 If you are like most of us musically minded wannabes, you may be conflicted on how to split your practice time.
For example you may juggling your practice time learning covers for your band, working on your own originals or striving for mastery over the instrument of your choice. I do all three! I remember when I began to really develop my chops, practicing only new licks and scales for soloing. I did get noticeably better at solos but as soon I joined the next cover band, I was off to learn new songs, and doing only that. I learned new songs but after awhile I began to slip back to old habits and my solos suffered. That’s when I realized that if I wanted to stay current with new material, be able to write some of my own and to keep developing as a player I needed a system. This is what helped me.
This system isn’t perfect and will vary a little day by day, but it does keep me focused on the big picture. Good Luck!
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Reverb can be a wonderful thing, it can really bring your sound to life, and I always like to have at least a little reverb going on to fatten things up. I do have some amps that don’t have reverb so adding a digital reverb pedal is a no brainer for me in that case, but is there any reason I would use a reverb pedal on an amp that already has reverb? I can think of two reasons right away.  I think most of us have played on a hollow stage that your footsteps echo on as you walk. If your amp has a spring reverb that can be a problem you can get that banging sound of the springs when the springs move around and hit the reverb tank. A great solution is to just turn off the amps reverb and use a pedal. Another reason to use a digital reverb is variety and control. Sure, a spring reverb sounds great but sometimes variety is a great thing to have. Most Digital Reverbs will have Room and Grand Hall Reverb options, this option will simulate the sound of a natural reverb caused by the size of the room. You can get a huge sound using a Grand Hall option making it sound like you are in a huge room. The best thing to do is just experiment and use your ears! A variety of reverb sounds can really spice up your tone.
 If you have ever felt like a slave to your music stand and lyric sheets to the point that you wouldn’t dare to perform without them. This tip is for you. I have had the pleasure of being lead singer in more than one cover band. I have had to learn and memorize hundreds of songs which for a while was quite difficult for me. I tried many tricks to help in this endeavor including countless ‘listens” to a tune, singing along as I read the words, as well as listening to each verse and then writing down the verse from memory over and over and…. However this did not do the trick. What I have found that works, (without an instrument in my hand) is to simply break the song down in pieces and learning it this way; sing with the first verse as you read the words, then turn the page over and see how far you can get. Repeat this process until you can get through the verse at least 6 times before going on to the next part. Take the next part the same way and so on.  I can’t promise this will work for you, but if you are struggling as I was it is worth a try. Good Luck and never quit singing!
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