Progressive Blues Lead Guitar Technique [Paperback]

Peter Gelling (Author)

Book Description

Series: Progressive | Publication Date: December 31, 1990

For Intermediate to Advanced Blues Guitarists

Product Details

• Paperback: 88 pages
• Publisher: Koala Music Publications (December 31, 1990)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1875726462
• ISBN-13: 978-1875726462
• Product Dimensions: 11.7 x 8.7 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #211,581 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Superb starting point, June 1, 2001

By 

Reader "a_reader_999" (United States) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Progressive Blues Lead Guitar Technique (Paperback)

If you have some knowledge of the guitar, you can play the chords, you're learning your scales, but you don't know where to get started with playing lead--this book is probably the best place to start I know of. You start out learning some very simple little licks, and then after you've learned a few, you find them strung together into a 12-bar blues--and suddenly, miraculously, for maybe 20 seconds, you find that you can actually play lead guitar! How cool is that? (All examples are played fast, then slow, like REALLY slow.)

As the book progresses, the leads get more complex, and therefore more difficult to learn. But there is nothing here that is of the advanced caliber. I don't mean that as a criticism--this stuff SHOULD be aimed at the beginner to intermediate. But the stuff isn't all wimpy, straight pentatonic stuff either. It isn't boring. You will learn some really cool-sounding music from the book, played all over the fretboard. And there is PLENTY to learn.

At the same time, the book won't take you very far beyond the introductory lead playing stage. So don't expect this book to make you the next BB King. And the coverage of theory is minimal at best, as it is in all such books that promise to teach you everything there is to know about lead guitar.

About the biggest complaint I can come up with is that I found the guy's English (or Australian?) accent (a rural accent, I believe?) vaguely annoying after a while. But if that's the most you can complain about, you know you've gotten a good value. In fact, this book would be worth at least twice what they're charging for it.

As a final note, raw beginners could probably make use of this book, but it would be very slow going. Advanced players would be bored by it. It is targeted directly at players who have taken the time to learn pentatonic scales fairly well, understand basic chord progressions, but don't have a clue how to make interesting solos.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Solid book that helps you improve your chops, May 4, 1999

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[e-mail] (Taipei, Taiwan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Progressive Blues Lead Guitar Technique (Paperback)

Peter's books are all very good. What I like about Peter's approach is that he is a guitarist's guitarist without being a purist about it. He'll show you how to rest your pinky of your right hand on the body of the guitar for greater stability, mention on how your right hand thumb is sometimes better wrapped around the neck instead of the 'middle of the neck at all times classical approach'. By working through his lessons, my flexibility really improved. Even though I've been playing for almost 30 years, Peter had some nice new tricks for me. Highly recommended.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite book/value purchase so far., November 6, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Progressive Blues Lead Guitar Technique (Paperback)

As someone who is trying to learn guitar at the age of 37, I want to just have some fun. This book does that, as it has you building a 12 bar blues solo for each pattern. HINT: Just practice going up and down each pattern very well before tackling each set of licks. Highly recommend! Oh yeah the included CD to hear everything is priceless.