How to Play Blues Guitar: The Basics and Beyond (Guitar Player Musician's Library) (Paperback)

~ Richard Johnston (Editor) "Whether they know it or not, blues guitarists most commonly use three scales: the pentatonic major scale, the pentatonic minor scale, and the blues scale..." (more)
Key Phrases: tube combo, pentatonic major scale, pentatonic minor scale, Albert King, T-Bone Walker, Buddy Guy (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Packed with musical examples, charts and photos, this is a complete, step-by-step course for learning acoustic or electric blues guitar. In-depth lessons teach you to build your own style while exploring the music of traditional bluesmen and modern stars. From practicing your scales and turn-arounds to breaking out Chicago-style, this book from the former editor of Guitar Player brings you: essential lessons on blues basics; insights into the music of masters like B.B. King, Eric Clapton, John Lee Hooker, T-Bone Walker, Albert Collins, Buddy Guy and many others; advice on selecting gear and setting up your guitar; a great blues discography; and even free access to audio lessons on the web!

About the Author

Richard Johnston is a former editor of Guitar Player, which has been a leading magazine for aspiring and professional guitarists of all styles and levels, both electric and acoustic, for more than 30 years. Johnston currently is executive editor of Backbeat Books. Since 1967, Guitar Player magazine has been helping novice and experienced guitarists alike learn how to play their favorite styleoblues guitarothrough in-depth lessons and interviews with the blues greats. This book gathers the very best of that expertise to get new players started, and provides inspiration for experienced guitarists as well.

Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Backbeat Books; illustrated edition edition (June 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879307064
• ISBN-13: 978-0879307066
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #222,840 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A simple yet eminently useful self-teaching guide, August 9, 2002

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

Deftly edited by Richard Johnston, How To Play Blues Guitar: The Basics & Beyond is a straightforward introductory guide and reference for beginning and intermediate blues guitar players, from basic scales to classic sample songs. Blues guitar greats Art Thompson and Dan Erlewine provide expert advice on selecting gear and setting up the guitar in this simple yet eminently useful self-teaching guide. Of special interest are the comments drawn from such legendary musicians as B.B. King, Eric Clapton, John Lee Hooker, T-Bone Walker, and others. A special bonus to the practical advice and musical excerpts is the free access to audio lessons on an exclusive web page. If you are planning to learn to play the blues guitar (or improve your present ability and performance level), then give How To Play Blues Guitar a careful and considered reading.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, Well Rounded Blues Instructional, October 16, 2006

By	Vinson Smith "Scott Smith" (Mississippi) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I disagree with the reviewer below that states that this is a master's level book. It is not. However, it is not a book geared towards someone who is brand new to the guitar. You should have some basics under your belt. It is a good, well rounded look at the styles of many of the great blues guitarists. I found the book to be well written, with easy to decipher tablature. The author gets at the heart of each guitarists' main style, in every instance. Is it an alpha and omega of blues guitar? No, but it is the one book I seem to come back to when I need some help, or just for inspiration.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, with drawbacks, March 22, 2008

By	M. Hedlund (NOLA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: How to Play Blues Guitar - Second Edition (Basics & Beyond) (Paperback)

This book is good. It is important to note that it is a compilation of articles from Guitar Player magazine, so the flow isn't quite as good as some lesson books. But each lesson is unique, and has lots of valuable information inside. This also makes it pretty easy to hop around in the book to sections you like more. I really wish they had included a CD, rather than MP3 downloads, the whole process was a bit messy getting those for me. But the content is very good, and with time and practice, this book will improve your skills notably.