-2026, 12:00 PM

**AllanAllen** · 06-11-2026, 12:08 PM

Originally Posted by bumblebee

But a method book IS a teacher. It's the very best of the teacher who wrote it. Letting a method book gather dust on a shelf is like hiring a teacher but showing up for a lesson once in a blue moon. The uselessness of a method book isn't inherent in the book itself. It derives from what you do with the book. I started going around in circles before I found Leavitt, and now I feel I'm on the right path & actually progressing.

Yeah, I agree here.

Get a book and stick with it, Leavitt, Fisher, or my boy Mickey Baker. Just finish any intro to jazz guitar book, the technical skills Reg talks about are covered in them all.

Buying 10 books and finishing none of them will get you GuyBoden's bookshelf.

**GuyBoden** · 06-11-2026, 12:09 PM

Originally Posted by Reg

Lots of good advice....

Your never going to get very good at playing in a jazz style... or playing jazz tunes...

Unless you get your technical skills together. Your technical skills on the guitar, the fretboard etc...

Takes 6 months to a couple years, depending your routine and time organization etc...

Without technical skills... the best you can do is memorize and play what you have memorized.

Jazz is complicated... soloing is at best 25% of your playing.

Most of the time your comping, so also get your comping technical skills together.

I've posted lots of material ... but I'll try and post some new material if your interested...

Listen closely to Reg, he knows how to play Jazz.