Horse with No Name

I’ve been trying to learn "Horse with No Name" by America because it seemed like a good song to practice on, but I’m finding it harder to keep the rhythm consistent than I expected. The chord pattern itself isn’t too complicated, but I keep losing the timing when I switch between the shapes. I can play the changes slowly, but when I try to play along with the song, my right hand speeds up, and I start missing the chord changes. I’ve been practicing the pattern for about 20 minutes at a time, first without the song and then with the recording. At a slower tempo, I can get through it fairly well, but the moment I try the original speed, it falls apart. For anyone who learned this song as a beginner, did you practice the strumming pattern separately first, or just keep playing the chord progression until the rhythm became natural?

Basketball Bros

you might want to try taking a few bars at a time and get them up to speed and then progress.

Hi Matt,

While that sounds frustrating I will tell you it is not an unusual problem for people starting out - trying to coordinate the rhythm, chord changes, and the pace and design of the song. 

Your practice process sounds like a really good plan to me - practicing elements by themselves before trying to put them all together. 

The trick is getting it all to hold together when you play it up to speed. Is there any way of slowing down the play-along? 

i also like William’s suggestion of picking a particular small part of the song and focusing on that in isolation for a bit. 

You are doing all the right things - I’d say keep at it, and one day you will find it is all beginning to hold together.

Have fun - Lisa

Hi Matt,

While that sounds frustrating I will tell you it is not an unusual problem for people starting out - trying to coordinate the rhythm, chord changes, and the pace and design of the song. 

Your practice process sounds like a really good plan to me - practicing elements by themselves before trying to put them all together. 

The trick is getting it all to hold together when you play it up to speed. Is there any way of slowing down the play-along? 

i also like William’s suggestion of picking a particular small part of the song and focusing on that in isolation for a bit. 

You are doing all the right things - I’d say keep at it, and one day you will find it is all beginning to hold together.

Have fun - Lisa