Life by Keith Richards

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Book Review: Life by Keith Richards

The autobiography of Keith Richards, the famous guitarist of the Rolling Stones is out in the market and is ready to be consumed by fans worldwide. He has narrated the book in a very interesting, content rich and enjoyable manner. However, credit should be bestowed on the author James Fox for writing this book in a very acceptable and understandable manner.

The book talks about the various events that took place in Keith's life, dropping in and out of music but particularly focusing on the music. The events also included the formation of the band and the engagements of the members. Other than this the randomness at the time of practice sessions and the use of drugs were also huge part of the book.

He also describes the various fights that took place on the roads as well as during practice sessions.

The book is really a book of secrets about the techniques and ways Keith uses his guitar. It is a real treasure for guitar players and hardcore fans of the Rolling Stones.

It is very interesting to read the bonding and affection that Keith had with his son Marlon, the complexities of life Marlon was exposed to in his environment, these obviously shaped him for his future life.

The last pages of the book talk about the moments that he shared with his mother when she was on her death bed.

Life, the book by Keith Richards is a transparent view into his sometimes wild life, the book draws you into his world and lets you get a little closer to the real Keith, a must have book for guitar enthusiasts and hardcore fans.

If you would like to read more about this book click here

If you would like to read related book reviews do check out http://powerfulreviews.com/ thanks.

Fingerstyle Guitar Method: Step-By-Step Lessons and 36 Great Fingerstyle Songs - Book Review

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Fingerstyle technique is one of the most exciting ways to play the guitar. It's a technique that will enable you to turn the guitar into a complete solo instrument playing several different parts at the same time. If you've been looking for an easy to follow fingerstyle guitar course, than the "Fingerstyle Guitar Method: A Complete Guide With Step-by-Step Lessons and 36 Great Fingerstyle Songs" from Hal Leonard Publication would be a good book worth checking out.

Although the book is not for the complete beginner, it does start off with a topic on how to choose a guitar before moving on to fingerpicking basic and builds on them using the styles of great artists such as The Beatles, Paul Simon, James Taylor, Adrian Legg, and many others as examples. Lessons on fingerstyle solo guitar arrangement are broken down into two parts, with the melody of 'Silent Night' being introduced as you learn how to turn a melody into a complete solo guitar arrangement by adding other element such as bass and additional notes. In between these two parts, the use of a 'Capo' and playing on 'Alternate Tuning' are discussed. The second part features lesson on a more advance solo guitar arrangement that incorporates the use of the newly learn techniques.

The 104 pages book also features fingerstyle arrangement to 36 songs although it would've been nice if all the songs were completely tabbed. Nevertheless, about a dozen were completely tabbed, enough to keep you busy for some time. Included with the book is an audio CD that contain all audio to examples and the featured songs which are; Dust in the Wind, Fire and Rain, Georgia on My Mind, You've Got a Friend, Imagine, Tears in Heaven, What a Wonderful World, Annie's Song and Yesterday among others.

Overall this is a good book for anyone who already been playing for a while and ready to expand their playing technique beyond strumming.

Eddie Kisah is a guitar teacher and webmaster of edguitar.com. Visit his website for free guitar lessons.

Ripped: How the Wired Generation Revolutionized Music Review

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I just recently finished reading the book, Ripped: How the Wired Generation Revolutionized Music. I'm kind of mad at myself for waiting so long to read it. It's been in the "to read" pile for a long time and I just got around to reading it. It's a fantastic look at the evolution of music over the past 20 years or so. From the rise of indie bands like Death Cab for Cutie and Bright Eyes, to Prince's record label, to mp3's and the "pay what you want" model introduced by Radiohead and NineInch Nail's Trent Reznor.

I can't honestly say that I remember much about my 7th grade history class. I couldn't even tell you my teacher's name, let alone what we "learned" that year. The one thing that I do remember is that there was a banner hanging above the chalk board. It read, "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

If you are going to be a musician today, then you need to understand how the music industry has changed so that you can try to figure out where it's headed. Sure it's great to know about the writers in Tin Pan Alley from the late 1800's to the early 1900's; it's important to understand radio's role in the emergence of popular music and how payola controlled that; it's important to know that the first video ever aired on MTV was The Buggle's "Video Killed The Radio Star" (seriously think about that for a minute).

In the last 20 years, the music industry has changed more than it has in nearly its entire existence. Or, certainly in this century. The current music industry that we operate in is still changing at a rapid pace. There's speculation on the extinction of CD's within 2-3 years, there's been a major resurgence in vinyl (who saw that coming?!), the major record labels as we knew them may cease to exist within 5 years, mp3's and file sharing are now a good thing and a major source of world-wide distribution (what?!).

Greg Kott's "Ripped" is one of the most fascinating books on current music history I've ever read. He jumps right in with the first chapter about the major consolidation that all of the big 5 (at that time there were 5 major record labels, as opposed to the 2 1/2 there are now). This was a huge shift in the record industry at the time. It scared a lot of artists and put a lot of people out of work.

Greg does a great job in detailing the consolidation of the majors, the rise of indie bands, the fight against and for sampling on hip-hip records and new mashup records and artists, Prince's record label and his do-it-yourself approach, the rise of mp3's and the fall of Napster and the "pay what you want" model that Radiohead started with "In Rainbows," that Trent Renzor "improved" upon.

I don't want to give too much away, because I want you to be able to enjoy this book. It isan enjoyable book. It discusses in detail the many things that have happened over the past two decades that have changed the face of the music industry dramatically.

You can read each chapter as a vignette about each band or person or aspect of the industry. But when taken as a whole, "Ripped" reads more like a cautionary tale with a hopeful ending.

"Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

Nick Peay is an independent DIY musician who has been releasing music on his own for over 15 years. His blog, D.I.mY Music Blog, details all of the resources and tips he used to become a successful independent, DIY musician. For advice on how to successfully release your own music without the constraints of a major or indie label, check out the D.I.mY Music Blog at http://www.dimymusic.wordpress.com/.

