Originally Posted by mayonaise
there's nothing wrong with learning other people's songs, but if that's the only thing you ever learn how to do, it's pretty much meaningless. anybody can learn how to play someone else's song. you really should learn the musical structure behind the songs - the theory and the technique. not only is it more valuable, but it'll make covering songs a lot easier, you'll really understand what's going on in each song you play, and you'll be able to come up with something of your own - even if it's just a variation on a cover. much more fun that way.
Trust me, if I could write my own songs, I would. I know all the chords and can solo decent, but I lack the inspiration or whatever it is. Or, in many cases, after I play through something I thought I wrote, it just sounds like an old standard. I love the high of playing, though. I once saw a clip of Townsend playing WGFA and during his solo he had this posessed look of demonic proportions while he was 3 feet away from the three full stacks of Hiwatts in overdrive! No wonder the guy is half deaf, but I know that feeling.