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Thank you!! I do love my Lowden... Recorded my 2nd and 3rd albums with it and the sound is noticeably better than on my first album. This book is definitely geared more towards folk and "fingerstyle" rather than "classical." Which are you more interested in?

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic Duly noted. On the book front, since I am learning to read and already play a little (with a pick) I went ahead and bought two books - one classical and one folk. The Aaron Shearer Classic Guitar technique which is beginner level I believe + a collection of intermediate songs in notation called "Fingerstyle Guitar Songs: Hal Leonard Guitar Method Supplement". The second is likely to be a challenge but hopefully UA-cam will help with technique. Will fiddle around and see what works.

Only worry is whether The Hal Leonard will have fingerings or not.

Shucks. Just checked the displayed pages of the finger style book on Amazon and I see there are no markings for fingering. I might have bitten off more than I can chew. Any advice? Can one wing it with a little help from UA-cam.

@@accentontheoff If you are interested, spending time studying classical guitar will seriously help your "fingerstyle" playing. Learning to improve your tone, to choose the most efficient fingerings, etc. I actually have the Aaron Shearer book to see if I want to use it as a teaching aid, but haven't had the chance to go through it yet. So the only "fingerstyle" book you own is the Hal Leonard supplement? I'd really suggest getting one of the methods that I've reviewed on my channel, as that will help you to play those supplemental songs much more than browsing on UA-cam for tips! Or work with a teacher!

Thanks! My version may be a bit older so I didn't realize that there were now video demonstrations! Thanks for letting me know (along with informing anyone else watching/reading)! Do you agree with my breakdown? Anything else you think people should know about the book?

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic Yes, I completely agree with your review. I am a late beginner I guess, but I like knowing the fundamentals with great detail. The approach of this book matches exactly the way I approach everything as I tend to be perfectionist. I have spent a lot of time muting the strings to avoid opens strings when they sound too dissonant. I went back to the beginning of my classical guitar books and relearn how to play the guitar controlling note duration. I am very happy wit the result, specially controlling the bass line note duration. It is like a fingerstyle guitar "Bible", but as you said, not for everyone. I recommend the version with videos.

Thanks for commenting and your kind words! You and I are in the same boat - I do NOT have time to learn and play all that I want, so I have tried to focus my efforts and let some things go. I'm glad that my channel has helped you to spend your practice time moving in the right direction efficiently and productively! I'm contemplating the clickbait titles, but I don't expect to make a living off of UA-cam. I'm most interested in promoting fingerstyle guitar and being part of the community. We'll see what happens!

Adam! Thanks for checking it out! Some day when I get through my guitar books (and uke books too), I'd like to review some video lessons/online classes and yours will be at the top of my list! I learned so much from your videos back before we met ~2018 or 2019. Hope all is well!

Also, where was the gig with Alex?

Thanks! This book was a big project to work through, so happy to share my experience with it. Are you saying that you do or don't want my channel to put out some quick tips?

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic I’d like to watch your quick tips videos. I am 100% sure they will have great content. It’s just that click bait titles or thumbnails get more attention and higher views regardless of the quality of the content. People will love your videos if you could get their attention.

I have posted 3 "Topic Talks" (so far) in which I try to give some useful, quick advice in under 10 minutes. I'm not really drawn to creating clickbait titles because it feels so cheesy... But I do wish more people would watch, so maybe I need to compromise a little.

I see that you have one too! She's a great companion for practice and most other things!

I'm glad you are enjoying your playing and composing! Sounds like you are a naturally creative person. Many of us don't have that natural ability or inclination to create something completely new without some sort of framework. Learning music theory, other songs, technique, etc. can give us a starting point and creative direction. For instance, I don't teach scales for the sake of playing scales, but 1) so that a student learns a group of notes that create a new sound or mood (i.e. the Lydian scale creates a cool dreamy mood; the Mixolydian and major and minor blues scales create a bluesy sound) that they can use to experiment or compose, and 2) to develop finger dexterity (you need your fingers to be able to physically execute the sounds you hear in your head). If you are satisfied with your compositions and the sound of your playing, then you are probably doing what's right for you. If you want a teacher who will teach you more about composition, find one who has written compositions that you admire.

