Customer Reviews

Fretboard Roadmaps: The Essential Guitar Patterns That All the Pros Know and Use (Guitar Techniques)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I have been banging my guitars around for years, and I play pretty well, but I'm like a monkey - monkey see, monkey do. I know basic chords, and I've tortuously put some lead stuff together with some tab help. But now that I've started this book, I am understanding what I'm doing; I understand how the notes work together, where to find them, and how they make up chords. Instead of just "put one finger here, and two more over there" you will understand the relationship between the major notes and it's 3rds and 5ths, etc. I'm not even halfway through the book, and I have gotten much, much more than my money's worth from this. These "roadmaps" are getting me past the "roadblocks" that have kept me from really advancing in my level of play. I'm so fired up from the doors this book has opened, I can't believe I put my guitar down long enough to type all of this.

This books stands out as a very concise reference of the most important patterns available to guitarists. These patterns are the key to improvisation and composition. Each chapter introduces a new pattern and explains... #1 why the pattern is important and useful, #2 What the pattern is in musical terms and what relationships it implicates, and #3 How to learn, practice and use it. I found every chapter to be an absolute treasure. None of the many many guitar books I've used show so much so clearly. It made learning complex guitar strategies almost effortless. I believe it would be most useful to intermediate guitar players, though any guitarist would certainly benefit from this book.

This book is truly excellent. You need to know a bit of music theory (basically A-G, sharps and flats, and that from B-C and E-F is a half step not a whole step). Once you know the absolute basics, you will be able to use this book.

This book really teaches you about chord composition, major scales, and playing chords all along the fretboard. I think it truly is a wonderful book. I'd buy it especially if you were a 2-3 out of 10 on the guitar, and only recommend it if you are 5-6. If you are 8-10, then you know what this book will teach you.

UPDATE: MARCH 2008. THIS BOOK WAS GOOD FOR THE FIRST 5-6 CHAPTERS BUT LOST ME AFTER THAT. I CAN'T COMPLAIN THAT THIS WASN'T A GOOD PURCHASE, BUT I DIDN'T GO THROUGH THE ENTIRE TEXT. I WOULD CONSIDER OTHER BOOKS IN ADDITION TO OR INSTEAD OF THIS ONE. THIS IS NOT THE HOLY GRAIL OF GUITAR BOOKS.

I've been playing on and off for about 15 years. This book really bridged the gap and I learned much more about the circle of fifths than I thought there was to learn. He didn't go into more theory such as constructing each key signature from the circle of fifths but he went into some meaty guitar-related info such as patterns on the guitar and progressions based on the circle of fifths.

I've had music theory in the past but if you haven't, go read up a bit first.

Also, there's a lot to this book. For example, the author says "learn the notes on the 6th and 5th string" and that's one bullet item on a page - you really need to spend the time on this!

Learn some basics then come back when you're ready for an intermediate course on theory so you can construct your own chords and chord progressions instead of just memorizing them.

The author never proclaimed this to be an exhaustive reference - he claimed it to be roadmaps (which are just patterns) on the guitar to make learning easier. It does this and much more.

I was sceptical but it small and inexpensive so I tried it. I now this would be a great 2nd or 3rd book for a beginner (David Mead's is another). This will stand you in good stead for the rest of your playing career. As an intermediate player I recognised the first patterns & recommend learning them -- and I found plenty of useful new info. too. This really is guitar playing in a nutshell. It could have fancier graphics and layout, but it is resfeshingly clear and concise and inexpensive. Great value. Highly recommended.

The beauty of Sokolow's Roadmaps is that it is eminently practical while revealing the underlying logic of the guitar fretboard. This book took me from confusion to a performing and recording musician (and a teacher to boot).

Check out the excellent complementary books on Rock, Blues, Jazz, Slide, and Country guitar... the only series you'll ever need.

No single book (and I've gone through lots of them) compares. If you want to forge ahead with your guitar with a practical and thorough guide then you've come to the right place.

This book simply gives you what you need to know. It lets you climb up and down the frettboard with confidence. Teaches the tricks pros know.

I've been playing for about 15 years and I'm sad to say that I'm not 1/32nd the player I should be. However, this book has helped me a ton. Some of the things every player should know but most don't (and people don't want to admit it):
Intervals
Circle of Fifths
Chord anatomy
Scales over chords
etc.

This book is a jewel, an excellent jumping off point. If you've just picked up the guitar, stop what you are doing, click the "Add to cart" button and dole the greenbacks for this one. If you've just graduated from GIT or some other some other musical institute of higher learning, don't bother - you are far beyond all of us dime bag pickers.

Someone's thinkin... Good job Fred!

Fred's other books are great too, by the way.

I'm in the slow class when it comes to theory, but this entire book just makes sense, makes it simple and if you spend enough time with it the lessons all work together to give you the bigger picture. What's great is with each lesson you are given enough to gain some instant gratification and I literally spent years with it as I absorbed the patterns and put them to use. I own tons of books and been playing for years, yet this is the one book I would recommend to anyone with some basic knowledge of the notes and chords. I just watched the DVD he did, and although the book is more detailed it helped me solidify what I've learned. This book will give you the confidence to noodle with purpose.

I have been playing for a bit over a year, and learned enough songs and techniques to gain satisfaction with my progress. I have, during that time, also read books on music theory, including the excellent Tom Kolb book on music theory for guitarists.

Now I am interested in understanding the instrument and how musicians make music. The Roadmaps book has been a really enlightening tool. I thank Mr. Sokolow for writing it. It's simply excellent.

The value of the book is that it gets straight to what's important to learn. Most of the books I have reviewed have a paralyzing amount of detail, and it is hard to judge whether the commitment in time is going to be worth the effort. With Roadmaps, I started seeing value right away and it gave me a "game plan" for other development.

Prior to learning from this book, I had little enthusiasm for studying scales and chord drills. Now I really understand why this is important. This makes all the difference in the world to me. I practice scales, chords, and improvisation with real enthusiasm, and with rewards.

I do not believe this book would have been as valuable to me when I first began playing, but after some experience I have found it a vital part of getting me to the next level of accomplishment and satisfaction.

My ultimate interest is not just to play songs from tab. I really want to understand what I'm doing. This book helps a lot.