
In this lesson series, Jim covers frequently asked questions and tips of the trade.
Lesson 1
In his first "bag of tricks" lesson, Jim discusses pitfalls of performing with your guitar and how to get past stage fright and adrenalin rush.
Length: 30:51 Difficulty: 0.5 Members OnlyLesson 2
In this lesson, Jim demonstrates how you can go about getting harmonics out of a strummed chord.
Length: 7:08 Difficulty: 2.0 Members OnlyLesson 3
Do you struggle with barre chords and tend to shy away from them? In this lesson, Jim demonstrates and discusses some ways to perfect barre chords as quickly as possible.
Length: 20:58 Difficulty: 1.5 Members Only
About Jim Deeming
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Jim Deeming got his first guitar when he was only six years old. His Dad was taking fingerpicking lessons, and Jim wanted to be just like him. The Mel Bay books didn't last very long before he strapped on a thumb pick and added the Chet part to Red River Valley so it sounded better.
Most of Jim's early learning was by ear. With unlimited access to his Dad's collection of Chet Atkins albums, he spent countless hours decoding his favorite songs. They were never "right" until they sounded just like Chet. Around the age of 12, Jim heard Jerry Reed for the first time and just knew he had to be able to make that "Alabama Wild Man" sound. The styles of Chet & Jerry always have been a big influence on his playing.
More recently he has pursued arrangements by Tommy Emmanuel and Doyle Dykes, in addition to creating some of his own and writing originals.
Jim has performed in front of a variety of audiences, including concerts, competitions, weddings and the like, but playing at church has always been a mainstay. Whether playing in worship bands or guitar solos, gospel music is deep in his roots and is also the driving theme behind his debut CD release, titled "First Fruits".
Jim has been playing for about 38 years. He also has taught private lessons in the past but believes JamPlay.com is an exciting and better venue with many advantages over the traditional method of weekly 30 minute sessions.
Jim lives in Berthoud, Colorado with his wife, Linda, and their four children. Although he still has a "day job", he is actively performing and is already back in the studio working on the next CD. If you wonder how he finds time, look no further than the back seat of his truck where he keeps a "travel guitar" to take advantage of any practice or song-writing opportunities he can get.
The opening song you hear in Jim's introductory JamPlay video is called, "A Pick In My Pocket". It's an original tune, written in memory of Jim's father who told him early on he should always keep a pick in his pocket in case he ever met Chet Atkins and got the chance to play for him. That song is slated to be the title track for his next CD, which will feature several more originals plus some of his favorite covers of Chet and Jerry arrangements.
Our acoustic guitar lessons are taught by qualified instructors with various backgrounds with the instrument.
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Member Comments about this Lesson
Discussions with our instructors are just one of the many benefits of becoming a member of JamPlay.Good stuff Jim...hard enough for me to form alot of things with my RA..but this really helps!!!
Thanks Jim this lesson is just what i needed!
Mr. Deeming, how on earth can you do that Merle Travis a-shape chord?. Seems impossible to me.
Jim: Thanks for this lesson. In just a couple of days your advice has removed much of the struggle I've been experiencing for the last two years. Far less pain & strain in the fret hand and I'm seeing light at the end of the tunnel.
Great lesson! I finally understand why barre chords exist. I thought experienced guitar players came up with them just to keep the newbies at bay (and to aggravate us) but Jim's plain English summary and tips on how to use them made a lot of sense to me. Thanks.
Jim , my chords had high blood pressure .....(Hypertensive) ..... Thankyou for the cure
thanks Jim, I have always bypassed the c shaped bar chord but learning on my own i did not know tricks to learn. I will try this, hopefully my thumb holds out. lol
Very well explained! Excellent stuff.
Thanks, Jim. What a coincidence I had just started thinking in terms of what's the least amount of pressure I need to exert to make a chord ring properly. Great lesson, especially for those barre chord challenged amongst us.
Thanks Jim very helpful lesson. Im on lesson 21 and working hard so as I can move on to more use of my right hand. Thanks again for being such a good teacher
great lesson, easily understood it; now I just need to work at it.