Thoughts? I'm presently volunteering in Big Bend National Park, TX and work 3 days on/3 days off so I have a good bit of time to practice my craft, playing acoustic electric guitar and singing, and incorporating customized backing tracks on my iPad. I realize some tunes simply sound better without backing them up with tracks. I'm always learning tunes while keeping in mind my goals. One of my goals is to play for veterans venues with a few coffee houses and bars along the way while im livinga nomadic lifestyle. I'm trying to keep a good balance of tunes but I'm not going to break my neck doing it. I'm getting tired of the same 3-400 tunes I can easily meddle through and truly at this point in my life, almost 66, I feel I have nothing else to prove to anyone but to myself (alternate tunings, difficult tunes that I like and should play at least for my own personal enjoyment). So many songs out there. Some stay popular for shorter periods of time than others and that's life.  I'd appreciate anyone's input on this topic of using backing tracks, how and when, overuse, to include vocal harmonizer use.  Criticism taken lightly. Rock on, Rich Ford! (I hope the link works)

https://www.karaoke-version.com/blog/1556-backing-tracks-vs-live-musicians-how-to-find-the-perfect-balance.html?utm_campaign=newsletter_kv&utm_source=bulk&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0&utm_content=custom_1

1. KNOW the Song!- Listen to the artist rendition of the song and listen to other covers of the song. Hear it from different angles. The point here is to 'hear' yourself playing it. Often times, original artist versions are full bands and can 'muddy' the song structure a bit for a solo artist - so by listening to other versions, you will hear different things that can lead to your own version. You should listen until you can sing along with it - getting the tempo, timbre, and feel of the vocals

2. Get a good chart of the song - There are multiple sources for the chords of songs, Chordie, Ultimate Guitar, or simply 'google' chords of a particular song. Work thru the chords first to know the changes - try this without the record first - for rough spots, listen to the recording and see if you can capture it - LEARN the song in the original key first - you can always change the key to fit your voice afterwards, but by learning the chords in the original key, you will be able to hear the fills and licks easier.

3. Play along with the recording - You'll need to do this in the original key but you will start 'feeling' how the song goes before you change keys (If you even need to). Play along and sing along with the recording.. Over and over until you have it down.

4. Turn off the record and go it solo. See how it feels - record yourself playing it and listen to yourself. This is HARD because you will hear your mistakes - but this will allow you to correct them or adjust as required.

Once you can confidently play the song without the artist or other covers you heard - go BACK and listen to the artist and covers and see how you do - Is your tempo too fast (my biggest problem)? Too slow? Chords not sounding correct, or changes not how you like them? Adjust at this point.

Be sure to take a few days off after learning it - and then go back and try it again - did you remember everything? Still some rough spots? Over time, the songs will become internalized - You're ready to go.

Have other tips or tricks?

I would tell my students to 'grade' their timing on the the song (how well they kept in time) from 1 to 5 where 5 being perfect. AND then grade the quality of their chord changes 1 to 5 where 5 is perfect. I encouraged them to ALWAYS strive for 5 on timing at the expense of the score on their chords. What will happen is they will excel at timing and rhythm as they get better at chords.

So - as you learn a new song with new chords - don't worry about perfect fingering - focus on timing. The chords will come, but if you don't get the timing early, you will struggle to get it later.