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First off LR look for my Beginner's Electric songbook on chordie, they're all songs that need electric but are easy to play.

Second, how are your barre chords? Alot of electric playing derives from barres. Powerchords, licks etc.

Second if you've got scales going on look for a song solo that matches them. Some solos really are just rising scales at various points on the neck. I reckon 'Louie Louie' is a good solo to start with as although it's fast there's no sudden tempo changes and it's all 5th 7th and 8th frets (user first, ring and pinkie fingers right down on the fret).

The neck pickup will give a warm fat tone. If you leave distortion off and maybe add some reverb/echo it'll be very country/blues in sound.

The bridge pickup is harsher, thinner. Turn on the gain/overdrive and it'll give you the basic rock sound.

That's not to say you can't mix and match. Turn down the volume and mid the tone on the bridge pickup and you've got an early sixties group sound, sharp and twangy. Turn up the distortion of the neck pickup and you've got a snarling roar.

Keep experimenting and you should find the comfortable playing sounds your Evo can create (although one-trick crazy effects can be fun!).

Hi noise, power chords are reduced or simplified chords often requiring only 2 fingers but...

If you are playing acoustic they won't sound like much. Power chords work best on distorted electric guitar, this is because the amplifier gain introduces 'intermodulation' which makes it sound like there's a third string.

Sounds great for beginner's but there's a catch, playing just the two strings you want is actually quite tricky, certainly not as fun as straight strumming.

Best to leave power chords till you have barre shapes nailed (since alot of power chords derive from the leading two fingers of a barre). They are used alot in metal and heavy rock styles though.

Who are AAR? What kind of a sound are you after? Distorted sounds can vary alot depending on the amplifier. Most amps can give a decent fuzzy grunt but if you are after a particular metal style then you may want a virtual amplifier like the Pod2 or Vamp2, these have a whole heap of presets and you can tweak amp settings to your hearts content. If you still hanker after a special amp sound they'll give you alot of clues about what kind of amp you need.

Jay and Jerome are leagues ahead of me Detman but what I've found is that not all rock is based around the blues, some uses 4 chord progressions more usual in 50s/60s pop.

IMHO there's nothing more rock than G A D, as say in 'Get Back' or 'You Shook Me All Night Long', A and D shuffle along then lightning fast you crash in a strong G and then the D chord chimes in against it. Open G and D being two very disimilar chords.

Ways to select;

1) Record yourself playing all your best songs on camera or with a computer mike. Leave some time and then review it. Don't get critical of yourself, just look for solidity.

2) Which songs can you always play even when tired, nervous, drunk... Look for songs that support you, safety net songs.

3) What people know. Pure Top40 radio fodder. You might think people would be more critical if they know a song well but actually they'll do half the singing for you...

Ta Rebel, 7) Remember guitars are personal, one person's 'uh-oh' is another person's 'hey wow!'.
8) Remember even within one Brand and one model guitars vary. You may just hit on the guitar that got superior body wood through some fluke...

1) Go to guitar shop, pick up guitars, learn about weight, shape and feel. Some electrics are seriously heavy/uncomfortable.
2) Avoid Fender and Gibson - expensive. Avoid Squier - cheap. Check out Yamaha, Ibanez, Lag, Tokai...
3) Ask to try out some guitars, don't try to play anything fancy, just listen for a good sound.
4) Look to buy a basic 10W practice amp; volume, tone, overdrive/gain.
5) If you really want crazy metal effects a Line6 Pod or Vamp2 will burn away the hours.
6) Consider starting with an acoustic, they have an easier learning curve but it's a matter of taste, if you've gotta rock....

Hi, I've just made a songbook I was compiling public. it's called 'Beginner's Electric';

http://www.chordie.com/publicbooks.php? … ngid=97216

Nothing get's in it unless I've had fun playing it specifically on electric guitar and of course the songs are relatively easy because I'm not really that advanced...

Palm muted playing is a big part of the heavily overdriven rock/metal sound. Make sure gain is at maximum (on my Vamp2 there's a preset 'Crazy Diamond' where you just blow on the strings and they scream) and the guitar volume and tone are right up. This is crazy loud for ordinary playing but placing the palm of your picking hand over the bridge and onto the strings damps them down to the point that they sing just right