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic - Thanks a lot for your reply!. --- One who have written composition I admire.... hmmm...... Erik Satie, J.S Bach, Ravel....... yeah, you know....they are all long gone. ----- I will not say I am satisfied with my compositions and the sound I play. But from what I can, it is excellent. Things get more and more advanced as I go along. I also make my own backing tracks for practice and did already after first month. ------ I do still miss a person, that somewhat have the ability to point me in interesting directions. -------- I have already spend around $2000 USD on teachers, which have been a complete waste. ------ What I am teaching myself is technique, finger dexterity as you mention and the like. I already have a pretty good foundation in theory. --- I didn't choose the usual chords to start with, like A, D, C, G and E. ----- I went for sounds I like, Am, Dm, E, Em, C, C7, D7, A7. DMaj9 and so on, and from there listened to which chords sound good together. I quickly stopped using the usual progression as I felt them extremely boring. ---- Couple of days ago I wanted to go further with different rhythm, so stumbled on Bossa Nova. Very simple and easy and got inspiration and today I made a backing track and already done some practice using finger picking style together with it. Works wonderful. ----- Also when I play the very simple I can do atm, other people actually find it soothing and nice sounding. So it's not only me who can hear it's valid ok - good music. Nothing special but also nothing that make people cringe. ------- I still miss a teacher who would dare to take the challenge and not try to persuade me to play other peoples composition.... 🤣😂🤣 Also I am not interested in a composer as a teacher. I can already do that. ---- What I am looking for is a teacher who can basically help me speed up what I am already doing. Without having to play all these beginner pieces that are usually presented. --- so maybe a teacher who teach techniques is what I am really looking for......correct me or guide me in right direction. Also takes a teacher who can see the potential of a student. See through the layers. I guess only few such teachers exist. --------- About scales as example. I started with scales also, as that's what teachers teach. But what is the point learning scales if not able to make a melody out of the notes in a scale?!. ---- Also staying within the same key and time signature is boring. So composing from theory is pointless, unless wanting to sound like millions of others.

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic --------- I want to thank you again. Because it actually made me reflect much deeper into what I am really looking for in a teacher. ----- Your reply might have been much more valuable than it might seem at first. ----- You might actually be a blessing after all! thnx a lot! ❤🙏

Sounds like we have had a very similar musical path. It is SO satisfying to play a solo classical or fingerstyle arrangement of a tune, and Christmas tunes often work especially well.

Thanks for your comment! If you have some experience playing fingerstyle, then my book will deepen your understanding of how to approach fingerstyle tunes, interpret/modify arrangements, create your own arrangements, etc. Even just the first chapter should clear up a lot of the mystery behind playing in this style.

Chris- Thanks for bringing this to my attention! That is an embarrassing oversight. Yes, this book comes with online audio access for each of the tunes in this book.

I did live in Hawaii for a few years, so I got used to pronouncing it like the islanders! However, many people on the mainland look at me funny when I pronounce it correctly...

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic, ignorance and lack of education abound. Up here in Canuckland they look at me funny when I call fries, cheese curds, and gravy pootsin instead of pooteen (as I understand, it means whore in French)

@@KaptainCanuck lol, just keep educating people!

Thanks for your comment! Once you spend some time with the book, please update us on what you think of it.

Hey so I got the book but maybe I'm looking for a better easier finger picking book, do you recommend one of your personal books are they beginner intermediate friendly songs??

@@SK-er3yd Hey - are you a beginner fingerstyle player? Do you have any prior experience playing other guitar styles? My book, "Arranging for Fingerstyle Guitar," focuses on arranging Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, and it starts out at about a late-beginner fingerstyle level. You may want to consider Bruce Emery's "Fingerstyle Guitar from Scratch." Alfred Publishing's "Beginning Fingerstyle Guitar" is a good place to start as well.

Hey - I can't seem to share a picture through a UA-cam comment. Email me at joemcmurrayguitar@gmail.com and I will send you a picture of a couple pages. The book always provides standard notation, TAB, chord names above the music (no tiny chord diagrams), and minimal right and left hand fingering (there is more right hand fingering towards the beginning of the book).

Thanks! My Kala has a great tone, but my mic setup also helps. If you're interested, I recorded two more uke tracks on my recent album, "Pins on the Map." open.spotify.com/album/2r6FaA4RO709sKXRiTVIcf?si=eIEPT6_7TQyA-sF2IoHSvA. Check out "Homesick for Honolulu" and "Breakfast Bodega."

