[Gaetano Paul]

Yeah how are you doing with this bud?

[rook3207]

Less is more. I don't use a lot of delay except for a couple of songs and have a little dirt but not so much that notes are not defined. I don't see anything wrong with doing something a little flashy but like I stated at the beginning. Less is more.

[Bushman]

+1 on the Paul Baloche DVD series. Especially the electric guitar DVD.
If you would like to get a little preview, you can download the Companion Booklets
Here: http://www.leadworship.com/electricg...tricguitar.pdf
They have a lot of info about triads and inversions of triads that are super useful.

[Kenman22]

Thanks for the extra info. The gig I was planning to brush up on the modern P&W styles for got cancelled, so I fell back into my old 80's metal ways and forgot about learning CCM for awhile. Now that it looks like I might be playing again in a church band, I've begun to look at the lessons again. Hoping these will get me up to speed on playing competently in a modern worship band setting.

[funkStrat_97]

Originally Posted by Kenman22

Thanks for the extra info. The gig I was planning to brush up on the modern P&W styles for got cancelled, so I fell back into my old 80's metal ways and forgot about learning CCM for awhile. Now that it looks like I might be playing again in a church band, I've begun to look at the lessons again. Hoping these will get me up to speed on playing competently in a modern worship band setting.

Quite frankly, this really isn't a problem. In fact, we should all just go back to the 80's and live happily ever after!!!!

But in all honesty, much of the modern P & W is so much more simpler than 80's metal that you'll have no trouble adapting. Perhaps you can even find ways to incorporate some of those old school licks here and there.

[Kenman22]

I think Lincoln Brewster is a great example of a technically advanced guitar player fitting into a modern P&W setting. He can blaze with the best of them but still knows how to make it work for the song. He's probably my favorite player in CCM right now and a good example of someone who can "play out" without making it sound pretentious or like it's grandstanding.

[jimmy bone]

man, i would just use your influences that u have already, and create your own style. alot of the advice here is telling you to basically be a carboncopy of everyone else in the p&w system.as you can see, the best leaders dont do what everyone else does, they are themselves and play from the heart using what they already know.dont be pressed into a mold of sounding exactly like the norm.in general, that can get really boring.and boring p&w music does not minister to people as effectively. i have a rock/metal background which i have used to give my music more of an edge. i have had just as many people like it as not liking it.you cant please everyone. just be yourself.dont throw yourself out just to be someone else. that advice could be for any area of life.

[Gaetano Paul]

Originally Posted by jimmy bone

man, i would just use your influences that u have already, and create your own style. alot of the advice here is telling you to basically be a carboncopy of everyone else in the p&w system.as you can see, the best leaders dont do what everyone else does, they are themselves and play from the heart using what they already know.dont be pressed into a mold of sounding exactly like the norm.in general, that can get really boring.and boring p&w music does not minister to people as effectively. i have a rock/metal background which i have used to give my music more of an edge. i have had just as many people like it as not liking it.you cant please everyone. just be yourself.dont throw yourself out just to be someone else. that advice could be for any area of life.

This is very good advice. BUTTTTT every see the classic rock guy, or nerdy jazz guy, jump on the worship team and just do guitar solo's 97% of the time, chorus, verse, bridge, ministry time whatever SOLOS Or doing 9th and seventh chords when the song is pushing in a totally different way?

The Lord does honor studying those guitarist who are leading the way in P&W, not to be a carbon copy of course.

[jwbrownlula]

I agree with that. Use your talent to add when it calls for it, the rest of the time know your role. If you need to be laying down power chord rhythm, lay down power chord rhythm. The other guitarist on my team wants to be different so bad he won't use delay. Dude sometimes cliché is good. If I want to be original I will write original music. I might put my own spin on things, but not where it becomes a distraction. I love to hear someone shred it up every once in a while, if it is an addition to the song.

