Come back Marty!

Some very good tips here. Like Ted says, get some Merle Travis CDs. Merle did 90% of it with just a thumb (pick) and first finger. Doc uses the same thing on the banjo, but brings the extra finger in on guitar. I've no doubt he DID take a year or so to learn it, but one of the things we have going for us is "precident". Videos, tab, recordings, and best of all...Mudcat friends who've been there, and can advise at the drop of an adverb.

Alex, the metronome is a good idea. One of the things I tried to stress in my (very subjective) method of "power learning" (ha ha) is that it's TREMENDOUSLY BORING for the first two or three weeks....No songs, very little chording, JUST RIGHT HAND, over and over again. but...if you can tough it out (and have average to good skills) your progress will be nothing short of amazing by the second month when you start adding the songs.

I should also point out that my approach is subject to some serious "dumping on". When I started working with Banjo Bonnie, I warned her that for the first three or four months, any trad banjo players she encountered would tell her "yer doin' it all wrong", but by the six month mark, she'd be learnin new stuff so fast her head would spin. She's at about 3/4 of a year now and can do some lovely stuff...and she'll be a monster after a couple of years.

Midchuck, you can say that again! Although I make my living at it, it's still an absolute joy to make music.

Money? fawgettaboutit!

Rick