John Sizemore
John Sizemore- Owner & Operator
I started playing guitar in 1987 while I was over at my Grandfathers cabin and he was playing his guitar. I just loved hearing him play and asked if he could teach me. So, he gave me one of his guitars (An old Lyle acoustic) and I fiddled around with it for awhile. But, I never took it seriously until I saw Slash from Guns & Roses play the Sweet Child of Mine Solo. I was so mesmerized. I recorded it on my old VCR and watched it over and over again.
It was then that I decided to get serious and I found a local guitar instructor and took structured guitar lessons for about two years. I would have taken them longer since I enjoyed them so much. But, my guitar instructor ended up getting a studio musicians job and quit teaching. I really felt like I wanted something more. That’s when I decided to go a total different direction and learn classical guitar. I was really surprised with the contrast in guitar instruction. I mean, my first guitar instructor was all about teaching me and the following instructor just wanted to show off how good he was. That was very irritating. That’s when I stopped taking lessons.
I played in quite a few bands (Wiley Peyote, Gretta Mole, Laughter Train & Big Smooth and The Cuts) that really didn’t make it anywhere. I really enjoyed playing and decided to minor in music in college. I found that college was a little more difficult than I had expected and didn’t have much money to pay tutors. So, I ended up teaching them guitar in exchange for tutoring. I loved it! I couldn’t believe how happy it made me to see these people really want to learn to play the guitar and I started teaching on the side ever since.
I’ve been playing and teaching guitar for over 20 years now. After years of talking to students and others trying to learn the guitar I noticed something was missing. The right resources for beginners to learn the guitar without the frustration of knowing where to begin. So, I put together GuitarZonline.com, a resources site with tips from professionals for getting started playing the guitar.
I live in Seattle with my wife and three children.
Check out the video to the right! I’m playing basic pentatonic scales and open E & A chords. There’s not one thing that I’m playing that isn’t in the “Free Guitar Course”. With practice, you can make up little riffs just like this one. Probably even better?!
Hopefully you find this beginners guitar guide a great resource! I’d love to hear any suggestions or questions you have about learning the guitar! So, go ahead and contact me!
