Beyond Basics: Acoustic Blues Guitar, Book & CD

Great book. I have been playing for a couple of years and found that I really like acoustic blues e.g., Robert Johnson, etc. I would look at the sheet music on these guys and not have a clue as to where to start. This book allowed me to at least get some pleasant sounds out of my box and progress past simple strumming. I picked up this book and learned some of the basics and cliches that are always used in blues. I have another of Wyatt's books and also find it a good start. I have gone back to this book now that I have studied more music theory and that has made it easier to understand without simply memorizing the excercises. Now that I have a better understanding of the theory I am getting as much out of the book as I did the first couple of times-so you can grow with it. By the way, you can use a lot of the excercises on electric as well.

I have been trying to learn Blues guitar for about six months. During that time, I have bought a lot of books and DVDs and been disappointed with most of them. Most instructors would rather perform for you than teach. A lot of what they choose to teach is closer to Ragtime than Blues. And they have been playing so long, they have forgotten what is easy and what is hard for a beginner.Keith Wyatt is the opposite. He doesn't waste any time, teaches the good stuff, and tells you in advance what will probably be a tricky chord to play. The book is well structured and progresses nicely. So glad I finally found this teacher. Don't know why it's called "Beyond Basics." It's the perfect beginner book.

My guitar teacher recommended this book to me. I bought it and promptly left it on my bookshelf for several months. Recently, I picked it up since I was preparing for a guitar camp and wanted to sing a simple blues song in E major. I thought maybe I'd get a few strumming ideas to spice up my playing. Holy Moly, this book. So many ideas. I've always hating my first position strumming because it's so boring and always the same pattern, but this book gave wonderful ideas how to spice it up in first position. Who knew. Thank you, Keith Wyatt!

If you already know how to play the guitar, then this book is for you if you want to learn The Blues. Although traditionalist would argue you can't learn the blues, you have to feel it, both the author and I would beg to differ. This book will definitely help you learn the blues. The only thing it does not do well is teach you how to play triplets well. It assumes this knowledge as well as your having experience with it. The good thing is that you can quickly go to guitarjamz.com, Marty Schwartz's, site and he will square you away.

This is a OK book although its a little difficult to follow at times. It's like a lot of instructional books, I doubt its understandability was tested by giving it to a couple dozen new struggling guitarists to try out, and then take note in gaps in logic and instructional gaps etc. That would have helped in this case. If you know a topic really well, sometimes its hard to imagine how someone would not understand your explanation. Still its got a lot of good stuff. This particular incarnation has the audio cd which at times is not that great a help. I would buy the version with the DVD.

Keith Wyatt does a nice job on this book. My only suggestion is to not talk over the music as it is played. Less is better when it comes to explanation!

I would not recommend this product for someone just learning guitar, but if you already have the basics and want to learn a different style, this is just excellent. In no time, you will have the basic rhythm and feel for the blues. The accompanying CD helps you get the beat and feel of the blues. I recommend it.

I'm not a musician, I like to play acoustic guitar, concentrating on songs that I love, such as blues, rock, rock moderate etc.

This is the second time I have purchased this book. As I am rediscovering the acoustic guitar, this book has a lot of information in it and exercises that can be challenging at times. Not sure what happened to my original copy but I am glad to be studying with Keith again.

This is the best blues book you can get. I have bought a few and this one is my favourite one yet. I recommend it to everyone learning the blues.

Für Blues Anfänger bestens geeignet. Sehr gut erklärt. Schöne Beispiele.

There's some pretty authentic sounding material in this book. Keith's a great teacher as well as a great player. There's nothing too difficult which is great because it allows you to focus your energy on other aspects such a feel and time. An added bonus of this material is that it sounds just as good when played on an electric guitar, just like when the original bluesmen moved from the Delta to Chicago and began playing they're acoustic blues on the electrics guitars that came out on the 50s. Cool stuff.

Excellent book and CD