Customer Reviews

Handwritten Notes

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

It's been a long wait for a new Preston Reed acoustic guitar outing. Handwritten Notes is Reed's first CD since 1996 and a fine set through and through. Lots of variety: melodic stuff, groove stuff, sweet ballads, funk, bluesy, percussive, fingerpicking, slap-tap, cool, hot, velocidrome, romantic. Overall, the flavor of this collection is a bit reminiscent of an evolved Border Towns...but more tunes and all solo. No synths. Great playing, great tunes. Maybe he'll reprise "A Day at the Races" on the next disc...

an excellent album, but just a note, people are trying to sell this album used for ridiculous amounts of money($50 plus). Go to the Preston Reed website and buy it for $16. Dont get suckered. As far as the album goes, it's fantastic. Any fan of proficient music should check this out. Innovative technique and perfect exsecution of his tech. make this one not to miss!!

This is another spectacular CD from Preston Reed. He is the master of fast-picking and his own percussive unique style. The great thing about Preston Reed is that, no matter which style he is playing, his compositions are wonderful. Many guitarists seem to compose "guitar music" -- Reed composes music, then figures out how to make a guitar play it. See him in concert if you can -- he can really play this stuff! It's not simply studio magic.

"Handwritten Notes" by Preston Reed is guitar mastery with heart and soul. Each tune is an adventure instrumentally as well as thematically. "Night Ride" is like a nostalgic roadtrip that turns into a roller coaster ride, " The Groove is Real" is funky and in-your-face, "Accelerator" sounds like the Bodhisatva on speed,"Love in the Old Country" is like a Fellini film, and "Shinkansen" is pure Post-Modern Acoustic Industrial bliss. This CD is a must-have for acoustic guitar fans.

The negative review below is interesting. If you're not aesthetically pleased with this music, why take the time to write a negative review on someone who has an amazing talent. Someone who is original and writing some of the most amazing music ever put on guitar. Please note: Al Di Meola once said of Preston, "phenomenal...", and Michael Hedges once said of Preston, "...inspiring...". Now these are the words of some of the great guitar players. Music is subjective. To say he writes guitar riffs that are limited by the instrument is one of the most ridiculous statements I've heard in a long time - because the very essence of what Preston does is to extend the boundaries of the instrument. Everyone is their own judge of what a good song is - and Preston writes musical gems - his sense of melody is simply gorgeous. Yes, he has a lot of groovy songs, but check out some of his ballads too. "More about the music" is becoming a big cliche - that's stating the obvious. Why not rather just listen to the music you like, and not waste time criticizing someone who is a wizard on the guitar and a strong composer. We need more guitarists like Preston, to continue the rich tradition of fingerstyle guitar. Call it what you like, but this music fan is one happy camper with the music of Preston Reed. Thank You Preston for all the wonderful music that you make!

Many fingerstyle acoustic guitar players seem to gravitate to displaying their technical talent rather than writing great songs. Preston is a great player, but the compositions are rather empty. It seems that in most cases a catchy guitar riff generated the songs, not the desire to write a good song. Many of the sounds and riffs are simple guitar tricks that sound cool but are generated by and limited by the instrument. The showing off grows old quickly. Check out Laurence Juber or Michael Hedges if a you seek acoustic guitar work with more substance that is more about the music and less about showing off an instrument.