[jimmy bone]

ya i agree. i didnt mean just sit up there and shred. i just think we shouldnt completely throw away our metal influence. so we can use that knowledge and part of that sound and bring it into the mix. but not to make it a distraction. especially no zebra-striped stretch pants....... :-)

[Gaetano Paul]

I have even seen churches call in "P&W guitarists" to come play, because there guitarist is a jazz nut and only does what I described above. They have him completely off in the house. Now that is non confrontational Christianity right there

I have also been the guy they call in and it feels really awkward. Especially when they dont tell you he is not in the house, so during say "your grace is enough" you are trying to play around this guy doing mixolydioan runs and what not

[gtrdave]

It's one thing to operate within your strengths.
It's another to fail to continue to learn new ways and styles and techniques simply because you're to proud and/or complacent to be a team player in a band that may be trying to achieve a particular sound that you're not quite comfortable with.
I say that as the guy who used to wear spandex and played most of the Hollywood clubs in the '80s and early '90s.
It's good that I have all of that influence to draw from, but I can't and won't live there forever and anyone on my team knows this as reality. Anyone who joins the team knows that whatever they did before is honorable and respected (regardless of how embarrassing it seems now...), but musical complacency is not.
I am always wanting to sing to God a "new song". That means, to me and among other things, to always be willing to grow and adapt and learn so that the "new song" actually sounds somewhat new.

We should NEVER stop learning.

[Vanguard17]

Originally Posted by Kenman22

I recently joined a Praise & Worship band and will be the lead guitarist. Since this church is catered to high school and college kids, the main style is CCM, in the vein of Hillsong, New Life Worship, Desperation Band, etc.. Problem is, my approach to playing guitar is based in heavy/hard rock ala 80's metal with the heavy opening riff, I-VI-V structure, and the shred solo. It's great to know this style, but being able to flawlessly execute a Motley Crue, Ozzy, or Extreme song won't necessarily work in my favor in getting kids excited in praise. Has anyone else here had this problem? I need to know the tricks of this style of playing, ala ringing chords, repeated dyads, etc. in order to be successful in this band.

First thing I need to know is what effects do I need? I know lots of delay and some overdrive but what else? How much delay do you use? I have a strat and a Roland VG-88 that can emulate nearly any amp, but would like some guidelines on how to create the "sound".

And the actual style of modern worship? Any good instructional DVD's or lessons on playing modern worship or do I just need to buy two Hillsong CD's and learn the parts to "distill" the essence of P&W? What are some benchmarks or "tricks" of this style (ala strum arpeggios on higher frets, play in 8-notes, etc.)?

A loaded question, but I don't want my style to be fighting with the band and want to be able to hang with them as well as deliver what is necessary for a P&W band. Thanks.

I know where you are coming from. I would recommend you take a listen to many of Kutless' rock songs because they feature many modern rock elements, but as far as a definition of modern rock, you've got me.

Here's what I would do:

Lower the gain on the amplifier- the less, the better.

Play with less distortion.

Don't break into fast shredding solos- do some solos. They are often short, repetitive licks.

You won't need to speed pick very much. Many times, like Kutless ( use these guys because they play all varieties of music except metal), you will use distortion, but you will play slower and let notes ring out.

I hope I helped.

[r3vo1ution1991]

Originally Posted by Gaetano Paul

This is very good advice. BUTTTTT every see the classic rock guy, or nerdy jazz guy, jump on the worship team and just do guitar solo's 97% of the time, chorus, verse, bridge, ministry time whatever SOLOS Or doing 9th and seventh chords when the song is pushing in a totally different way?

The Lord does honor studying those guitarist who are leading the way in P&W, not to be a carbon copy of course.

To kinda play off this, I think you do want to have your own unique voice and not be the "traditional" P&W guitarist, but rather expand what it means to be a P&W guitarist. I know for the worship band I'm in at my school the lead singer appreciates me for my effort to make things not sound so cookie cutter P&W, but trying to experiment with different leads and solos. There has been a few times when he has told me to rewrite a lead line or what have you to a well known worship song (recently it was Happy Day by Tim Hughes) because he thinks they are a lame :P. I know one person that has really helped me with that is Lincoln Brewster. He came out of the 80's rock n roll (he played for Steve Perry before playing worship stuff), and he is able to incorporate that into his playing, but doing so tastefully, and I think that's the key. He said in a video once that he only puts a solo in a song if the solo will add something to the song. He likes to shred, but he only does it when the song calls for it. I play both metal and jazz, and it's finding that happy medium of playing to your strengths, but doing so within the confines of the song.

[dclella1]

I'm in my mid-50's now, and I've had to switch musical genres and styles a few times...also go from rhythm to bass to lead. I found the best way to break out of any style is to stop using effects altogether for a while, and try to make you guitar alone sound like you want. Using the effects you are used to tends to keep you in your old style.