Way back in 2010, I started researching the very first guitar course I made for Play It Loud (PIL), and looking back now 14 years later….

I can’t believe what I discovered after scouring through hundreds of books, magazines, and other guitar courses online to make the PIL Method as it is now. 

What’s the biggest reason I stuck through it all this time?

Because I freaking love making music and studying it. 

And it’s my duty to show what I uncovered after also being a trained journalist and researcher too. 

If you love music as much as I do, and can’t go a single hour without turning on Spotify, your iTunes, or a YouTube video to play in the background (good god things have changed since CDs and my 250 gig iPod)…..

Then this article will tell you about 6 of the most common problems I see in online guitar courses today in 2024 and into 2025….

Guitar Course Problem #1: So Much Is Left Out Of Beginner Learning Material! Not Even Exaggerating 

When I made the 1 Hour Beginner Guitar Method, I wanted to simplify and cut through a lot of the noise that comes when you first start learning the guitar…..

You don’t need to learn tons of chords shapes. You may have already learned a few of them. 

You don’t need to learn kiddy melodies and nursery rhymes. You can play lots of rock and metal songs as an absolute beginner. 

These are actually not what prevents people like you from getting better…..

 

The real problem is that you

1) don’t have an ear for the various sounds of the guitar yet and

2) you don’t have a method to break down all the tabs and match them to what you’re hearing. 

 

Now don’t go running thinking that I just revealed the secret because you can’t quite start learning yet…..

You can, but the PIL method helps by doing the following in just 1 Hour’s time: 

1) I give you a list of songs to learn. Learn them all, and you’ll be ready to be an intermediate guitar player 

2) I tell you HOW to play all those basic chords together, how to figure out mistakes you’re making, as well as the most common ones

3) I break down several songs by what left hand and right hand techniques you’ll have to use, which is also one of the most common pitfalls of absolute beginners

4) How to memorize lots of chords and scales easily, and thus remember more songs without remembering some sequence of numbers instead

 

Now because I call it the “1 Hour Beginner Method” doesn’t mean I’ll magically transform you into Eddie Van Halen or Buckethead. 

I just believe that all of this info has been revealed in a very inefficient way, and because of that it gets in the way of learning songs and practicing. 

After going through this one hour method, I’m confident you’ll be ready to go on your own and learn at least 80% of the guitar repertoire by yourself. 

But maybe skip Dream Theater’s “Dance Of Eternity” until you go through the rest of the method…..

 

Guitar Course Problem #2: Music Theory Is A Great Tool That Nobody Seems Able To Teach 

Knowing music theory not only allows you to learn songs much more quickly…..

But it also allows you to decode all your favorite songs and solos into what chord tones, intervals, rhythms, etc are being used so you can use them yourself when you start making music and/or jamming! 

By seeing what key you’re in, you’ll already know what chords to play….

By seeing what scales are used….you’re halfway to learning that solo…..

By recognizing the 10 or so musical intervals out there…..you’ll be able to learn songs quicker. 

And this is only the beginning! 

The PIL method is only focused on giving you a system for doing all of this.

I’m not trying to turn you into a jazz guitarist, an orchestrator, or a master of Bach fugues and canons (the forms used for complex counterpoint melody writing). 

All I do is take you on a tour of music theory on the guitar, using tabs of course, and I build everything with that low E note on the 6th string of your guitar. 

Like the 1 Hour Method, I can’t magically turn you into a Mozart, BUT you’ll be empowered with all the information to study your favorite artists and players almost immediately after you’re done. 

PLUS, I go even further with this……

I made exercises and a routine to help you practice using this stuff! 

Because what’s the use of knowing this stuff if you don’t USE IT!

 

Guitar Course Problem #3: I Hate The Focus On Licks In Lead Guitar 

Maybe the biggest reason I made the section I described before this one is that most instruction books, YouTube videos, and DVDS are all just basically:

“Watch me play these licks! Now you play them! See you later!” 

Like for real. 

I remember years ago being excited to find out that Brian May of Queen had made a video, but it was just that.

There was no explanation of why he chose the notes in those licks! 

