Originally Posted by: William MG

Nothing wrong with just learning songs if that's all you want to do.

For anyone stumbling in to this thread; learning songs is so important to progressing as a player. Knowing the theory and tools are significant building blocks but great songs teach you how to apply that stuff.

I remember talking to someone (and I probably said it in a GT thread over the years), but blues-based rock playing 101; learn Lynyrd Skynyrd all day long. Skynyrd is a masterclass in blues-rock licks, taste and building on thematic concepts.

Obviously there's a million examples of other bands but the point is that learning songs is like learning the language by speaking the language. If you wanted to learn Spanish or German or whatever and someone handed you a book, how well would you speak it? Not very. You have to apply in practice. For music, songs are that learning of language.