tbondo
Yahoo!
I would (if I were you) also get the first 2 National Guitar Workshop books (Beginning and Intermediate) - they will definitely expose you to styles (and stuff) that you won't find in the Mark Hanson Books...the only possible knock against the Beginning book is that they spend too much time (in my opinion) on stuff that should have been put in a little book perhaps called Pre-Beginning Fingerstyle. That way they would have had significantly more space to expand on what they do do well....for example....they have a WONDERFUL section of the book devoted to what intervals are and how to incorporate them into fingerstyle pieces... they do out pretty little tunes in the keys of G major and A major....but they could have done some instructional stuff out in every guitar-friendly key...oh well. They have a great section on harp-style playing....again, more, more, more would have been better... Also, on the accompanying CD of the Beginning book sometimes the tunes are done out too slowly (in my opinion)....they have a lot more life if you kick em up a little...all in all, though...it's an excellent book/CD pack...and again, if you compare it to the cost of an instructor, it's an excellent value.
Just another thing to point out...you might know this, you might not....don't be offended if this is completely obvious....
All of these books I've mentioned are geared towards moving you into SOLO fingerstyle guitar playing (the first Mark Hanson book is about Travis picking which is of course a very common accompaniment style - but the first book is also prep for the 2nd book which is solo playing instruction).....what you hear in general in the pop/folk/rock acoustic arena is nothing more than accompaniment (you still need a vocal)....so even though we're talking about a book called 'Beginning Fingerstyle', it's not beginner-level guitar at all...not even close...by the time you were to complete even just that 'Beginning' book of the National Guitar Workshop series, , essentially all popular acoustic type fingerpicking (Blackbird, Tears in Heaven, Stairway to Heaven, Time in a Bottle, Landslide, Vincent, etc...those types of tunes) should (should) seem very,very easy to you if you really have worked through the book well (get a metronome!). That's not a criticism of those songs at all...I love those types of songs....but solo fingerstyle is much more demanding (much more!) in general...practice well and you get really darn good on the guitar...the popular and mainstream stuff will seem easy...
The Intermediate book is significantly more advanced....but you won't find much in the way of repetition from the first book - if you skip the Beginning book, you'll be missing out.....
..for example, they won't repeat the instruction on using intervals in the Intermediate book...even though you will certainly find many examples of the playing of intervals in the Intermediate book...they move on to different instructional ideas in the Intermediate book such as basic arranging techniques, bass lines (use them in many basic blues type tunes), string bending in acoustic settings, triad and inversion usage, intro to DADGAD, etc...good stuff...
I'd also get that Brett Duncan book (the one with 'Licks' in the title) - if not both...good instructional stuff in there..
I think you'll be amazed at how easy it is to go from 'zero' to playing really cool stuff that sounds like two guitars at once! I used to be clueless about advanced styles of fingerpicking...never realized there was any sort of method to the madness...these books really are good...
Happy Twangin'...I guess that would be Happy Fpickin'
[ 04-08-2001: Message edited by: mapletrees ]
[ 04-08-2001: Message edited by: mapletrees ]