How many songs can you learn in one day?

[Bird]

Just a little hypothetical situation. As the title says, and you've got a gig the next night. Let's say Poison, AC/DC level of difficulty, and you're learning them from scratch for this scenario. But only one day.

[noodleplugerine]

Depends on how well you know the songs.

For me the most difficult part of learning a song is knowing the layout - The riffs etc are all a case of muscle memory.

If it's a more tricky song - Thinking more Technical Difficulties level, the problems lie in getting the licks to speed - Which often takes careful repetition if you want to be able to play it controlled.

Edit: I still don't know why I'm awake at 6:30..

[Bird]

In this hypothetical scenario you're not familiar with them.  8)

[CUBE]

i had to learn 50 tunes in 3 days before, in a style i was not familiar with.
   i  failed  :(.. but still did the gig..LMAO

 where ya playing?

[Bird]

No gig, I'm just having a debate, with a drummer :roll: , about how many songs can be learned in a day.

[Twinfan]

Depends how long a day is?

I've learned around 4 new to me AC/DC tracks in a 5 or so hours session before now.  That's a song I've rarely heard, if ever, and includes the solos.

[hunter]

Depends hugely. Usually I can play them rather quick, but then I discover details and variations along the way later, which is more of an ongoing process. I am still enhancing songs I learned >10 years ago but through newly acquired knowledge I am better able to refine them and get closer to the original.

Also AC/DC songs, they seem so easy inthe first place, and you can quickly play them using power chords or simple open chords, but to play them spot on with all the variations and subtleties is a real bitch to get right, same goes for most other decent rock bands.

[indysmith]

i can never play anyone else's songs, lol. I have a tendency to forget the layout, and then if i do, when it gets to the solo i'm screwed - I can't play other folks solos AT ALL - unless they're pretty simple.

[nfe]

I've learnt plenty wedding band sets in a day when I've been asked to dep last minute, nowadays it's rare that I don't know 95% of them, but when I was first getting into the dep scene i'd quite often have to learn 30-40 songs well enough to gig in two or three days, so say 10-15 a day. But this is by no means knowing them inside out and I'd be going to gig with another 4-5 musicians who DID know them inside out.

[sambo]

are we talking learn WITH a band/other musicians or learning just the guitar piece independently, excluding all other musicians?

'cause that's quite a significant difference.

for the latter, i would say 5-10? not perfectly of course and depending on how long the "day" was.

[Philly Q]

I'm impressed, guys.  I have no aptitude at all for picking up songs.  Maybe I should finally accept once and for all I'm not cut out for this guitar lark.

I'm going to give up music...









...and become a drummer.

[sambo]

NOOO NOT THE DARK SIDE!

:drums:  :plasma:  :gib:  :rock:  :trans:  :impact:  :rip:  :enforcer:  :flak:  :bio:  :shock:


on a serious note- it all really depends on the difficulty... i mean... if "learning a song" is playing a few chords in a couple of different sequences.... then y'know... i'm sure even you could do that philly....    :lol:  :lol:

[Bird]

are we talking learn WITH a band/other musicians or learning just the guitar piece independently, excluding all other musicians?

'cause that's quite a significant difference.

for the latter, i would say 5-10? not perfectly of course and depending on how long the "day" was.

Learning the pieces on your own.  :)

[Philly Q]

if "learning a song" is playing a few chords in a couple of different sequences.... then y'know... i'm sure even you could do that philly....    :lol:  :lol:

Don't bet on it, young man...  

Seriously, I could have a stab at figuring out a riff or two using root/fifth powerchords, but in the sense of actually learning the "proper" parts, getting it in the right key (and register) or working out (by ear) a chord with more than two notes... not a chance.    

I do have the feeling that if I tried hard and learned a few songs, then it would become much easier (if we're still talking about the Poison, AC/DC type stuff).  But I have decades of not-trying-very-hard to contend with, it's a bit of a mental barrier.

[noodleplugerine]

But Phil - When we're working with a deadline I think EVERYONE here would be using notation of some sort.