Guitar Books - Three Music Theory Books For Guitarists

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Sooner or later any serious guitarist comes to realize that a solid theoretical background is the only way forward. Your ear can only take you so far, that's when your musical theory can kick in and remove any musical obstacles in your way to fully expressing yourself.

Seems pretty straight forward... just go to the music shop and pick up a theory book and away we go; away we go alright... pick up the wrong book and you'll end up more confused than you ever were before.

Musical fact of life # 1: Not all theory books are created equal.

I remember when I started my first job, it was at a music store teaching music; I had a bit of a reputation as a player in the local area playing in dance bands etc., and since I had already sold quite a bit of musical equipment for the music store based on my track record they thought I would be the obvious choice; if
the store had a potential guitar or amp customer they would leave a message with my mum, then after school I would go down to the store and demonstrate the gear.

Everything started out fine, I stumbled and fumbled my way through the guitar lessons, I'm not sure who learnt the most me or my students I know I learnt heaps everyday mostly about how not to teach.

Anyway, very early in the piece the store manager informed me that if I was going to continue teaching for the store I would need to be "qualified"; I didn't know exactly what that entailed but it did sound scary

As it turned out what he meant was I needed to be formally qualified... just being able to play the guitar was not good enough if I was going to teach guitar for them.

The good news was they were going to pay for my lessons so that was neat... there was even more good news I could go to the theory lessons instead of having to work at the shop.

So I began my theory lessons and very soon became frustrated, confused and perplexed... things I knew worked on the bandstand the night before didn't match up with the theory lesson the next day.

The more confused I became the more determined I was about finding the "truth"; so I started studying with other teachers to augment my "paid" lessons from the music store... boy, did that make matters worst; it seemed as if each theory teacher had their own slant on things many basic concepts did not match up.

Long story short... after a lot of playing, thinking and research I discovered....

Musical fact of life # 2: there are different types of theory... in fact there are three distinct types of theory: classical, jazz and rock/blues!

These are very broad categories they are all important and the complete musician needs to be aware of their similarities and differences.

They world is full of traditional classical theory books so I won't discuss them here. Modern theory as applied to improvisation and the music of our time is what I'm about... it's great to know what happened 400 years ago but it's unlikely to help you secure that rock gig next Friday night,

Here's my top three modern theory books for guitarists

Title: Modern Method For Guitar - By William Leavitt (Berklee Press)

Available from: Berklee.com

Overview: if you want to get in on the ground floor and study guitar and theory as applied to the guitar fretboard, this is the place to start!

Available in three volumes; the first sixty pages of volume one covers the basics of reading music in the first position of the guitar.

Part two of Berklee volume one introduces the five standard fingering patterns for reading music over the fretboard.

Title: Jazz Studies - by Bruce Clarke (ed clinch v.i.s.e text)

Available from: BillyHydemusic.com.au

Overview:A fantastic book that takes off were the Berklee book volume one finishes; the Jazz Studies book is ideal to use in conjunction with Berklee Volume two.

Fantastic explanations of how modes, cycle 5 and cycle 7 concepts work Jazz studies is a great introduction into the world of improvisation, if you have studied traditional theory this book will "blow the lid off" how you look at theory. Step by step instruction, very easy to understand. Highly recommended.

Title: "See It - Hear It / Hear It - Play It" - by Dick Grove

Available from: DickGrove.com

Overview:A complete course with DVD/text instruction from the man himself Dick Grove, you could easily pay $100,000 in college instruction and never get this type of tuition.

Everyone learns differently the DVD's bring the written text to life helping to maintain the student's motivation and enthusiasm. Any one of these individual courses or combination of all three theory texts will clear the way for you to express yourself on the guitar.

And now I'd like to invite you to get free access to my "How To Remember 1,000 Songs" eCourse. You can download the course for free at: http://www.guitarcoaching.com/

You'll learn about hit song templates, easy chords simple scales, red hot rhythms, and successful practice strategies in text, audio and video.

From Mike Hayes - The Guitar Coaching Guy & the Express Guitar System

Ultimate Slap Bass by Stuart Clayton - A Book Review For Bass Players

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Ultimate Slap Bass is a good book for bass players who want to learn how to play slap bass. The book is just over 200 pages long and comes with two CDs which feature recordings of a lot of the lines and grooves listed in the book.

Stuart Clayton is a British author - and has written over 10 bass books so far, most of which are published by his Bassline Publications company.

One of the features of the book I really like is that as Stuart takes you through the basics to more advanced topics he also lists tunes you can find in iTunes that demonstrate each step of the process. The book is split into three sections. The first section is aimed at beginners and features slapping basics, adding the pop, using hammer-ons and trills and pull offs, adding ghost notes and a quick look at some scales that are regularly used by bassists who play slap.

The second section is for intermediate bass players. Topics include left hand slaps and 16th note lines, introducing 10ths, machine gun triplets, double stops and double pops and some strumming. Again there are suggested tracks to listen to that demonstrate these techniques.

The third section covers advanced topics - and includes slapping and the shuffle, open string hammer ons, and then some sections on the technique everyone wants to learn that was popularized by Victor Wooten, the double thumb technique. There's a final couple of chapters on combining all the techniques too into bass lines - there are some very cool examples in this section.

The book is rounded off with some short interviews with bass players famous for slapping - and some you may not have heard so much about. And there's an extensive slap bass discography too.

A final plus for the book is that it is spiral bound, so it sits nicely on your music stand as you work through the book and you don't have to damage the spine of the book to get it to lay semi flat to actually work from it. Why more music publishers don't do this is beyond me.

