I stumbled across a really cool picture site today.
If you are looking for some super-hi-resolution guitar photos to use as background images on your Windows PC you will want to take a look at Blirk.net.
They have more than just guitar images and they support the popular resolutions like 1024×768, 1280×1024, 1600×1200 and 1920×1200.
Check it out! Great stuff!
The world is full of guitar instruction books.
Don’t believe me?
So why do we need more study books? We don’t. What we need are new perspectives and creative ideas to learn from. Guy’s Publishing Group has delivered on both counts.
Last summer, I posted a review of a breakthrough guitar chord reference book titled: “Guys Grids”. If you missed that post, check it out: Guy’s Grids: A Master Class in Guitar Chords.
The much anticipated follow up to Guys Grids is now available!
Guy’s Scales, Modes, and Arpeggios is a comprehensive and integrated presentation of all of the most commonly used guitar scales, modes, and arpeggios in all regions of the fretboard.
Every guitarist knows that playing a solo is a skill that requires a strong working knowledge of scales and arpeggios. This book delivers that information in a very user-friendly format that guitarists of all levels will be able to follow with ease.
The book begins with a simple but well executed 5-page study on music theory and is followed by two-page spreads that show the fingering patterns and the corresponding standard notation. The fingering patterns are presented in a grid format, with each horizontal row showing scale patterns, arpeggios and chords all being played in one region of the fretboard. Then, each vertical column displays the same set of information in seven different regions of the fretboard. In the appendix, Guy presents a comprehensive set of triad studies which follow a similar grid format.
“I wrote this book because I needed a comprehensive resource on scales, modes, and arpeggios and I could not find one that I really liked… What really sets the book apart is its thoroughness and clarity. I believe that it will soon be recognized as the definitive resource book on scales, modes, and arpeggios.”
- Author Guy McRoskey (a guitarist)
Make no mistake, I am very impressed with this book. The print quality is superb. The paper quality is thick and sturdy and yet the book is thin enough to fit inside your gig bag. One thing I really love is that Guy addressed a pet-peeve of mine with most other guitar instruction books by using a spiral binding so the book would lay flat while you are using it. Thank’s Guy!
The book is available directly from the company website for $14.95 and through select retailers. I’d suggest you order one before he realizes he under-priced this encyclopedic reference tool!
To learn more, visit www.GuysGrids.com.
Here is one from the video vault!
Eric Clapton, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Buddy Guy, Jimmie Vaughan and Robert Cray playing Sweet Home Chicago in 1990.
Thank you YouTube for allowing those of us who never had the chance to see our heroes perform live together to experience the same chills the live audience felt that night.
Steve Lukather
Steve Lukather (Toto) has been working on a new album project, and according to his Twitter site, we may be listening to it this summer.
The upcoming release will consist of performances from various guitar players with different styles. “I am doing a “6 string theory” record. It’s a record with guitar players from EVERY style from BB King, Keb Mo, Mike Stern, Andy McKee, John Scofield, Vince Gill, Guthrie Govan and Lee Ritenour, and some ‘secret cats” I will reveal soon,” Luke said about the project.
This morning, he posted this comment on Twitter: “Finished 6 string Theory mixes last night with Lee Ritenour. A really cool guitar record with a ton of legends. Out June 15th”
Previous Updates from his web site:
February 15th 2010
“Monday, we are back. Guitars guitars guitars and more guitars. Lol. Almost done with them. Some acoustics today as well.”
February 12th 2010
“Back in the studio with Steve Weingart on keyboards. Makin it “puffy”. Waiting to see how Mac’s condition is today. Lol.”
February 11th 2010
“Things are going great. It is starting to sound like a record and I am excited. More guitars today. Finished all the 5000 tracks of basic guitars and a few solo’s this week. It sounds HUGE and fat.”
Watch this video where Luke takes a look back at the end of the first week of overdubs on what he had achieved and reveals why rubber sheets are required in the studio as he records his new album:
CADILLAC RECORDS (now on DVD) is a riveting ensemble film depicting the rise, in the early-‘50s to late-‘60s, of key musical figures at the crossroads between blues, rhythm & blues, and rock & roll.
