A metronome is an excellent practice device. A classic guitar teacher once suggested that when I practice exercises, scales, and such, I use a metronome starting with a very slow metronome setting. Then when I could play the exercise without goofing it, increase the speed a click or two. Then again.

Same thing for learning pieces. Start off playing it very slowly, concentrating on tone and smooth finger action. Then, when you've got it smoothly, increase it slightly. Keep moving the speed up, and when you can play it well at that speed, move it up again. Finally, when you can play it at the correct pace, move it up some more, until you can play the piece a good five or ten percent faster than it should be played. Then—back it off to the correct speed and you can feel confident that you've got something in reserve.

Also, an excellent way to work on things like alternating bass patterns. I've noted that most people, when they start to learn this, tend to try to play them up to speed right off. The result is generally tangled fingers resulting in sloppy and inaccurate playing.

Start slow. When you can do it smoothly and accurately at than speed, pick up the pace a notch. And so on.

As the same teacher said, "Don't practice your mistakes. You don't want to get good at being sloppy!"

Don Firth

P. S. By the way, grumpy, the idea is to practice with the metronome, then put it aside when you are performing or recording. That "tick tick tick" in the background is a dead giveaway that the Gershwin song, "I Got Rhythm" doesn't apply to you!