Anyway to conclude, this is a must have book if you want to work on learning the slap style of bass. Combine this with Alexis Skalerevski's DVD and Slap It by Tony Oppenheim and you'll have a feast of stuff to work on.

If you want more bass related info, head over to my how to play bass website where you'll find video lessons, articles, reviews and much more. There's also a monthly ezine you can sign up for - in return for signing up you'll get a PDF file with 5 cool bass lines in - and each month's ezine features a bass line in music notation and bass tab. http://www.how-to-play-bass.com/

Carl Flesch "Cliff Notes" - Simply Violin - Violin Scales & Arpeggios in One, Two, and Three Octaves

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Many of us who have taught from the violin scale book by Carl Flesch have wished for a "Cliff Notes" version -- one that includes the familiar fingerings but without all the extra material, such as octaves, tenths, and parallel thirds. Of course, these have their place. But most students could benefit from a more simple (and portable) version.

Most violin scale books other than Flesch are lacking in several areas. First, they do not use the Flesch fingerings, which are widely considered to be standard in America as well as abroad. Most also lack arpeggios. Finally, they are often hard to read and/or densely spaced on the page. For these reasons, many (if not most) advanced students continue to study from the Flesch book, even though they may never use the majority of its pages.

I have also wished that a "progressive" book would come available -- one that included scales in one and two octaves rather than just three octaves. Even better would be a book including arpeggios with fingerings that are consistent not only within octaves, but between them as well.

Simply Violin: Violin Scales and Arpeggios in One, Two, and Octaves (based on Flesch) solves many of these problems. This book employs consistent fingerings. Plus, the notes are well spaced and there is ample room for the teacher to change fingerings if desired.

The two octave scales in this book are particularly nice for students who are auditioning for an intermediate youth orchestra. Further, all of them use the same fingering pattern, which allows the student to memorize them easily.

In this new book, I believe that I have found a viable alternative to Flesch that I can recommend in my shop to violin teachers who are looking for a more user-friendly version of Flesch. And, the book contains scales in one and two octaves, allowing for students of any level to begin scales and progress to Flesch fingerings in a logical and progressive way.

Glenn Letsch's Bass Master Class - Book Review

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This book - a follow up of sorts to Bass Lessons With The Greats (which I've also reviewed) is written by Glenn Letsch. It features short 'master classes' with bass players Mike Chapman, Larry Graham, Jaco Pastorius, Rocco Prestia and upright bass player (and no relation:) Ben Wolfe. For those of you on your journey learning how to play bass here's a more detailed review of each of the masterclasses in this book.

Let's look at the individual lessons:

Lesson With Jaco Pastorius

This lesson is hosted by Glenn Letsch - and is a transcription of Jaco's solo on a tune called All American Alien Boy by The Ian Hunter Band. The transcription is also accompanied by a detailed analysis, and some of the historical background of how the tune came to be recorded. If Jaco is someone you study, this lesson will be right up your bass playing street.

Lesson With Larry Graham

Larry Graham is the father of slap bass - so it's no surprise that this lesson focuses on slap bass. There are some examples of Larry Graham bass lines including It Ain't No Fun, I Believe In You (two different sections), If You Want Me To Stay, Got To Go Through It, Dance To The Music, and a 'power ballad' example with a flanger, an octave divider example, Thank You, Pow, Can You Handle That, Higher, a 'train groove, and Release Yourself.

This lesson is aimed at intermediate and advanced players - there are some serious grooves to cop in this lesson.

Lesson With Ben Wolfe

Ben Wolfe is an upright bass player - and his lesson looks at some ways of developing walking bass lines. He starts off with 'playing in 2' in both scalar and triadic fashion and then proceeds to chromatic approaches. Then he moves to a more traditional 4 beats to the bar walking approach and discusses some ways of expanding your walking

Lesson With Mike Chapman

Mike Chapman is a Nashville Session Master - and his lesson talks about the bass requirements for players in the Nashville scene. This ranges from an explanation of the Nashville style 'Number Chart' to comprehensive set of examples of specific playing situations ranging from country waltzes to western swing to zydeco to 8th notes and more. All the examples can be heard on the accompanying CD.

Lesson With Rocco Prestia

This is a finger style funk lesson. The lesson looks at specific Rocco riffs and patterns, notably Believe It, Miss Trouble, Mr Toad's Wild Ride, Squib Cakes, This Time It's Real, Get Your Feet Back On The Ground, You're Still A Young Man, Down To The Nightclub and Credit. All these examples can be heard on the accompanying CD.

Summary

Like Glenn's other book - Bass Lessons With The Greats - this book is also out of print. Although it is not as good as Bass Lessons With The Greats it still has lots of useful information in. My recommendation is that you set up alerts at Internet sites and when a second hand version comes up for sale that you grab a copy. You won't regret it.

If you want more bass related info, head over to my how to play bass website where you'll find video lessons, articles, reviews and much more. There's also a monthly ezine you can sign up for - in return for signing up you'll get a PDF file with 5 cool bass lines in - and each month's ezine features a bass line in music notation and bass tab. http://www.how-to-play-bass.com/

Van Morrison - Master Extraordinaire

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One certainly does not need to embellish or imagine when presented with the task of writing about Van Morrison. He is legendary and yet he is very real. I suppose that is the essence of Van Morrison, born George Ivan Morrison, on August 31st, 1945. He is at once both mystical and real. His music is today and always has been his soul's extension riding on a raw and fundamental talent such as is rarely seen in this world. His list of credentials and certifications is simply daunting. Van Morrison has amassed a collection of music that is without rival in all of recorded history. He has accomplished things in the musical world that have never been done before. His legacy is to have influenced all succeeding generations of musicians and songwriters of all genres, today and for many years to come. Van Morrison has been inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (1993) and the Song Writers Hall of Fame (2007). Rolling Stone magazine placed him twenty-fourth in 100 of the greatest singers of all time in the November 2008 list.

