To sing and play guitar well, the rhythum has to run accurately and the guitar has to run on auto pilot. You have to be able to concentrate on the vocal, if you want to pull off singing and playing. However if your rhythum isn't rock steady, the whole thing will come off the rails. If you singing goes flat because you are trying to get back on top of the beat the whole thing comes off the rails. If your audience is paying attention and this happens... you will quickly loose them. You get the idea...

The best advice I have seen suggests that breaking the two skills appart in the beginning is the most direct way to mastering this problem. Get the guitar part down pat, so you can play without thinking about it. As you practice, use a metronome to hold a solid beat through out the song. Get to where you don't have to think about the rythum because your muscle memory has that firmly in control. This is a skill that is going to really stretch your ablity to rely on muscle memory and this is a big step to becoming a much better performer.

You can also practice singing on it's own, so you get to start developing the sound of your voice. It may be useful to record just the guitar part, and practice your singing to that. During these singing sessions put the guitar down and listen to your voice as you sing. The voice is the most complicated and most versitle part of this task.

Finally...practice putting the two together. Let your muscle memory play the guitar parts and focus totally on singing. Think "How is my vocal pitch accuracy, how is my tonal color affecting the song, and (most important) how am I conecting with the feelings expressed in the lyrics.

If you really want to explore what your voice can do, try recording your performance of singing and playing together and get ready for a strong head wind. Recording is merciless in its accuracy. This is where you really see how well the "rubber meets the road". However, in my opinion, it is the most direct route to competent vocalizing.

Lastly keep in mind that what you are learning, can be VERY DIFFICULT AND IT WILL NOT BET RUSHED!!!!! Keep focused, keep practicing, and keep you eye on the prize. This will take time! You have to get comfortable with this fact. To become proficent at singing and playing is a complicated and demanding skill. But in the end it is a worthy goal. Just don't get depressed about the speed at which you approach that goal. That is up to your inherent tallent and tenacity. Those atrubutes are best supported by not placing ridgid expectations on your self. Since you are still here, you have most likely developed some of this attitude in the last year of practice. Now you are working toward a MUCH BIGGER skill set. Be patient, practice persistance, and remember the goal is to enjoy your experience. With that set of tools under your belt... there is a world of possiblity waiting for you.

There is a good amount of info on singing and playing, that has been written over the last year on this web site. If you use the search function for "singing and playing" (or similar search topics), there is a lot of discussion about this.

To sing and play is a wonderful experience! But it is also a highly cultivated skill requiring complete focus, accurate muscle memory, and a lot of practice. If you think guitar is challanging... get ready for the added skill of singing to make the playing field vastly more complicated. Be patient, persistant, and practice, practice, practice... YOU CAN DO THIS AND YOU WILL LOVE IT!