And another big problem with licks……

How do you use them in your own solos?

So I created my “how-to” guide to guitar soloing that I called “The 12 Step Guitar Soloing Method.”

Whether I’m playing over a backing track, analyzing a solo, or writing one of my own….

I still go through all of these steps. 

And you don’t even have to use all 12 as the first 3-4 are really what helps the most! 

I can’t give it away here though as the process is the secret. 

Best of all, once you go through this part of the PIL method, you’ll have a much better way to use the licks you already know because you can BREAK THEM DOWN!

 

Guitar Course Problem #4: Songwriting, Lead Guitar, & Theory Overlap So A Different Method Is Needed 

I get that many of you have no aspirations to do anything in the title above. I thought I didn’t either….

Then I realized how much I love making music and later decided I wanted to do nothing else if I can. 

But how the crap do you go about doing this? 

I had no one to show me anything except guitar magazines, some websites (I started pre-YouTube), and a bunch of tab books. 

It was a long long trek trying to figure out how all the songs worked, and how I could recreate them. 

Which is why I decided to include what I call “The Brain Dead Simple Songwriting Method.”

(yes I called everything a method sue me)

I hold you by the hand and walk you through each step of writing songs, which I created after studying thousands and thousands of songs. 

I feel like most songwriters just focus on the lyrics, and not on melody or chord progressions, which is the rest of the song…..

And if you don’t want to be a songwriter? That’s alright. 

Knowing more about melody and harmony will only help you become a better rhythm or lead guitarist. 

Look at David Gilmour….

Guitar Course Problem #5: The Guitar Repertoire Is Dominated By Rock, Blues, & Metal. It’s Time To Open To More Genres Of Music

What got me into playing guitar and helped me process all the bad advice out there was that…..

The biggest songs in the guitar repertoire is what inspired me to keep playing and learning. 

Soon after I got into guitar, I discovered Led Zeppelin, Guns n’ Roses, Megadeth, and many many other bands and guitar players that still inspire us all today. 

But there’s been a big problem in the rock world…..

There’s no new bands out there to appeal to people younger than me (I’m 38). 

They’re into Taylor Swift, Megan the Stallion, Kendrick Lamar, various TikTok famous songs, and EDM.

That’s a vast generalization but I’m just making a point that many people aren’t interested in learning because the guitar isn’t as relevant to today’s music. 

 

So…..

I took lots of those songs and made them into guitar riffs. 

I want anyone and everyone who’s remotely interested to have a pathway to becoming a competent player….

And if I need to arrange lots of melodies into guitar riffs to do so then I’ll do it. 

I also like a lot of that music too so it works out. 

I’ve taken artists like the above and many many more, and made them accessible to beginner guitar players and advanced too, if you’re looking for a challenge. 

 

My Solution: I Want To Teach You The Music You Love, Or Learn How To Figure It Out

Many methods just give you chord charts, scale patterns, and regurgitated guitar tabs. 

They have nothing new to say and are just looking for a buck.

When I made my first product, called the Clueless Beginners Guitar Course, I repeated a lot of the same things they have. 

So I dug deeper and thought hard about what I might have done differently, or maybe reveal what no one else is telling you. 

 

And the biggest things I discovered is that: 

1) Guitar is a lot easier to learn if someone just helps you develop your ear. This way, you can spot the sounds in the recordings, and then match them to the tabs

2) Music theory is an incredibly useful tool for learning tabs, improvising solos, and writing songs. It’s just been made way too difficult to use. 

3) It’s much easier to create a method for guitar when they take beginner guitar, theory, lead guitar, and songwriting all into one place. 

 

Now my method doesn’t reveal everything you need to know about playing guitar.

It reveals the 90% of knowledge that’s going to help you progress every time you pick up the guitar. 

The other 10% will come from practice and pushing yourself out of your comfort zone. 

When I taught at Guitar Center, the students who didn’t progress were the ones who didn’t use this knowledge, and who only played once a week during our lessons. 

There’s a much better way! 

And I’ve spent 14 years working on it……

Check out the Play It Loud Method and see for yourself!