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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing - TE's the man!, May 19, 2003
This review is from: Tommy Emmanuel -- Solo Guitar Style (Book & CD) (Spiral-bound)
This books blows me away, nothing too hard to get started, nothing too easy to get bored with. Great artist and song background. Highly recommended. Handy spiral bound. Good quality CD. Also, if you haven't checked him out live, DO SO! Travel night and day if you must!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A complete book about playing guitar by a masterful performer, November 14, 2005
This review is from: Tommy Emmanuel -- Solo Guitar Style (Book & CD) (Spiral-bound)
If you're reading this review, you have probably already heard Tommy's music or seen him perform. In this book, which is somewhat of a companion to his DVD "Up Close" but also functions as an outstanding stand-alone book, you not only learn a lot about his songs and how to play them but also a lot about how Tommy became the consumate guitar player and performer that he is. There is excellent background information about the people who created and helped develop this style of guitar playing (Merle Travis, Chet Atkins, Lenny Breau)and the author provides excellent references to the best recorded songs and other learning material available from these other artists as well. For example, the author refers to specific past issues of Frets and Guitar Player magazines in which Chet Atkins describes certain playing techniques.
Outstanding and dead-on advice is also provided about playing and performing in general. For example, Tommy always stresses emphasizing the melody as you play and focusing your passion and expression of the music through the melody rather than just pounding out a lot of notes on the instrument. He describes his practice routine and how he approaches learning a new song.
I will enjoy this book and struggle to master it's content for many years to come. If you're a serious or aspiring finger-style guitar player, you will love this book.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Your Thumb Will Declare Independence!, July 2, 2005
This review is from: Tommy Emmanuel -- Solo Guitar Style (Book & CD) (Spiral-bound)
I can't say enough about this book. Great background and history on Tommy's playing. He's known as one of the greatest unknown guitarists on the planet, but this book shows that he has always been VERY well known in guitar circles. This book really lifts the hood on Tommy's playing, so the reader can understand the impact of his many influences. Great snippets on Chet, Django, Jerry Reed, Lenny Breau, just to name a few.
The instruction parts are dynamite as well. Not only are some of his most challenging pieces tabbed out, but there are many exercises to help you build the necessary skills to play Tommy songs. The "independent thumb" exercises were extremely helpful to me personally. I know this book is a bit pricey, but I don't regret the $$$ at all.
I also recommend Mark Hansons "Contemporary Travis Picking" as a supplement. This book got me ready for the more difficult parts of Tommy's book. And kudos for spiral bounding!
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