Hooked on songbooks!

[ShortBuSX]

Yeah, I think Im addicted...Ive bought about 5 songbooks in the last month!(3 in the last week)


Black Sabbath - We Sold Our Soul...
Led Zeppelin - I
Led Zeppelin - II
Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
The Police - Signature Licks


I just got the Police book, but Im diggin it already! Very informative(gear and sound) as well as having all the tabs...it even comes with a CD(havent listened to yet).

Of all the above mentioned books, Ive known a good majority of the songs already...mostly pieces of whatever tabs I could find on the net...but Im really just tired of learning songs the wrong way...or worse yet trying to learn a song with the wrong tabs and just not being able to hear how they came to what theyve transcribed. Realize I am grateful for the tabs Ive found, theyve helped me get to where Im at, but Im trying to learn whole songs.

BTW my buddies bash me for being dependent on tabs, but I dont have an ear like they do AND I focus alot of my time on technical stuff that most of them dont get by just "feel" or by ear.

Anyways...Im kinda rambling...Im at work and gotta go........

[R_of_G]

I know that addiction. Prob should have just gotten the Zep book I did with the first 6 albums in it. That is a frequent point of reference for me. My Beatles songbook is practically falling to shreds from overuse, and my Radiohead songbooks [partic. OK Computer] are headed down the same path. You're def right Shortbus, they are very addictive. Maybe it's something about learning how to play something correctly.

[ShortBuSX]

Prob should have just gotten the Zep book I did with the first 6 albums in it. That is a frequent point of reference for me. My Beatles songbook is practically falling to shreds from overuse

I think Ive got that Beatles book, is it white? I wanna call it the "Complete" or "Anthology" book that Ive got, its white with a box to help prevent it from falling apart, but its soooo huge and heavy it will eventually Im almost certain.

Im kinda diggin the individual Zeppelin books...less cumbersome and less overwelming as compaired to that Beatles book. But if I had the option at the time I might have gone the same route you did.

Also, something I wanted to mention earlier...I think its all the recent "Guitar Hero"(s) that have inspired me to wanna learn more. It drives me nuts to go over somebody's house who has that video game "Guitar Hero"...they play it for hours, bragging and boasting about the song or level theyve played...and I just wanna bang my head against a wall(and not in a good way). Id like to knock some sense into some of these "Heros" and give them a real guitar!

So for me, these books have become my "video games"...I buy a book, maybe I'll learn every song, maybe I'll put it down and come back to it...but its nice to have reference materials! AND something thats constructive and rewarding to do with my time. Who cares if our "gaming systems" cost more than thiers...our "games" are cheaper!(and our "systems" have better resale value!)

[Tone2TheBone]

I've always wanted to know how accurate the chords are in these books for say something like..."The Rain Song". Are they true to what Jimmy really plays? My only recollection of checking out song books was that they were written out in generic terms using traditional barre chords in recognizable keys that those songs weren't recorded in. Is this still true today or are they accurate?

[ShortBuSX]

I've always wanted to know how accurate the chords are in these books for say something like..."The Rain Song". Are they true to what Jimmy really plays? My only recollection of checking out song books was that they were written out in generic terms using traditional barre chords in recognizable keys that those songs weren't recorded in. Is this still true today or are they accurate?

I LOVE the open tuning version of the Rain Song!!! It plays very accurately...except there are ghost notes that are transcribed that I just dont hear(like the very first 2 chords are shown strummed repeatedly instead of just once, for example).

BUT the open tuning version of "In My Time Of Dying" doesnt sound true to me...standard tuning sounds more on par...Im thinking maybe the solo is the only part in open tunning.

[R_of_G]

... BUT the open tuning version of "In My Time Of Dying" doesnt sound true to me...standard tuning sounds more on par...Im thinking maybe the solo is the only part in open tunning.

I have found the same thing to be true. I can play it the open way, but in regular tuning it sounds much more like the recorded version. The solo seems to work fine in open tuning, but then again it works fine in regular tuning to. All that said, the open tuning makes for a nice version of the song to play with and make your own, while the standard tuning version is a great one to play if you want to play it and sound like Page.

[Tone2TheBone]

Interesting replies guys thanks. I agree with what you said about making the song your own R_of_G. If you've got a reference source that's close to what you're hearing and having an ear for what it really sounds like then the combination would be a good thing all around.