Mr. Ivan Morrison is the master of the poetic phrase full of esoteric allusions. Although some may think that these are meant for the few, the whole world may differ. He has added to his list of accomplishment, blues and R&B. His accomplishments also include pop music, jazz, rock, folk, country, gospel, Irish folk and traditional, big band, new age and classic. I told you it was daunting.

Curiously enough, Van Morrison has worked with another legendary master of the esoteric vintage- Roger Waters. Morrison played "Pink" a character in the 1990 release of "The Wall" that was produced by Roger and his long time friend Ken O'Neill. True to form, Rogers and Morrison create an epic event. Roger Waters lead a star studded cast in a colossal performance of his acclaimed concept. The Wall was produced in support of The War Memorial Fund for Disaster Relief. The setting is Berlin, Germany, less than a year after the destruction of the hated Berlin Wall. This is an excellent example of the kind of work that he submerges himself into. Highly original and influencing ideas which developed future events are his hallmark.

Herb likes to read about music topics. Please check out his website that contains tattoo removal prices information as well as tattoo removal balm information.

More Than Just Music and Stunts - A Corporate Social Responsibility

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Despite the fact that the main focus of the Vans Warped Tour happens to be on putting up great music for the people, but raising concern about environment issues has also been an equally important priority for them. Vans Warped Tour launched a Warped Eco-Initiative which made it the most environment friendly event in North America. With the initiative, the Vans Warped Tour switched over to bio diesel for running their tour buses and production trucks. Having more than 17 tour buses and close to 19 production trucks, running around in the US for two months, meant consuming a lot of fuel. Having been converted to bio diesel, Vans Warped Tour significantly reduced the usage of traditional fuel and thereby reduced a lot of pollution. By utilizing a renewable resource such as bio diesel, Vans Warped Tour proved the fact that bio diesel could actually be used on a regular basis and yet meet the essential efficiency requirements.

Everyone involved in the Vans Warped Tour propagates and encourages following the three R's of Restoration:

A. Reduce the consumption of non renewable resources.

B. Reuse the existing articles before trashing them.

C. Recycle products and articles.

Warped Eco-Initiative has become a cult movement which has greatly inspired the youth to take the first step in restoring beauty on the planet earth. The youth have been overly keyed up to stand for the cause and make an attempt for the big change. And it's not that the Vans Warped Tour has no incentive for them- volunteers are provided free access to the tour and are given away a whole lot of goodies like T-shirts, caps, souvenirs and many other items.

Vans Warped Tour believes in giving back to the society. At the open atmosphere, the tour builds up booths where you can find a number of vendors addressing socially relevant causes. The vendors constitute environmental rights activists, civil rights activists and even anti-racism organizations. Leaving aside these, a number of charitable organizations such as Teen Suicides, National Hope Line Network, and many more are also set up at the tour. In fact a tent by the name of 'Girl Garage' addresses the issues in an innovative way. The fans that happen to visit the tent are asked to design their T-shirts and bid for Vans shoes. All the proceedings from the sale of T-shirts and the shoes go to the suicide charitable trusts.

The Vans Warped Tour also contributes to causes such as the American Red Cross, Cancer Care and even AIDS research centers. In fact, with the sale of every 4 tickets at the tour, $1 gets credited to 'Camp Hollywood Heart'- an institution that takes care of the families that have been affected by HIV/AIDS. In 2005, the tour contributed more than two hundred and fifty thousand dollars to the victims of hurricane Katrina. But money is not only the way through which they contribute/donate - many times, artists of the tour come together and supply prefabricated homes to the families in need.

The author has been writing articles online for over 4 years now. Not only does this author specialize in health, fitness and relationships you can also check out his latest websites on Hockey Gifts [http://hockeygifts.org] and The Pros And Cons

Lords of Chaos - The Bloody Rise of the Satanic Metal Underground Book Review

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I bought this book a few months ago and managed to finish it a few days after buying it. It was an intense but a good read altogether although the approach, the style of writing is quite academic, necessary, from my point of view, for a book which chronicled the world's most notorious music since the formation of the hexachord system by Guido of Arezzo, which spurred the unearthing of the satanic chords (diabolus in musica) way back in the 18th century, to be taken seriously. The music they call Black Metal. It requires a tune so that people will take the book seriously.

I have been listening to this kind of tune since primary school and the one accountable for introducing me to this music was not any of my friends or older relatives, but a local Malaysian tabloid. Untarnished still in my hazy remembrance, I was quite captivated by this diabolical music through an article in that particular tabloid that did a 2-page special report on the subject, complete with cool pictures and band logos. They even listed all these so called satanic rock bands for my trouble-free reference. And that was in 1995 if my memory serves me correctly.

I was very inquisitive and very much the curious cat. It was like a giant whirlpool sucking me in and there were no ways for me to escape these enthralling madness of sorrow, supremacy and extreme aggressiveness. I got to try this, I said to myself. It took me no more than 5 second to convert myself from a nerd into a metal and hard rock listening nerd. Still a nerd but a different kind of nerd. It took me no more than the next week later for me to buy my first record. Talk about ultra influential. I have been a devoted fan and an avid listener ever since. I live happily ever after and my life has never been the same again.

Enough about my metal fairy tale and lets check this book out. Since the orientation of this book is quite academic, the read was quite deep, hectic and more often than not, quite tiring since the authors have widened their extent of investigation beyond the musician and its miniature circle. This includes outsiders who were directly involved with the satanic scene. Thus giving the reader more elaborative facts from different perspectives and distinguished angles.

Although there are several general issues covered and discussed by the authors, I can see that the reason for the publication of this book was more towards exploiting the notoriety of the Norwegian Black Metal scene, the birthplace of what was known to be as the second wave of Black Metal (Mayhem, Burzum, Dark Throne, Immortal, Emperor, Enslaved are all Norwegian bands). A chunk of pages was dedicated to its early inception, the power struggle, suicide, the murders and the church burnings, which all in fact happened in Norway. In case you do not know, Black Metal was once Norway's main export. Black metal bands being nominated in the Norwegian Grammy is quite normal there. I would like to see that kind of openness here.

