Once you know music theory, and can understand the NNS, it becomes second nature to you. Kind of like riding a bike..... Key of A.... lets go. It's all there with little conscious thought.

I was in Myrtle Beach a number of years ago.... Paulette Carlson from Hwy 101 was at a local venue so my wife and I went. The band and the show was top quality. She did all her songs just like they were on the records. After the show I got a few minutes to talk with the guitarist in the band. I asked him how long they have been together backing Carlson. His reply was, we're all studio cats from Nashville who flew in yesterday and today and we were hired to do this show. We've never played together as a band before this show. They had one rehearsal session the day of the show.... I didn't notice anyone reading charts on the stage, but that's what separates the professionals from the rest... The solos and fills were close enough (some were exact) to get the job done and the music was tight. Great show.

The NNS is a roadmap that gives the players direction but it doesn't detail the minutia of the song. It's really handy for the sessions that are fast and gotta get it done vs hit songs for a major artist where yeah... there's a chart, but there's also signature licks and details that have to be incorporated into the song.

You can find my music at:
www.herbhartley.com
Add nothing that adds nothing to the music.
You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.

The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.