Theory is definitely needed. A terrible musician will become a mediocre one and a talented musician will become perfect. You can't be perfect with no talent no matter how much you study, but you can't be perfect without knowledge, no matter how talented you are. I mean, think about it: what we refer to as 'theory' is the knowledge we gained in 2000 years with the effort of countless people who played music. Does anyone think that we'll be able to catch this knowledge by ourselves in just one lifetime?
Good books and material on music theory
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@Ultima Ibanez Overlord: how can I find those books you talked about online? I'd like to order one or two of them........... 
OK, just to clear a few things up:
Firstly I am not starting out, I've been playing for close to ten years now, and am quite competent at improvising by ear and soloing over chord progressions without any theory knowledge. I can also figure things out by ear (when my ears are working, those stacks do damage if you stand too close to them)
Secondly, I am not interested in basing what I write and play purely on theory, however, I'd love to know some background and in the process come across some new ideas and learn some new techniqus progressions and ways of colouring what I write and make it more exciting. There's no way I want to be an MIT theory head, practical application and inspiration is where it's at people!
THe only reason I want absolute beginners books or ones that are simple is because I have absolutely no knowledge of theory, can't ead music and have a day job which means I only have time in the evenings to practice and study. Basically, I need something that I don't have to think too much about while going through it
I am going to check out some of the recommendations so keep them coming as ofen one book which suits one person may not be right for another!
Cheers,
James
Firstly I am not starting out, I've been playing for close to ten years now, and am quite competent at improvising by ear and soloing over chord progressions without any theory knowledge. I can also figure things out by ear (when my ears are working, those stacks do damage if you stand too close to them)
Secondly, I am not interested in basing what I write and play purely on theory, however, I'd love to know some background and in the process come across some new ideas and learn some new techniqus progressions and ways of colouring what I write and make it more exciting. There's no way I want to be an MIT theory head, practical application and inspiration is where it's at people!
THe only reason I want absolute beginners books or ones that are simple is because I have absolutely no knowledge of theory, can't ead music and have a day job which means I only have time in the evenings to practice and study. Basically, I need something that I don't have to think too much about while going through it
I am going to check out some of the recommendations so keep them coming as ofen one book which suits one person may not be right for another!
Cheers,
James