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic I have a subscription to Spotify. I listen to your album.

Thanks Jeremiah! It was great to see you at the Artisan Guitar Show!!

Great advice! Definitely helps for getting better tone.

Fretwire. The fret is the space of the fretboard between the fretwires. Colloquial usually = WRONG!!

Hey - in general each arrangement provides one full form of the song, although there are at least a few shorter ones (12 bar blues, etc.) that go through the form twice. A lot of these end up being 20-30 seconds in length as written. However, if you were to arrange one of your own choruses/forms, then you could play the main melody (the book's arrangement), your arrangement, and then end with the main melody again. Alternatively, you could take an improvisation chorus in the middle. Finally, you could play and sing many of these tunes (so you would extend them with the multiple verses, instrumental breaks, etc.). Hope that helps!

The Complete Chet Atkins Guitar Method is both standard notation and tablature

I'm glad they have been helpful! More in the pipeline.

Thank you! Randomly, I was just down in the Florida Keys and saw "Bensusan" on a sign on Highway 1 in Islamorada. I looked it up and it turned out that Pierre was performing at a park there, so I was able to watch and meet him last Friday evening! He is incredible at improvising in the middle of his pieces!

@@danielmontiel4561 This is great! I would recommend narrowing your short term repertoire goals - play through multiple songs and then pick one song to add to your repertoire now. You can learn the others later, but try to memorize and master one for now. I would not spend the time working on sight reading (standard notation) unless you want to play classical or jazz music or you want to play in an ensemble (or local theater?) or something like that. If you are most interested in traditional American music and blues, then you can learn that through tabs, by ear, through videos, etc. Hamburger's book is great, but check out the traditional-style tunes in the back of the Alfred book as well. Choosing a specific fingerstyle style is useful, but there is a lot of crossover - alternating bass lines (Travis style) and arpeggation are used in all types of music. You can focus in on one as a long term goal, but you don't have to shut the others out. Also, think about whether you'd like to play out, on the porch, for relaxation/meditation, etc. Then your short term goals can more specifically lead you towards those long term goals. I hope my long-winded answer helps!

Hey thanks! I'll absolutely make more videos!

Although I practice reading standard notation every day in my classical studies, for these book review video performances I honestly read from the TAB. HOWEVER, in books like this that provide both treble clef and TAB, they rarely have the rhythms notated in the TAB, so I read those rhythms from the treble clef while I'm initially learning a piece. I wish they would notate the rhythms in the TAB because it is easy to do with notation software...

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic Thanks.Good info.

Thanks for your comment! Does your 12 year old already have musical experience or training? That would make a big difference. My knee jerk reaction is that your 12 year old should take private lessons (in person, video lessons, etc.) and the teacher could help her work through one of these books. I've taught many children in that age range and they generally aren't as motivated to actually read the text and fingerings, etc. so they don't stay on course, they develop bad habits, and they lose motivation. Nobody needs lessons forever, but a period of guidance can get you moving in the right direction and make an incredible difference in the long run. However, if your 12 y/o is exceptional and wants to actually spend the time working through a book, then let me know what kind of music she wants to learn (within the umbrella of fingerstyle guitar) - does she want to play fingerstyle arrangements of modern popular music? Does she want to play fingerstyle blues, ragtime, folk, or Celtic tunes? Is she into modern percussive players like Andy McKee or Mike Dawes? Or is she drawn to classical guitar? There are different books that focus on these different sub-styles.

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic thanks for the response! I’m actually an elementary music teacher and a fingerstyle guitarist. I have taught her the ukulele and she’s pretty competent with rhythmic strumming and some basic uke fingerstyle. I’m looking for a great method book for her that I can do with her. This will be her first introduction to guitar. Everything we’ve done so far has been by ear. No written music learning.

@@churchhymnsandpsalms This book has great arrangements of popular repertoire and has some approachable examples, but it just doesn't have that many examples overall. The Alfred Beginning Fingerstyle Method has more practice examples and detailed content and is probably my favorite to teach with in general, but it may not be as appealing to a young student.