Two of the most important individuals, highly influential to the early inception of Satanic Black Metal in Norway, Oysten Aarseth aka Euronymous and Varg Vikernes aka Count Grishnackh, were heavily dealt with in one of its chapters. Besides touching on the history or the early development of the Black Metal sound, the book also features interviews with who's who from the scene (the infamous members of the Inner Circle. the Black Metal Mafia as the Norwegian press called it) and quite elaborative on the music's influence through out the world.

It is a good read, highly recommended to those who really want to dig deep into the music judging the music by its cover, since Malaysia had (still having) her fair share of controversy (known worldwide, even Ian Christe mentioned the conservativeness of Malaysia in his book, Sound of the Beast. Maybe we do live on trees) with regard to this highly intolerable form of entertainment (yes, entertainment. Intolerable but still entertainment).

I write about heavy metal music in an obscure land called Malaysia. Help me make my writing better. visit my blog: http://www.thebulletbelt.blogspot.com/

How to Play Guitar by Roger Evans

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A guitar is a more amicable instrument than any other string instruments. Once a person masters few basics he/ she will be able to create tunes and notes out of it. However it might take a year or two for a very passionate player to master the basics itself. The learner will also have to exploit the instrument to its fullest capacity to learn the basics.

How to Play guitar by Roger Evans explains instructions for all level guitarists. This book has been developed after a period of research and has a wealth of information and inspiration. No matter what the player wants to expertise pop, folk, country, rock, blues, jazz, classical or any other style of music.

This book consists of basic techniques without tedious drills and exercise. This book introduces a new technique of using real music and a step by step approach to how to play guitar. It also helps buy a correct tuner, how to read the guitar tabs, place the fingers on the frets, strum with the other hand etc...

This books helps a player in choosing a Guitar, tuning the instrument correctly, reading sheet music, guitar music and tabulator, playing melodies and chords, Finger picking, Mastering left-hand techniques, including sliding and bending notes, transposing melodies from one key to another and many more.

This books also gives few tips and techniques for players for instance, For players who have difficulty in playing the chords and difficulty in forming chord shapes with fingers it is better to start with learning songs that have single notes or power chords. By following these technique the fingers will get strengthened and the player will also get familiarized with the usage of the chords and the instrument as well. This reduces stress and frustration on the player and will enable him/ her to learn guitar effectively.

If you are interested in learning guitar online then you will find Jamorama lessons quite useful. I have found some useful reviews out here: Jamorama. You can find more online free lessons for learning Guitar at Guitar Lessons Reviews

Wonderful Tonight by Pattie Boyd - The Enhanced iBook

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It was the most famous love triangle in the history of rock 'n' roll, spawning one of the most iconic songs of all time and arguably, the best known guitar riff ever.

Mention the name Pattie Boyd, and most people over the age of 40 will know who you mean. Mention the word 'Layla' and younger, puzzled eyes light up. Any child learning guitar wants to play those opening notes.

Pattie Boyd's story is extraordinary. It epitomizes the wild excesses and free love of the sex, drugs & rock 'n' roll years, an era which ignited in the early sixties and had burned out by the early 1980s with most of the protagonists either dead or hopelessly addicted to alcohol, drugs, or both. Bands that did remain were ripped apart by in-fighting between surviving members. Hard rockers throwing TVs out of trashed hotel room windows were replaced by fluffy New Romantics who would never tear through a hotel lobby on a motorbike for fear of wrecking their hairdo or smudging their makeup.

Memorabilia from the sixties and seventies changes hands at auction for increasingly ludicrous amounts of money and Pattie Boyd clearly has a trunk load of it. This 'enhanced' version of her autobiography, 'Wonderful Tonight' (the original paper version was oddly named Wonderful Today in the UK) is packed full with letters, photographs, drawings and images that apparently haven't seen the light of day for decades.

The opening chapters tell of her childhood years - usually a dull necessity in an autobiography - but before flicking forward to the juicy bits, it's worth taking a look at her childhood photos. Presented as a movie slideshow, Pattie talks through a series of snaps, just like a friend showing you their photo album. It's an original approach that is repeated later in this iBook with a collection of photographs of The Beatles in India, with the Maharishi.

A photograph of George & Pattie with Frank Sinatra is accompanied by an audio description of how they joined Sinatra in the studio for his 'one take' recording of My Way.

Further into the iBook, she talks about the cover shot of George's solo album, Living in The Material World, explaining that the chauffer and nanny were simply part of the set.

Beatles' anoraks, or indeed anyone interested in that era, will be fascinated by memorabilia such as postcards written by George to Pattie whilst on tour with the Fab Four, George and Pattie's marriage certificate, a childlike Christmas card created for Pattie by George and even George's concept for his own record label.

A letter written by George to Pattie whilst in New York for the Concert for Bangladesh has also been given the audio commentary treatment. In his letter George writes that the journey on the SS France to NY was not as much fun as the previous one on the QE2. Pattie explains that Tommy Cooper had entertained them on the QE2 voyage. Why does George write that he has seen a washbasin but doesn't know if they can afford it? Surely he was one of the richest rock stars on the planet! Pattie explains that they never carried money and had no idea if they were rich or poor. Cleverly, the presentation allows the reader to listen to the commentary then read the letter.

Most magical of all perhaps is a letter written by John Lennon that has been buried in a drawer for almost forty years. In the letter he talks of the grass outside their window (Central Park), that thankfully he doesn't have to mow. He describes an amazing new invention he has discovered - the Polaroid camera - and how the picture leaps out of the camera and develops before your very eyes. He suggests Apple (The Beatles record label which was causing them huge grief at that time) should be given to the lowest bidder or sent to animal slaughter, and talks of spending old age in the Wilfred Pickles Memorial Home. It really is Lennon at his eccentric best.

