I. Introduction For years I have tried to learn to play the guitar by ear. My father could strum along to accompany the singing of popular songs, and that is what I wanted to be able to do. So, about 1967, I bought a Yamaha FG-75 steel-string guitar and enrolled in a Fairfax County Community College, Virginia, course on how to learn to play the guitar. The course was taught by a degreed music instructor, who was well qualified. He taught the basics of how to read music and play simple songs. He taught the basic triad-based chords. My only criticism of him is that he disdained country/western music, which I enjoyed very much. He said disparagingly that there were basically only six different types of country songs. He was evidently unimpressed with the simplicity of country music. Although the fact that it has simple, catchy melodies, is understandable, and the lyrics are about real life (happiness, tragedy, love, unrequited love, folk songs, ballads) did not impress him, those are the very reasons I enjoyed it and wanted to learn to play the guitar.