I hate, hate, hate barre chords! And why on Earth is your teacher having you play James Taylor...he's not the easiest guitar player to try to play! I haven't heard much about doing barre chords on an acoustic...I usually see them used on an electric. I recently started taking guitar lessons on an electric (Hamer...has a skinnier neck) and "drop D tuning" let's me play literally any chord up and down the neck with just my index finger and two strings! I know that's cheating, but man, it sure is easier! I'll get to the barre chords after I get used to moving up and down the neck. I have attempted them on an electric, and they're easier than trying to do them on an acoustic.

Whoever mentioned the Taylor guitar, I was told those have easier action. They're expensive though.

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