The story that everyone wants the inside track on is what exactly went on between George Harrison, Pattie Boyd and Eric Clapton, and this iBook version lays it all on the table. She tells of how a letter arrived addressed to 'Dearest L...', which she assumed was from a crackpot fan; of how Eric sat her down, played her a tape and it was the most powerful song she had ever heard and she knew it was about her. The song, of course, was Layla. At this point you can touch your iPad screen, connect to the iTunes store, listen to Layla and buy it, if amazingly, you don't already own it.

The lunacy of the period between 1970 and 1974 when George and she finally divorced is extraordinary and difficult to keep track of. Popular opinion was that Harrison and Clapton fell out and there was much animosity between the two, but in this iBook Pattie produces a note from George to them both which seems to give his blessing to their affair.

Besides the letters the iBook contains another Christmas card, this time drawn by Eric. Were these 70s rockers so desperate to cling to their childhood that they created greetings cards like over exuberant primary school children?

Ronnie Wood, who allegedly had an affair with Pattie during the George / Eric kerfuffle, gives his take on this special enhanced version of the book with a video foreword, and pops up later in the book to talk about a drawing he did of Pattie at Friar Park (the Harrison mansion).

Wonderful Tonight, the enhanced iBook, is an exceptional example of what can be done with Apple's iPad platform. The subject matter and accompanying content really do lend themselves perfectly to the 3D eBook treatment and the use of clever techniques (such as commentary on photo slideshows) works very well.

If you are at all interested in The Beatles, Eric Clapton, or simply a glimpse into the future of publishing, this iBook is well worth a look

Wonderful Tonight, the enhanced version, is available from Apple's iBook store for iPad and iPhone

Complete Guide to High-End Audio, by Robert Harley - Book Review

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AppId is over the quota

This book is dealing with the subject of "high-end audio"--which is a term used for music playback systems of extreme high quality. Although it was first published in 1994 and contains chapter titles like "The LP Playback System", it is still as relevant and useful today as it was in the time it was written.

What is the concept behind "high-end"?

Most people knows the word "high fidelity" or "hi-fi" for short. That word is used in everyday language as a designation for any music playing system that includes CD-player, and amplifier or receiver, and a pair of loudspeakers. It also implies that there is some kind of minimum quality involved, so you would not call a ghettoblaster on the beach or some inferior music system in a restaurant for "hi-fi".

When it comes to high-end many people would immediately think of some very technical, complicated and expensive equipment that can only be setup and even appreciated by a small clique of nerds speaking an insider-language beyond the scope of ordinary people.

Although the book goes much into technical details, the only reason these very details are necessary to describe is not because they are particularly interesting in themselves.

Rather, they are the means to and end of bringing the feeling and emotion of recorded music over to the listener so he or she can truly enjoy the listening process. This is not accomplished by cheap equipment bought in the nearest supermarket for cheap dollars and setup in haste in the first spot available on the shelf in the living room.

It is not necessary about purchasing the most expensive and prestigious and thus buy yourself a ticket to heaven. Certain tweaks, like the correct placement of your loudspeakers, stable furniture for your equipment, choosing a proper cable, can bring you a long way without horrendous costs. You simply have to know what will make a difference and why, and then make your own experiments and draw your own conclusions.

In this book you will simply discover how to

get the best sound for your moneyidentify the weak links in your system and upgrade where it will do the most goodset-up and "tweak" your system and get maximum performance from equipment you already ownread equipment reviewsmake hi-fi more fun!

I have read the book myself several times and still enjoy the entertaining descriptions and the fun of making small changes in my hi-fi system with surprising results.

About the author

Robert Harley was for years Consulting Technical Editor of the legendary Stereophile magazine.

Cream's Jack Bruce - A Look at His Autobiography "Composing Himself"

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Legendary bassist, vocalist, and multi instrumentalist Jack Bruce is the subject of a new autobiography, "Composing Himself". Best known for his founding role in the legendary power trio Cream, this book is a must read for anyone interested in music. Here's why...

Jack Bruce: An Overview

Jack Bruce is probably best known for his integral role in the legendary power trio band Cream. And yet, his story doesn't start or stop with that influential group.

By all accounts a brilliant musician, and by some accounts a musical genius, Jack Bruce was a child prodigy and an accomplished cello player by the time he reached his teens. He grew restless even in the most prestigious Scottish music schools and soon gravitated toward the budding jazz, rock, and blues scene of early 1960's Great Britain.

It was there he crossed paths with and ultimately teamed up with drummer Ginger Baker and guitarist Eric Clapton to form Cream, a musical tour de force that still influences and resonates to this day. Although Cream's initial shelf life lasted less than three years, the world class musicianship of the three members spawned countless imitators and legions of admirers.

After the band's 1968 break up, Bruce went on to forge a colorful music career, careening from hard rock to blues to jazz and all points in between. He has stayed true to his musical vision, whether or not it meant commercial success, and this is why his story is a must read for all aspiring musicians and fans of great music.

The Autobiography: Composing Himself

The Jack Bruce autobiography, Composing Himself, is aptly written and narrated by Harry Shapiro, an accomplished author who has known his subject at arms length for decades. The forward is brilliantly written by Bruce's Cream band mate, Eric Clapton, who offers a glimpse of Bruce's talents from an insiders perspective.

Many other peers, friends, and family members provide an honest and often gut wrenching perspective of Bruce's life and career. Like many high profile musicians, he struggled with the bounty of success, turning to drugs as a crutch.