Based on the true story of the original Chicago-based purveyors of electric blues, Chess Records, it centers on two men: Leonard Chess (Adrien Brody), a Polish-Jewish nightclub owner; and Muddy Waters (Jeffrey Wright), a transplanted Mississippi sharecropper with sights set on musical stardom.
After hearing Waters’s electrified Delta blues during a tussle at his nightclub, Chess decides to pool his resources into releasing what were then called “race records.” Soon a coterie of label talent, from Little Walter and Howlin’ Wolf, to Chuck Berry and Etta James, help to propel the fledgling label to the top of the charts–with each hit-maker rewarded by Chess with a shiny new Cadillac automobile.
While sometimes playing loose with some minor historical points, the film truly hits the mark with its attention to visual detail, from costumes and cars, down to vintage recording equipment, all of it is a feast for period buffs.
But what truly makes CADILLAC RECORDS captivating are the exceptional musical performances of Beyonce Knowles (Etta James) and Mos Def (Chuck Berry), two of the finest musicians-turned-actors of their time.
My favorite line of the entire movie? “Rock-N-Roll is nothing more than BLUES all sped up” –Muddy Waters.
I found a copy at my local library and watched it for free. Now I am off to buy a copy on eBay. Yes, it’s that good.
VIEW THE TRAILER:
For a limited time… you can download “Blue and Evil” from Joe’s new Black Rock CD for FREE.
Click the image to the left, or CLICK HERE to do directly to the download site.
I’d suggest you do it soon, as this offer took Joe’s servers down over the weekend – but as of a few minutes ago… they were back up and running.
Note the promotional code that you must enter is: BNE2010.
If you missed my previous blog posts about the upcoming CD, you can find follow the links below:
Posted January 20th, 2010: Joe Bonamassa’s BLACK ROCK CD Review
Posted January 4th, 2010: Joe Bonamassa Black Rock CD Coming
As a follow on the the announcement of the Crossroads Guitar Festival of 2010…
Jonny Lang has been added to the line up!
Jonny started playing guitar at the age of 12.
The day before his 16th birthday, Lang released the critically acclaimed “Lie to Me”
Now, at 29, Lang has six albums under his belt and has toured with such famous artists as The Rolling Stones, Aerosmith and Sting as well as fellow Crossroads performers BB King, Buddy Guy and Jeff Beck.
Hey Jonny… Welcome to the Crossroads lineup!
As of today, there are 11 different versions of John Mayer’s “Apology Video” on YouTube.
The cool part about that is that (at least) 11 people had their portable video-cams going to capture the moment for the rest of us. The un-cool part is that we have to suffer through yet another celeb-apology for something stupid they said and/or did.
If you have been living under a rock for the last few days, just Google “John Mayer” and read all about it.
Hey listen…I am far from perfect and I have said my share of things that I wish had never passed through my lips, but the fact is that John Mayer has a camera and a microphone stuck in his face just about everywhere he goes, and I do not. While that would never condone me for saying the N***** word, it certainly does not forgive him for his “quest to be clever”.
Sorry John, it’s not a joke. Never was and never will be.
With celebrity, fame and fortune…comes humility, responsibility and accountability.
Just ask Chris Brown.
The sum total of the “view counts” of these videos is over 1 Million in just 3 days. Talk about something going viral… Here is the best video as far as sound/audio quality.
A few months ago I wrote a post about my favorite guitar song of all time: “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”, by George Harrison. It included my favorite 6 cover renditions of the song from YouTube.
If you missed it, CLICK HERE.
It’s now time to post my new favorite version to the BUZZ. And because the song is played so eloquently by an “11-Year-Old-Boy”, it makes me weep just watching. I weep for 2 reasons: 1) I love the song, and 2) The kid plays better than I do.
Enjoy the VIDEO:
Cool Web Site Alert!
If you own a Gibson Les Paul or have been searching for information about the Gibson Les Paul, this is the place to go.
The Les Paul Forum has gained the reputation for being “the Place” where some of the most knowledgeable and avid Les Paul owners, players, luthiers & collectors gather to talk, teach, and share all things Les Paul.
They have over 900,000 messages posted from Les Paul enthusiasts!
Click the image and visit…
