I was the last kid in my group of friends to pick up a guitar. I was 15 and I wanted to be Brian May (I wasn’t even close!). My dad built me a guitar because we couldn’t afford one. I like to say we did it together, but honestly, he did 99.9999% of the work. I sanded.
The truth is, I didn’t start with any natural ability. My best friend John Hill could hear a song once and play it back. I couldn’t. What I did have was persistence. When I moved to Carlisle at 16 I met my first real mentor, Olly Alcock, who encouraged me to listen to the best players and the best songs. That is when my work ethic finally caught up. I wasn’t just practising a lot anymore, I was practising with goals.
I gigged all over the north of England, playing funk and post-punk covers in pubs where I stood in fireplaces to fit on stage, carrying an 8×10 Ampeg cab up six flights of an icy fire escape in Penrith. It was a baptism of fire.
When I moved south I juggled everything at once, teaching guitar, working in music shops, playing in multiple bands, and engineering at my mate’s studio. Then in the 1990s after Nirvana, no one wanted a flashy guitarist, so I picked up the bass instead. We got a record deal, relocated to Los Angeles, made an album with Don Smith, and sold it to MCA’s Radioactive Records.
At the same time I was recording nonstop. I built a home studio in my Silverlake apartment, landed a publishing deal, got another record deal, and toured the States opening for Godsmack. I ran studios, discovered Pro Tools, pulled 18-hour days, sometimes 36. The results weren’t always great at first, too much time correction and no Auto-Tune in those days, but I kept going.
Eventually, that persistence paid off. I got to work with The Fray, Augustana, Jet, Hot Hot Heat, Ace Frehley, Aerosmith, James Blunt, Korn, Black Veil Brides, and many more.
Here’s the thing. I didn’t start with natural ability. What I built came from work, mentors, and refusing to quit when things didn’t come easily.
👉 My point: If your path feels messy, if you weren’t a natural, don’t write it off. Every odd job, every failed attempt, and every late night adds up. That mix of experiences is what makes you unique and often it is the thing that lets you do what no one else can.
👋 Hi, I’m Warren Huart 📈 I help artists, entrepreneurs and brands grow their audience, tell their story, and market themselves in a way that works 🎸 I help musicians, producers, and engineers build a life in music 🎧 100M+ YouTube views, thousands of records, zero shortcuts 📩 DM me if you’re ready to make it happen