With his career basically in shambles a short ten years after Cream's break up, the book details his long journey back to physical and emotional health, and relevancy within the music business. His many musical partnerships are covered in fascinating detail, especially the aborted early 1970's super group, West, Bruce, and Laing. Thrown together by music industry executives hoping for a big pay day, the band imploded under the weight of its own expectations, nearly ruining the three members in the process.

For the most part, the narrative keeps Bruce's family life at arms length, other than to underscore their importance and positive influence in his life. Bruce, an extraordinarily private man, has never sought rock star adulation. As the book recounts, of more importance is his desire to pursue inner satisfaction via his music, commercially successful or not.

His recent reunion with Cream is detailed, both with poignant humor and wistful recollections. Long known for their combative relationship, the complicated interplay between Bruce and Ginger Baker is dealt with respectfully, but with the gloves off. In what Eric Clapton calls a sibling rivalry, Bruce and Baker have deep mutual respect but still do not see eye to eye, almost 50 years after they first played together.

Summary

One need not be a fan of Cream, or even Jack Bruce, to enjoy his autobiography, Composing Himself. It is an honest chronicle of a man who lives for his music, a man who almost deliberately shunned the path of commercial success to stay true to himself and his vision.

Further, the book is a soul baring study in relationships; what should have been done, and what should have been said. It is a story of sadness, a story of triumph, but most of all a story of survival.

To learn more about Jack Bruce and the legendary power trio Cream, be sure to visit us at: http://www.squidoo.com/cream-power-trio

Hal Leonard's Guitar Method - The Complete Edition, Books and CDs 1, 2, and 3

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Book Review: Hal Leonard's Guitar Method - Complete Edition books & cd's 1 2 and 3 by Will Schmid

Pros:

The backing tracks in this one are complete collections and the sound is perfect. It is entertaining to play along with the tracks for practice but make sure that you concentrate so that you don't lose your own styles.The lessons contained in this one are all relevant to the music nowadays and this makes them much more interesting as well.A minor point for many of you, but important in the case of guitar books is that this one contains no typos.

Cons

One of the biggest negatives of the book perhaps is the fact in book 1, the methods seem to be losing their organization and pay less attention to some important concepts.The tabs have been a bit overdone. Once they are introduced, it just seems as if the book contains too much of tabs and this often becomes a problem for people who wish to learn how to read musical notes.There are advanced concepts that are touched up on by the book and as a guitar player, you will realise that it is important to have a teacher for such advanced techniques.

Mel Bay Guitar Method Grade 1:

Pros

The organisation of this book is fantastic since each lesson is built on the one preceding it.The book is also highly useful in order to learn how to read musical notes or read music.Each technique is put down in detail and one gets an in depth look into them in order to learn them properly.

Cons

The selection of songs on the disks that come with the book are not the right one's for playing and it makes the CDs quite boring very often.In addition, the recording of the backing tracks on the CDs are recorded cheaply which makes it less useful for beginners.As mentioned before, lack of typos should be important and this book has a number of typos which again makes it tough for beginners.

Hal Leonard's is the better overall product but Mel Bay's is better for learning how to read music.

If you would like to read a chapter of a treasure trove of guitar techniques click here

For your chance to get a free ipad or amazon kindle do check out http://powerfulreviews.com/ thanks.

Learn Guitar Tabs Fast - It Is Easier Than It Looks

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AppId is over the quota

There have been a few skills I've set out to learn in my life, and by skills I mean more than just a trade or profession. Take boxing for example, where the friend who decided to teach me based on his extensive history of training champions earlier in life. We went out and bought a heavy boxing bag and spent a fun afternoon hanging it at my home. When it came time to teach me what to do, he smiled, got in his car and just as he was driving off, he told me to punch the bag 1,000 times and then to call him back. And so I did, and when he returned he told me to now punch it 2,000 times, but for me to take note of how my arms now naturally come up and for my fists to be ready to do business with the bag.

The same happened when I took up dancing, and there my teacher had to first teach me how to listen to music - at first the beat, and then later the rhythm. She defined dancing as any movement of my body that is in time with the music, and so tapping in finger on the bar or my foot in time to the drummer was dancing - albeit at a most basic form. After understanding this "process of learning", I realized that in both the cases of learning boxing and dance it was all about muscle-learning my physical movements until my muscles developed their own memory of what to do and when.

My current project of learning guitar is not different in that my journey is one of developing a muscle memory so that my fingers will be at the right tabs and the right time for my efforts to make great sound. Yes it will take a little time, but when I know the underlying process to learning the new skill, then my progress. In order to learn guitar tabs fast, I found it wise to buy the right book and in my resource box you will find a link to a web-site which reviews many such books. To learn guitar, you mostly need to learn guitar tabs fast and putting in the right amount of time with the right structure to your practice, and you'll be there around the camp fire impressing the ladies in no time at all.

Phil Jarvie is a professional forex day trader, an author and SEO specialist. Visit learn guitar tabs fast where this article was researched.

Book Review - Play Bass With the Police

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AppId is over the quota

I'm a great fan of people learning how to play bass to learn some basic technique and acquire some basic fingerboard knowledge and then apply that to some real world songs. But I'm also realistic enough to know that it's difficult for those new to learning how to play bass to work bass lines out for themselves from records. A lot of beginners use the tabs that proliferate on the Internet - often these are inaccurate or even plain wrong. Published books of transcriptions usually form a much better source of material for beginners to learn from.

One such book is Play Bass With The Police.

Now this book is published by Wise Publications and is easier to find in the UK and Europe than it is in North America. However you can find it - and if you're a beginner I do recommend that you make the effort to track it down and order it.

This book contains nine Police bass lines. They are notated out in standard music notation and bass tab. Additionally there is a CD that comes with the package that has versions of the track with the bass on - so you can hear how it is supposed to sound - and then also has a version of the track without the bass on so that you can play along in a reasonable simulation of a band setting.

