CAPO GUITAR
“ M ” IS FOR MEMORIZE | “ T ” IS FOR TIME | Mitch Bohannon
I started leading worship in the 80 ’ s as a teenager . We didn ’ t call it “ worship ” back then . We just sang songs that we had been singing for years . Three chords , a country strum and we had it going on .
I ’ ll never forget when my cousin , Brad , and I were invited to a church of a different denomination to come and lead some songs for their youth . Brad and I both played 12-string Yamaha guitars and we had the volume up to 24 singing , “ I ’ ve got a home in Glory Land that outshines the sun …” We have laughed often over the years claiming that had we stopped mid-strum , we ’ d have heard crickets . What was so familiar to us , was foreign to that youth group . There ’ s a lesson in there of knowing your audience , but we were kids and simply leading from what was inside of us .
Life goes on , we get older and busier with jobs and families . Technology comes along that seemingly makes things convenient and easy … like , posting chords on the confidence monitor or making charts available on iPads with the ability to turn pages with your feet or a button that you ’ ve conveniently attached to your instrument . No longer are you playing songs that are familiar , they ’ re new songs with new lyrics … but pretty much the same chords . I would argue that though they are new songs , you need to play and sing them like they are deeply a part of your life ! Take a second and call up a livestream of a church that you are familiar with and maybe another that you play some of their music . Are their musicians staring at charts on the confidence monitor ? Are they looking at music stands or iPads ? Do they even have music stands or iPads ? My guess is that the answer is , “ No .”
So , what ’ s the difference ? I say it ’ s time . If you are on platform , I implore you to spend enough time with each song that you absolutely know it … that when you lead it or play it , it comes from a place deep within you and not from a page .
Lately , I have been hearing a disturbing advertisement on a popular national Christian radio station in which a caller states that they are a worship leader and they had simply quit listening to Christian music . They were basically thanking the radio station for “ bringing them back ” so to speak . The ad was meant to be positive , however I did not take it that way . If you are on platform , you simply cannot lead people to places you have not gone . Can you imagine leading a group of tourists on an African Safari if you have never been to Africa ? You need to have been there yesterday . You need to have lived there for years in order to lead people on such a trip . As a worship leader , if you are not living there ( in worship ), it ’ s best to take a step down off the platform until you are once again living there .
So , whether you ’ re the lead vocal or the drummer or the 2 nd electric guitar … are you living there ? Are you soaking in worship daily ? I once had a drummer back before Planning Center was a thing and I would email out the setlist with YouTube links of all the songs . My drummer , Al , would create a playlist on YouTube of those five or six songs and keep that playlist on loop throughout his week . So , by the time
Sunday came , he had listened to the Sunday setlist in order over and over and over .
It ’ s not easy . That ’ s why it takes time . It takes a lot of time .
I ’ ve always taught that the cut capo makes playing the guitar simple . Yes , it does , and it also is a great help in memorizing music . But just like learning new songs , it takes time . It ’ s encouraging that I hear often and even heard again yesterday from someone who tried the cut capo for the first time … they couldn ’ t put the guitar down . They were inspired to play and explore .
I believe that once you give the cut capo a try , you will be inspired to learn it and use it . Once you learn the chord shapes in the keys of “ E ” and “ A ” with the cut capo , you ’ re able to move to other keys by adding a full capo and you can easily play 99 % of all the songs your church sings or will sing . Start simple . Gain confidence . Spend time . Spend more time . Memorize your music . Lead from the worship within you .
Mitch Bohannon Mitch developed the Short-Cut Capo for Kyser and is the Director of Live Production at Trinity Baptist Church in Lake Charles , Louisiana . 74 August 2023 Subscribe for Free ...