[sunvalleylaw]

Interesting replies guys thanks. I agree with what you said about making the song your own R_of_G. If you've got a reference source that's close to what you're hearing and having an ear for what it really sounds like then the combination would be a good thing all around.

That was what I was hoping I would be able to do with the two more major books I have, "Harvest" by good old Neil, and "Abbey Road". Some other books I looked at were not even close to what was being played. "Harvest" seems pretty close, though I know from watching YouTube, that Neil likes to mix it up some. I looked at "Abbey Road" after I bought it and it was above me at the time, and haven't got back into it yet. My iPod is a great tool, in combination with my little headphone amp with the jack, and I hope my ear will develop so I can use reference tools like this to get there.

I have seen some books marked as "performance" editions or something similar indicating that the music included is supposed to be true to as performed. Has anyone come to a conclusion about that, or what publishers tend to do a good job of it?

[Tone2TheBone]

That's a good point Steve - in line with what I had asked aboot. +1

[R_of_G]

I too use my iPod as a rehearsal tool. The best way to learn an existing song is to play it along with the recording, over and over and over.

[sunvalleylaw]

I too use my iPod as a rehearsal tool. The best way to learn an existing song is to play it along with the recording, over and over and over.

Exactly. I can either input from my iPod into my looper, or just hook it up to my headphone amp and play along and hear what I am doing. Since I have only been playing a year, I try to figure out the fingering first, then just play it slowly, then once I am confident there, try to play along. The advantage of the looper is I can slow it down.

But I like a good book to figure out the notes, fingering, etc. My ear is not yet nearly trained enough to listen and just hop in.

[Tone2TheBone]

That's the way we used to do it in the "old days" ;) cept it was was cassettes and you'd have to play stop rewind stop play....play stop rewind stop play. It got pretty loud. MP3 players are a definate answer to prayer. :DR

[sunvalleylaw]

That's the way we used to do it in the "old days" ;) cept it was was cassettes and you'd have to play stop rewind stop play....play stop rewind stop play. It got pretty loud. MP3 players are a definate answer to prayer. :DR


Yep, the input on the Boss 80s era headphone amp Spud shared with me is labeled "cassette player" or some such. Good thing the jacks are the same for iPods! :)

[Tone2TheBone]

Now if I could just turn the little wheel back in rewind mode with my toe while I learned a lick then everything would be cool. :)

[sunvalleylaw]

I know that addiction. Prob should have just gotten the Zep book I did with the first 6 albums in it. That is a frequent point of reference for me. My Beatles songbook is practically falling to shreds from overuse, and my Radiohead songbooks [partic. OK Computer] are headed down the same path. You're def right Shortbus, they are very addictive. Maybe it's something about learning how to play something correctly.

Talking about the Beatles on the favorite solos thread reminded me to ask you what is your Beatles songbook called. I want to pick up a good comprehensive one. I have Abbey Road, but want to broaden my Beatles stuff. I know I can find tabs, but I also like good books!

[R_of_G]

Talking about the Beatles on the favorite solos thread reminded me to ask you what is your Beatles songbook called. I want to pick up a good comprehensive one. I have Abbey Road, but want to broaden my Beatles stuff. I know I can find tabs, but I also like good books!

It is called The Concise Beatles Complete and contains every song they released on record. Tabs are nice, but I too prefer books of notation [though I can't read music well] I can still read chord changes and tempo stuff.

I'm a big Beatles' fan btw. I favor 59-62 and particularly post 65 til the end, and am a huge fan of much of George's solo work as well as some of John's. Paul wasa great songwriter, singer, and specifically a phenomenal bass player, but his solo career I can take or leave, and Ringo, well, Ringo was a competent drummer for their music [though paul didn't think so towards the end, doing some of the drumming himself].

[ShortBuSX]

Talking about the Beatles on the favorite solos thread reminded me to ask you what is your Beatles songbook called. I want to pick up a good comprehensive one. I have Abbey Road, but want to broaden my Beatles stuff. I know I can find tabs, but I also like good books!

This (http://www.musicforte.com/shop/view_product_detail.php?product_id=673228) is the one Ive got. Its got guitar and bass tabs along with just about every other instrument as well...and EVERY song.

[sunvalleylaw]

. . . . Wow! . . . My local music shop is supposed to be getting a pretty complete one in soon. Maybe the one R_of_G has. I am going to wait and try to buy from him.

[pes_laul]

i just got the beatles for acuostic guitar and system of a down toxicity and at that i rely on guitar player mag;)