Learning to Play the Guitar - The First Songs

So, after learning a few basic chords, as outlined in this post, it's time to select a few songs.  With the Cowboy and power chords in your tool set, you'll likely be able to find a popular song you appreciate with relative ease.

Here are a few things to keep in mind regarding practice, especially when using songs from tab sites sourced from user contributions:

• The songs as written are likely to have errors, including the wrong chords, or even the wrong key in some cases.
• If you're playing something that contradicts what's written or need to simplify it, and it still adheres to spirit of the song you're trying to capture, trust your ear.  You'll never actually play the song as the original artists recorded it (they won't either, since they did so in a studio after multiple takes).  So, take the song and make it your own, however minor the difference may be.
• Feel free to slow the song down to a ridiculously slow tempo until you feel have the rhythm worked out.
• If the song has a new chord or two, look up a fingering for the new chord that has a root note on both the 6th string and 5th string and add it to your repertoire.  By finding 2 voicings of a chord, you're able to play it either low or high on the neck, which gives you a much wider range of expression later on.
• As you grow comfortable with a song, make sure to utilize a drum track to help your rhythm.  Also, as you make mistakes, try not to pause or restart.  Professional musicians make mistakes all the time, but find ways to gracefully recover.
• Pick 2 songs at a time, so practicing doesn't become tedious.  When you begin to get bored, pick up another.  This will give your brain some time to relax and refocus.  Just make sure that you continue to practice the original songs as well.  A little break will often give you new perspective on your routine.