@churchhymnsandpsalms I continued thinking about this through the afternoon... Another book to consider is "Fingerstyle Guitar From Scratch" by Bruce Emery (Episode 6) - this book has a very gradual progression that might be really good for a 12 y/o. Lots and lots of practice examples that explore lots of arpeggiation/picking patterns! It's mostly focused on accompaniment, but the author also published a book called "Travis Style Guitar from Scratch" that I'm looking at purchasing as a teaching aid. Also, as a supplement, I love the solo arrangements in Michael Wood's "The Gigging Guitarist (Episode 5). The arrangements sound great and most are very playable for ~late beginners and onwards. These are all Celtic and Appalachian tunes. I haven't been through it, but the author also has a book of hymns and spirituals (from your UA-cam name, this might interest you!).

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic thank you so much! I have Wood’s hymns! They’re fantastic!

Hey thanks so much for your comment and suggestion! I just looked into the Steve Krenz book/DVDs - I need to hold off on it until I see a less expensive used set ($120 is the cheapest I can currently find). Or if the author/publisher wanted to send me one then I'd be happy to review it! For what it's worth, it looks like the Steve Krenz book/DVDs are about learning guitar in general and not specifically fingerstyle guitar.

Glad you picked this one up! Super fun book. And yes, the Travis Picking in this book will prepare you for the Piedmont Blues (Blind Blake, etc.) that also uses the same alternating bass patterns.

Thanks Anne! This book in particular has so many playing examples - mostly in the Travis (alternating bass) style. Very different and effective teaching approach as well - they teach one key signature at a time.

You're welcome - I'm glad the reviews are helpful! It gives me a great excuse to continue buying and working through so many books! If you are just starting the transition to fingerstyle from electric, I wouldn't recommend starting with this book from Mark Hanson. He has some others that are more approachable at the beginning. There are a bunch of great beginner fingerstyle method books that I've reviewed (see Reviews #1, 2, 3, 6, 15, and 16).

Thank you for the detailed review, I really appreciate it. It's hard to choose, all books seem to have some pros and cons (as always) and not all of them are easily accessible here in Austria (Europe). I'm currently torn between Alfred (#1 video) and Hal Leonard (#2 video) because they are available and according to your reviews they should be very good...although Alfred is almost twice as expensive. Some say that according to Hal Leonard most of the songs are not complete, but are just small examples. What do you think about it? Is it a problem or is this okay for practice?

@@Georg89 I like the Alfred book better for most students. Hal Leonard has some snippets and some full arrangements of famous tunes, which is really nice. The Alfred book has some great original tunes that flow with the info being presented and better overall content.

​@@JoeMcMurrayMusic Thank you for this further information. Based on this, I'm going to pick up the Alfred book (or maybe the Chet Atkins method; the examples you played from it were really nice) and maybe someday a songbook that just has full arrangements of famous songs, just for motivation.

​@@Georg89 That's a great idea. For repertoire, maybe pick up one of Hal Leonard's "Fingerpicking" series ( 100 Most Popular Songs for Fingerpicking Guitar, Fingerpicking Beatles, Fingerpicking Campfire, etc.). Other options out there for fingerstyle blues, ragtime, or Celtic repertoire.

Can't disagree with you there, Joe. I'm enjoying your reviews!@@JoeMcMurrayMusic

Thank you! Let me know if you have any recordings of yourself and I'll check them out!

Re-wiving?! lol, you're welcome! These are really fun folk, blues, rag tunes to play!

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic lol I meant reviewing 😂. Yeah this one will be with me at due time (making progress with Alfred at the moment)

@@danielmontiel4561 You'll get a lot out of those two books!

Hey thanks! What are you currently working on musically?

Thanks so much for the kind words! Let me know if there are any books that you'd like for me to review in the future. Good luck with everything!

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic 😆yeah I have been playing for about 15 yrs. I play mostly at church . I'm getting into finger style because I think (and I'm seeing) that it's fundamental for my growth as a guitarist. I can relate to what you said. I rarely want to play anything but finger style theses days . 😆

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic not right now… I’m already surrounded by books that I’m working on. :)

@@JoeMcMurrayMusic it’s all fun and games until you have to move.

Thanks so much for watching and commenting! I love that these reviews give me an excuse to keep buying more books... Let me know if you ever have more questions/direction.

Hey - thanks for the listening recommendation! I just pulled Marcel Dadi up on Spotify and I love his playing! Will listen through his catalog.

Thanks so much! Hope you had a great holiday season as well!