The songs included in the book and on the CD are:

Can't Stand Losing You
Don't Stand So Close To me
Every Breath You Take
Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic
Message In A Bottle
Roxanne
Spirits In The Material World
Synchronicity II
Walking On The Moon

The book is presented in a soft binding. If you've read any of my reviews you know that I favour spiral binding for music books. Also another minor gripe, some songs are spread out over three or four pages so it's impossible to 'read' from the notation for a complete song.

The CD that comes with the package is well recorded - the instruments are well recorded and the standard of playing doesn't let the tunes down.

I recommend this book/CD package for beginners learning how to play bass because although Sting's bass lines are often easy, they very often contain interesting little rhythmic quirks, or interesting choices of notes. These reflect his background both as a jazz musician and a song writer (and a detailed working knowledge of harmony and how chords function).

The advantage of this book over the other Police bass lines book that is out there is the CD and the playalong aspect. This book gets a 4 star rating, and is recommended for beginners and low intermediates.

If you want to learn how to play bass to 10 songs head over to my website at http://www.how-to-play-bass.com/ and subscribe to my free monthly ezine. You can instantly download PDFs with notation and bass tab to 10 songs in return for subscribing. Plus there are how to play bass videos, articles, reviews and tutorials and more.

Michael In Foreverland - A New Tribute Book on Michael Jackson's World

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These three words: Michael In Foreverland - are all over the Google and Yahoo Search Engines. A story about Michael Jackson's extraordinary life. A life full of adventures and wonderment.

Michael Jackson was a True Humanitarian who truly cared about Planet Earth, the Animals and Children. He envisioned his World to be as he created his World and shared it with only those who BELIEVED!!

Michael Jackson's Earth Song was like the Avatar movie, where the Navi people were very sad when their Home Tree was destroyed. They were brave and fought to the very end. Even the Animals fought back to save their land.

If we all saw the World through Michael's eyes - we would see Beauty all around. A World of Peace, Love and Harmony. Michael loved to laugh and smile. He was curious about the World around him and had a childlike enthusiasm for life that most of us lose when we grow up into Adulthood. He loved Disneyland, for his world was much the same.

Michael's closest friends that stood by him and who believed in him were Elizabeth Taylor, Brooke Shields and Lisa Marie Presley.

In Michael In Foreverland, you will take a journey into Michael's World and get a glimpse of his Genius Mind. Michael believed in legends and fairytales. He loved to read books and to watch old classic movies with Humprey Bogart.

And although Michael Jackson is no longer with us, he will live in our hearts forever. Michael will stay young forever and live forever in "Michael In Foreverland." The World is a better place because of the contributions that he made through his songs.

The British Invasion: 1963-1969

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In 1963 rock 'n' roll was, well...rolling right along. But very soon, almost overnight it seemed, a wave of change was about to take place. From across the Atlantic in merry-old England, rock 'n' roll had gained a foot-hold and the epidemic had infected British youth all throughout the United Kingdom. The sound was very similar in many ways, but there was something different, something more grown-up about it. Whatever it was, American kids, (especially girls), jumped all over it. At first, just a unique sound, this music, along with the bands that created it, would grow, evolve, alter, and forever effect pop music. This musical movement would create new genres of music and influence thousands.

Four lads from Liverpool, England, "The Beatles", led the way and would be at the fore-front of it all. Not only of other British bands but of the entire musical arena through the '60's and into the '70's. Songs like 'Please, please Me', 'I Wanna Hold Your Hand', and 'Hard Days Night', had teenage girls swooning, crying and fainting. Not since Elvis Presley, with his great-looks, unmistakable voice, and gyrating hips, was there such a spectacle. The older folks were properly disgusted but could do nothing. The Beatles, along with bands with names like "The Zombies", "The Animals", "The Kingsman", "The Hollies", "The Kinks", and the "Rolling Stones", had taken the U.S. by storm. Then there were the songs, tunes like the Hollies melodic, 'Bus Stop' and the fast-paced, hard rocking, 'You Really Got Me', by the Kinks were giving fans more of a variety in the their choice of style, which led to the growing appeal. In 1965, lead guitarist for the Rolling Stones, Keith Richards, hit 15 unforgettable guitar cords at the start of 'Can't Get No,(Satisfaction), and a No. 1 classic was born. The song was also an example of how more sexually explicit lyrics were becoming.

The Rolling Stones were a prime example of bands that were starting to follow this pattern. Not just the Brits though. American band, the "Doors" with lead singer, Jim Morrison at the helm were considered very racy. And Morrison's onstage antics were becoming something of legend, getting him arrested at a few shows.

Besides a moral curve, America was changing fast, 'growing up' so to speak. Of course, growing pains came with this in the form of the sudden death of a young and popular president, an often violent civil rights movement, an unpopular war, and a growing distrust in the government. Bands like the Beatles and the Hollies, who had started out as youthful and kind of giggly, were now grown-up and singing about the issues of the day. The Who's smash, 'My Generation', spoke to the ever-growing gap between the younger hip generation and the old fogies, who refused to let go of their old ways. The Beatles 'Revolution', was a glaring anti-government and anti war anthem. The British invaders were beginning to branch out into different directions. The Beatles on a more self-aware, love yourself and others theme, while the Rolling Stones went their way toward a harder sound. Right at the close of the '60's, a late arrival to the invasion would appear with a hard rock and psychedelic sound that would appeal to present and future lovers of this hard driving sound. The group was Led Zeppelin. With high-noted and charismatic lead singer Robert Plant, and guitarist Jimmy Page at the helm, Led would entice and delight with sexy and off the wall lyrics and yes....that unmistakable sound that got your attention and would not let go.

So alas, the music that came to us from across the pond and the artist that brought them, delighted us, made the girls scream, changed the music, and influenced present, future, musicians and artist. Oh, and yeah, maybe corrupted us a little along the way. It came, conquered, and never left. Probably never will.

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workout music playlist free