I am a ear player and always have been. The good Lord gave me a gift to hear chords and place them in the right places.
It's a cherished gift but I know that reading music is a very
important thing. Sometimes if a song has "different chords"
from ordinary(Example: "Girl from Ipanema") These are difficult
to find by ear. The girl from Ipanema gave me a fit so I got the music and from that I found the chords.

This is where problems occur and reading the music solves the
mystery. I would not trade the gift of ear playing for anything.
Lloyd